The first sounds heard were groans. As the Red Sox began to hit Jhony Brito, a here-we-go-again, collective sigh spread around Yankee Stadium. 

Next came the boos as the game became a blowout minutes after it started Friday night. The loudest early cheer was a mock round of applause when the Yankees finally recorded an out. 

The sound most often heard, though, was the most telling. It was not the passion of cheers, which finally arrived when offensive threats showed up too late. Or the passion of jeers, which came and went. The soundtrack that dominated the night was the quiet of resignation that filled the Stadium, 44,566 fans accepting what the Yankees, publicly at least, have not: This season seems gone before September, much less October, has arrived. 

The Yankees might not have waved the white flag, as the Mets did at the trade deadline, but their whiffing bats might as well have had pale flags affixed to them. 

In a season of rock bottoms, the Yankees dug a bit deeper when they were dusted, 8-3, by the Red Sox, losing a season-worst sixth straight game — and dropping a season-worst two games under .500. 

The Yankees (60-62) came home from a nightmare trip through Chicago, Miami and Atlanta and they did not wake up until late in the game. They were down 4-0 after one inning and 7-0 after two, and they only showed a sign of life with a two-run home run from Aaron Judge in the eighth inning. Their first two batters reach base in the ninth, but the Yankees left them stranded. 

There have been seasons in which, after falling into an early ditch in a game, the Yankees’ offense went to work, mounted a few rallies and made the game at least competitive. This is not one of those seasons. The Yankees have scored a total of six runs in their past four games. 

The latest letdown started with issues, both technical and otherwise. Brito and Ben Rorvedt could not get on the same page in the first inning because the PitchCom would not work, a stadium-wide issue that lasted for both teams all game, according to a public announcement. 

In between meetings on the mound to discuss pitch signals, Brito was battered. The Red Sox were up 4-0 after four batters, the last of which, Masataka Yoshida, smacked a three-run home run on his first pitch from Brito after a lengthy PitchCom delay. 

Boston scored three more runs in the second, on an error and four straight singles. The rally began when Pablo Reyes hit a one-hopper to Gleyber Torres at second base. Torres made a nice play to stop the ball, but then fumbled it behind him while trying to deliver the throw to first. Four singles later, the Yankees were down, 7-0. 

Despite the mountain in front of them and despite the silent bats, manager Aaron Boone turned to a higher-leverage arm in the hope of keeping the game as close as possible. That move backfired, too. 

Ian Hamilton was excellent for a career-high 3 ²/₃ scoreless innings before Keynan Middleton pitched a scoreless seventh. Greg Weissert finished it off and allowed one run in the ninth. 

The Yankees’ offense, which had been shut out in back-to-back games, managed one run before Judge’s homer. Anthony Volpe led off the bottom of the third inning with a double, advanced on a Rortvedt ground out and scored on DJ LeMahieu’s ground out. 

Otherwise, the Yankees grounded into two double plays and scattered 10 hits against Brayan Bello, who lasted six innings, and Boston’s bullpen. 

In the eighth, two batters after Judge hit his 23rd homer of the season, Giancarlo Stanton struck out and threw his bat in the dugout. 

That smack rivaled the noise from the fans on a lifeless Friday.