The Yankees are going through it.
After being shut out for a second straight game and the fourth time in their past nine games, the dominant -- and pacing to be historic -- Bronx Bombers are far from the glory days of May and June.
Manager Aaron Boone was not shy about why his club has filled up the occupancy on the struggle bus during the dog days of summer.
“We just got to get some guys on track offensively right now and get guys who should be key contributors, contributing right now,” said the Yankees skipper. “I think a couple of individuals are struggling with their confidence right now.”
One of those individuals, Boone signaled, is center fielder Aaron Hicks.
Hicks misplayed a fly ball in center field which lead to a run, struck out with a runner in scoring position, and weakly tapped one back to the pitcher for a 1-2-3 inning ending double play with the bases loaded, all in a timeframe of two innings in one singular game on Monday night against the Tampa Bay Rays.
“Extremely frustrating,” said Hicks. “Just overall extremely embarrassing actually. Even if I’m not hitting I want my defense to be on point and I messed up out there as well.”
The 32-year-old, at one point, appeared to be building momentum after a nice stretch during July where he posted a .895 OPS for the month. However, overall, this has not been the season Hicks would have liked to see. His overall numbers are down to .218/.339/.305 with just six homers and 32 RBI.
“It’s going to be gut-check time,” said Boone. “It’s going to be difficult at different points of the season. You’ve got to find a way to level through that. There’s a few individuals that are probably wearing it right now with the way we’ve struggled.
“The underlying confidence is there, we very much have everyone in there capable of turning it around. We’re going to recover.”
Fortunately for the Bombers, the second-place Toronto Blue Jays have gained virtually no ground on them during this recent stretch as the struggle bus appears to have another direct line to the Rogers Centre in Canada.
However, the Yankees welcome the Blue Jays to the Bronx on Thursday for a weekend four-game set. If Boone’s club hasn’t gotten the ball rolling by then, that comfortable 10-game lead could diminish in a hurry.