Yankees hit four home runs in 13th straight victory

OAKLAND, Calif. — During this streak that shows few signs of ending anytime soon, the Yankees have received their share of contributions from the lesser-known members of the roster.

Andrew Velazquez, Tyler Wade, Nestor Cortes, Clay Holmes and Wandy Peralta — just to name a handful — have played a role in plenty of wins.

But on Friday night, as the Yankees ran their winning streak to 13 with an 8-2 win over the A’s in front of 22,463 at Oakland Coliseum, it was almost entirely about the biggest names — and biggest bodies.

Gerrit Cole (13-6, 2.80) again pitched like an ace, striking out nine in six scoreless innings, and recorded his 200th strikeout faster than any other pitcher in franchise history (24 games).

"It's pretty special in this organization, we've had a lot of good players,'' Cole said. "It's a pretty special moment for the organization, so glad to push things forward from that perspective. But for me, just trying to go out there and get a quality start. It's a special little record, but it's a little one."

Cole was backed by home runs by Giancarlo Stanton, Luke Voit, Aaron Judge and, well after he left the game, Kyle Higashioka.

In the span of five pitches from Sean Manaea, Stanton hit a 472-foot home run to center — his sixth homer in the last nine games — and Voit hit a 437-foot blast to center in the fourth. That gave Cole a 2-0 lead — which became 5-0 when Judge hit a 413-foot three-run shot to center off Manaea in the fifth. Stanton has homered in four straight games. Judge had three hits and four RBIs.

"Watching Big G hit homers is my favorite thing in all of baseball,'' Higashioka said. "Nobody hits the ball like he does."

Said Voit: "If you watch him hit BP, he does it every single day."

The Yankees (76-52), who have won 25 of their last 30 games and 35 of their last 46, stayed four games behind the AL East-leading Rays and three games ahead of the Red Sox for the top wild-card spot.

"This is what we thought we were going to do all year,'' Voit said. "We’re capable of scoring five, six runs an inning [at any time]. It’s clicking right now."

Said Stanton: "We’re clicking on all cylinders. We’re grinding away the opponent. It’s kind of like only a matter of time if we all stick to our plans coming into the game and making adjustments."

This marks the longest winning streak by the Yankees since the 1961 club won 13 straight from Sept. 1-12 of that season. Their last 14-game winning streak came in 1941.

"We’re just trying to put our best foot forward every day,’’ Aaron Boone said. "I would just say the focus in that room, the purpose in that room is what you’d want it to be. Another good one tonight. I go back to what I’ve said [before], the best part about it is so many contributions we’re getting from the entire roster. Tonight was just another good all-around win for us."

The A’s (70-59), who have lost six straight and 10 of their last 12, struck out 14 times and slipped 6 ½ games behind the Yankees.

Cole, who allowed six hits and two walks, stymied Oakland’s best chance at a comeback in the fifth when the A’s loaded the bases with one out but could not score. Cole struck out Jed Lowrie swinging at a 99-mph fastball and got out of the inning when third baseman Gio Urshela made a terrific grab of Josh Harrison’s screaming liner that would have brought in at least one run and maybe two.

"I had a good mix,'' Cole said. "At times the location was good, at times the location was kind of subpar. I finished stronger than I started."

Joely Rodriguez allowed two runs — one earned, as Joey Gallo made a throwing error that allowed a run to score — in the seventh. With the tying run at the plate, Chad Green escaped a two-on, one-out jam by getting Harrison to ground into a double play.

Higashioka hit his ninth homer, a two-run shot to right-center, in the ninth and Judge’s RBI single made it 8-2.

Manaea, who came in 8-8 with a 3.77 ERA, saw his mostly miserable second half continue as he allowed five runs and seven hits, including three homers, in 4 1⁄3 innings.

Manaea’s first pitch was slightly delayed when the umpires made him exchange a light-green-colored glove with one that was a darker shade of green. Boone said that was the umpires’ decision and did not come from the Yankees.

The Yankees took the lead — loudly — in the fourth. Stanton, who hit one off the facing of the loge level overhanging centerfield on Thursday — a place not often visited by baseballs here — sent one to an even-less-visited area, blasting one well above that same loge level to left-center for his 24th homer. After Gallo popped out, Voit tattooed a sinker to dead center for his eighth homer and a 2-0 lead.

Higashioka and DJ LeMahieu led off the fifth with back-to-back singles and one out later, Judge annihilated one to center for his 28th homer.