Make no mistake, this series between the New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays could set the tone for the AL East race. The division is fairly tight, with plenty of baseball left to play. But in Major League baseball, the thinnest of margins can separate the teams that go on and the teams that spend the offseason aching for that slim margin.
So after the Yankees grabbed the first game in a four-game series the other day, the Tampa Bay Rays were looking for any kind of edge, anything to help them keep pace and set themselves up for later in the season. And the Yankees served things up on a silver platter, failing to hold a lead when it counted.
In a disturbing trend it was Bartolo Colon who gave up the edge. But maybe it wasn’t all Colon this time. Curtis Granderson had problems with the lights on a Riggiana fly ball to center. But capping the errors was a Logan misfire on a ball hit back to the pitcher that let the rays pull things even. From there, it was just a matter of time and the Rays took home a 3-2 win.
Keep your eyes on this AL east race. It’s been a topsy turvy year, and with the Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, and Tampa Bay Rays all within striking distance, things are going to get interesting.