The confrontation of Masahiro Tanaka with Blake Snell proves the value of the Yankees



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ST. PETERSBURG, Florida – The biggest series of the season to date. Defending League winner Cy Young Award is for other players.

Really, is there any doubt about the choice of Yankees here?

The starting rotation turned in favor of the Yankees and, of course, the Tropicana Field Series. Masahiro Tanaka led his team to a 7-1 win over the Rays and Blake Snell who drew the Yankees (24-16) within half-time of Tampa Bay (24-15).

Do not let the final score fool you; It was a tight 3-1 fight in eight innings when, to attest to the seriousness of this stadium blast, the Trop suffered a power failure. After an incredible 43 minutes, the Yankees put their power aside, adding four points to put the game out of reach.

The heart of this competition, however, was the pitchers' duel, in which the Yankees and their most reliable supporter in the big game – the guy who reached its ceiling in October, was very disappointed – triumphed.

"We are against Snell today, which is absolutely about it," said Aaron Boone, "but it is obvious that Masa is able to live up to him, then some."

"You try to follow him," said Tanaka, through a translator, Snell. "He was efficient, getting outs. And obviously, he's one of the best throwers in the league right now. Obviously, you want to match him. I thought I could do a very good job today. "

Obviously, yes, he did seven innings and allowed one point to score on five hits and no walk, eliminating seven. At the beginning of the match, while Snell sailed perfectly in the first heat of the formation of Yankees, scoring six goals in a row and seven out of nine, Tanaka kept pace. This was probably his best start to the season – arguably the most important one – because of a quick healed ball that counted for three of his strikeouts.

"I really think he's made progress with his splitter," said receiver Austin Romine. "It's the best I've seen in these last two outings. … Being able to accept it today, I find that the height is deeper. "

"I think the separator is starting to come back," Tanaka said. "I do not think it was my best, but I think it was better."

And when the Yankees broke the mark with a pair of points in the fifth inning, Tanaka scored a double with doubles from Austin Romine and Mike Tauchman and a single from DJ LeMahieu. trouble in the sixth (after giving up a solo circuit at Austin Meadows) and needed only four lengths to finish the seventh. At that moment, the myriad Yankees fans behind the visiting canoe greeted him with a standing ovation.

"To be honest with you, I did not know that there was a standing ovation today," said Tanaka laughing.

The fans read the situation correctly, even though Tanaka only managed 73 shots. With Meadows second in eighth, Boone went right to Zack Britton, who escaped his own traffic jam before the odd ninth inning.

There is nothing weird about the coming of Tanaka, however. We are talking about the guy with a 1.50 ERA in the playoffs. Who is energized, rather than understated, by the pressures of his work.

"He always tends to follow us in big matches," said Romine.

This is Tanaka's calling card. You did not need the unreliable lights of the Too much to see it coming back.

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