In the words of a former Yankee manager: It's not what you want.
The Yankees' four-game set vs. the Astros this weekend was considered by many a test to see how legit the Bombers are this season. They didn't exactly pass with flying colors.
Between Friday night and Sunday afternoon, the Yankees were held hitless by the Astros for 16 1/3 consecutive innings: Their last hit came with no outs in the eighth inning Friday off the bat of DJ LeMahieu. Their next hit wouldn't come until one out in the seventh inning of Sunday's matchup.
Not only is that bad, it's historically bad. The streak tied the record for longest in MLB since 1961. The 1973 A's and 1981 Dodgers posted 16 consecutive hitless innings, the longest in the expansion era (per the Elias Sports Bureau):
The Yankees have now been held hitless in 16 consecutive innings
— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) June 26, 2022
That's tied for the longest such streak in at least the expansion era (since 1961), with:
1981 Dodgers -- vs Astros
1973 A's -- vs Rangers & Twins
h/t @EliasSports
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Giancarlo Stanton broke the streak and ended Jose Urquidy's no-hit bid, launching a home run to center field to cut Houston's lead to 3-1. LeMahieu would tie the game in the eighth with a two-run shot.
Coincidentally, Saturday's game wasn't the first time the Yankees were no-hit by the Astros. The last time the Bombers were held hitless was in 2003, when Houston used six pitchers to throw a no-no in New York. Roy Oswalt was the starter in that game.
The weekend's four-game set was a potential preview of this year's ALCS as the Yankees and Astros pace the junior circuit.
Typically, the Yankees' offense is very good. For a few games, though, it was not.
