Yankees' Michael Pineda's perfect game ends in seventh inning against Rays
NEW YORK -- Yankees starter Michael Pineda began Monday's home opener with nearly seven perfect innings against the Tampa Bay Rays.
The 6'7" right-hander could not escape the fourth inning against the Rays in his first start of the season last week, but flummoxed Tampa Bay hitters with a mid-90s fastball and his trademark slider in the first game in the Bronx in 2017.
With two outs in the seventh inning, Rays third baseman Evan Longoria broke up the perfect game with a single. .
Pineda struck out 11 of the first 22 Rays hitters he faced, needing 88 pitches to finish the seventh. He threw as many as 114 pitches in games last year.
A talented but often frustrating pitcher acquired from the Seattle Mariners via trade before the 2012 season, Pineda yielded a 4.82 ERA in 2016 and earned a reputation for struggling while pitching out of the stretch. That issue wasn't a concern on Monday.
Pineda allowed only one other hit -- a solo home run to Logan Morrison in the eighth inning -- before he was pulled from the game with two outs in the eighth inning.
The Yankees offense slugged three home runs off Rays' pitching en route to a 8-1 win.