For five-plus innings at Yankee Stadium, Drew Rasmussen kept the New York lineup from putting a ball in play for a hit. When the nightcap ended, the Tampa Bay Rays had a 6-1 win and a pitching line that defined the evening.
Per ESPN's box score, Rasmussen worked 6 2/3 innings, allowed one hit and one run, walked three and struck out 11. He threw 114 pitches (72 strikes) and improved to 16-5 with a 2.67 ERA. Heliot Ramos finally broke up the no-hit bid with a double in the seventh. George Lombard Jr. singled later in the frame for New York's only run of the game.
Eleven punchouts, one lonely hit
Rasmussen attacked the zone early. ESPN listed him with 17 first-pitch strikes among 24 batters faced and a game score of 76. The right-hander had allowed only three baserunners before Ramos' double, and the bullpen closed what he started.
Kevin Kelly recorded the final out of the seventh. Cam Booser worked a clean eighth. Bryan Baker finished the ninth. Tampa Bay's staff totaled 13 strikeouts against three Yankees hits overall.
The Rays had dropped Game 1 of Tuesday's doubleheader 2-0, with Carlos Rodón shutting them out. Rasmussen's response in the nightcap flipped the series narrative before the clubs meet again Wednesday.
Diaz and Walls turn the middle innings
Yandy Díaz drove in four runs on two singles, including a two-run knock in the seventh that stretched the lead to 4-0 and another two-run single in the ninth. Taylor Walls went 3-for-4 with three runs scored and an RBI bunt single that helped open the seventh. Ryan Vilade's groundout in the third plated the first run after Walls reached and Mullins advanced.
Max Fried took the loss for New York after 6 2/3 innings, six hits, four runs and four strikeouts. The Yankees never assembled a sustained rally once Rasmussen settled into the middle innings.
