ARLINGTON, Texas _ Cole Hamels was at his skillful best, cooling off the scorching Yankees lineup on Tuesday night.
But in addition to losing a game, the Yankees might have also lost their slugging catcher.
Gary Sanchez exited Tuesday night's game with what appeared to be a possible leg injury, and the Rangers ran off with a 6-4 win before 30,325 fans at Globe Life Park. However, the team announced after the game that it was not serious.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone wasn't around to see the bitter end, ejected for the first time as manager after barking from the bench at plate umpire Pat Hoberg.
That exchange came during Sanchez's at-bat in the sixth inning, with the Yanks (31-14) trailing 6-1.
Sparking something in Boone not previously seen on the field as manager, Hoberg was the recipient of a lengthy verbal lashing by Boone before he disappeared into the visiting clubhouse.
Resuming his at-bat, Sanchez drew a walk but was seen limping off the field as the inning ended. He had not moved off first base. Sanchez had fouled out and walked _ without advancing a base _ in his two previous times up on Tuesday.
In the bottom of the sixth, Austin Romine _ who would hit a two-run homer in the eighth _ replaced Sanchez behind the plate.
If the last-place Rangers (19-31) are sellers before the July 31 trade deadline, as it would appear, interested clubs should know what they're getting in a healthy Hamels.
And on Tuesday night, the veteran lefty reminded the Yankees just how valuable he could be for some contender _ possibly the Bronx Bombers themselves.
After a torrid, historic three-game stretch, the Yankees were mostly hushed by Hamels over seven innings. Hamels (3-4) gave up two runs on four hits, with two walks and seven strikeouts.
Only the rookies Gleyber Torres and Miguel Andujar could really solve Hamels, each connecting with a long solo home run.
After Hamels had retired the first eight Yankees he'd faced, the impressive Torres blasted one to left at an estimated 399 feet _ the shortest of his seven big-league homers. Andujar added his fifth homer of the year in the seventh, cutting the lead to 6-2.
On Monday night, Torres had belted two of the Yankees' five home runs in a 10-5 victory.
That marked the first time in Yankees history that they'd collected at least four home runs in three straight games _ a run that began this past weekend at Kansas City.
Further, the Yankees became the first team in MLB history with at least four homers and eight extra-base hits in three straight games, collecting 10 doubles, two triples and 14 home runs.
But after starter Domingo German put the Yanks into an early five-run deficit, three Yankee homers weren't enough on Tuesday.
Still, the Yanks impressive power display _ and the feeling they've yet to fully fire on all offensive pistons _ was a lengthy pregame topic.
"That's the one thing about our guys. They're not satisfied," Boone said. "They're never satisfied."
Making his third start in place of injured lefty Jordan Montgomery (strained flexor tendon), German stumbled badly, lasting just 3 2/3 innings and charged with six runs.
After tossing six scoreless no-hit innings in his first start, May 6, against Cleveland, German (0-2) has now yielded a combined 12 runs in 8 2/3 innings against Oakland and Texas.
Jurickson Profar crushed a three-run homer in the first inning, and German had a fit of wildness in the Rangers' two-run second inning _ uncorking three wild pitches, issuing two of his three walks and hitting a batter.
Concerns about the Yankees' pitching depth haven't changed since the winter, when the Yanks whiffed on their pursuits of Gerrit Cole (traded from Pittsburgh to Houston) and Shohei Ohtani (signed with the Angels).
And as Hamels was expertly mixing his pitches and disrupting the timing of a hot-hitting team, it was a night to wonder how much of a difference he might make for a contender down the stretch.
