ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — As a kid, Richie Palacios was one of the biggest Yankees fans in Brooklyn.

On Monday night, he sent New York home in a huge playoff hole.

Palacios laced a two-run single to cap a four-run fifth inning that propelled the Tampa Bay Rays to a 5-2 victory and a 2-0 lead over the sloppy Yankees in their best-of-five AL Division Series.

“When I’m getting clutch hits, it doesn’t really matter who I’m playing against,” Palacios said. “But it’s very special to do this in a postseason against a team I grew up watching.”

The 29-year-old second baseman, who also doubled off Gerrit Cole in the series opener, came to bat with two outs in the fifth against left-handed reliever Brent Headrick.

With his parents in the stands and runners on second and third, Palacios got a green light from manager Kevin Cash on a 3-0 count and fouled off a 90 mph fastball. The left-handed hitter then fouled off three more pitches before lining a base hit to center field that gave Tampa Bay a 5-1 cushion.

“Probably the biggest hit in the game for us,” Cash said.

A fired-up Palacios gestured toward his teammates in the dugout as he celebrated at first base.

“If I got a green light with a 3-0,” Palacios said, “that means Cashy probably wants me swinging if it’s a pitch over the plate. Swung at one, missed it, and then just locked back in. Was able to relax myself and get a hit there.”

Game 3 is Wednesday night at Yankee Stadium, where the Rays will try for a series sweep.

It will be a homecoming of sorts for Palacios, who is playing in his first postseason. Palacios attended The Berkeley Carroll School in the New York City borough of Brooklyn and then Towson University in Maryland before getting selected by Cleveland in the third round of the 2018 amateur draft.

He was acquired by the St. Louis Cardinals for cash in June 2023 and then traded to Tampa Bay for reliever Andrew Kittredge in January 2024.

The 5-foot-8 Palacios batted .235 with 10 home runs, 57 RBIs and a .704 OPS in 124 games this season. He also stole 17 bases, and rewarded the AL East champion Rays for their confidence in him by hitting .283 with five homers, 18 RBIs, six steals and a .981 OPS over 20 games in September.

“Look, we’re seeing a healthy player. We’ve seen Richie in the past when, before his knee injuries, where he could really help us on both sides of the ball. There’s a lot of versatility there with outfield, infield. Really stayed in the infield throughout the course of this season,” Cash said.

“But, I mean, he seems as much as anybody in our lineup to really rise to the occasion when we need him to come through. He’s come through so many times for us.”

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AP Baseball Writer Mike Fitzpatrick in New York contributed to this report.

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