It took the Yankees seven attempts to notch their first three-game winning streak of the 2016 season, a feat they finally accomplished Friday night in Oakland. They wasted no time in pushing that streak to four.
The Yankees continued rolling Saturday afternoon, riding an excellent start by Masahiro Tanaka to a 5-1 victory over the A’s. Coming off his two worst starts of the season in back-to-back outings, Tanaka rebounded beautifully in Oakland with seven innings of one-run ball. The Yankee ace struck out just four, but trusted his defense to help him scatter five hits and two walks on just 92 pitches and stifled the few rallies Oakland attempted to mount.
The bats for both teams were quiet early, registering just one baserunner combined through the first three innings. The Yankees found their footing during the second trip around the order against Oakland starter Sean Manaea however, scoring a quartet of runs in the top of the fourth. After loading the bases with nobody out, Carlos Beltran continued his hot-hitting ways by slashing a single to left to give New York a 1-0 lead. After a Chase Headley fly-out, Aaron Hicks plated the second run of the inning with a sacrifice fly. Then with two outs in the innings, Rob Refsnyder delivered what turned out to be the decisive blow.
The Play: Refsnyder’s 2-run double in the fourth (+.146 WPA)
With two on and two out, Refsnyder drove Manaea’s 3-2 pitch to the warning track deep in right-center field for a double. Mark Teixeira and Beltran both came around to score, doubling the Yankees’ lead and giving Tanaka more than enough breathing room. The game was Refsnyder’s first big-league action of the year after being recalled from Triple-A earlier this week.
Top Performers
Yankees: Masahiro Tanaka (7 IP, 1 R, 5 H, 4 K, 2 BB)
Athletics: Max Muncy (2 for 3)
Notes
-Tanaka was on extra rest today, and his strong performance lends some credence to the idea that Tanaka might prefer it. So far in 2016, Tanaka has a 1.87 ERA when on 5+ days of rest (5 starts) and a 5.68 ERA when on 4-days rest (3 starts).
-Starlin Castro picked up his 12th multi-hit game of the season, going 3 for 5. Castro helped spark the fourth-inning rally with an infield single before singling again in the fifth and then doubling in the seventh to drive in the Yankees’ fifth run of the game.
-Teixeira’s brutal season at the plate continued as he turned in another 0 for 3 day, though he was able to work an 0-2 count into a walk in the fourth inning that ultimately loomed large, and reached on a ball he rocketed to third base in the fifth that was ultimately ruled an error.
-Alex Rodriguez (hamstring) isn’t expected to be activated from the disabled list until the team returns home for a three-game set with the Blue Jays on Tuesday. He will not require a minor-league rehab stint.
The Quote
“Well, it’s better than being in last place.” -Joe Girardi on the Yankees climbing to fourth place in the division
The Highlight: Tanaka shines with his arm and his glove
Tanaka didn’t dazzle with swing-and-miss stuff, but he was effective anyway. He relied on defense, including his own, to make quick work of the Oakland lineup. Tanaka spun four 1-2-3 innings in the contest and seemed to easily navigate out of trouble any time the A’s built a threat.
Up Next
The Yankees will go for a four-game sweep of the A’s in the series finale tomorrow to wrap up the road trip. They’ll send the struggling Michael Pineda to the mound, who has allowed 11 runs in his last two starts. Jesse Hahn, meanwhile, will look to stop the bleeding for Oakland. Hahn has a 3.38 ERA in 18 and 2/3 innings this season. Game time is 4:05 pm.
Lead photo: Ed Szczepanski / USA Today Sports, Video: MLB.com