Analyzing Drew Rasmussen’s Historic Night Against Yankees

Oct 3, 2026; St. Petersburg, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Drew Rasmussen (57) reacts in the seventh inning against the New York Yankees in game one of the ALDS for the 2026 MLB Playoffs at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Analyzing Drew Rasmussen’s Historic Night Against Yankees

Originally posted on Tampa Bay Rays on SI
By Kenneth Teape | Last updated Oct 4, 2026 6:00 AM ET

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The Tampa Bay Rays had the best record in the American League in the regular season, winning the AL East and earning home-field advantage throughout the postseason.

Despite that, many people still viewed the New York Yankees, their ALDS opponent, as the favorite. The Yankees entered this series with positive momentum, dominating the Boston Red Sox in the Wild Card Round, outscoring them 18-2 in a two-game sweep.

Tasked with slowing down that offense in Game 1 was Rays ace Drew Rasmussen, who has had New York’s number throughout his career. That dominance continued, with Tampa Bay coming away with a 1-0 victory thanks to Jonathan Aranda, who hit a solo home run, and Rasmussen dealing.

The talented right-hander took a no-hitter into the eighth inning. Austin Wells broke it up with a double that he tried to stretch into a triple, but was thrown out easily on a relay from right fielder Victor Mesa Jr. to shortstop Taylor Walls, who got the ball to third baseman Junior Caminero for the easy tag.

Drew Rasmussen made history against Yankees

IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The one hit is the number that most people will look at, but when taking a deeper dive, there were a lot of impressive statistics from arguably the best starting pitcher performance in Rays’ postseason history.

Rasmussen racked up 10 strikeouts, which tied the franchise record held by Tyler Glasnow. He also struck out 10 Yankees during Game 2 of the ALDS in 2020. Rasmussen cut through the New York lineup with relative ease all night.

Not known for having the most overpowering stuff, the Yankees struggled to make any contact. Rasmussen racked up an eye-popping 43% whiff rate, setting a franchise record with 23 total whiffs, per Chris Kirschner of The Athletic (subscription required). To put into perspective how dominant this showing was, San Diego Padres’ closer Mason Miller had a whiff rate of 45.3% this season, racking up 129 strikeouts in 70 innings.

"It's really special to be here in an environment like this" #ForTampaBay | #Postseason pic.twitter.com/Xe5ixJHW3w
— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) October 4, 2026

As the game moved along, his arsenal really started to click. His changeup was playing off his three-fastball mix incredibly well, locating it against both right- and left-handed hitters after an uncharacteristically slow start, issuing a walk in the second and third innings; all season, he had only 32 in 172 innings.

Entering Game 1, Rasmussen had a 1.81 ERA against New York. Among pitchers who have had at least 10 starts against the Yankees since 2000, there isn’t a pitcher who has performed better than him, and those numbers are only going to be better after Saturday’s performance.

With the extra day off in the ALDS five-game series, Tampa Bay has the luxury of being able to go back to Rasmussen for a second time at some point in the series, if need be.

This article first appeared on Tampa Bay Rays on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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