Rays Let a 4-0 Lead Slip Away as Yankees Rally for 6-4 Win

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A good night, right up until it wasn't

For a while at Yankee Stadium, this was exactly the kind of rivalry game Tampa Bay could enjoy: the Rays putting runs on the board, New York putting up zeroes, and Ian Seymour keeping the whole operation moving.

Then came the part nobody around here wants to replay.

The Rays lost 6-4 to the Yankees on September 24, surrendering a 4-0 advantage as New York scored in each of its final three offensive innings. A three-run seventh erased Tampa Bay's remaining cushion. A two-run eighth finished the reversal. The Rays went scoreless over their final three innings.

That's not a little wobble. That's a game changing ownership while Tampa Bay couldn't find an answer. Against the Yankees, it comes with an extra helping of aggravation.

How it happened: Build, then unravel

Tampa Bay struck first with two runs in the third inning. Another run in the fifth made it 3-0, and a run in the sixth pushed the lead to 4-0 before New York finally answered in the bottom half.

That progression matters. This wasn't one early burst followed by an entire night of waiting. The Rays added to their advantage in separate innings, giving themselves more room as the game moved along. Through five innings, the Yankees hadn't scored at all.

New York's single run in the sixth cut the margin to 4-1. Still a lead worth having. Still a game Tampa Bay had positioned itself to win.

But the seventh brought three Yankees runs and a 4-4 tie. The eighth brought two more, putting New York ahead 6-4. Tampa Bay's ninth ended without a run, completing a finish that looked nothing like the opening act.

The inning-by-inning swing is available in the full ESPN game coverage. The shape of this one is painfully clear even without a play-by-play autopsy: Tampa Bay built the lead gradually; New York took it apart late.

Player of the night: Seymour did his job

Seymour's line deserves its own space, not a passing mention beneath the final score. He delivered five innings with one hit allowed, no earned runs, no walks and three strikeouts. New York's linescore also stayed blank throughout those five innings.

One hit. No free passes. That is a sturdy foundation, especially in a game Tampa Bay led 3-0 through the fifth.

The offensive contributors weren't invisible, either. Yandy Diaz went 2-for-4, walked and scored twice. J. Caminero finished 2-for-5 with two RBI. Those are meaningful contributions in a four-run effort, even if the final three innings produced no additional support.

A few numbers worth keeping in view:

• Seymour: 5.0 innings, one hit, no earned runs, no walks, three strikeouts.
• Diaz: 2-for-4, two runs and a walk.
• Caminero: 2-for-5 with two RBI.
• Paul Goldschmidt: 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI for New York.

There were good individual nights inside this loss. Recognizing them doesn't require pretending the ending was acceptable.

The turning point: Three runs changed everything

The seventh inning is the dividing line. Entering it, Tampa Bay still held a 4-1 lead. Leaving it, the teams were tied 4-4, and every bit of the Rays' scoring cushion was gone.

The eighth supplied the winning margin, but the seventh stripped away the advantage Seymour and the offense had helped create. New York scored six unanswered runs across the sixth, seventh and eighth. Tampa Bay scored none across the seventh, eighth and ninth.

For readers following our Rays coverage, that's the central takeaway: five strong innings on the mound and a four-run lead weren't enough to survive this finish.

What it means: Credit the start, own the finish

No need to dress a 6-4 loss up as something sweeter. Tampa Bay had substantial positives, including Seymour's five scoreless innings and Diaz reaching with two hits and a walk. The Yankees still did the decisive late scoring.

That's the honest hometown read: appreciate what worked, and don't wave away what cost the game. A 4-0 lead became a 6-4 defeat. This one was there for the Rays, and they didn't close it out.

What's next: Follow the Rays' upcoming schedule for their next matchup.

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