Gary Sanchez wakes up, highlights Yankees’ 9-2 win | Rapid reaction

Slumping Yankees catcher Gary Sanchez contributed a three-run homer and RBI single in Tuesday night’s blowout win over the Tampa Bay Rays.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — What do you know, Gary Sanchez has a pulse!

His dead-as-a-doornail bat finally came alive Tuesday night at Tropicana Field in the form of a three-run homer and RBI single, the knockout punch and icing to a 9-2 Yankees spanking of the Tampa Bay Rays.

Yankees injury updates | Latest on Torres, Hicks, Gregorius

And believe it or not, Sanchez actually made it through a night of catching with no passed balls, no errors and no wild pitches by a Yankees pitcher, although the last pitch of the game got by him before being retrieved for a strikeout and throw to first.

Nights like this are why the Yankees aren’t giving up on the 2017 All-Star, whose 2018 season has been beyond-imagination horrific.

There was a lot to like about this Yankees’ win, which inched them a little closer to clinching home field for their American League Wild Card Game a week from Wednesday.

Giancarlo Stanton took baby steps toward ending a long slump by raking a double and working a walk, on-base machine Andrew McCutchen reached more four times in five plate appearances and All-Star righty Luis Severino, after a ton of second-half struggles, looks to be back in form just in time for the playoffs.

Severino made it two good outings in a row allowing two runs over five-plus innings with seven strikeouts and no walks to improve his record to 19-8. If Severino stays in turn and starts the Yanks’ regular-season finale Sunday in Boston, he can become the Yanks’ first 20-game winner since CC Sabathia was 21-7 in 2010.

After sitting a long time during the Yanks’ big third, Severino had a rough bottom of the inning, as the Rays scored two runs on two doubles, a walk and hit batter. To his credit, Severino rebounded with strong fourth and fifth innings before leaving with one on in the sixth with his pitch count at 97.

The Yankees had this game in the bag by the third inning when they sent 10 batters to the plate against three Rays pitchers and scored seven times to build a 7-0 lead.

Shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria ignited the uprising with a leadoff line homer to left that opened the scoring, then Luke Voit doubled in a run, Neil Walker walked with the bases loaded and Miguel Andujar hit sacrifice fly to make it a 4-0 game.

Following Andujar, Sanchez golfed a two-on, two-out blast into the left-field seats facing Rays rookie left-hander Jalen Beeks for his 17th homer of the season and first in 12 games.

Two innings later, Sanchez’ two-run single to left batting against Beeks again scored the Yankees’ eighth run.

This 2-for-4 night with a homer, four RBI and a walk was needed in the worst way by Sanchez, who went into the night riding a 1-for-27 slump that had his average sitting at a beyond pathetic .180.

NOTABLE

— Right fielder Aaron Judge nearly decapitated Rays starter Jake Faria in the third inning with a 108-mph liner that was caught in self defense about a foot from the righty’s head.

— Rays first baseman Ji-Man Choi was injured crashing into Sanchez while being thrown out at the plate trying to score from first base on Brandon Lowe’s bases-loaded, two-run double in the third. Choi needed stitches for a left ear laceration and was placed in concussion protocol.

— Shortstop Didi Gregorius fielded groundballs that were dropped into a bucket before missing his third game due to torn cartilage in his right wrist that occurred last Saturday. He’s been feeling better every day since getting a cortisone shot on Sunday and is hoping to be cleared to play after being reexamined on Wednesday.

— Center fielder Aaron Hicks was feeling good the day after he was pulled from Monday’s game with a tight hamstring, and a Tuesday MRI confirmed this issue is minor. The switch-hitter may be back in the Yanks’ lineup by Thursday or Friday.

— Hechavarria was a late-addition to the Yankees’ lineup after Gleyber Torres was scratched due to mild hip and groin tightness. Torres is expected to start Wednesday.

— McCutchen was 1-for-2 with a single, walk and hit by pitch. He’s reached base safely in 20 of 22 games since being traded to the Yankees on Aug. 31.

— Andujar accounted for the Yankees’ final run with a homer in the ninth, his 29th.

— Stanton struck out twice to run his season total to 208, which ties Aaron Judge’s 208 last season for the most in franchise history.

— Right-hander Domingo German, a September call-up, closed out the Rays by pitching two scoreless innings in his first big-league outing since July 20.

LOOKING AHEAD

Wednesday: Yankees at Tampa Bay Rays, 7:10 p.m., YES. RHP Masahiro Tanaka (12-5, 3.67) vs. TBA.

Thursday: Yankees at Tampa Bay Rays, 1:10 p.m., YES/MLB Network. LHP CC Sabathia (8-7, 3.77) vs. RHP Tyler Glasnow (2-7, 4.23).

Randy Miller may be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @RandyJMiller. Find NJ.com on Facebook.