(AP Photo/Kathy Willens, File)SAN DIEGO – After losing eight of 10 games in a contentious regular-season series, the New York Yankees just can’t shake the AL East rival Tampa Bay Rays. “They got the best of us this year, arguably the best team in baseball,” Gardner said of the Rays, the AL’s top seed. He went 2-0 with a 0.57 ERA in two starts against Tampa Bay in last year’s ALDS. COMFORTABLE SNELLSnell was injured last year when the Rays visited the Padres, but he loves Petco Park. “It’s going to be even more weird when it’s like, ‘The Tampa Bay Rays host the New York Yankees at San Diego.’ It’ll be weird but I’m enjoying it.

(AP Photo/Kathy Willens)NEW YORK Mike Brosseau got some payback against the New York Yankees, hitting two home runs as the Tampa Bay Rays topped their AL East rivals again with a 5-2 victory Wednesday night. The Rays improved to 20-4 in their last 24 games and moved 4 1/2 games ahead of the Yankees. Tampa Bay also avoided consecutive losses for the first time since a five-game skid from July 29 to Aug. 2. Tampa Bay right-hander Charlie Morton returned after missing three weeks with right shoulder inflammation and pitched two-plus hitless innings while being limited to 38 pitches. Yankees: Visit the crosstown New York Mets in a makeup Thursday, the final Subway Series game of the season.

(AP Photo/Kathy Willens)NEW YORK Yankees reliever Ben Heller was ejected from Wednesday nights game against the Tampa Bay Rays for hitting Hunter Renfroe in the leg with a pitch, the latest chapter in a simmering rivalry between the top two teams in the AL East. Heller plunked Renfroe with a 95 mph fastball with one out in the fifth inning and was promptly tossed by first base umpire Chad Fairchild. Heller tried to plead his case and so did acting New York manager Carlos Mendoza before Luis Cessa came on to pitch. Yankees manager Aaron Boone and Tampa Bay counterpart Kevin Cash were each given a one-game suspension and served their bans Wednesday. Period.Tensions have run high between the teams in recent years, at least since now-retired Yankees left-hander CC Sabathia was ejected for plunking Jesus Sucre in 2018.

Red Sox catcher Kevin Plawecki, top, looks on. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)NEW YORK Ted Williams was piloting fighter jets in Korea the last time the New York Yankees dominated the Boston Red Sox like this. Luke Voit homered twice, Aroldis Chapman returned from the COVID-19 injured list to pitch the ninth inning and the Yankees beat the Red Sox 6-3 Monday night for their 10th straight victory in the famed rivalry. The tarp was rolled out with the Red Sox rallying in the fourth inning. Yankees: RHP Masahiro Tanaka (0-0, 2.31) opposes Rays LHP Blake Snell (1-0, 2.08) at Yankee Stadium.

Washington Nationals' Howie Kendrick (47) is greeted with "air high fives" by Juan Soto (22) after Kendrick scored them both on a two-run home run off Baltimore Orioles starting pitcher Alex Cobb during an exhibition baseball game, Monday, July 20, 2020, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)WASHINGTON Washington Nationals slugger Juan Soto tested positive for COVID-19 and was put on the injured list Thursday, forcing him to miss the start of the pandemic-delayed season. Soto had missed the first two weeks of the teams summer camp this month after he was exposed to someone with COVID-19. Also Thursday, Yankees second baseman DJ LeMahieu was reinstated from the COVID-19 injured list as New York set its opening day 30-man roster before playing Game 1. "If you told me my dream, making the opening day roster for the yankees, as a young kid in New Jersey would come true, I wouldnt have believed you.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports