NEW YORK – Clint Frazier was in the batting box when some Yankee fans couldn’t stand it anymore. They threw half a dozen balls into the field and forced the game to be interrupted for 2 minutes and 15 seconds in the seventh inning.
And manager Aaron Boone exploded in a rare meeting with his players after the game.
New York is going bad, and the Rays have taken the measure.
Brandon Lowe connected on a two-run double in the first inning against opener Nick Nelson and Tampa Bay doubled the Yankees 8-2 on Friday.
“We know adversity can come to us at some point in the season. Now it’s knocking on our door and we have to respond,” Boone said.
The Rays, reigning champions of the Eastern Division of the American League, continued their dominance over the Yankees.
Tampa Bay came to New York after suffering eight losses in 11 innings, and had not had the lead in 25 innings. But the Rays, young and athletic took an 8-0 lead in the seventh inning and outscored the inoperable Yankees 16 times in their last 21 encounters.
This streak includes last year’s divisional series.
New York fell to a sheet of 5-8 and shows problems with pitching, batting and fielding. He gave away 7:00 tickets to Tampa, got just three unstoppable, struck out 14 times and made three mistakes that resulted in three dirty runs.
Then came the rain of balls thrown by some of the 10,202 annoyed spectators on a windy night.
And Frazier recounted that the manager raised his voice when he met them.
“He’s so calm that when he talks to us like he did everyone has to listen, because he’s not the kind of person who usually dislikes so much,” he commented. “So I think your ears are buzzing a little bit when someone who’s so calm tells you everything that’s expected of you and you’re not doing. Obviously he was very angry and rightly so.”
Michael Wacha (1-1) improved his effectiveness from 7.00 to 4.20, by tolerating a hit for six blank innings, with nine strikeouts and a ticket.
Nelson (0-2) charged with defeat.
For the Rays, Cubans Randy Arozarena 4-1 with a score and a push, Yandy Diaz 5-2. Dominicans Manuel Margot 4-1 with a score, Willy Adames 5-1 with a score.
For the Yankees, Venezuelans Gleyber Torres 3-1 with a scored, Rougned Odor 2-0. Colombian Gio Urshela 3-1. Dominican Gary Sanchez 3-0.