Kyle Higashioka hits three-run homer, Yankees hold on to beat Rays for sixth straight win

Strategically, the decision certainly made sense.

His team trailing just 1-0 in the fifth inning, a runner on second and Kyle Higashioka on deck, Rays manager Kevin Cash chose to intentionally walk Isiah Kiner-Falefa, who was ahead 3-and-0.

It was a completely defensible move given Higashioka entered Wednesday hitting .172 with a .505 OPS.

But this being the 2022 Yankees, there was zero surprise at what happened next.

Higashioka turned on a 97-mph fastball from Rays ace Shane McClanahan and deposited it into the seats in left for a three-run shot that bumped the Yankees’ lead to four runs.

The catcher’s third homer in three games — he hit two against the Cubs Sunday afternoon — helped pave the way to the Yankees’ sixth straight victory, 4-3, over Tampa Bay, in front of 35,104 at the Stadium.

The victory lifted the Yankees (46-16), who have won 13 of their last 14 and 17 of their last 20, to a season-high 30 games over .500.

“I had a good feeling,” Aaron Judge said of Higashioka's at-bat. “At the time, it seemed like maybe a smart decision to walk Izzy there because he’s been swinging the bat well and he’s a good contact hitter. But Higgy was due, and he put a good swing on a 98-mph fastball on the black. That’s pretty impressive.”

Higashioka, who has gradually lost the starting catcher job to Jose Trevino, said he wasn’t any more motivated coming to the plate after the intentional walk. “I really wasn’t worked up about it or anything,” Higashioka said. “I knew what I needed to do and had confidence I could do it.”

The Yankees, who got a steady 5 1⁄3 innings out of Nestor Cortes (6-2, 1.94 ERA) and more solid work out of their bullpen, have won 13 straight at the Stadium — the most consecutive victories they’ve had in the ballpark since it opened in 2009 — as they continue to pull away in the AL East.

In addition to the Higashioka homer, which gave the Yankees a 4-0 lead, Judge added his MLB-leading 25th home run, a solo blast in the first inning.

McClanahan, who came in an AL Cy Young favorite at 7-2 with a 1.87 ERA, allowed four runs (one earned) and three hits over six innings in which he walked two and struck out seven. Despite the loss, his ERA dipped to 1.84.

Cortes entered the game coming off his worst start of the season last Wednesday in Minneapolis when he allowed four runs and seven hits in 4 1⁄3 innings of an 8-1 loss. He allowed one run and three hits in 5 1⁄3 innings against the Rays, striking out four and walking three.

Wandy Peralta, Miguel Castro, Lucas Luetge and Clay Holmes took the Yankees home from there, though there was some theater involved.

After Castro retired the first two batters of the eighth, Manuel Margot doubled and Randy Arozarena was hit with a pitch. A 16-minute delay ensued when the lefty-swinging Ji-Man Choi was announced as a pinch hitter for Isaac Paredes and Aaron Boone wanted to bring in the lefty Luetge to face him.

Boone spent much of the delay standing near the first-base line as the quartet of umpires discussed the situation. Crew chief Phil Cuzzi told a pool reporter the confusion stemmed from a mound visit pitching coach Matt Blake made to Bautista after he hit Arozarena. Cash, as Blake was making his way back to the dugout, sent up Choi to pinch hit and at that point, Boone started to make the move to Luetge. Cuzzi was in communication with replay central to get a rules clarification whether the Yankees could make consecutive mound visits without a pitch being thrown.

“We ruled that the (first) trip was (when Paredes was announced),” Cuzzi said. “And (replay central) said if that’s the case, then (Boone) can make that change.”

Luetge, who said he wasn’t impacted by the delay, allowed RBI singles to Choi and Rene Pinto that cut the Yankees’ lead to 4-3.

Holmes, however, improved to 11-for-11 in save chances with a scoreless ninth, which ran his scoreless-innings streak to 30.

“That was brutal,” Higashioka said of the delay. “I feel like that can’t happen. It can’t take (that long) to figure out what’s going on … I definitely did not feel good on the field after that long delay, so I’m just glad we got through it.”