OAKLAND, Calif. — The trap door splitter wasn’t part of Masahiro Tanaka’s tool belt Saturday, but that didn’t keep the Yankees’ ace from extending an splendid stretch of rotation excellence.
Five games ago, the Yankees’ rotation was taking on water. After Tanaka’s seven-inning outing, which keyed a 5-1 victory over the Athletics in front of 26,356 at Oakland Coliseum, the starters are the reason the Yankees have won a season-high four straight and moved out of the AL East cellar for the first time since April 23.
Tanaka, 2-0, won for the first time since April 17 and ended a string of five straight no-decisions.
“The two-seamer was working well,’’ said Tanaka, who gave up a run, five hits, walked two and struck out four.
It was the fourth straight quality start by a Yankees hurler after Nathan Eovaldi, Ivan Nova and CC Sabathia delivered solid outings in the previous three games.
“They want to outdo the guy before them,’’ manager Joe Girardi said of the starters’ mindsets. “It’s Michael’s turn [Sunday].’’
That would be Michael Pineda, and if the struggling right-hander delivers a fifth straight quality start against a suspect A’s lineup, the Yankees will enter Monday’s day off feeling like they are close to escaping the deep ditch they dug themselves in the first month of the season.
Eovaldi, Nova, Sabathia and Tanaka combined for 25 innings in the past four games, and allowed four runs on 10 hits while fanning 20.
“It’s important to get back to .500,’’ Chase Headley said of the 20-22 Yankees, who are 11-5 since owning a 9-17 mark on May 5. “Get to .500 and keep climbing.’’
The victory — which was also fueled by Rob Refsnyder’s two-run double that highlighted a four-run fourth inning against lefty Sean Manaea — coupled with the Blue Jays losing to the Twins, got the Yankees out of last place.
“It’s better than last place,’’ Girardi said of being in fourth. “You keep trying to climb.’’
Playing his first big league game of the year and starting in right field, Refsnyder said the first few pitches in his first at-bat in the third inning appeared to be faster than they were because he has been sitting since being promoted from Triple-A Scranton-Wilkes-Barre on Tuesday.
Nevertheless, when he came to bat in the fourth, Refsnyder fouled off several 3-2 pitches from Manaea before ripping the double to right-center.
“I was letting him take the inner half and I kept fouling off pitches,’’ said Refsnyder, who handled the one fly ball he got with ease.
Tanaka worked out of a bases-loaded, one-out jam in the third by catching Danny Valencia looking at a 90 mph, 0-2, pitch and inducing Khris Davis to hit a ground ball to Headley at third. The A’s scored once in the fifth, but Tanaka stranded two runners.
Working on five days’ rest, something Tanaka and the Yankees prefer when the schedule allows, didn’t produce the normal action of his splitter, but he was good enough without it.
“Sometimes you feel a little more rested, but I always prepare for the fifth day,’’ Tanaka said of pitching with four days’ rest. “That’s not really a problem.’’
With Tanaka’s pitch count at 92 and the Yankees holding a 5-1 cushion, Girardi ended the righty’s day and used Nick Goody for the final two frames. Girardi had closer Aroldis Chapman throwing in the bullpen when Yonder Alonso opened the ninth with a single, but he wasn’t needed.
To expect Pineda, who is 1-5 with a 6.60 ERA and having trouble working out of the stretch and locating his slider, to continue the conga line of impressive pitching performances is a lot.
Yet, who saw the four straight gems coming?
Anybody who says they did is lying.