ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. _ Luis Severino's assortment of pitches were being squared up by the Rays, and Gary Sanchez was fumbling his way behind the plate.
Sanchez's troubles with passed balls is one thing.
It's really something worrisome to see Severino's stuff flattened out in three straight starts, none of which has extended past five innings.
Severino gave up 11 hits _ two of them home runs _ in the Rays' 7-6 victory Monday night against the Yankees at Tropicana Field.
But it was Sanchez's failure to run out of the box, recent groin issues or not, that prevented the Yankees from tying the game.
In a bizarre ending, with the bases loaded and two out, Sanchez grounded toward shortstop.
After failing to get the force play at second base, Willy Adames quickly threw on to first base to get Sanchez easily at first.
After scoring three times in the seventh, the Yankees threatened again in the ninth against lefty Jose Alvarado.
But with first base open after a Didi Gregorius sacrifice, the Rays intentionally walked Stanton. Aaron Hicks grounded into a force play at the plate and Sanchez grounded into the odd 4-6-3 play to end it.
And a week before the non-waiver trade deadline, the Yankees' need for starting pitching help took on a greater meaning, just by watching their ace reduced to ordinary status.
One of the seven runs charged to Severino (14-3) was unearned as Sanchez _ possibly crossed up on a first-inning pitch _ mishandled a pitch and compounded his error with a poor throw to Severino covering the plate.
That's how Jake Bauers scored from second base on a breaking pitch that didn't even bounce in front of home plate.
Bauers' three-run homer in the fifth, punctuated by a little bat flip, gave the Rays a 4-1 lead.
And though the Yankees (63-35) made it interesting after falling behind 7-3, with Giancarlo Stanton collecting four hits, the Rays (51-49) used seven pitchers to hold off the team with MLB's second-best record.
As the ex-Yankee Nathan Eovaldi chatted with a couple of New York area writers, Chris Archer entered the scene with a question of his own.
"How'd you feel about going to a team that had a facial hair policy?"
Eovaldi, now sporting a full beard, couldn't contain a laugh.
Archer addressed the same question in the Rays' clubhouse earlier on Monday afternoon and grinned before offering a familiar refrain as July 31 draws nearer.
"I'll cross that bridge whenever necessary. I focus on the present moment," Archer said. "I see that stuff and all of it is 100 percent speculation."
But what better time to speculate, with the Yankees in town, the trade deadline a week away and Archer and Eovaldi among the starters being eyeballed by the club's evaluators?
Two Yankees scouts were at Archer's start on Sunday, when he struck out 13 Marlins in six innings. And they had a scout witness Eovaldi's most recent start, among a gaggle of scouts from other contenders.
"I try to lock it in on the glove and much as possible," said Eovaldi, blocking out the scouts and the attention that comes with having an expiring contract and recovering his consistent 97-98 mph heat.
Archer can easily keep himself laser-focused on the mound, facing any opponent.
But during the lengthy down time, "it's hard not to" pay attention to the trade talk.
"MLB Network's on every TV in the clubhouse and when you open any type of social media, plus friends and family _ but it's nothing I haven't dealt with in the past," Archer said. "I'm not deliberately paying attention to it, but it's out there."
Robertson's fielding error opened a path toward two Yankees runs _ including a vicious Sanchez RBI single _ in the sixth.
But Robertson led off the bottom half with a homer off Severino, who surrendered two more sharp hits and was finished. Severino walked none and struck out eight Rays.
Meanwhile, the Yankees' search for starters goes on.
Asked if he wanted to remain with the Rays, there was a pregnant pause before Archer answered.
"I want to remain playing for a winning baseball team. And the future definitely looks bright here," Archer said. "What's going on is cool, it's fun to be a part of. But it's really not about what I want, it's about what the ownership and the front office wants."
And the Rays would want a good haul of prospects and big-league ready talent if they were to move Archer, 29, who is under team control through 2021.
Eovaldi, 28, is making $2 million this year and is barreling toward free agency.
"If it happens, it happens. It's out of my control, regardless," Eovaldi said of a trade. A 14-game winner for the Yankees in 2015, Eovaldi (3-4, 4.26, 53 Ks, 57 IP) spent three seasons in the Bronx, ending in 2016 when he underwent Tommy John surgery.
He missed the 2017 season, spent rehabbing with the Rays.
"Physically, I feel really good. Still feel like I'm searching for a couple of things in my delivery, little things that make me feel better," Eovaldi said. "But I've been able to get the job done out there. And my results have been pretty good."
On Wednesday afternoon, Eovaldi is scheduled to start against the Yankees and Luis Cessa, filling a rotation spot after rookie Domingo German was optioned back to Class AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
"I loved it over there, I enjoyed my time over there a lot," said Eovaldi, who "got along really well" with pitching coach Larry Rothschild and still trades occasional texts with old teammates.
However, "as long as I'm with a team, I'm happy _ you know what I mean? I don't have any preference to where I go," Eovaldi said.
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