Yankees' offense comes up dry in the desert, Aaron Boone ejected in loss to Diamondbacks

PHOENIX — The Yankees arrived in the desert Monday with a chance to turn an already good trip West into a great one.

But facing far better starting pitching than they had in Anaheim and San Francisco, Yankees bats went missing over two days at Chase Field, leading to a sweep at the hands of the Diamondbacks, the final game of the nine-game trip a 3-2 loss Wednesday afternoon.

Big picture?

The Yankees (17-13) still went 6-3 on the trip, and any West Coast excursion that results in a winning record is a successful one. And, after Thursday’s off day, the Bombers start a home series Friday against the Twins with the possibility of some of their injured rejoining them sometime this weekend. Miguel Andujar and Clint Frazier are the leading candidates.

“We have to take the positives, it was a good road trip,” said Luke Voit, whose team-best ninth homer to lead off the sixth inning made it 3-1 and extended the first baseman’s on-base streak to 41 games, the longest in the majors and longest by a Yankee since Mark Teixeira reached in 42 straight in 2010. “The injuries for us [the Yankees have 13 players on the injured list], to still win six games is pretty good.”

The Yankees, who saw the final 18 hitters they sent to the plate retired in Tuesday’s 3-1 loss, gave themselves a few more chances Wednesday but went 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position and stranded eight.

Aaron Boone wasn’t around to see the end, ejected in the seventh inning by plate umpire Paul Emmel after Tyler Wade said he was hit by a pitch attempting to pull back on a bunt attempt. Boone, ejected for the second time this season, had been displeased with Emmel’s strike zone much of the afternoon. Mostly, though, Boone steamed over a replay challenge by the Yankees that went against them in the fifth inning on 4-6 force play at second where it appeared shortstop Nick Ahmed pulled his foot from the bag before the ball settled into his glove.

“That one’s a head-scratcher,” Boone said. “I thought it was the right challenge and we’d get it overturned but we didn’t get the call.”

The Yankees would load the bases with two outs in the fifth, but Brett Gardner grounded out. In losing the challenge, they lost their ability to challenge the rest of the way, something Boone would have done when Wade felt his foot was brushed to lead off the seventh. Wade grounded out.

“I thought it was a very quick ejection and then I got riled up,” Boone said. “Just a frustrating day to not finish off the trip in a really good way [for] what’s been a really good trip.”

Umpiring, though, did not cost the Yankees the game.

Masahiro Tanaka (2-3) was not sharp for the third time in his last four starts, allowing three runs and five hits, including a homer, over four innings. Arizona righthander Merrill Kelly, 2-2 with a 3.94 ERA coming in, allowed one run and five hits over 5 1/3 innings.

The Yankees inched within 3-2 in the eighth on Mike Tauchman’s two-out RBI single off Archie Bradley but that was it for the inning. Greg Holland walked Cameron Maybin with one out in the ninth but retired two straight for his seventh save in seven tries.

The Diamondbacks got an RBI double by Ketel Marte, who later homered, and a run on a wild pitch in the second to take a 2-0 lead.

“It’s obvious frustrating,” Tanaka said of his last four starts in which he’s allowed a combined 14 runs and 22 hits. “It just comes down to making adjustments.”

By Erik Boland

erik.boland@newsday.comeboland11

Erik Boland started in Newsday's sports department in 2002. He covered high school and college sports, then shifted to the Jets beat. He has covered the Yankees since 2009.