The New York Yankees didn’t just get beaten on Monday night, they got muted. Minnesota’s Simeon Woods Richardson carved them up for six scoreless innings and a career-high 11 strikeouts, while New York’s offense managed only two hits in a 7–0 loss that pushed them five games behind the Blue Jays and tightened the wild-card race. Carlos Rodón did his job, grinding through six frames and leaving a winnable 2–0 game. Then the seventh inning arrived, and Luke Weaver wore it. Five earned. Game over.
Afterward, Weaver didn’t sugarcoat a thing. “Yeah, that was trash,” he told reporters—an unvarnished self-assessment in a season that’s asked him to toggle between closer, setup, and fireman, often on fumes.
Rodón’s Verdict: “Good Fastball”
Rodón, the starter of record, had the clearest perspective of all. Asked about Weaver’s blowup, he offered two words that doubled as both scouting report and vote of confidence: “Good fastball.” He didn’t stop there. “The stuff is there. Good life. Profile is good, changeup is good. Cutter is good… Next time he goes out there, he puts up a zero.” That’s not empty rah-rah; it’s a veteran starter identifying why the Yankees still believe Weaver’s pitch mix plays when the delivery syncs.
The bigger question is whether belief can outrun results. Weaver’s line on the night—five runs in one-third of an inning—was brutal, and it’s part of a broader post-injury slide. Since returning from a hamstring strain on June 20, he’s carried an ERA north of six, a jarring turn after he posted a 1.05 mark in his first 24 games. The Yankees’ bullpen issues aren’t isolated to one arm, either; since the All-Star break, their relievers have posted one of MLB’s worst ERAs, a tough reality for a contender trying to land the plane.
A Loss That Exposed September Stress Points
This defeat wasn’t just about one meltdown. Minnesota broke it open with a parade of hard contact—doubles from Trevor Larnach and Brooks Lee, and a bases-clearing shot from Austin Martin—after Rodón exited. The Twins’ seventh-inning ambush emphasized how thin the Yankees’ margin has become when the offense goes quiet and the bridge to the ninth springs leaks.
Rodón’s endorsement of Weaver matters inside the room. Starters see the ball best from the dugout steps; they also live the grind of sequencing, tunneling, and mechanical feel. When Rodón says “good fastball,” he’s pointing to shape and ride—traits that don’t vanish because of a bad night. And Weaver’s accountability, labeling the outing “trash,” citing mechanical misalignment, tracks with what the eye test suggested: timing off, body fighting itself, command a half-tick late. Those are fixable more often than fatal.
That’s the bet the Yankees have to make with fewer than two weeks to play: trust the stuff, clean up the delivery, and survive the soft spots until October resets everyone’s ERA to 0.00. Monday’s dud also masked one encouraging thread: Rodón lookeplayoff-readydy. He limited damage, missed barrels, and kept the game in hand long enough for a lineup that never arrived. If he holds that level and the offense regains its thump, New York can still play the front-run script they wrote all summer.
The Twins recorded their first shutout over the Yankees in 17 years. A stat that lands like a siren in the Bronx. But seasons never hinge on one seventh inning. If Rodón’s read is right and Weaver’s fastball life returns with cleaner mechanics, that “trash” night becomes a footnote. The Yankees don’t need perfection from their bridge; they need zeroes in the right pockets. Starting tonight, those pockets have to arrive.
Yankees Starter Sends Clear Message to Reliever After Twins Meltdown