After such a promising start to this pivotal four-game series against the Rays, the Yankees ceded that ground back thanks to a disappointing start from Will Warren in which he allowed three home runs in four innings. It means that the Bombers can no longer finish this series tied for the division lead – something that a four-game sweep would have accomplished. All the same, there is still a chance to take three of four from the division leaders, starting with a win tonight.
Hopefully Gerrit Cole can
right the ship after Warren’s stinker last night. He’s coming off one of his better starts of the season — five innings of two-run ball with no walks and seven strikeouts against the Twins. His four-seam command was as good as we’ve seen it since his campaign started on May 22nd, but he’ll need to find a more consistent release point on his slider and changeup facing a Rays team that traditionally demolishes fastballs from Yankees pitchers. In eight starts, Cole is 3-3 with a 4.01 ERA (105 ERA+), 4.41 FIP, and 41 strikeouts in 42.2 innings.
Shane McClanahan is back to his best after missing all of the last two seasons to Tommy John surgery in 2024 and triceps surgery in 2025. The fastball velocity is down about a tick-and-a-half from his peak resulting in a slightly depressed strikeout rate, but he has more than made up for that by slashing his home run rate almost in half from his prior career average. That becomes important when you consider that the Yankees’ relative success against him — 4.70 ERA, 4.91 FIP, .507 SLG in eight starts — is largely down to the long ball. In 16 starts this year, McClanahan is 7-5 with a 3.05 ERA (141 ERA+), 3.29 FIP, and 77 strikeouts in 79.2 innings.
The Yankees make three changes to last night’s lineup. Trent Grisham gets the night off, meaning Max Schuemann slides over to play center and Jasson Domínguez comes in to play right. Anthony Volpe returns to play short moving José Caballero to second and Jazz Chisholm Jr. to the bench. Austin Wells replaces Ali Sánchez behind the plate despite the latter’s two hits yesterday.
The Rays also make three changes from last night’s lineup. Victor Mesa Jr. and Hunter Feduccia both homered off Warren, but they are replaced by Jonny DeLuca in right and Nick Fortes behind the plate, respectively. Richie Palacios was pinch hit for by Ben Williamson in the sixth and now its Williamson who gets the start at second.
How to watch
Location: Tropicana Field – St. Petersburg, FL
First pitch: 6:40 pm ET
TV broadcast: Amazon Prime Video, Rays.TV
Radio broadcast: WFAN 660/101.9 FM, WADO 1280 (NYY) | WDAE 95.7 FM, WQBN/1300AM (TB)
Streaming: Amazon Prime Video
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