Saturday, May 28, 2016

Pineda Gets Rocked By Rays, Yanks Fall 9-5

       Another tremendous Tanaka performance and two big homeruns by Alex Rodriguez and Carlos Beltran led the Yankees to a game one victory against Tampa last night. In game two, the Yankees sent Michael Pineda to the mound to face the Rays this afternoon. Pineda has really struggled in 2016, where in nine starts he has gone 2-5 with a large 6.34 ERA, north of 11 in the first inning. Tampa countered with the equally struggling Matt Moore and his1-3 record and a 5.47 ERA. The Rays have lost his last six starts, with Moore pitching to the tune of a 6.89 ERA over that span. Today's game would be a battle of which starter struggled less, and Pineda was absolutely terrible.
     Once again, the first inning was not a good one for Michael Pineda, needing 27 pitches to escape the frame. He led off the ballgame by drilling Brandon Guyer, who scored on an Evan Longoria sacrifice fly. Pineda then served up back-to-back knocks by Steve Pearce and Logan Morrison, with the latter scoring Brad Miller who had doubled after the hit by pitch. A broken-bat single by Corey Dickerson drove in Pearce and widened the Rays lead to 3-0. And then in the bottom of the second, Pineda served up a two out triple to Brad Miller which was followed by a towering homerun off the bat of Evan Longoria, extending the lead to 5-0.
      The Yankees did show some signs of life coming in the top of the fourth inning where we got to celebrate another Carlos Beltran milestone. With one out, Beltran ripped a solo shot off of Moore, the 2500th hit of his career that inched the Yanks closer, 5-1. The homerun was Beltran's 12th of the season and the second in as many nights.
       Pineda's day would be finished in the bottom of the fourth where he allowed yet another two-out RBI hit, another Evan Longoria missile that scored Hank Conger, 6-1 Tampa. When it looked like he had figured it out in his last start in Oakland, the 6'7" right-hander took a step back today, departing with a putrid final line of 3.2 innings pitched, allowing six earned runs on nine base hits. It's really getting to the point where you almost don't even want to watch the game when you know Michael Pineda is pitching.
     The New York bullpen didn't fare much better than their starter. In the bottom of the fifth, Luis Sessa, inhereting runners on second and third, served up a two-out three-run blast to the Rays backup catcher and nine hole hitter Hank Conger. The blast was Conger's first of the season and the second extra-base hit of the campaign, with the first coming off of Pineda earlier in the ballgame.
     Trying to get back in the game, New York was able to get into the Tampa Bay bullpen in the top of the seventh. After allowing Headley and Gregorius to get on with one out, Moore gave up an RBI single to Austin Romine, scoring Hadley and pulling the Yankees to within seven at 9-2, and leaving the bases loaded. Matt Moore then got Hicks to strike out but was lifted in favor of the bullpen, leaving with a final line of 6.2 IP, 8H, 3 ER, 3 BBs and 7K's. Eddie Romero, pitching in relief, immediately walked the next hitter Ronald Torreyes, forcing in Gregorius, 9-3, but got Alex Rodriguez to strike out to and the frame. Romero would go on to allow two more runs in the top of the eighth. Chase Headley, Didi Gregorius and Austin Romine each recorded their third hit of the game, with Gregorius and Rome on driving in the two runs, making it a four run contest, 9-5, where the score would remain.
     The Yankees aim to take the series in the rubber game tomorrow, with first pitch scheduled for 1:10 PM ET.



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Sorry for the Capatcha... Blame the Russians :)