Rays on Verge of Helping Yankees Set More Unwanted Franchise History

One more good pitching performance from the Tampa Bay Rays will result in ugly franchise history for New York Yankees.

Jul 8, 2026; St. Petersburg, Florida, USA; New York Yankees right fielder Jasson Dominguez (24) is tagged out at home plate bu Tampa Bay Rays catcher Nick Fortes (40) in the second inning at Tropicana Field. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Tampa Bay Rays have been playing at an incredibly high level this season, but have taken their performance at Tropicana Field to another level.

Visiting teams have struggled mightily when in St. Petersburg, with the Rays owning a 33-13 home record. The Los Angeles Dodgers have the second most home victories thus far in the MLB with 31.

The latest team to fall victim to Tampa Bay’s success is the New York Yankees. They are in town for a four-game series, and the Rays have won two out of the first three games. Thus far, the Tampa Bay pitching has been the story, and will continue to be.

Heading into the series finale, the Rays have a chance to contribute to the Yankees setting some brutal franchise history. As shared by Bob Nightengale of USA Today Sports on X, New York is riding a 20-game streak of scoring five or fewer runs in a game after losing 3-0 on July 8.

Yankees on verge of ugly franchise history

Jul 6, 2026; St. Petersburg, Florida, USA; New York Yankees shortstop Jose Caballero (72) celebrates with third baseman Ryan McMahon (19) and second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. (13) after hitting a three run home run in the fifth inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

That ties a franchise record for most consecutive games without scoring at least six runs. Without three-time AL MVP Award winner Aaron Judge in the lineup, producing runs has sometimes been a challenge for the team. It is easy to imagine this record not being in jeopardy had he not been sidelined since May 31.

It will be Drew Rasmussen on the mound to contribute to another unwanted record being set by their American League East rivals.

Earlier in the series, Tampa Bay’s pitching staff was mowing down the Yankees lineup in historic fashion. They racked up 34 strikeouts in Games 1 and 2, making New York the first team to strike out at least 17 times in back-to-back games.

The Yankees are shut out, 3-0, by Tampa Bay, and have now tied their franchise record by failing to score more than 5 runs in 20 consecutive games.
They are 5 games behind the Rays in the AL East.

— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) July 9, 2026

Griffin Jax had 10 strikeouts in Game 1, while Ian Seymour followed him up with 11 in Game 2. Shane McClanahan wasn’t able to make it three starting pitchers in a row with double-digit strikeouts, but the Rays’ pitching staff did total 11 more.

This is a major game for Tampa Bay, beyond even the franchise history they can contribute to New York making. If the Rays can win the game, they will extend their lead in the AL East to six games while also locking up the season series.

Should Tampa Bay win the finale, they will own the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Yankees, which will be important for seeding down the line. Locking in such an advantage before the All-Star break would be quite an accomplishment for the Rays.