Rays 3, Yankees 2
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- It wasn't anything flashy, but for the second night in a row, the Tampa Bay Rays beat first-place New York, getting clutch outs to strand 10 Yankees on base in a 3-2 win on Wednesday night at Tropicana Field.
The game shifted on two plays at the plate -- Rays shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera made a smart read on a bloop single to score the winning run from second base in the second inning, and Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira was thrown out by center fielder Kevin Kiermaier for the final out the fifth.
The Rays (19-16) held on despite starter Nathan Karns throwing 49 pitches in the first two innings and leaving after five. Four Rays' relievers combined for four shutout innings, with Brad Boxberger working a perfect ninth for his 10th save in as many opportunities this season. Yankees designated hitter Alex Rodriguez struck out to end the game.
New York (21-14) outhit the Rays 10-7, but left 10 runners off base, with just one hit with runners in scoring position after the first inning. The game drew an announced crowd of 11,924, with the last three games ranking as the three smallest crowds ever for Rays-Yankees games at Tropicana Field. The series wraps up Thursday night.
Karns had a rough first inning, walking the first two batters on eight pitches, then giving up RBI singles to Teixeira and catcher Brian McCann for a 2-0 Yankees lead.
Karns allowed two more hits in the second but escaped without any more scoring.
Tampa Bay got a solo home run from right fielder Steven Souza in the first -- his sixth homer of the season -- to cut the lead to 2-1, then went ahead with two runs in the second.
Second baseman Logan Forsythe hit a leadoff double and scored on a double from Cabrera to tie the score at 2. The double was Cabrera's 1,000th career hit.
Rookie left fielder Joey Butler hit a bloop single into shallow right and Cabrera got a good enough jump to score from second for a 3-2 lead. Karns, after struggling in the first two innings, didn't give up another hit until the fifth.
Twice the Yankees beat a defensive shift for infield singles in the first inning.
Teixeira hit a ground ball to second, but Forsythe was lined up so deep into right field that he beat the throw to first for a single.
McCann went opposite field to the third-base side, away from the shift, to put two on with two outs. Right fielder Carlos Beltran singled to center, but Kiermaier came up throwing and catcher Bobby Wilson made the tag for the inning-ending out rather than the tying run.
NOTES: The Rays moved LHP Drew Smyly to the 60-day disabled list, confirming that he has a torn labrum in his pitching shoulder. He's likely to require season-ending surgery but will visit a specialist in Texas on Thursday for another opinion. ... With the opening on the 40-man roster, the Rays claimed RHP Preston Guilmet from the Blue Jays. Guilmet, 27, will report to Triple-A Durham. He joins his fifth organization in 14 months, with a 6.89 ERA in 15 2/3 career innings. He was pitching well at Triple-A with a 1.26 ERA and 12 strikeouts against three walks. ... Tuesday's crowd of 10,417 marked the lowest attendance ever for a Yankees-Rays game at Tropicana Field, breaking the record of 10,619 set Monday night. They're the two lowest regular-season crowds for any Yankees game since a 2003 makeup game at home against Toronto.