Michael Pineda retired his first 20 batters before Evan Longoria lined a double down the left-field line, and he wound up pitching two-hit ball over 7 2/3 innings Monday in the New York Yankees' home opener, an 8-1 win over the Tampa Bay Rays.

Pineda (1-1) dominated like the pitcher the Yankees have always hoped he would become. He struck out 11, walked none and threw 67 of 93 pitches for strikes. Tampa Bay's Logan Morrison homered with one out in the eighth, a ball that hit off the top of the wall in right-center and deflected off a fan before bouncing back onto the field. A video review was needed to determine it was a home run.

Pineda started 15 of his first 18 batters with strikes and didn't fall behind 2-0 in a count until the sixth inning. His slider had a sharp downward break, and fans started sensing the occasion in the sixth, cheering on every strike and rising for every out.

Longoria reached on a first-pitch hanging slider and tipped his helmet to Pineda after reaching second. Leading 2-0 at the time, Pineda then fanned Brad Miller.

Aaron Judge, Chase Headley and Starlin Castro homered for the Yankees, who broke open the game with a five-run eighth inning and won their second straight following a 1-4 start.

A hard-throwing 28-year-old right-hander obtained from Seattle after the 2011 season, Pineda has been an enigma in New York. He was 6-12 with a 4.82 ERA last year, the 68th-highest ERA among 74 qualifying pitchers in the major leagues, yet struck out a team-high 207 and led the AL with 10.6 strikeouts per nine innings.

"It's mind-boggling," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said before his final start last season. "It just doesn't make sense."

Tyler Clippard and Chasen Shreve combined for perfect relief. New York won its home opener for the 16th time in 20 years.

New York took a 2-0 lead against Alex Cobb (1-1) on Jacoby Ellsbury's RBI double in the third and Judge's home run in the fourth, his second in two days. Headley, batting .375, led off the seventh with his second home run, and Matt Holliday chased Cobb with a run-scoring double in the eighth.

Cobb, who beat Pineda in Florida last week, gave up five runs - four earned - and six hits over 7 1/3 innings for the Rays, who had been off to a franchise-best 5-2 start. Chris Carter greeted Austin Pruitt with an RBI triple, and Castro followed with a two-run homer.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Yankees C Gary Sanchez, who went on the DL after straining his right biceps Saturday, is expected to be out four weeks with a strained brachialis muscle. He was to have an MRI Monday and be examined by team physician Dr. Christopher Ahmad. C Kyle Higashioka made his big league debut in the ninth. ... New York 1B Greg Bird missed his third straight game, a layoff originally caused by a sore ankle but now by a stomach illness.

UP NEXT

After an off day, 24-year-old LHP Jordan Montgomery will make his major league debut for New York on Wednesday and LHP Blake Snell (0-1) for the Rays.