ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The Yankees were having a ball Thursday afternoon blowing out the Tampa Bay Rays on a getaway-day matinee at Tropicana Field when a middle-innings message pitch turned everyone’s mood.
Everyone in the Yankees’ dugout and bullpen instantly became furious seeing catcher Austin Romine being knocked down with a fastball from reliever Andrew Kittredge that just missed his head in the sixth inning of their 12-1 rout.
In the midst of his best start of the season, left-hander CC Sabathia looked more angry than anyone stepping out of the dugout to scream at the Rays, who retaliated the wrong way for having two of their players hit in their last two games.