NOTHING EVER COMES EASY: As blockbuster trade for Joey Gallo looms, Yankees sweat out win over Rays in 10 innings

The Yankees, on the verge of emptying the minor-league shelves to acquire left-handed slugging outfielder Joey Gallo from the Texas Rangers, could’ve been distracted by the headlines breaking during Wednesday night’s game.

Instead, they scored a pair of runs in the 10th inning, then held on — and held their breath on the final out — to beat the Tampa Bay Rays, 3-1, at Tropicana Field in Tampa, Fla.

Closer Aroldis Chapman turned it into a nail-biter, of course. His wild pitch with one out put runners on second and third with one out, with pinch hitter Nelson Cruz at the plate. Chapman responded by striking out Cruz on a 99-mph fastball for the second out.

Then first baseman DJ LeMahieu did Chapman one better: As the runners circled the bases, he lost Francisco Mejia’s pop up in the stadium’s ceiling, then lunged to catch the ball inches from the infield dirt. After he snared the ball to end the game, second baseman Rougned Odor hugged him and the two shared a nervous laugh.

Starter Nestor Cortes threw five innings, giving up one run on three hits while striking out five and walking none. He was followed by Lucas Luetge, Zack Britton, Chad Green (who got the win) and Chapman, who picked up his 20th save.

The Yankees, trailing 1-0 on Brandon Lowe’s RBI double in the fourth, tied the game on LeMahieu’s sacrifice fly in the fifth, and neither team scored again until extra innings.

With Gio Urshela installed at second base to start the 10th, Greg Allen was hit by a pitch, and Judge slapped a single up the middle to give the Yankees a 2-1 lead. Judge’s hit glanced off shortstop Wander Franco’s glove and could’ve been a double play.

After reliever Pete Fairbanks was pulled from the game with an apparent injury, Andrew Kittredge threw a wild pitch, allowing Allen to score for a 3-1 lead.

The inning ended when Gleyber Torres lined out to third baseman Joey Wendle, who stepped on the bag to double-up Judge.

The Yankees have reached a deal to get Gallo from the Texas Rangers, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan and several other reports. The deal is subject to approval of medical records.

Gallo, 27, should provide a powerful boost for the heavily right-handed Yankees. With switch-hitting center fielder Aaron Hicks hurt, second baseman Rougned Odor and outfielder Brett Gardner have been the only left-handed hitters to see substantial playing time.

The Yankees will ship at least four minor-leaguers to the Rangers, according to ESPN: right-hander Glenn Otto, second baseman Ezequiel Duran, shortstop Josh Smith and second baseman-outfielder Trevor Hauver. Others might be involved also.

Gallo is hitting .223 with 25 homers, 55 RBIs and a major league-leading 74 walks. The 6-foot-5 slugger has also been a Gold Glove right fielder for Texas, but presumably would play left for the Yankees, who have Aaron Judge as their regular right fielder.

Gallo had repeatedly expressed his desire to stay with the rebuilding Rangers, who took him with the 39th overall pick in the 2012 amateur draft. But he was scratched from the starting lineup only moments before the start of Wednesday night’s home game against Arizona, with the team saying the move was for non-medical reasons.

Judge also was scratched from the starting lineup Wednesday night, a day after returning from the COVID-19 injured list, and later struck out as a pinch-hitter in the fifth inning against Tampa Bay.

Gallo is owed $2.2 million from his $6.2 million salary. He is eligible for arbitration next winter and can became a free agent after the 2022 season.

The two-time All-Star is a career .211 hitter in seven seasons, but launches a lot of long balls. He hit 41 home runs in 2017 and 40 in 2018.

The AP contributed to this report.

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