Tanaka stumbles as win streak ends at 6

ANAHEIM -- The Yankees have not enjoyed a four-game sweep at Angel Stadium since July 1994, when the home team still referred to itself as the California Angels. Through four innings, they appeared primed to celebrate a very happy excursion into Mickey Mouse's backyard.

Then Masahiro Tanaka surrendered a couple of two-run homers, and the rest of the evening devolved into a blur of walks and errors. Tommy La Stella and Kole Calhoun went deep off Tanaka and David Fletcher collected two of his career-high five RBIs with a tiebreaking sixth-inning single off Jonathan Holder, carrying the Angels to an 11-5 victory.

“It's just basically bad execution,” Tanaka said through an interpreter. “I just couldn't hit my spots, and they didn't miss it. I got hurt.”

Their six-game winning streak snapped, the Bombers settled for three wins to show for their Southern California experience. That still represents an encouraging opening act to a nine-game trip that now will send them into Interleague matchups at the Giants and D-backs.

“It’s always frustrating when we don’t put our best foot forward,” manager Aaron Boone said. “You have a chance to almost put that game away, but we just didn’t get it done. So you learn from it, grow from it, get on the plane and try to get after it tomorrow. Hopefully we'll get off to a good start against the National League.”

Tanaka had permitted one run or fewer in four of his first five starts, and the right-hander seemed to be on that track again, holding the Angels hitless into the fourth inning. Boone even thought that Tanaka’s splitter -- largely absent in his previous outing -- appeared to be sharper. Instead, Tanaka trudged to the clubhouse having been charged with six runs (five earned) over 5 2/3 innings.

"The split looks good to me," catcher Gary Sanchez said through an interpreter. "The thing is, at this level, sometimes when you miss location, hitters up here are really good and they're going to make contact."

The unearned run came as a result of the first of Sanchez’s two passed balls, prior to La Stella’s go-ahead hit. Sanchez is 0-for-7 with two walks since being activated from the injured list on Wednesday, and the catcher acknowledged that there is rust to work off at the plate. As for the costly passed ball, he said that came as the result of a cross-up with Holder.

“I was expecting a slider, and he threw a fastball there,” Sanchez said. “That happens from time to time. It’s going to happen.”

The Angels made consistent contact against Tanaka, who generated just one swinging strike, his lowest total in 143 Yankees starts (including postseason). Tanaka’s previous low was three, which he did on Sept. 30, 2015, and June 6, 2017.

"I'm not really sure about that," Tanaka said. "The only thing I can think of is they got to the ball pretty well. The bottom line for me is just to make adjustments and try to go out there and be more effective."

The season has been a grind thus far for Holder, who owns a 5.40 ERA despite picking up a victory in Monday's 4-3, 14-inning contest.

"Overall, I do feel like he’s throwing the ball well," Boone said. "He was great in his last outing. I do feel like he’s close."

Facing Stephen Tarpley and Joseph Harvey, the Angels batted around for five runs in the seventh inning, a frame highlighted when Fletcher’s three-run triple skipped past Mike Tauchman toward the right-field corner.

New York pounced on Angels starter Trevor Cahill for four runs in four-plus innings. Tyler Wade singled, stole two bases and scored on a DJ LeMahieu single in the third, and Gio Urshela hit his first Yankees homer in the fourth. Gleyber Torres contributed an RBI single and Luke Voit scored on a wild pitch in the fifth inning, opening a 4-0 lead.

"We had the momentum there," Tanaka said. "You give up four runs, you just can't do that. I feel responsible."