MIAMI — Minutes after Thursday’s 6 p.m. trade deadline, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman expressed satisfaction with what he and his front office accomplished with the seven new additions brought to the Bronx (four of them on Thursday, three in the days before that).
“I know we’re better today than we were yesterday, so mission accomplished there,” Cashman said.
Not quite yet.
Here are three takeaways after the Yankees were swept by Miami for the first time in Marlins history:
1. Nothing is ever automatic
On paper, the Yankees immensely improved their bullpen with the acquisitions of Jake Bird, David Bednar and Camilo Doval. But that trio — all of whom made their Yankees debuts on Friday night — combined to allow nine runs and nine hits in 2 1/3 innings in the Yankees’ 13-12 loss to the Marlins.
It was a game in which the Yankees held leads of 6-0, 9-4 and 12-10. Jose Caballero, one of the four additions from Thursday, butchered a ball in the bottom of the ninth in rightfield, contributing to the walk-off defeat.
A three-game series, let alone one game, is far too small of a sample size to draw conclusions of any kind, but as Reggie Jackson used to say, “the pinstripes are heavy.” And every new player has a question mark next to him about how he can handle that pressure.
2. The Yankees need Austin Wells to start hitting
Other than a spurt here or there, Wells hasn’t produced at the plate this season, and the clock is ticking. Drafted as an offense-first catcher in 2020, he turned himself into a decent receiver, and at times a good one. But after going 1-for-5 this series (he did not play in Saturday’s game), Wells is hitting .209 with a .687 OPS.
He does have 16 homers, but his on-base percentage is .268, not nearly good enough for someone who manager Aaron Boone has said excels at grinding out at-bats. Wells, in a 3-for-35 slide, has been an easy out way too often this season.
3. Here come the Rangers
The Yankees are in second place in the bunched-up AL wild-card standings, 1 1/2 games behind the Red Sox. But they also have to contend with the hard-charging Mariners and Rangers. Seattle is a half-game behind the Yankees and holds the final wild-card spot. Texas is 2 1/2 games back.
The Yankees will begin a three-game series on Monday night in Arlington, Texas, against a Rangers team that is far different from the one they swept May 20-22 at the Stadium.
The Rangers, among the early-season disappointments, went 16-8 in July, which turned them into buyers at the trade deadline. And they bought.
They added Arizona’s Merrill Kelly to a rotation that, at the deadline, had an MLB-best 3.16 ERA. Texas, already with a bullpen boasting an AL-best 3.30 ERA at the deadline, acquired Phil Maton from the Cardinals and Danny Coulombe, whom the Yankees had heavily scouted, from the Twins.
An offense that was almost completely shut down the last two games in Miami now has to go up against that formidable Rangers staff.
On the surface . . . it figures to be another long series.
Erik Boland started in Newsday’s sports department in 2002. He covered high school and college sports, then shifted to the Jets beat. He has covered the Yankees since 2009.