PSA Plays MLB The Show: Pair of series wins as the Yankees enter June

The starting rotation has been a huge boost for the Yankees in our MLB The Show simulation, coming into this week ranking first overall in ERA in all of baseball. This week the starters were at it again, allowing just 13 runs over six games — though the offense didn’t show up for two of those contests — and the Bombers finished 4-2.

Here’s how it all shook out game by game:

It looked like Gerrit Cole’s hot streak was fading after allowing two runs in the first three innings against the lowly Mariners to start the week, but he rebounded to go seven innings and strike out 11, dropping his ERA to 2.86, while the Yanks came alive in the eighth for a 3-2 win. Trailing 3-1 in the top of the eighth, Miguel Andujar ripped a two-run homer to put the Yankees on top, while Tommy Kahnle and Aroldis Chapman held the lead the rest of the way.

There were no clutch hits to be found in game two, and a scoreless bout turned into a 3-0 loss when the Mariners pushed three across in the bottom of the eighth. Luis Severino was masterful, going 6.1 innings of hitless ball while striking out 11, but was pulled for Zack Britton, who promptly walked three straight batters before Chad Green had to put out the fire. There was no such luck in the eight, as Adam Ottavino was bombed by a pair of home runs by Tom Murphy and Carlos Gonzalez, while the bats had no answer for Taijuan Walker.

Why was Severino pulled while pitching a no-no? Well, he suffered a lat strain, and according to the report, should only be out a day or two. In short, expect him to not pitch again in this season’s simulation.

The Yanks took the series and closed their West Coast trip on a high note with a 7-4 win in the series finale. Seattle claimed an early 3-0 lead before the Bombers kicked off an extra-base hit party, smashing six in total, including a triple and a double by Gleyber Torres and a homer by Gary Sanchez.

After a day off, the Yanks silenced the Rays back in the Bronx, winning 5-0 behind 10 hits, including home runs from Gio Urshela, Aaron Judge and Luke Voit which accounted for all five runs. Tyler Glasnow was knocked around in his five innings of work, while Masahiro Tanaka went the distance, striking out 11 and walking just one, though he allowed 10 hits in the complete-game win. His ERA is down to 3.04.

The Yankees took an early 1-0 lead in game two but would get no more, and the Rays pushed three across in the sixth to take a 3-1 win and even the series. The lone run for the Yanks was a solo shot by Urshela, while Jordan Montgomery was left in a bit too long, going five scoreless before getting tagged in the sixth. Meanwhile, aside from the mistake to Urshela, Blake Snell was on his game, going seven innings and allowing just four hits.

The Yanks bounced back to take the series the following day thanks to another dominant start, this one from Cole, who went eight innings and allowed just four hits in a 3-1 victory. Cole outdueled Charlie Morton, who allowed home runs to Andujar and Torres — the latter a 2-run shot in the sixth to pad the lead. The win moved the Yankees to 41-25 on the season, a full four games ahead of the second-place Blue Jays, while the Red Sox have lost eight of 10 and are now 5.5 games back.