Eight innings of scoreless baseball ended with one swing. Aaron Judge launched a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth, lifting the Yankees to a 2-0 victory over Tampa Bay at Yankee Stadium.
Judge went 2-for-4 with 2 RBI, extending his season totals to 17 home runs and 32 RBI while carrying a .250 average. The walk-off blast capped a patient night at the plate for the Yankees captain, who delivered when it mattered most.
Judge homered to right center, a 363-foot shot that scored Schuemann and ended the pitcher's duel. The ninth-inning heroics came against Kevin Kelly, who had entered to protect the scoreless tie but allowed 2 runs on 2 hits and a walk in his lone inning of work.
Drew Rasmussen dominated for Tampa Bay, allowing just 5 hits over 7 scoreless innings with 6 strikeouts and 1 walk. His 92-pitch effort kept the Rays in position to win, carrying a 2.78 ERA. Ryan Weathers matched him for New York, surrendering 4 hits across 7 innings with 4 strikeouts and 3 walks. Tim Hill earned his first win of the season with a scoreless ninth inning.
The victory snapped a three-game losing streak for New York, improving to 30-22. Tampa Bay's five-game winning streak ended as they fell to 34-15. Rasmussen sits 21 strikeouts away from 500 for his career.