NEW YORK -- Ryan Vilade picked quite a moment for his first postseason hit. In his first career postseason appearance, the Rays right fielder launched a fourth-inning home run just over the right-field wall, silencing the Yankee Stadium crowd and giving the Rays a 2-1 lead in Game 3 of the ALDS Wednesday night.
With a 2-1 count, Yankees starter Max Fried challenged Vilade with a 95.5 mph four-seamer over the middle-away portion of the strike zone. Vilade got the barrel to it and sent the pitch 97.1 mph off the bat. The ball traveled a Statcast-projected 340 feet toward right field, where Spencer Jones stood near the wall and leaped in an attempt to track it down.
But the ball was not coming back.
The homer came with some irony, considering Vilade had already come close slugging another in his first at-bat. In the second inning, he sent a ball 356 feet out to left field that would have been a home run in six Major League parks, but it stayed inside the wall. His second at-bat had the opposite result: a solo shot that would only be a homer at Yankee Stadium.
Vilade was in the lineup to face the left-handed Fried after putting up strong numbers against southpaws throughout the regular season. Only Junior Caminero (.916) and Victor Mesa Jr. (.868) had a higher OPS against left-handers than Vilade's .818 this season, making the 27-year-old a natural fit for the matchup against Fried.
Vilade finished the regular season slashing .245/.321/.429 with a .750 OPS.