The Yankees had a chance to sweep one of the best teams in the majors Sunday afternoon.

All they had to do was score two runs in nine innings, but it once again proved to be too tall a task.

Trent Grisham’s solo home run in the eighth inning at least ensured the game got to extras, but it was the only bit of scoring the Yankees could muster all day as they fell to the Braves 2-1 in 10 innings in The Bronx.

Michael Harris II’s leadoff single in the top of the 10th was the difference, scoring the automatic runner off Paul Blackburn before the Yankees (66-52) were unable to return serve in the bottom of the frame, going down in order as they squandered a chance to finish off a three-game sweep of the NL East-leading Braves (71-47).

“Obviously we got to do more to put some runs on,” said manager Aaron Boone, at this rate sounding like a broken record. “We had better at-bats as a club, but still we got to find a way to push it across.”

Offense was at a premium for most of the afternoon, as Matt Olson clubbed a solo shot off Cam Schlittler in the seventh inning before Grisham matched him by going deep off Braves reliever Didier Fuentes in the bottom of the eighth to tie it.

Yankees second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. reacts after striking out in the ninth inning during a game against the Atlanta Braves on Sunday, August 9, 2026. Jason Szenes for the New York Post Yankees shortstop George Lombard Jr. (96) reacts after striking out in the seventh inning during a game against the Atlanta Braves on Sunday, August 9, 2026. Jason Szenes for the New York Post

But that was the fourth and final Yankees hit of the day, as their final seven batters were retired to go down quietly, falling to five games back of the Rays (pending Tampa Bay’s game Sunday) for the division and remaining 1 ¹/₂ games clear of the Red Sox.

With Schlittler turning in seven dominant innings of one-run ball, Yankees starters have now allowed one run or fewer in nine of their last 12 games.

The problem is that the Yankees have also only scored two or fewer runs in seven of those 12 games (and three runs or fewer in 16 of their last 22 games), failing to fully take advantage of the strong pitching.

“At the moment, those guys got to be almost perfect for us to be in the ballgame, and they have been, which has been incredible,” said Austin Wells, who went 1-for-3.

Yankees pitcher Cam Schlittler (31) reacts on the mound after giving up a solo home run to Atlanta Braves first baseman Matt Olson (28) in the seventh inning during a game on Sunday, August 9, 2026. Jason Szenes for the New York Post

Coming off the worst start of his season — when he lasted a season-low three innings and walked a career-high-tying five batters while giving up four runs against the Cardinals — Schlittler was sharp, striking out 11 and walking none.

He had given up just one hit until the seventh, when Olson took him deep on a 100 mph 2-0 fastball that Schlittler left over the middle of the plate.

The bigger issue for Schlittler was that his lineup could not figure out Braves right-hander Grant Holmes, who threw six shutout innings in which he gave up just three hits and two walks.

Their best chance off Holmes came in the sixth inning, when Wells singled and Grisham doubled — with a slight bobble from Ronald Acuña Jr. still not enough for Wells to score on the play given Acuña’s cannon of an arm. Ben Rice came up next and drilled a line drive to right field that hung up long enough for Acuña to run in and snag it, too shallow for Wells to try him again. Heliot Ramos then followed with a strikeout, ending the threat.

Boone pointed to the Yankees hitting the ball hard more often Sunday, indicating it was more encouraging than some of their other low-scoring games of late. Grisham, who came into the day in a 9-for-78 skid, had three balls that came off his bat at 95 mph or harder, coming up just short of another home run in the third inning.

Ramos and Luis García Jr., their two trade deadline additions, each had two hard-hit balls while the slumping Rice and Jazz Chisholm Jr. had one apiece.

“It’s super frustrating, especially when it’s such a close game and going into extras,” said Chisholm, who went 1-for-3 with a walk and a throwing error. “It just sucks.”

And while the Yankees have now won or split each of their last four series against teams in playoff position, their lineup has still cost them too often.

“It’s baseball, it happens,” Schlittler said. “They got a great team, great lineup. It’s been a tough series all weekend, so I’m glad we won the series. But it’s tough, it’s just how it goes sometimes.”