NEW YORK (AP) — Curtis Mead and José Caballero had RBIs in a two-run eighth inning, and the Tampa Bay Rays overcame Aaron Judge’s 11th home run to beat the New York Yankees 3-2 on Saturday and stop a four-game losing streak.
Judge homered in the first against Zack Littell (2-5), who retired his next 11 batters before Austin Wells started the fifth with his sixth homer for a 2-1 lead.
Judge has four homers in his last six games. The two-time AL MVP is hitting a major league-leading .432 and has a 29-game on-base streak. He is 26 for 52 during a 13-game hitting streak.
Taylor Walls hit a second-inning sacrifice fly against emergency starter Ryan Yarbrough, facing his former team because Clarke Schmidt was scratched with soreness in his left side.
Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe landed hard on his left shoulder trying for a diving backhand stop on Christopher Morel’s grounder in the eighth, which went for an infield single.
After a walk and three stolen bases, Mead hit a tying single off Mark Leiter Jr. (2-3) for his third RBI this season. Caballero followed with a grounder up the middle that Volpe allowed to pop out of his glove for his fourth error as he started toward second in a try for an inning-ending double play.
Edwin Uceta got Judge to ground out with runners at the corners for the final out of the eighth, and Pete Fairbanks got three straight outs to remain perfect in seven save chances.
Yankees pitchers walked at least six for the fifth time this season. The Rays finished with six steals.
Key moment
Moved to left field in a defensive shift, New York’s Cody Bellinger made an off-balance leaping catch on Kameron Misner in the eighth, saving two runs.
Key stat
New York has 16 first-inning homers — one more than Kansas City had in all innings entering Saturday. Judge has six first-inning homers.
Up next
Yankees RHP Will Warren (1-1, 5.63 ERA) and Rays RHP Taj Bradley (2-2, 4.58 ERA) start Sunday’s series finale.
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