Rays cap '20 celebration with win over Yanks

ST. PETERSBURG -- In the half-hour leading up to Rich Hill’s first pitch on Friday afternoon, the Rays enjoyed the opportunity to reflect on all they accomplished a season ago. They stood side by side along the first-base line and watched highlights of their run to the World Series flash across the video board in right field. They unveiled two new banners in left-center field, one for their third American League East title and another for their second AL championship.

Then the Rays repeated one key part of their success last season: They beat the Yankees.

• Box score

Playing in front of fans at Tropicana Field for the first time in 548 days, Tampa Bay snapped its four-game losing streak with a 10-5 win over New York. The result was a familiar one for the Rays, who beat the Yankees eight times in 10 regular-season meetings last year before winning the AL Division Series in five games. And after a disappointing first road trip defined by injuries and inconsistent pitching, the Rays looked a lot more like the 2020 version in their home opener.

“We haven't seen fans there in a long time, so to have the crowd there and have them getting into the game there, especially toward the end, was just fun,” said Joey Wendle, who greeted reliever Nick Nelson in the third inning with a go-ahead, two-run double. “Combine that with the banners and stuff like that at the beginning of the game, just kind of a special game -- and fun. It was, overall, one I think we'll remember.”

The Rays announced an official, full-capacity attendance of 9,021 for the first game played before fans at Tropicana Field since Game 4 of the 2019 ALDS. Last year, they played in mostly empty ballparks until they reached the World Series. For all the memorable moments they created in '20, all the clips that played Friday and now have a place in franchise history, they weren’t able to share them with their fans.

That changed Friday, when the team and fans watched together as black coverings fell to reveal two new banners placed to the right of the six already hanging above left field. Brandon Lowe said seeing the years and titles in order made the Rays “really feel like you’re a part of it, and you helped put that banner up there.”

Fans cheered for Tampa Bay’s players and coaches as they were introduced, cranking up the volume for longest-tenured Ray Kevin Kiermaier, Opening Day starter Tyler Glasnow and postseason heroes Brett Phillips and Randy Arozarena. A “Let’s go Randy!” chant broke out in right field during the sixth inning, and Arozarena jumped and turned to face the fans in acknowledgement.

For manager Kevin Cash, just seeing the words “American League Champions” was significant.

“Just reading that, you appreciate it. But when you see it -- now we're going to see it every day -- it should be a lot of happy memories and good times,” Cash said. “I think our guys understand that. For the ones that were there, it was a special moment. We want to try to create some more this season, for sure.”

Not that anyone was worried after six games, but Friday’s victory was also a reassuring performance on the mound and especially in the batter’s box. Hill worked six solid innings, retiring the first eight batters he faced and each of the last 10. Aside from a four-batter stretch in the third inning, when the Yankees strung together all four of their hits off Hill in succession to put up four runs, the veteran left-hander was dominant.

After the Rays gained a 5-4 lead in the third inning, Hill recorded two of his seven strikeouts in a 10-pitch fourth. It was emblematic of his efficiency all afternoon, as he cruised through six innings on only 83 pitches.

“He was outstanding the entire game,” Cash said.

And after scoring only nine runs total during their three-game sweep at the hands of the Red Sox in Boston, the Rays broke out for 10 runs on 13 hits on Friday. They forced Yankees starter Corey Kluber to throw 34 of his 62 pitches in the third inning and chased him after he recorded only seven outs.

“It's professional hitting at its best,” Hill said.

Willy Adames doubled and homered in his ninth career game with multiple extra-base hits. Austin Meadows had three hits and four other players put together a multi-hit game in a balanced offensive performance.

Everyone in the lineup scored at least one run except for Phillips, who drove in one on a sacrifice fly. Lowe delivered the biggest hit, a three-run double in the Rays’ four-run fourth inning.

“The guys were excited to get back here,” Cash said. “[Thursday’s] day off probably helped, and they were excited to play in front of our fans. That was pretty cool, just a great welcoming on their part, and nice to see that the offense and the guys kind of repaid the favor by giving them some stuff to cheer about.”