Frustrating night for Yankees as they lose finale to Red Sox

It started with a scare, it ended with a loss, and though the Yankees were thoroughly frustrated by the Red Sox on Sunday evening, no one could shake that prevailing feeling that it could have been so much worse.

Jordan Montgomery was struck on the left leg by a 102.8- mph missile off the bat of Xander Bogaerts that caused him to collapse onto the grass. Despite looking as if he might be done for the night, he stayed in the game and X-rays came back negative.

The lineup, though, failed to get timely hits and the usually solid bullpen faltered just enough as the Yankees lost to the Red Sox, 4-3, at Yankee Stadium. Bobby Dalbec hit a tiebreaking solo home run off Clarke Schmidt in the sixth.

The Yankees stranded 11 runners — nine in the first six innings — but Aaron Boone said he was heartened by good at- bats and well-struck balls. (Not that any of that counts for anything in the standings, but hey, it’s Game 3.)

“I felt like we put [together] a lot of good at-bats,” he said. “We even hit some balls on the screws today for outs, so we want to create those opportunities. We couldn’t get that big one to really break anything open today, and that’s part of it. But overall, I like the way we’re swinging the bat and the at-bats the guys are having.”

The Yankees (2-1), who outhit the Red Sox 11-5, had 10 hits, three walks and a hit batsman through six innings but were able to turn all those baserunners into only three runs. After loading the bases in the third and putting runners on second and third in the fifth, each time with one out, they were unable to score.

They had three dangerous batters up in the ninth, but Jake Diekman struck out Aaron Judge (to cap an 11-pitch at-bat), Giancarlo Stanton and Joey Gallo.

The bullpen, which entered the day having allowed only one earned run in 13 innings, finally cracked in the sixth when Schmidt allowed Dalbec’s 391-foot homer to right-center for a 4-3 Boston lead. Before that, Schmidt, who pitched 2 2⁄3 innings, allowed an inherited runner to score on a sacrifice fly in the fourth.

“I feel really good,” said Schmidt, making his season debut. “I felt like I was commanding the ball [though] obviously I had one bad pitch . . . I tried to get a run-back sinker [and] it almost ran back a little bit too much.”

Despite all that, there still was a sense of relief Sunday. After getting nailed by the third batter he faced, Montgomery attempted to walk it off before falling to the ground. He said it hit the back of his leg, he heard a loud sound and was stunned by the impact.

“It was kind of in a weird spot and it caught me right on the bone,” he said. “I went down like a tree . . . It’s going to be a little swollen, but I’ll be ready in five days.”

Montgomery did seem rattled immediately after being hit by Bogaert’s rocket, though. He quickly allowed an RBI double by J.D. Martinez, hit Dalbec and gave up a sacrifice fly by Christian Arroyo before getting out of the inning down 2-0.

The Yankees finally were able to touch up Tanner Houck in the third. Anthony Rizzo led off with a walk and Judge stroked a line drive to right that was just missed by a diving Arroyo for a single. Stanton (three hits) had an RBI single and the Yankees eventually loaded the bases, but Aaron Hicks’ 4-6-3 double-play ball left them trailing 2-1.

Montgomery, like Gerrit Cole and Luis Severino in the first two games, was subjected to a quick hook because of the shortened spring training, but not before he put two runners on in the fourth. With Arroyo at third and Schmidt in, Jonathan Arauz hit a sacrifice fly to increase Boston’s lead to 3-1. Montgomery departed after 58 pitches, allowing three earned runs and four hits with a walk and four strikeouts in 3 1⁄3 innings.

Isiah Kiner-Falefa doubled and Jose Trevino singled to lead off the fourth — their first hits as Yankees — and Rizzo tied it with a two-run single off Ryan Brasier, which gave him six RBIs in three games.

“Riz in a good spot right now,” Boone said Saturday. “He’s just missed another pitch or two on top of the two homers where he’s had a chance, but good to see him in, I know, in a good place with his mechanics and his swing. I know he feels real good.”

Gleyber Torres doubled to put runners on second and third with one out in the fifth, but Hicks popped out and Kiner-Falefa struck out.

By Laura Albanese

laura.albanese@newsday.com@AlbaneseLaura

Laura Albanese is the Mets beat writer for Newsday. She's been covering MLB since 2014 after starting at Newsday as an intern seven years earlier.