Saturday, October 3, 2026 — eleven days after nearly no-hitting the Yankees in the Bronx, Drew Rasmussen came even closer at home.
Drew Rasmussen carried a no-hitter into the eighth inning, Jonathan Aranda hit the game’s only home run and the Rays beat the Yankees 1-0 in Game 1 of the American League Division Series at a roaring Tropicana Field.
New York finished with one hit — the fewest the Yankees have ever managed in a postseason game. It was also their first 1-0 postseason loss since the 1963 World Series.
Rasmussen, Again
The Yankees had seen this before. On September 22, Rasmussen struck out 11 and allowed one hit in the Bronx as Tampa Bay clinched the AL East. On Saturday he was even sharper: eight scoreless innings, one hit, two walks and 10 strikeouts on 101 pitches, 69 of them for strikes.
He generated 23 swings and misses, a career high, and at one point retired 15 straight hitters. His 10 strikeouts tied Tyler Glasnow’s franchise record for a postseason game, set against the same opponent in the 2020 ALDS. He is only the seventh pitcher in postseason history to take a no-hit bid at least 7⅔ innings deep.
“It’s the same thing regardless of the lineup,” Rasmussen said. He now has a career ERA under 2.00 against New York.
The Hit — and the Mistake
The bid ended with two outs in the eighth when Austin Wells lined a sinker for a double. Then Wells ran through third-base coach Luis Rojas’ stop sign and was thrown out at third on a relay from Victor Mesa Jr. to Taylor Walls to Junior Caminero. It ended the inning and the Yankees’ only real chance.
“Not a good decision,” Aaron Boone said. “It was a mistake.”
Bryan Baker finished it with a perfect ninth, striking out pinch-hitter Giancarlo Stanton in his first plate appearance since April 24.
One Swing Was Enough
Gerrit Cole was good in his first postseason start since Tommy John surgery in March 2025, allowing one run on five hits over five innings. The one run was enough. Aranda drove a 2-2 changeup into the right-center field seats in the third inning for his first career postseason hit.
The Yankees’ bullpen — Ryan Weathers, Paul Blackburn and Brent Headrick — kept it close with three hitless innings, but the offense never answered.
The Judge-Sized Hole
The loss came hours after the Yankees left Aaron Judge off the Division Series roster as he recovers from the calf strain that has sidelined him since September 16. Boone called it “the best thing” for Judge’s recovery. Without him, a lineup that put up 18 runs in a Wild Card sweep of Boston looked very different against an ace.
The decision is also a bet: leave Judge off now and he remains eligible for a potential ALCS roster. Put him on and lose him to a setback, and he could be ruled out of the next round.
A Big Night at the Trop
It was the first postseason game at Tropicana Field since Hurricane Milton tore through the area in October 2024, and the Rays spent the 2025 season at Steinbrenner Field. A crowd of 40,542 made up for lost time. “The best crowd noise I’ve ever witnessed in any ballpark,” Kevin Cash said.
It was also Tampa Bay’s first postseason win since 2021. Game 2 is Monday night, with Cam Schlittler — the AL Cy Young favorite — starting for New York.
The Read
The Yankees have now seen Drew Rasmussen twice in 12 days and managed two hits. If he lines up for a potential Game 5, that is a problem New York has to solve before the series gets there — ideally by getting to the rest of Tampa Bay’s staff while its captain is still on the mend.
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