Once again, in the heat of a large crowd, the Yankees wither

It's been barely a week since the last embarrassment, the 10-2 whupping by tomato can Cinncy. But last night featured a Yankee meltdown trifecta.

1. Once again, I fear we have awakened a dormant entity known as the Mini-Me Yankee Killer. It's Caleb Durbin - a 5'6" ex-Yankee farmhand, who we traded two winters ago for Devin Williams, the bullpen algae bloom who systematically ruined a) the 2025 Yankees, b) the 2026 Mets and c) the trad Yankee beard ban.  

Durbin, 26, is hitting a squatty .226, so we won't commission his bronze plaque. But over the last week, he's 12-for-24 with 2 HRs - a .500 average, hottest hitter in baseball. Last night, he went 2-3 with a HR that basically won the game. 

I have an irrational fear of snakes, robot cars, computer upgrades and miniature Tinker Toys who regularly beat the Yankees. Dustin Pedroia. Pedro Martinez. Jose Altuve. Freddie Patek. Jose Ramirez. Mookie Betts. I'm not ready to pronounce Durbin as the next mini-threat, but before his hot spell, I suspect Boston was on the verge of sending Shorty to Triple A. Did we just give this revenge-hungry Lilliputian a second chance? If so, we will regret it.

2. Our defense last night was putrid, rancid... atrocious. The English language doesn't have the right words, and box scores cannot show the ineptitude. (Michael Kay, in the postgame, suggested it was the sloppiest game of the season.) 

And for Amed Rosario and Anthony Volpe, this was no outlier.

Rosario has become such a defensive liability that it's time to question whether he is a legit backup infielder. Last night, in the former Daily News fifth, he botched a foul pop behind 3B and then, moments later, let a DP grounder zip between his legs, Buckner style, launching a game-turning 4-run rally. With any defense behind him, Cam Schlittler could have taken a shutout into the sixth. The team let him down.  

As for Volpe? How many incarnations of disappointment can we handle? The YES guys love to say that Cody Bellinger contributes something to every Yankee win. Well, in every Yank loss, there is a play that Volpe didn't make. 

Last night, in the 8th, Volpe snagged a grounder up the middle, ran to second and fired wide to first. Instead of an inning-ending DP, a run scored, and the game was over. He had to make that play... and he didn't.  It will soon be time for the Yankees to bring up George Lombard Jr. When that happens, Volpe becomes an afterthought, and Travis Kelsey can start looking over his shoulder.

3. Once again, we squandered our chance to tell Aroldis Chapman to STFU. 

El Chapo - who has demanded, in Trumplike fashion, an apology from the Yankees for the way they mistreated him - loaded the bases with our big hitters coming up. Of course, we did nothing. 

Ever since the Redsocks signed Chapman and started boasting of his resurgence, Yank fans have waited for his classic El Chapo, river-of-sweat meltdown - his Devers moment, his Altuve moment! Last night would have been perfect, watching him clutch that fake Cheshire smile, as the runners crossed the plate.  

But Ben Rice - sinking fast, by the way - tapped a slow roller, and the game was done.

Boston is having a terrible, rotten, no-good year. And last night wasn't a case of them suddenly showing life. The Yankees simply fell apart and gifted them the game. 

Could they open the door to save Boston's season? As Lassie would say: Bark.