On the same day the Yankees traded away an important member of their rotation, another who is sticking around created more cause for concern.
With Jordan Montgomery on his way to St. Louis — to be replaced by Frankie Montas — Jameson Taillon struggled again for the Yankees in an 8-6 loss to the Mariners on Tuesday night at the Stadium.
Still, the Yankees did enough to have a chance in the bottom of the ninth, when Aaron Judge came up with DJ LeMahieu at first and two out.
Judge, with five homers in his previous five games and chants of “MVP” ringing through The Bronx, was walked by Andres Muñoz. It was Judge’s third free pass of the game.
Anthony Rizzo, who’d already homered for a fourth straight game, then walked on four pitches to load the bases and bring up pinch-hitter Gleyber Torres.
Torres struck out to end it.
Despite scoring six runs or more for a fifth straight game — and getting three more homers — the offense couldn’t get Taillon and the bullpen off the hook. Aaron Hicks grounded into an inning-ending double play after the Yankees had tied the game with three runs in the sixth.
And Lucas Luetge gave up a two-run double to Carlos Santana after replacing Taillon in the fifth and then a go-ahead homer to Sam Haggerty in the seventh.
Taillon had little command for the second time in three starts, walking a season-high four in just 4 ²/₃ innings. He now has pitched poorly in eight of his last 11 starts, with his ERA jumping from 2.30 to 3.96 in that span.
He was hit hard early, giving up a two-run homer to Eugenio Suarez with one out in the top of the first.
A solo homer by Cam Raleigh in the second put the Yankees in a 3-0 hole.
The Mariners added to their lead in the fourth, when Adam Frazier led off with a walk and stole second. He moved to third on a Suarez grounder to third as Josh Donaldson sailed his throw to first base, which allowing Suarez to reach on the error.
Santana followed with a sacrifice fly to make it 4-0.
The Yankees’ offense came alive in the fourth.
Rizzo walked and, after Matt Carpenter flied out, the slumping Donaldson doubled down the left field line, scoring Rizzo all the way from first.
After Andrew Benintendi whiffed, Jose Trevino homered to left. The catcher’s third home run in two nights got the Yankees within a run.
But Taillon couldn’t make it through the fifth. He walked Frazier with one out and then walked Suarez with two outs, which ended his night.
Luetge came on to face Santana, who drilled a two-run double to left.
Rizzo got it back to a two-run game when he hit his 27th homer of the season to start the bottom of the sixth.
Matt Carpenter singled and then Donaldson tied the score with a homer into the Yankees’ bullpen in right-center.
It was Donaldson’s first home run since July 8, when he’d gone deep for a third straight game.
The Yankees had a chance to take the lead later in the inning when Trevino greeted Penn Murfee with a double to right-center and Isiah Kiner-Falefa reached on an infield hit to put runners on the corners for Hicks.
But, batting ninth in the order and in an 0-for-20 skid by the sixth, Hicks’ slump worsened when he grounded into his second double play of the game. He was booed loudly after a ninth-inning strikeout.
Luetge then gave up a leadoff homer to Haggerty, pinch-hitting for former Mets prospect Jarred Kelenic, in the seventh.
The Yankees threatened in the eighth, with Carpenter walking to lead off and pinch-runner Tim Locastro moving to second and third on a pair of wild pitches from Matt Brash with two out and Trevino at the plate.
But Trevino struck out looking.
Albert Abreu allowed a run in the ninth to put the Yankees down by two runs again.
The Yankees couldn’t score off five Seattle relievers in 3 ²/₃ innings.