ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The Yankees looked like a cross between the Bad News Bears (sans Kelly Leak) and the early-season Mets. 

In the biggest game of the year, a game franchise icon Derek Jeter labeled on Fox “a must-win game,” the Yankees played their worst game of the year. They barely gave themselves a chance against a mistake-free foe. 

The Yankees committed three errors in an abomination of a first inning on their way to the 5-2 defeat that left them on the doorstep of playoff elimination. Things got a bit less embarrassing (how could they not?), but they simply don’t look together enough against the American League’s best squad. 

The Rays are a wondrous and underrated team that puts almost everything in play, fields flawlessly and pitches even better. The Yankees served as no more than a prop for maybe the biggest game in The Trop.