Yankees suffer another bitter defeat in the extra loss against the Red Sox

Things can always get worse.

One strike away from a much-needed victory, the Yankees instead slipped further and further into their losing streak in devastating fashion.

After Clay Holmes blew a two-run lead with two outs early in the ninth inning, Tommy Kahnle allowed a two-run home run early in the tenth inning that handed the Yankees their fourth consecutive loss: 5-3 against the Red Sox on Friday night in the Bronx.

On a muggy night at the stadium, interrupted by rain, the Yankees were on the verge of an ugly victory.

They had committed two errors in the field, a costly fumble on the base paths, and had only five hits, all singles, through the ninth inning.

Holmes made two outs before ex-Met Dominic Smith extended the game with a pinch-hit single.

That brought in Masataka Yoshida, who fought an eight-pitch at-bat and ended with a two-run homer to right that silenced the 47,158 spectators in the sold-out stadium.

Ceddanne Rafaela then hit a two-run homer against Kahnle to open the first of the 10th inning.

The centerpiece of the Yankees (54-36) was a hit against Kenley Jansen at the end of the 10th inning.

Juan Soto led off with a single, putting runners on the corners before Jansen singled to Aaron Judge and Alex Verdugo.

Oswaldo Cabrera, who was used in the game as a replacement for the injured Gleyber Torres (right groin injury), ended the game with a groundout.

Nestor Cortes delivered a strong one-run performance through six innings, while his opponent Tanner Houck lost control after a 38-minute rain delay.

The Yankees took advantage of this and scored three runs on an error, a walk and a groundout in the fourth inning with the bases loaded. It looked as if this would be considered sufficient offense.

Luke Weaver then threw two scoreless innings and escaped damage in the eighth inning, in which he made two errors (one of which was his own) to protect the 3-1 lead.

And yet the night ended miserably for the Yankees.

Just three weeks ago, the Yankees played in Boston against the Red Sox (48-39), winning the opening game of the series on a Friday night and then falling into a 4-13 loss that continued into this Friday night.

The latest edition of the rivalry offered the Yankees a chance to break out of their slump, but they got off to a brutal start.

After Cortes easily survived the third inning, the heavens opened.

When he took the mound at the start of the fourth inning, nearly 45 minutes had passed since his last pitch.

When the Yankees came out of the rain delay in the second half of the third inning, it cost them a run.

They had runners on the corners with one out when Ben Rice hit a sharp ground ball to first base that Romy Gonzalez caught and threw to second base, making a double play possible.

But DJ LeMahieu failed to get a rundown between first and second base, and Anthony Volpe didn’t run home with much urgency, allowing Rafaela to tag LeMahieu just before Volpe touched home base, ending the inning in brutal fashion.

After the delay, Houck lost control, which the Yankees were able to take advantage of in the fourth inning.

Houck began the period by walking Soto and Judge before making the first out.

Torres then managed an infield single to load the bases – but it cost him dearly as he had to leave the game with a strain in his right groin.

Austin Wells, who accounted for two of the Yankees’ five hits, was next and drew some groans when he hit a ground ball to second base that looked like a tailor-made double play.

But Enmanuel Valdez’s throw to second base missed, so all runners were safe and the Yankees took a 1-0 lead.

Volpe then forced another run with a walk before Valdez stole a single from Trent Grisham on a groundout, making the game 3-0.

Gonzalez hit a solo home run against Cortes in the fifth inning, but that was the only damage he allowed on a night in which he allowed eight strikeouts and just one walk.