The New York Yankees faced off against the Tampa Bay Rays in the first game for three-game series on Tuesday evening. After sweeping the Red Sox in four games, the Yankees hosted the Rays without their three best players. Proceeding without Giancarlo Stanton, Aaron Judge, and DJ LeMahieu, the offense simply wasn’t strong enough to battle against a dominant Tampa pitching corps.
This was the first loss of the season at home for the Bombers, with their overall record dropping to 16-7.
The Yanks will feature Gerrit Cole on the mound in game two on Wednesday, providing the men in pinstripes a bit more pitching support.
Final Score: 6-3
Here’s the good news and bad news for the New York Yankees following the loss:
GOOD NEWS:
There wasn’t much good news in the Yankees’ loss to Tampa. The offense was stale, and starting pitcher Masahiro Tanaka faltered miserably in his fourth start of the 2020 season.
Luke Voit, who lead off for the first time in his career, hit a two-run home run in the fifth inning to pull the Yankees within three. Prior to Voit going deep, Gary Sanchez pulled an inside fastball to left field 419 feet. He put the Yankees on the board after two passed balls that allowed the Rays to tack on some runs.
Nick Nelson pitched 3.0 innings allowing just one hit, striking out two batters. He looks phenomenal in relief, earning himself more playing time in the near future.
BAD NEWS:
The bad news boils down to starting pitching for the Yankees. Tanaka pitched 4.0 innings, allowing eight hits, five earned runs, and two homers. He increased his ERA from sub -3.00 to 4.60. The Yankees have already been struggling with their starting pitching, only depending on Cole to produce quality outings. Tanaka has been decent so far this year, but being thrashed against by Tampa is a massive wake up call for the Yankees.
In fact, it might force them to test the trade market for starting pitching, as the probability of making a World Series appearance with the current starting unit is low.
Injury wise, LeMahieu is still a ways away from returning to the lineup, and Giancarlo Stanton is at least three weeks out. On the bright side, slugger Aaron Judge enjoyed batting practice prior to Tuesday’s match up, showing he is ready to return.