Rays vs Yankees Recap: Rays Rally to Upset, 4-2

The Yankees hosted the Rays at home on Friday night, and New York was hungry to bounce back. The Rays came in red-hot, riding a five-game winning streak with a 34-15 record. The Yankees had stumbled lately, dropping three straight games to sit at 30-22. Nick Martinez took the mound for Tampa Bay, looking sharp early. Then Austin Wells stepped up in the bottom of the fifth inning. Martinez threw an 87-mph sinker right into Wells' wheelhouse. Wells connected hard and crushed it deep to right-center field. The ball soared 392 feet over the wall. The crowd erupted as Wells circled the bases. The Yankees led 1-0, and the home team had drawn first blood in this pitching duel.

The game stayed tight until the eighth inning when the Rays' bats came alive. Jonathan Aranda stepped to the plate against Tim Hill and found his pitch. He ripped an 89-mph sinker and doubled to center field. Chandler Simpson raced home from third base. Junior Caminero was on his way to scoring too. Next up was Richie Palacios. Hill threw an 88-mph sinker. Palacios didn't miss. He drove it to center for a single, and Aranda and Caminero both scored on the play. Yandy Diaz advanced to third on the hit. The Rays had pushed across three runs in minutes. Then Ryan Vilade came through with a sacrifice fly to left. One more run crossed home plate. Tampa Bay led 4-1 and the Yankees' comeback would need to be quick.

The Yankees refused to go down without a fight in the bottom of the eighth. Jazz Chisholm Jr. stepped up to bat against Ian Seymour. The Rays pitcher threw an 81-mph sweeper. Chisholm Jr. connected and hit a line drive that rocketed to right field. He sprinted around first base and slid into third with a triple. Cody Bellinger scored on the play and it was now 4-2. New York was back in the game. But the Rays' bullpen tightened up when it mattered most. Ian Seymour, Kevin Kelly, and Bryan Baker worked together to shut down the Yankees. The final out came and Tampa Bay had won 4-2. The Rays improved to 35-15 while the Yankees fell to 30-23 after losing their fourth game in a row.