Yankees face Angels with losing streak at 7 games

NEW YORK -- For the last week, the New York Yankees are taking a long time to lose.

The result is New York's first seven-game losing streak in over 10 years.

The Yankees face the prospect of an eighth straight loss Wednesday night when they continue a three-game series with the Los Angeles Angels at Wednesday night.

This streak took a combined 24 hours, 57 minutes to play with each the first six games on the West Coast. The first game back at home did not improve things in either area for the Yankees.

The Yankees were held to four hits and took three hours, 26 minutes to open the series with an 8-3 defeat Tuesday. It marked the first time the Yankees dropped seven straight games since April 20-27, 200, in the first month of Joe Torre's last season as manager.

Another loss would give the Yankees their first eight-game losing streak since Aug. 19-26, 1995 when the team fell under .500 and needed a strong finish to reach the playoffs for the first time since 1981.

"I think you find out a lot more about the makeup of your club now, when you're going through tough times, then when they're great times," said manager Joe Girardi, who said he didn't think the first 60 games were an "accident."

"You find out more in how they respond every day," he continued.

Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez homered and both are continuing to wield hot bats but it is the bullpen causing things to escalate in the wrong direction for the Yankees.

New York's bullpen allowed four runs in the seventh inning or later Tuesday. During this skid, opponents have scored 16 times in the seventh or later and the most notable struggles are coming from Tyler Clippard.

Clippard has allowed five runs in his last five outings, spanning 3 2/3 innings. In Tuesday's loss, he gave up three runs in the seventh, including a tiebreaking homer to Cameron Maybin on a 1-0 changeup.

It's super frustrating and not fun, but it's up to all of us in here to pick ourselves up and get it right. We all expect that out of ourselves, and that's what we're going to do," Clippard said.

The Angels (37-37) are at .500 for the 18th time this season and are 3-1 against the Yankees. Los Angeles moved one game over by winning the final two games against New York but dropped three of four against the Kansas City Royals.

Los Angeles rebounded nicely by getting a big night from Cameron Maybin. He went 3-for-5 with a solo homer off Clippard and an RBI infield single.

During a 10-game-hittting streak Maybin is hitting .409 (18-for-44). The center fielder also is batting .400 (36-for-90) as a leadoff hitter this season.

"It's going back a while now," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. "He's been the sparkplug for us. Cam's doing everything, playing great defense, setting the tone at the top of the order. He's hit the ball out of the park. He's stolen bases. He's giving us a big lift, no doubt."

The Angels are 11-10 since Mike Trout injured his thumb on a slide at second on May 28 in Miami.

"It's not that you're going to score eight runs every night, but we did a lot of good things without our best player," Scioscia said. "That points to the depth we need to establish in our lineup. You saw tonight, everybody had good at-bats all the way through. That's what we've been hoping for a while, even before Mike was injured."

The Angels head into Wednesday with at least 12 hits in three straight games and it's not just Maybin, who sparked an offense that saw its top five hitters go 11-for-24 in the series opener.

Kole Calhoun is batting .366 (26-for-71) in his last 19 games after getting two hits Tuesday.

The Yankees will hope Jordan Montgomery can pitch deep enough and effectively enough Wednesday night.

Montgomery makes 13th career start when he faces the Angels for the first time in his career. Montgomery last pitched Thursday in Oakland when he did not get a decision after allowing four runs and seven hits in 5 2/3 innings.

Montgomery is 2-1 with a 2.43 ERA in his last five starts and the Yankees are 5-7 when he starts. Montgomery has held opponents to a .186 average (11-for-59) with runners in scoring position.

Meanwhile the Angels hope Ricky Nolasco can end a nine-start winless stretch.

Nolasco is 2-8 overall and since his last win on April 27, the right-hander is 0-6 with a 5.58 ERA in his last nine starts.

He is tied with New York RHP Masahiro Tanaka for the most homers allowed in the American League. Nolasco allowed two more Thursday when the Kansas City Royals tagged him for five runs and 10 hits in six innings. It was the ninth time he allowed multiple homers.

Nolasco is 1-2 with a 5.91 ERA in four career starts against the Yankees. He beat the Yankees at Yankee Stadium in 2014 with the Minnesota Twins.