Pineda’s 11-K outing helps set winning tone

ST. PETERSBURG — By the time the Yankees grabbed the lead in the seventh inning on Tuesday, Michael Pineda had found a spot on a couch in the visiting clubhouse at Tropicana Field, cooling down from an 11-strikeout performance that was his best in some time.

Wouldn’t you know it? Not only did Gary Sanchez rescue his team with his three-run homer off Brad Boxberger, lifting them to a 5-3 victory, but the Yanks believe that the 23-year-old rookie catcher deserved some credit for guiding Pineda through the Rays’ lineup.

“You can talk about the three-run homer, and obviously that’s really big, but I thought he did a fabulous job with Michael tonight,” Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. “Michael was really good and kind of set the tone for the game and gave us a chance to win.”

Pineda said that he and Sanchez hammered out “a really good plan” to attack Tampa Bay prior to Tuesday’s 98-pitch outing.

It marked the second time that Pineda reached double …

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