ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. _ After the Rays' Travis d'Arnaud hit a walk-off homer against the Yankees Saturday, Tampa Bay fans could only wonder if the dramatic finish would prove to be spark or sputter, aberration or motivation.
Certainly, they needed a lift that would carry beyond one victory and provide momentum going into this week's All-Star Game break. Sure, they won Saturday, but that only served to snap a six-game losing streak against New York. The Rays entered Sunday 3-9 against the AL East leaders.
Tampa Bay's postseason hopes required a boost that would validate its confidence against the league's best.
And they got it Sunday.
All-Star Charlie Morton and a stout bullpen performance propelled the Rays to a hard-fought 2-1 victory against the Yankees. Tampa Bay (52-39) now stands 6 { games back of New York but undoubtedly feeling better about its chances of contending.
Morton struck out 10 over 5 2/3 innings while allowing only five hits. The bullpen, beleaguered and belittled because of its recent performances, held New York hitless to close out the game with Adam Kolarek, Andrew Kittredge, Colin Poche and Emilio Pagan getting the job done.
Despite giving up a homer to the always pesky Brett Gardner in the second inning, Morton set the tone. He opened the game by striking out the side: Aaron Hicks, Aaron Judge and Didi Gregorius, and continued to use his array of pitches to keep New York at bay. After Gardner's home, he escaped a two-on, no-out jam by again retiring the top of the order for the Yankees.
Offensively, the Rays tagged New York starter James Paxton for two quick runs in the first. d'Arnaud opened the game with a double, Tommy Pham brought him home with another double, and then Pham eventually scored on a fielders choice.
The Rays threatened to break open the game on several other occasions, but eventually stranded eight runners on base. It didn't help that Paxton grew stronger as the game went on, eventually scattering seven hits over six innings and striking out 11.
Of course, when you're playing what may be the best team in all of baseball, victories don't come easily. The Rays took the Yankees into extra innings on Thursday and Friday, only to lose because of bullpen breakdowns, including a three-run shot by Gardner on Friday.
So maybe the most important sign that good times lie ahead was how Pagan ended the game, striking out a swinging Gardner and sending the split crowd of 20,091 into a frenzied mix of cheers and boos.
