Yankees’ Giancarlo Stanton busts out in win over A’s | Rapid reaction

Giancarlo Stanton, Luis Severino star in Yankees’ rain-delayed 6-2 win over the A’s at Yankee Stadium on Sunday.

NEW YORK — Giancarlo Stanton has been a big tease.

He homered twice in his first Yankees game on Opening Day, then he slumped. Through his struggles — and the boos that have hammered him in the Bronx — he’s also been mostly responsible for a handful of wins, his powerful bat previewing what it could do it gets right for an extended stretch. 

That’s why manager Aaron Boone said he wasn’t worried about his highest-paid player’s latest cold streak early Sunday.

“When that comes when he gets really hot, it will happen,” Boone said. “Hopefully it’s sooner rather than later.”

Boone got his wish. In a 6-2 win over the A’s at Yankee Stadium that came after a two-hour, 45-minute rain delay, Stanton put the Yankees on his broad shoulders.

The designated hitter crushed a solo home run, his 10th of the season, in the fifth to give the Yankees a 4-1 lead in the fifth inning. He broke his bat but still doubled down the left-field line in the seventh. He also cracked a two-run single that put the Yankees on the board for the first time in the first inning and had another base hit.

Finishing a triple short of the cycle, Stanton has 999 career hits.

Stanton’s home run meant the Yankees had four players with 10 or more home runs in their first 40 games of the season, via researcher Katie Sharp. Also, no other team in baseball has more than two hitters with 10 or more bombs.

The blast came against Brett Anderson, a lefty. Might not have been a surprise that Stanton went crazy Sunday. By the time Anderson was finished, Stanton improved to .457 (16-for-35) with 15 RBI and seven home runs vs. southpaws this season.

WHAT IT MEANS

The victory was the Yankees’ (28-12) second straight. It allowed them to stay tied atop the American League East with the Red Sox, who beat the Blue Jays earlier in the afternoon.

The Yankees are 11-2 in May. They will be off Monday before starting a three-game set in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday. That will start an eight-game road trip that also includes stops in Kansas City and Texas.

The Yankees have won seven straight series.

SEVERINO

Yankees starting pitcher Luis Severino (6-1, 2.14 ERA) wasn’t at his best. It was plenty, though.

He gave up just a run over six innings, striking out seven and walking two. It was his fifth straight outing of at least six innings. 

Severino mixed his fastball well with his changeup and slider, but got no strikeouts or even swings and misses on his breaking stuff. He got 10 swings and misses on his fastball, which had its typical high-90s zip. He hasn’t lost since April 10 in Boston.

Jed Lowrie’s single in the fifth brought home Jonathan Lucroy. It cut the Yankees’ lead to 3-1. Lucroy scored from second. Right field Aaron Judge almost threw Lucroy out at home but the ball short hopped catcher Gary Sanchez, who couldn’t handle it. Judge was given an error.

GLOVE LOVE

Severino, who didn’t give up a hit through the first three innings, got help from two spectacular plays on line drives. In the third, first baseman Tyler Austin laid out to his right to snare Matt Joyce’s liner with a runner on first base. In the fourth, third baseman Miguel Andujar jumped as high as he could and nabbed Mark Canha’s liner with two men on.

Not to be outdone, Dellin Betances grabbed a comebacker by sticking his glove out behind his back and not even looking. He got Joyce out easily at fist base.

THE BULLPEN

Chad Green (seventh) and Betances (eighth) each threw scoreless innings. Betances appeared to cut his finger. The Yankees’ trainer examined it and seemed to blot blood from Betances right middle finger. Betances stayed in the game.

PINK PRINT

Players and umpires honored Mother’s Day, wearing tons of pink. Gardner even wore pink eye black.

YOU SHOULD KNOW

Aaron Judge quietly went 2-for-4 with a walk and an RBI.

Reliever Chasen Shreve gave up a solo shot to Canha in the ninth.

Brendan Kuty may be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @BrendanKutyNJ. Find NJ.com Yankees on Facebook.