7 things we learned from Yankees-Red Sox series

It’s dangerous to draw too many conclusions from one series, but here are seven important takeaways from last weekend’s Yankees-Red Sox encounter.

This past weekend’s series between the Yankees and Red Sox lacked a lot of drama. The Yankees won the series by blowing Boston out in the first and third games, while the Red Sox trounced New York in Game 2. Despite the lack of a competitive game, we were still able to learn a lot about both teams in the span of one weekend.

There’s still plenty of time for both teams to change dramatically before October, but identifying trends at this point in the season is important. There’s no other way for each team’s front office to understand what they need to address via the trade market. Our first takeaway is an overdue conclusion about one of the Yankees’ starting pitchers.

7. Sonny Gray is a lost cause

The Yankees have done everything in their power to help Gray succeed. Aaron Boone has repeatedly backed him in the media and the team even game him his own personal catcher in the form of Austin Romine. Unfortunately, nothing is working.

The Red Sox knocked him around viciously in Game 2 of the series. He gave up six earned runs in just 2 1/3 innings pitched before Boone mercifully took him out of the game. That outing caused his ERA to balloon to 5.44 on the season.

The Yankees will likely give him a few more starts to work things out, but it’s hard to imagine him recovering under the bright lights of Yankee Stadium. He may just be one of those pitchers who can’t handle performing in the Bronx. It may seem harsh to put him in the category of Carol Pavano and Javier Vazquez, but we’ve got enough evidence to draw that conclusion.

The bottom line is that Brian Cashman and the front office now understand they can’t trust Gray down the stretch. He may eat some innings for the club as the season progresses, but he won’t be an integral part of the team’s postseason plans.