NEW YORK -- Keep that champagne on ice for another day. The New York Yankees' celebration of their return to the playoffs for the first time since 2012 will have to wait another day.
On a night in which they got cooperation from two of their rivals -- the Los Angeles Angels and Minnesota Twins both lost Tuesday -- the Yankees could not keep up their end of the bargain, losing to the Boston Red Sox for a third straight night 9-5 in 11 innings at Yankee Stadium.
This one was both disturbing and frustrating. Masahiro Tanaka, their first choice to pitch the wild-card play-in game next Tuesday, was hit hard, putting his team in a 3-0 first-inning hole. Offensively, the Yankees got 11 walks from the Red Sox pitching staff, but could only get one of the free baserunners home. Didi Gregorius was the worst culprit, stranding 10 runners in five hitless at-bats, and Brett Gardner and Carlos Beltran stranded four each.
Eleventh implosion: The Red Sox put up four runs in the 11th inning, one on an RBI single by Deven Marrero (off Andrew Bailey), another on a sacrifice bunt by Jackie Bradley Jr. (off Chasen Shreve) that scored a runner from third, and two more on Mookie Betts's second home run of the game (also off Shreve). It was a merciful end to a game that had become long (4 hours, 10 minutes), dreary (less than 5,000 in the stands) and c-c-c-cold (a blustery 50 degrees by last pitch).
Long walk to nowhere: The Yankees got four walks in the eighth inning -- and failed to score. Jacoby Ellsbury got picked off to erase one of them, and groundouts by Carlos Beltran and PH Brett Gardner stranded the bases loaded to keep the game tied at 5-5.
Managerial hijinks: Manager Joe Girardi's maneuvering in the seventh inning cost the Yankees two of their more dangerous left-handed bats: Brian McCann, who walked and was replaced by pinch-runner Rico Noel, and Greg Bird, who was hit for by John Ryan Murphy in a lefty-righty switch. Noel stole second and got to third on a fly out, but was stranded when Murphy struck out and Didi Gregorius flied out. And oh yeah, it meant Brendan Ryan had to play first base for the last two innings.
Not how they drew it up: After Justin Wilson pitched 1⅓ innings of one-hit ball, facing four lefties out of six batters, Girardi brought in Dellin Betances, who has been struggling with command lately, to face righty Mookie Betts. And on Betances' third pitch, a 96-mph fastball over the middle of the plate, Betts hit a solo HR over the left-center-field fence that tied the game at 5-5.
Ram Rod: The Yankees took a 5-4 lead on Alex Rodriguez' 33rd home run, a solo shot into the left-field seats on a 2-1 pitch with two out in the sixth, his first home run since Sept. 15. It was also A-Rod's 1,065th RBI as a Yankee, tying Jorge Posada for 11th on the club's all-time list.
Taking the fifth: The Yankees rallied to tie the game with three runs in the fifth inning on a leadoff double by Jacoby Ellsbury, an RBI ground-rule double by Carlos Beltran, a groundout by Brian McCann and a single by Chris Young off the glove of third baseman Deven Marrero. And it could have been more, after Bosox starter Wade Miley walked Greg Bird and Rob Refsnyder to load the bases with two out. But Didi Gregorius jumped on the first pitch and flied to left to end the inning.
Don't mess with Lightning Rod: Rodriguez (walk) scored the Yankees' third run on McCann's groundout, and even though the ball was hit hard, BoSox first baseman Travis Shaw didn't even try firing home against the speed of A-Rod, who is 4-for-4 in stolen base attempts this season.
Rough start: Tanaka struggled with his command in the first inning, allowing three two-out runs on a walk, a base hit and a long home run to right by Travis Shaw on a 3-2 splitter that did virtually nothing on its way to home plate. After a visit from pitching coach Larry Rothschild, Tanaka then surrendered a ground-rule double to Brock Holt before finally getting a groundout to end the inning after 36 pitches.
Robbed: The Yankees got one run back in the bottom of the second on Rob Refsyder's RBI double, but were robbed of a chance to get a second when Refsnyder's drive to right bounced into the stands, forcing Greg Bird (walk) to stop at third. Didi Gregoriusa then grounded out to end the inning and strand the runners at second and third.
Tomorrow: The final home game of the regular season sends CC Sabathia (5-10, 4.82) out against LHP Rich Hill (2-0, 1.17), first pitch at 7:05 p.m. ET.