CLEVELAND -- Joe Girardi did nothing. That, more than anything, is the hardest thing to reconcile. He is a manager who never met a pitching change he didn't love, the ultimate hands-on dugout presence who is supposed to have a move and countermove for every scenario.

How could he do nothing?

The Yankees suffered a crushing 9-8 defeat in Game 2 of the American League Division Series. They blew a five-run lead in unthinkable fashion, losing a five-hour game when Cleveland Indians catcher Yan Gomes drove in the winning run with an RBI single down the third-base line in the 13th inning.

The Yankees now need to win three straight against a team that has won 35 of its last 39 games. Turn off the lights.

But it should never have come to this. The series-changing moment, one that will haunt Girardi straight into this offseason if his team doesn't pull off a miracle comeback, came in the fifth inning with the Yankees still ahead 8-3 and the Indians trying to mount a two-out rally.

With runners on second and third, Yankees reliever Chad Green's seventh pitch to Indians pinch hitter Lonnie Chisenhall broke inside too far inside and nicked the knob of the bat.

Home plate umpire Dan Iassogna, however, saw it differently. Chisenhall didn't even flinch, but Iassogna ruled that pitch brushed his hand and awarded him first base to load the bases. Sanchez -- who, obviously, had the best view in the entire ballpark -- immediately turned to the dugout and told his manager to review the call.

Girardi did nothing.

"There was nothing that told us that he was not hit on the pitch," Girardi said, pointing to rule that gives managers 30 seconds to decide whether or not to challenge.

Except, well, there was plenty to tell him that. Again: Chisenhall didn't react at all, but Sanchez did. In a late-game situation that was clearly crucial, why not go off that?

"Probably being a catcher, my thought is I never want to break a pitcher's rhythm," he said. "I never want to ... have them stand over there for two minutes to tell me if wasn't a hit."

Sanchez had caught the ball off the end of the bat, so it would've been foul-tip strike three. Then, disaster: Francisco Lindor hit a long fly ball that bounced off the right-field foul pole for a grand slam that cut the lead to 8-7, re-energized a glum Progressive Field crowd, and turned what should have been the best victory for this franchise in five years into a crushing defeat.

It did something else, too: It served up a full offseason of second guessing for the Yankees manager. Because two things are undeniably true:

1. Girardi had absolutely nothing to lose by using one of this two replay challenges on the play. Worst-case scenario: The video is deemed inconclusive and the play stands. Best case? It's strike three on Chisenhall and the Yankees are out of the inning.

2. Sanchez was pleading with Girardi to go to the replay. The manager, a former catcher himself, had to trust his player in that scenario, and not doing so in the most crucial situation of the season sends an awful message to the young team that he is paid to lead.

Girardi is in the final year of his contract, and this one decision won't -- and shouldn't -- change the decision to bring him back. He did a fine job navigating the 162-game season and used his bullpen to perfection when starter Luis Severino crapped out in the AL Wild Card.

But he failed in the biggest moment of the season. He is going against one of the best postseason managers in Terry Francona in this series. Francona, who trusted his gut and used No. 3 starter Trevor Bauer in Game 1 with dominant results, isn't going to screw up. Girardi did.

To think: This looked like it was going to be a brilliant night for his team. The Yankees came to Progressive Field without a hint of fear, gained confidence with every Corey Kluber pitch that missed its mark, and stunned the 37,681 fans expecting an easy night.

Sanchez hit a two-run home run in the first inning. Aaron Hicks hit a three-run shot in the third. Greg Bird gave the Yankees a five-run lead in the fifth with towering fly ball that just stayed fair in right field. CC Sabathia, meanwhile, was dealing like it was 2000 again, cruising along with his usual mix of off-speed pitches.

Sabathia out-pitching Kluber, the likely AL Cy Young Award winner? It was, in every way, the best-case scenario for the Yankees -- but even then, against a team that had won 34 of its previous 38 games, they had to know that no lead was safe.

The sixth inning was more unneeded proof. Green, this team's most reliable reliever for most of the season, gaved up a two-out double to Indians catcher Yan Gomes. With runners on second and third, Chisenhall fouled off four pitches before Green's 95-mph fastball hit the end of the bat.

The umpire blew the call. Sanchez turned to the dugout and pleaded his case to the home dugout. His manager blew his team's chance to even the series in Game 2 of the ALDS, and barring a miracle comeback, that inaction will dog him into a long offseason.

How could Joe Girardi do nothing?

Steve Politi may be reached at spoliti@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @StevePoliti. Find NJ.com on Facebook.