The Yankees are bringing back the old narrative that they can’t hit pitchers they have never seen before. Austin Bibens-Dirkx is a 32-year-old rookie long reliever, and he managed to shut the Yankees down at home over seven innings this afternoon. This would be far more embarrassing if the team hadn’t just gone on a long losing streak, so this feels normal, even though it shouldn’t.
While Bibens-Dirkx was busy keeping the Yankees lineup off balance, Luis Cessa couldn’t exactly keep up. In the first inning, Delino DeShields walked and stole second.