ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Aaron Boone’s decision to use relievers from start to finish in Monday night’s game revolved around wanting to give his starters an added day of rest.
Based on the way it worked in a 4-1 victory over the pesky Rays, the manager might employ the strategy more than once next season.
As for this year, the victory in front of 13,832 at Tropicana Field hiked the Yankees’ lead over the A’s to two games in the chase for the top AL wild-card spot, with the winner hosting the Oct. 3 game.
Depending on how the A’s-Mariners game went Monday night in Seattle, the Yankees’ lead either increased to 2 ½ lengths with a six games remaining or remained at 1 ½.
Jonathan Holder was the first of eight Yankee pitchers. He was followed by Stephen Tarpley, Sonny Gray, Chad Green, David Robertson, Aroldis Chapman, Dellin Betances and Zach Britton, who posted the save by recording the final three outs. Gray got credit for the win.
Betances worked a scoreless eighth inning, but his 44-game streak of striking out at least one batter ended. It was the third longest such streak in baseball history.
Back-to-back one-out doubles by Andrew McCutchen and Aaron Judge in the seventh inning stretched the Yankees’ lead to 4-1. McCutchen accounted for the game’s first run with a homer in the third inning.
The victory evened the Yankees’ record against the Rays to 8-8 this season and was just their second in seven games at Tropicana Field.
Gary Sanchez has been anointed the starting catcher for the AL wild-card game by Aaron Boone, but Sanchez had another brutal game. In addition to being charged with two passed balls (he leads the majors with 17), Sanchez went 0-for-4 and whiffed twice to extend a slump to 10-for-66 (.152) in the last 19 games.
Robertson opened the sixth inning by walking Matt Duffy and he moved to second on Sanchez’s second passed ball. Ji-Man Choi walked in front of Tommy Pham’s grounder to Miguel Andujar that turned into a force out at second.
With runners on the corners and one out Robertson struck out Joey Wendle and watched Brett Gardner crash into the center-field fence to catch Brandon Lowe’s drive to keep the 3-1 lead intact. Robertson reacted to the run-saving catch by raising both arms as if to signal a touchdown.
Gardner replaced center fielder Aaron Hicks, who left because of a tight hamstring, in the fourth inning and delivered a two-out, RBI single off lefty Ryan Yarbrough that gave the Yankees a 2-1 lead. Gardner scored from first on Giancarlo Stanton’s double into the left-field gap for a 3-1 advantage. Stanton made the final out at third.
Pham opened the fourth with a double off the left-field wall and moved to third on the passed ball. Joey Wendle followed with a routine ground ball to Luke Voit, but after looking at third and deciding not to throw there, Voit lost the out at first.
With runners on the corners Gray fed Brandon Lowe a 6-3 ground-ball double play that scored Pham and tied the score, 1-1.
McCutchen squeezed a one-out homer inside the left-field foul pole. It was McCutchen’s fifth homer in 21 games as a Yankee.
Gray replaced Tarpley in the third and walked Mallex Smith with one out. Gray attempted to pick off Smith but the ball glanced off Voit’s glove. That allowed Smith to make second and he took third on Matt Duffy’s ground out to the left side. Gray stranded Smith by getting Choi on a grounder to Andujar.
Holder issued consecutive one-out walks to Duffy and Choi in the first inning before catching Pham looking and watching Wendle’s liner find Judge’s glove in right field for the final out.
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