NEW YORK — The champagne could go flat. The beer could smell bad.

The New York Yankees missed another chance for a wild clubhouse celebration with their error-ridden 9-7 loss to the Baltimore Orioles on Wednesday night at Yankee Stadium. A win would have given the Yankees the division crown.

Instead, they have to wait at least one more night while their magic number remains at one.

The game wasn't as close as the score suggested. The Yankees managed a meaningless four-run rally in the ninth inning with an RBI single by Juan Soto and a three-run home run by Aaron Judge.

A night after Gleyber Torres' baserunning error sealed a loss and the Yankees' first missed chance to win the American League East, the main culprit was rookie Jasson Domínguez, who misplayed a catchable fly ball to left field in the first inning with the bases loaded and no outs. The fumble allowed two runs.

Domínguez said he lost sight of the ball.

“I have no excuse,” he said. “The ball must always be caught.”

Jasson Dominguez continues to have problems in the outfield. 2-0 Orioles pic.twitter.com/h1gW45k8NM

— The Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) 25 September 2024

A co-starring credit went to Marcus Stroman, who allowed six runs on 10 hits in 3 1/3 innings. To be fair, Stroman was in an unenviable position as an emergency spot starter with the sudden loss of Nestor Cortes (elbow flexor strain).

Third baseman Jazz Chisholm also dropped the ball on a double play and Anthony Volpe threw the ball too far over first base, committing an error. Manager Aaron Boone must have secretly wondered what had happened to the club, which won five of six games on its West Coast tour.

“We just didn't play very well at the beginning and couldn't really get back into the game,” said Boone, who also described the Yankees' game as “sloppy.”

Of course, all the dismay over the Yankees' recent sloppiness will evaporate if they win on Thursday and clinch their 21st division title.

It will be tough. While the Yankees will be fielding reigning AL Cy Young winner Gerrit Cole (7-5, 3.67 ERA), Baltimore plans to counter with its ace Corbin Burnes (15-8, 2.95 ERA). With Tuesday's win, the Orioles secured a playoff spot, something the Yankees did last week.

“It's the game, man,” Boone said. “Nothing has been easy for us this year. Don't expect it to be. But we've somehow hung in there and fought through everything.”

Judge said it wasn't any harder for the Yankees to be one win away from winning the division. They were only a half-game ahead of the Cleveland Guardians and have the best record in the AL.

“They're all tough,” Judge said. “We're playing against a great team that has battled with us all year. It's never going to be easy.”

Domínguez’s mistake set the sloppy tone of the evening.

Stroman had three hits on his first eight pitches of the game, loading all the bases, before Colton Cowser — who was competing against Yankees catcher Austin Wells for AL Rookie of the Year — hit a high fly ball into the left-field corner.

Domínguez ran a step too far and tried to reach behind his head to catch it. The ball fell, bounced off the wall and bounced toward the infield. When Domínguez found it, it hit cutoff man Volpe, who tried to throw the ball home, but it was too late. Two runs were scored, although Wells was able to throw out Anthony Santander, who was sliding into third base.

According to MLB Statcast, the probability of catching the fly ball was 95 percent.

“It's a big challenge,” Boone said. “But we have to take advantage of it.”

“He knows he should have made that play, but he'll learn from it and be better,” Judge said.

It was Domínguez's third error in a week. In Seattle, he ran over a fly ball in center field and then dropped another in left field.

When the Yankees decided not to call up Domínguez when expanding the roster on September 1, The athlete spoke to an opposing team's evaluator, who pointed out that Domínguez had problems defensively at Triple A.

Domínguez's poor work with the glove could further cement Alex Verdugo's position as the team's left fielder in the playoffs. Verdugo has been much more reliable in left field, and the Yankees should be more concerned with getting attack from center field hitters Judge, Soto, Giancarlo Stanton and Wells in crucial moments.

How will Boone decide who starts in left field in the crucial phase?

“Just try to process everything,” the manager said. “What gives you the best chance to win on any given night? Try to get a good look at Jasson here down the stretch because we know he's capable out there. I feel like he's had some good at-bats lately. But we'll continue to pay attention to everything.”

Marcus Stroman, who allowed six runs on 10 hits in 3 1/3 innings against the Orioles, was an emergency spot starter for Nestor Cortes. (Brad Penner / Imagn Images)

Stroman, who hadn't pitched in eight days, made no excuses for his poor performance. Late Tuesday night, he learned he would start Wednesday. He walked no one but struck out only one batter. Clayton Beeter followed him, allowing two earned runs. Cody Poteet pitched 3 1/3 innings and allowed one run.

The Yankees moved Stroman to the bullpen on Sept. 13, and he made just one appearance as a relief pitcher before Wednesday's start.

“It's frustrating,” he said of his performance, “but at the end of the day, I didn't do my job and put my team in a position to win. … I need to make better shots and have more control throughout the night.”

The Yankees have four games left in the regular season. If they win one, they can relax, knowing they've clinched the division. But on Wednesday, the champagne remained corked.

(Top photo of Aaron Judge hitting a three-run home run in the ninth inning: Brad Penner / Imagn Images)