Didi Gregorius had an up-and-down night in loss to the Athletics

12:55 AM ET

NEW YORK — There is little argument that with Didi Gregorius at shortstop, the New York Yankees are a much better defensive team than they had been in Derek Jeter’ final seasons. Gregorius’ range, athleticism and strong throwing arm have surely turned a lot of balls into outs that would have been hits in previous years.

But there is another side to Gregorius’ game, a side in which his instincts are not always great and his fundamentals not always rock solid.

The many sides of Gregorius were on display in the Yankees’ 3-2, 11-inning loss to the Oakland Athletics Tuesday night in the first game of a three-game series at Yankee Stadium.

There was Gregorius the defensive wizard, making two tremendous plays to rob the A’s of base hits in the seventh inning, one on which he showed off his rifle arm, and the other his cat-like quickness and range.

Then there was the other Gregorius, the one whose mental lapse caused him to get picked off first on a 3-2 pitch after leading off with a single in the fifth inning of a tie game; the same one who was unable to execute a sacrifice bunt and move a runner along in the ninth inning.

There was also the unlucky Gregorius, the one who the baseball found at the key moment of the game, when Mark Canha shot a one-hopper just beyond the reach of his glove in the 11th inning — the ball squirting by for the single that drove in the winning run.

“I thought I had a shot at it,” he said. “It just hit my glove when I dove for it. If I make that play, it would have saved the game. That’s the most important play right …

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