The New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays met for the first time this season Friday night and, like most Yankees vs. Rays games, it featured several home runs, some late inning dramatics, and the benches being warned. The Rays bested their AL East rivals at Tropicana Field (TB 5, NY 4) to improve their record to 27-6. The Yankees are in last place at 17-16.
Tampa Bay opened up an early 4-0 lead against rookie righty Jhony Brito thanks in part to a Randy Arozarena first inning solo home run. Arozarena was hit with a pitch in his next two at-bats, first by Brito and then by reliever Albert Abreu. Needless to say, Arozarena was none too happy about being plunked, especially the second time by Abreu. Both teams were warned after Abreu hit Arozarena, and Rays manager Kevin Cash was ejected for arguing Abreu should have been ejected.
"Honestly, I did not," Cash said when asked whether he thought either hit-by-pitch was intentional. "I don't think Brito hit him on purpose. He's a young pitcher, totally understand. Abreu, I'd like to think not. But at the same time, it's on us as managers, coaches, and umpires to protect our players. I felt like at that point there's gotta be a little common sense, a little more awareness on their end there wasn't."
The Yankees rallied to tie the game on Harrison Bader's sixth inning three-run home run. Bader smashed five home runs in only nine postseason games last year, though Friday's blast was his first regular-season homer with New York. He was on the injured list when the Yankees acquired him from the St. Louis Cardinals at last summer's trade deadline, and he played only seven regular season games after getting healthy. Bader started this season on the injured list and was activated earlier this week.
Tampa regained the lead in the bottom of the seventh inning on what was charitably scored a Wander Franco double. The ball clanked in and out of the glove of left fielder Jake Bauers, who then kicked the ball around. That allowed Yandy Díaz to cross the plate as the winning run (he was initially called out at the plate, though it was overturned on replay).
Bauers, who broke into the big leagues with the Rays in 2018, is a natural first baseman. The Yankees called him up two weeks ago and have him playing the outfield because Aaron Judge (hip) and Giancarlo Stanton (hamstring) are on the injured list, among others. Statcast says Franco's double had a 95% catch probability based on the exit velocity and launch angle.
"No excuses. That ball's gotta be caught," Bauers told reporters following the game (per Newsday).
Friday's win improved the Rays to 22-0 when scoring first this season. It is the longest such streak to begin a season since at least 1900, and every other team in baseball has at least two losses when scoring first. Also, Tampa is the first team to win 27 of its first 33 games since the Detroit Tigers went 28-5 (and eventually 35-5) to open the 1984 season.
As for the Yankees, Friday's loss drops them 10 games behind the Rays. It is the earliest in the season the Yankees have been 10 games behind first place since 1984, when the Tigers were in the AL East and had that 35-5 start.
