Did A-Rod Jinx Yanx Last Night?

As Kansas City native -- in fact, that's how he got his nickname: "Kansas City" became "K.C.," and that became "Casey" -- Charles Dillon "Casey" Stengel said, "The Yankees don't pay me to win every day. Just 2 out of every 3."

Taking 2 out of 3 on the road should be a good thing. So why does losing the 3rd game leave me feeling so empty?

The Yankees couldn't get going against Royal starter Danny Duffy. His slider had them befuddled all night. He retired the Yankee lineup in order, 9 in a row to start the game. Here's all the baserunners he allowed: Jacoby Ellsbury reached on a bunt single to lead off the 4th inning, Matt Holliday drew a walk to get Ellsbury to 2nd, Chase Headley reached on an error in the 5th, Didi Gregorius walked to get him to 2nd, Gary Sanchez singled in the 6th, and Aaron Judge singled and reached 2nd on an error to lead off the 7th.

That's 6 baserunners in 7 innings, all stranded. Mike Minor allowed a double by Ellsbury in the 8th, but he didn't score, either.

In contrast, the Royals got 2 runs off Jordan Montgomery in the 2nd inning, and 3 more in the 5th. Chad Green pitched 3 scoreless innings, allowing just 1 hit, but the damage was done.

Kelvin Herrera came on to close the game out for the Royals. Starlin Castro greeted him with a leadoff double. Judge reached on an infield single. Gregorius singled Castro home, and, for a moment, there was hope. But that's all Herrera allowed.

Royals 5, Yankees 1. WP: Duffy (3-3). No save. LP: Montgomery (2-3).

Alex Rodriguez was broadcasting this game, as an analyst for Fox Sports 1. A photo of his broadcast notes went viral. He'd riffed on birth control. I don't know if he's aware of this, but his new girlfriend, Jennifer Lopez? She's about to turn 48. I don't think birth control is something A-Rod needs to worry about.

A-Rod just being there may have jinxed the Yankees. If Don Mattingly were there, too, this could have been a no-hitter.

Anyway, the Yanks head to Tampa Bay for the weekend. Here are the projected starting pitchers in this series with the Rays:

* Tonight, 7:10 PM: Luis Severino vs. Erasmo Ramirez.

* Tomorrow, 4:10 PM: Masahiro Tanaka vs. Matt Andriese.

* Sunday, 1:10 PM: CC Sabathia vs. Chris Archer.