Los Angeles Angels v New York Yankees v New York Yankees – Game Two / New York Yankees/GettyImages

UPDATE: Aaron Boone says the X-rays on Anthony Volpe’s foot came back negative and the issue is being treated as a bruise, per Chris Kirschner of The Athletic.

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Just when the New York Yankees got back on track, they ran into a Los Angeles Angels club that has looked to hit a bit of a stride after dealing with so much adversity prior to the trade deadline. That’s no excuse, though. The Yankees need to play better.

The pain didn’t stop with the series loss, though. Anthony Volpe left the game in the top of the eighth inning due to foot pain that stemmed from the shortstop fouling a ball off his foot in the second inning. He was replaced by Oswaldo Cabrera.

The Yankees announced Volpe is being examined by head team physician Dr. Christopher Ahmad, which, yes, means he’s in good hands, but also that the potential injury could be serious.

For as much as fans have expressed frustration with Volpe’s progress as a player because of the way he’s disappeared on offense for long stretches, most would agree he’s an incredibly important piece to the Yankees’ 2024 puzzle. Losing him for any amount of time at this juncture of the season would be a major setback.

Manager Aaron Boone is set to speak with the media soon, so there’s a possibility more information is disclosed Thursday evening. Though it’s possible Volpe was removed as a precaution because of the score and the rainy conditions, one can never be so sure.

Yankees’ awful series loss to Angels could end with costly Anthony Volpe injury

As we wait for that, let’s dive into what is a second straight brutal loss to an inferior team for the Yanks, who wasted Jazz Chisholm’s first career homer at the Stadium.

Nestor Cortes put together yet another subpar outing (4 2/3 IP, 6 ER, 9 H, 1 BB, 2K) as his spot in the rotation is more in jeopardy by the hour. We’d blame the rainy weather, but lefty Tyler Anderson had no problem taking care of the Yankees’ offense by going six innings and allowing just one earned run.

Though New York registered eight hits and two walks, the lineup couldn’t cash in on some early opportunities. And then when they started scoring, it was too late. They were already down 9-1. In all, they struck out nine times. The offense just wasn’t competitive despite leaving only six runners on base and going 2-for-5 with RISP.

To be fair, the Yankees did send some balls out to the warning track on Thursday night before the game got out of hand, but couldn’t quite leave the yard in those key moments as the wind played a major factor.

The pitching was a bigger issue, though. Cortes and Marcus Stroman are not even giving the offense a chance over the last month. It makes the failure to trade for Jack Flaherty all the more alarming, but Yankees fans have shifted their focus and are simply counting down the days until Clarke Schmidt can rejoin the club.

The Texas Rangers are up next. Let’s hope the team can forget about this and Volpe only hits a bump in the road with his foot issue.