MIAMI — Well, that did not go as planned. When the Yankees held a 9–4 lead on Friday night heading into the later innings with their newly restructured bullpen ready to go, a series sweep by the Miami Marlins seemed out of the question. But three games later, that’s exactly where things stand — a bitter and unexpected sweep at the hands of a struggling team, and another blow to a Yankees squad already under heavy scrutiny.

Friday’s collapse set the tone. The Yankees blew a five-run lead late, and since that crushing loss, they’ve played with all the energy of someone halfway through a bottle of melatonin — a fitting reference after manager Aaron Boone recently used the sleep aid as a metaphor in his postgame comments. Unfortunately for the Yankees, their offense has taken that suggestion literally.

Saturday’s performance was lifeless. The team managed just two hits in a 2–0 loss, wasting a solid pitching effort in a game that was certainly winnable. The bats were quiet, the approach was passive, and the Marlins took full advantage.

Sunday wasn’t much different. Trent Grisham led off the game with a solo homer — a promising sign — but the offense once again disappeared. Edward Cabrera, who entered the day with command issues and inconsistencies, mowed through the Yankees lineup with ease, holding them in check after that first-inning mistake.

On the mound, Luis Gil struggled mightily. The right-hander couldn’t find the strike zone, walking four batters in just 3.1 innings and surrendering five earned runs. His fastball command was erratic, and he managed just three strikeouts while constantly pitching behind in counts.

Brent Headrick was the first man out of the bullpen and initially looked sharp — continuing what had been a strong stretch of relief work for him. But with two on and two out, he left a pitch up to Kyle Stowers, who launched a three-run homer to blow the game open. It was Stowers’ first home run off a lefty in his big league career, another example of the Yankees’ unfortunate trend of turning struggling opponents into headline-makers.

Jazz Chisholm Jr. would homer later in the game to cut the dificite and put the Yankees that much closer, but the damage was too much to overcome. Also in that inning, Anthony Volpe hit a triple down the right-field line with two outs and Austin Wells was coming up — who is five for his last 45 — and Boone decided not to pinch-hit for Wells. If you pinch-hit for Dominguez — who has been hitting lefties much better since June — then why not put Rosario in to pinch hit for Wells?

JT Brubaker and Brent Headrick pitching multiple innings helped out the bullpen, saving the high-leverage relievers for the series against the Rangers this week.

In all, it was a disastrous weekend for the Yankees. On Saturday, they fell out of second place in the AL East with Boston winning. Well, Boston won again today, putting the Yankees further back in the AL East. he question now is no longer “can they win the division?” It’s now “Can they make the postseason?”, because getting to October is seriously in jeopardy. The team now finds itself in urgent need of a spark — or at the very least, a wake-up call.

(Top Image Credit: YES Network)