CINCINNATI -- The Yankees have been on a roll lately. 

They completed a three-game sweep of the Reds with a 4-1 victory Sunday afternoon before a crowd of 33,828 at Great American Ball Park. It was the fourth win in a row for New York, the club’s sixth in its last seven games and 11th in its last 14 games. 

"We can all say we got a whole lot better today," center fielder Harrison Bader said. 

The reason for Bader's assessment was the return of right-hander Luis Severino.

Severino made his season debut after starting the year on the injured list with a strained right lat muscle. He went 4 2/3 innings and allowed one run on four hits and one walk while striking out five. Severino reached his 75-pitch limit one out short of qualifying for a win.

"It's amazing seeing him back on the mound," Bader said. "The way he works, his stuff, his energy. To see his stuff, the way it works -- I got a really good view from center field -- he's electric. I couldn't have been more happy he's back."

Said Yankees manager Aaron Boone, "Sevy was great. To almost go a full five innings there was big. I thought he kept getting better. I thought his misses were good misses. He finished the day emptying the tanks, so he had a little extra juice at the end of his outing." 

Severino felt he was getting stronger as the outing wore on. 

"I felt really good," he said. "I felt like I was attacking the zone after the first walk. Everything else was right there. I felt good. I was saving something for the end."

Though he was satisfied with his start, Severino would have liked to get the win.

"I was disappointed," he said. "But we got the win. That's the most important thing."

Severino did walk Jonathan India, the first batter he faced, which quickly led to a controversial play. Two outs later, Spencer Steer popped one along the right-field line. Jake Bauers got to the ball in fair territory and had it go off his glove. It was initially ruled a foul ball, but the Reds challenged and the call was overturned. 

Boone was promptly ejected for arguing the call.

The umpires awarded Steer a double, and India home on the play, giving the Reds a 1-0 lead. Boone wanted an explanation as to why India was given home. Boone said he was ejected because you can't argue a call that goes to replay.

"I shouldn't have been kicked out there," he said. "I was saying -- my bad."

Reds starter Hunter Greene faced the minimum 12 batters through four innings, thanks to a double play and a caught stealing. 

But Willie Calhoun led off the fifth with a walk. Four pitches later, Bader hit a 108.4 mph, 411-foot bolt for his fourth home run to give the Yankees a 2-1 lead.

Gleyber Torres pushed the lead to 3-1 with a shot to right for his seventh home run of the year. The Yankees added a run on Anthony Volpe's RBI double in the seventh.

After Severino left, New York’s bullpen retired 11 straight before the Reds loaded the bases with two outs in the ninth. The bullpen had a 1.34 ERA on the seven-game road trip -- a major reason why the Yankees went 6-1 on the trip.  

"Great trip,” Boone said. "Tough stretch, 33 games out of 34 [days]. We’ve been beat. We’ve got some guys out. I’m excited by how well this team is competing. Walk in with edge, prepare and compete. They’re doing that at a high level right now.”