The Yankees lost to the Tampa Bay Rays in game two in Tampa. They lost this game 5-1, but got a great start from Cam Schlittler, the presumptive winner of the American League Cy Young Award. It may not look like a great start; however, his power saved the Yankees as they booted the ball everywhere in the first inning. After losing the first game, he is exactly the guy the Yankees wanted starting in this game. The Bombers needed to take one game in Tampa to steal home-field advantage in this series.
Stealing home-field advantage is important because Drew Rasmussen, who one-hit them two days ago, is scheduled to start game number five. The Yankees hope they never get there. In this game, Schlittler started against Freddy Peralta. He has had a renaissance since joining Tampa Bay. He was not very good for the Mets this season. Do you think the Yankees had a chance to win this game?
Yankees At Tampa Bay Game Summary October 5
The Yankees were hoping that their young ace, Cam Schlittler, would give them a good pitching performance. The team only mustered one hit in their last game out. Tampa has been a house of horrors for the Bombers; something strange seems to happen to them every time they play there. Here is a summary of the game.
In the first inning, Junior Caminero hit a ground ball to George Lobmard Jr. There was a force out at second, but Jazz Chisholm Jr. threw the ball away trying to get an out at first. Yandy Diaz scored, giving the Rays a 1-0 lead. Four batters into the game, the Yankees made three errors. That was a bad way to start, but the Bombers only gave up one run, a moral victory, of sorts.
In the fourth inning, Ben Rice hit a solo home run, and the game was tied at one. You have to wonder, with so many opportunities to take a big lead squandered by the Rays, maybe the Yankees would win this game just based on missed opportunities.
In the fifth inning, Liam Hicks grounded out, and Jonathan Aranda scored. Then, Chandler Simpson singled and Junior Caminero scored. Then Richie Palacios singled and two runs scored. Both Chandler Simpson and Joinny DeLuca scored. When the inning finally ended, it was 5-1 Rays.
In the eighth inning, Ben Rice hit another solo home run. The score was 5-2, the final score of the game.
Avoiding Your Problem
This is a very important game for the Yankees. They need to win three games in a row to avoid having to go back to Tampa again. Also, in game five, the Rays are supposed to start Drew Rasmussen, who one-hit the so-called Bombers in the first game of this series. That game was a good example of strange stuff happening to the Yankees in Tampa.
Austin Wells broke up the Rasmussen no-hitter in the eigth inning, with a line drive down the first-base line. It would have been a stand-up double, but Wells was thrown out by 15 feet running to third base. He made the third out there, breaking one of the laws of baseball. A win in this game would go a long way to relieving the tension on him.
The Error of Their Ways
The Yankees made three errors in the first inning. They were fortunate to allow only one run. The awful defensive performance was reminiscent of the poor defense they played in Game 5 of the 2024 World Series. Those errors cost the team that series; you bet the team was hoping that the errors in the first inning would not cost them this one.
This Game and the Next
The Yankees lost this game against the Rays 5-2. The player of this game was Ben Rice. He hit 2 solo home runs. Those were two of the Yankees 5 hits in these two games in Tampa. They almost, and probably should have, as many errors as hits in this game. These two teams play the third game of their series on Wednesday, October 7. There are definitely two games remaining in this series. There will be a fifth game, if necessary, on Saturday, October 10.
Conclusion: Why Do it Like This?
The Yankees are playing the Rays in this series after beating the Red Sox in the Wild Card round. On the other side, the Chicago White Sox were leading the Cleveland Guardians 2-0 after the former eliminated the Houston Astros. What you have is the best teams in the American League all playing each other, while teams that probably should not be in the playoffs are playing each other on the other side. Fans must ask themselves why baseball does it this way.
Don't stop here
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