TAMPA — With the Yankees playing at their spring training home on Thursday, their starter gave them a spring training-length performance.
Will Warren lasted just 1.2 innings in the Bombers’ first major league game at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Still the Yankees’ beat their tenants, the Rays, 6-3.
With the Yankees up 1-0 thanks to an Aaron Judge RBI single in the first frame, Warren’s night went off the rails in the second. Richie Palacios was the first base runner of the inning, as he reached on a one-out double.
Jake Magnum then reached on a single that Warren fielded, but Paul Goldschmidt didn’t cover first base. Following a walk, Taylor Walls tied the game with a sac fly. Kameron Misner then walked.
With Warren at 58 pitches overall and 38 in the inning, Aaron Boone called on Ryan Yarbrough, who escaped a bases-loaded jam with a strikeout.
The Rays got to Yarbrough, a former employee, in the third inning when Junior Caminero launched a two-run homer. But an Oswaldo Cabrera solo shot put the Yankees down one in the fifth before a force out off the bat of Cody Bellinger tied the game at three.
Another force out, this time off the bat of Jasson Domínguez, gave the Yankees the lead in the sixth.
Then Ben Rice ripped a two-run single for his fourth hit of the night. The Yankees never looked back in their comeback effort, though they weren’t all smiles toward the end of their victory.
Jazz Chisholm Jr., in particular, became irate when home plate umpire John Bacon rung him up on low 3-2 pitch in the seventh inning. Aaron Boone tried to intervene, but a furious Chisholm earned an ejection.
Once in the Yankees’ clubhouse, Chisholm kept arguing via social media.
“Not even f–king close,” he tweeted. While Chisholm had a point, his use of social media during a game appeared to be in violation of MLB policy.
With the Yankees winning their return to GMS, they’ll look to take a two-game lead in the four-game series with Carlos Rodón on the mound Friday. Walks and homers have plagued the lefty over his last two starts.
Drew Rasmussen will take the ball for Tampa Bay.
