Joe Ryan allowed three hits in seven scoreless innings as the Minnesota Twins beat the skidding New York Yankees 6-1 on Sunday, snapping the Twins’ road losing streak at Yankee Stadium since 2014. The victory pushed the Yankees to a ninth loss in 10 games.
NEW YORK — Joe Ryan took the mound at Yankee Stadium and never let the Yankees get comfortable. Seven scoreless innings, three hits scattered across the lineup, and nine strikeouts later, the Minnesota Twins left with a 6-1 win and a series victory they hadn’t managed in New York since 2014.
For New York, it was another painful afternoon. The loss was the Yankees’ ninth defeat in 10 games, a skid that has turned routine moments into crises. Ryan walked one batter and tied his season high with nine strikeouts, keeping the pressure on every swing.
The Twins’ offense provided space to breathe after the first part of the series lingered in silence. They outscored the Yankees 17-5 in the final two games after going 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position on Friday.
Minnesota added to the separation in the middle innings. Brooks Lee finished with three hits, including an RBI single in the fourth inning after Ryan Weathers (3-7) threw a wild pitch. In the fifth, Royce Lewis delivered a two-run single off Paul Blackburn.
Defensive mistakes and unearned runs kept coming. The Twins scored two unearned runs off Camilo Doval after an error by Volpe at shortstop. Volpe’s miscue added to a growing pattern of slippage: it was New York’s 20th error in the last 15 games.
The innings that followed felt like they were building on each other. With bases loaded, Austin Martin drew a walk, and Kody Clemens added a sacrifice fly. The Yankees also carried a troubling streak beyond this game; they have allowed 29 unearned runs in their last 15 games.
There were personal moments layered in with the scoreboard. Byron Buxton left the game after re-aggravating a previous hip injury as he was caught stealing second in the first inning. Jazz Chisholm Jr. also left due to a right toe injury.
Even when New York did manage to string things together, it often ended without the kind of payoff that changes a game. Trent Grisham doubled and scored on a double-play grounder by Jasson Domínguez, and the Yankees didn’t get a runner to third base until that point.
Josh Bell got New York on the board early with an RBI single in the first inning, after homering in consecutive at-bats in Saturday’s 11-4 win.
On the pitching side, Weathers’ day didn’t last long. He allowed four runs and six hits in four-plus innings.
Between the Royals-like speed of Minnesota’s scoring in the later games and New York’s compounding errors, the difference in this series has been hard to miss. The Yankees’ defense has cost them repeatedly, and the runs that arrive as unearned ones tend to feel even harder to erase.
Up next, Minnesota will turn to Taj Bradley (7-3, 3.86 ERA) on Tuesday against Cleveland LHP Joey Cantillo (7-3, 3.86) in the opener of a three-game series in Minnesota.
New York will begin a stretch on the road, with Cam Schlittler (8-5, 2.08) opening a four-game series at Tampa Bay on Monday.
Joe Ryan Minnesota Twins New York Yankees Yankee Stadium 6-1 nine strikeouts hip injury Volpe error unearned runs