Cole tames Rays, and Yankees use late rally to win
Gerrit Cole took a no-hit bid into the eighth inning, Aaron Hicks hit a tie-breaking triple in the ninth as Manuel Margot slammed into the right-field wall, and the visiting New York Yankees beat Tampa Bay 4-2 on Monday night for their 50th win.
New York has won 17 of its past 19 games, and its 50-17 start is the best in the major leagues since the 2001 Seattle Mariners. The Yankees opened a 14-game lead over third-place Tampa Bay in the AL East.
Cole struck out 12 and walked three, allowing one run and one hit in 71⁄3 innings. Cole struck out six in a row at one point and led 2-0 when Isaac Paredes grounded a slider on his 105th pitch off the mound and into center field. On June 3, Cole pitched 62 perfect innings at Detroit.
Clay Holmes (5-0) blew a 2-0 lead and allowed his first run since Opening Day, ending a 311⁄3 inning scoreless streak.
Anthony Rizzo hit a firstinning home run off Shane McClanahan, and the Yankees got a run in the seventh on an error by first baseman Ji-Man Choi, the major-league-high 45th unearned run allowed by the Rays.
With the score 2-2, Josh Donaldson singled off Jason Adam (0-2) with one out in the ninth and Hicks, batting .321 in June, drove a hanging changeup high off the right-field wall. Margot fell to the field as center fielder Brett Phillips retrieved the ball and Donaldson scored. Rays manager Kevin Cash and an athletic trainer went out to Margot, who appeared to hurt and knee and left on a cart.
Jose Trevino followed with a sacrifice fly.
Wandy Peralta pitched the ninth for his second save, and the Yankees improved to 6-2 against the Rays this season.
Mets 6, Marlins 0: David Peterson pitched into the sixth inning with his wife expected to go into labor imminently, and host New York blanked Miami despite losing utilityman Jeff McNeil to right hamstring tightness.
Pirates 12, Cubs 1: Newly promoted Oneil Cruz drove in four runs and Bligh Madris got three hits in his majorleague debut, sparking host Pittsburgh in a rout of Chicago.
Red Sox 5, Tigers 2: Franchy Cordero had three hits, including a two-run single, and Josh Winckowski pitched into the seventh inning in the longest start of his short career as host Boston beat Detroit. Jarren Duran had two hits, two stolen bases and two runs for Boston, which won for the sixth time in eight games to climb to a season-high six games above .500.
Briefly: Relievers Sergio Romo and and Roenis Elias were cut by the struggling Mariners to make room for reliever Ken Giles and infielder Kevin Padlo . ... The sputtering White Sox activated shortstop Tim Anderson from the 10-day injured list after he was sidelined by a strained right groin. ... Padres All-Star infielder Manny Machado wasn’t in the lineup against Arizona a day after spraining his left ankle in Denver, but acting manager Ryan Flaherty was optimistic his former teammate won’t need to go on the injured list.