ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Gerrit Cole lost his streak, then the Yankees’ lead and eventually a game.
Cole, who reached 51 innings this season before he allowed a home run, served up two dingers and coughed up a six-run lead in an 8-7, 10-inning defeat to the Rays at Tropicana Field on Sunday.
Both the Yankees ace and his manager had regrets after Tampa Bay hitters hit Cole hard in the middle innings.
Cole had rolled through four scoreless innings, in which he needed 60 pitches, before trouble arose in the fifth.
With one out in a game the Yankees led, 6-0, Cole threw a first-pitch, down-the-middle four-seamer to Jose Siri, who drilled a home run to center.
The Rays added an unearned run in the frame on two singles and an error, and the game would fall apart an inning later.
In the sixth inning, Harold Ramirez (on an inside fastball) and Isaac Paredes (on a down-the-middle slider) knocked back-to-back doubles before Cole lost a battle with Manuel Margot, who walked on eight pitches.
The Yankees’ lead was down to 6-3.
Aaron Boone did not have Ron Marinaccio or Ian Hamilton available, so he stuck with Cole, who had thrown 94 pitches.
His 95th was a down-the-middle slider to Christian Bethancourt, who hammered a game-tying, three-run home run.
Boone then emerged from the dugout to pull Cole.
“In hindsight, probably should have got him [before Bethancourt],” Boone said of Cole. “But … it’s our ace, and he’s been so good managing situations this year.”
Cole, who called his outing “frustrating,” felt the damage was mostly done when he got behind in the count.
“I’ve got to find a way to do a better job to get us out of there and get us a little bit deeper and prevent the runs,” Cole said after the Yankees lost for the first time in his eighth start this season. “The lack of command really burned us, and balls over the plate were touched.”
The Yankees ace earned the American League Pitcher of the Month nod last month, when the key to his domination was limiting the long ball.
Cole led the majors in homers allowed last season (33).
Sunday, Cole was charged with six runs (five earned) in five-plus innings, his ERA rising from 1.35 to 2.09.
It has still been a dominating start to his season, but the largest game of the small sample size went awry.
“They were able to capitalize on a few mistakes,” Boone said.
