Ryan McMahon wasted no time making his mark, and by the end of the night he had turned Wednesday into a personal showcase.
McMahon launched a third-inning grand slam and finished with a career-tying five RBIs, helping the host New York Yankees cruise past the Tampa Bay Rays 9-2. Ben Rice added plenty of thunder of his own, drilling two solo homers as New York kept rolling at home.
The damage started early against Tampa Bay spot starter Mason Englert (0-4). McMahon opened his night with a two-strike single in the second inning that brought home a run and pushed the Yankees to a 2-0 lead. Rookie Spencer Jones doubled in that frame and scored on McMahon’s RBI hit, with Heliot Ramos later adding a sacrifice fly.
Then came the big swing in the third. George Lombard Jr. led off the inning by homering to right-center, and McMahon followed by lifting a full-count pitch down the right-field line for a grand slam and a 7-0 advantage. It was McMahon’s third career grand slam, and the blast came after Anthony Volpe had taken ground balls at third before the game.
Rice set the tone immediately, taking Englert’s first pitch of the night over the wall to become the 13th Yankee with 40 homers in a season. That was Rice’s fourth career leadoff homer, and he wasn’t done.
In the fourth, he sent another ball into the right-field seats for his fifth career multi-homer game and his 40th homer season, making him the seventh player to reach that mark this year. He also added a single and reached base four times.
New York finished with its 10th win in 15 games and improved to 91-67.
Gerrit Cole (10-9) handled the pitching side of the tuneup for the postseason, giving up two runs on three hits over 5 2/3 innings. He struck out eight, walked three and reached double-digit wins for the 10th time in his career.
For Tampa Bay (96-62), Jonny DeLuca drove in a run with a double and Cedric Mullins homered. The Rays had already clinched their fifth AL East title on Tuesday, and they rested AL hits leader Yandy Diaz while playing Junior Caminero for five innings. The loss left Tampa Bay three games behind Milwaukee for the best record in baseball.
In Other News...
Rays' Post-Clinch Reset Brought More Concern Than Just A Yankees Loss
After wrapping up the AL East, the Rays used a post-clinch game to take a look at Mason Englert, and the results were rough. Englert was tagged for four home runs in a 9-2 loss to the Yankees, while Tampa Bays offense managed only two runs, including a Cedric Mullins homer, in a game that looked more like a reset than a celebration.
The roster shuffle around Englert added another layer to the night. To make room, the Rays optioned reliever Alex Cook and are expected to activate Manny Rodriguez from the injured list, a move that points to the kind of late-season sorting that often follows a division clinch. For a team with bigger October questions ahead, the focus now is less on the loss itself and more on what the Rays learned from the opportunity they created. [Read more 🡒]
Rays Can Afford This Loss For One Very Important Reason
The Rays took a lopsided loss in a game that looked plenty ugly on the scoreboard, but the bigger picture has already been settled. With home-field advantage secured and a first-round bye in hand, Tampa Bay had the flexibility to treat the night more like a tuneup than a must-win, giving key players a chance to rest while keeping everyone pointed toward October.
Mason Englert got the start and was tagged for eight earned runs before the bullpen finished things off, but the result mattered far less than the health of the roster heading into the postseason. The Yankees, meanwhile, went a different route with Gerrit Cole on the mound and heavy bullpen usage, underscoring the contrast between a team still grinding for every edge and one that can afford to think a step ahead. [Read more 🡒]
Rays Clinched The AL East Behind A Start That Changed October Expectations
A strong start from Drew Rasmussen helped push the Rays over the top in a division race that had been building for weeks, and the payoff arrived with Tampa Bay clinching the AL East. It was the kind of outing that can reshape the tone around a team heading into October, especially for a club that has spent much of the season trying to separate itself in a tight American League picture.
Around the league, there was no shortage of milestone moments on Tuesday, from Zack Wheeler reaching 2,000 career strikeouts with an 11-strikeout start for the Phillies to Carlos Rodon picking up the 100th win of his career after going eight innings for the Yankees. But in Tampa Bay, the focus stays on what Rasmussens performance meant for the Rays, who suddenly have a division title in hand and a much different conversation waiting as the postseason approaches. [Read more 🡒]