Nothing separated the teams until the third inning, and once Tampa Bay took the lead it never gave it back. Shane McClanahan was sharp from the start, and Jonathan Aranda provided every run the Rays would need in a 3-0 victory over the New York Yankees on Wednesday at Tropicana Field.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NYY | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| TB | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | X | 3 | 8 | 0 |
McClanahan was the story on the mound. He worked 6.1 innings, allowing 4 hits, walking none and striking out 5 on 85 pitches. The left-hander improved to 8-5 with a 2.83 ERA. Bryan Baker closed it out with a perfect ninth, striking out all three batters he faced to earn his 25th save of the season, carrying a 1.73 ERA.
Aranda did the damage at the plate, going 2-for-3 with 3 RBI. In the third, Díaz scored on Aranda's single to right to give Tampa Bay the only lead it would need. Aranda extended the margin in the fifth when Fortes scored on his double to center. Then in the seventh, Walls scored on Aranda's sacrifice fly to center, pushing the lead to 3-0. Yandy Diaz was relentless at the top of the order, going 4-for-4 with a run scored.
Gerrit Cole took the loss, falling to 3-4. He allowed 3 runs on 7 hits over 6.1 innings, striking out 6 with 1 walk on 97 pitches. His ERA stands at 4.04. The Yankees managed only 6 hits on the night and were held scoreless for the full nine innings.
Two milestones were reached in this game. Diaz collected his 200th career double, reaching the mark in this game. Cole crossed 2,000 career innings pitched in this start. McClanahan, meanwhile, is closing in on 500 career innings pitched. The Rays improved to 54-36 with their second straight win. The Yankees fell to 50-42, dropping their second consecutive game.