Ryan Yarbrough tosses another gem after allowing early homer as Yankees top Angels

ANAHEIM, Calif. — Ryan Yarbrough’s night began in inauspicious fashion.

His sixth pitch was a changeup to Zach Neto that ended up 440 feet from home plate for a leadoff home run.

But instead of foreshadowing, it was merely a blip on the way to another strong start from the crafty Yankees left-hander.

Yarbrough retired 18 of the next 20 batters he faced, continuing to deliver everything the Yankees could have hoped for on the way to a 5-1 win over the Angels on Monday night in front of a sellout crowd of 43,626 that often made Angel Stadium sound like The Bronx.

“He’s unflappable,” manager Aaron Boone said. “His presence out there and his moxie, he’s unaffected by real good or real bad. … To able to get us six strong like that, great tone-setter for the series.”

Anthony Volpe provided the big hit that made sure Yarbrough’s terrific effort did not go to waste, crushing a three-run double to center field in the fourth inning to break a 1-1 tie and send the Yankees (33-20) to their third straight win and 14th in their past 18 games.

Yarbrough took care of the rest, giving up just two hits, one walk and one run across six sharp innings while striking out seven.

In four outings since moving into a full-time starting role earlier this month, he owns a 2.25 ERA.

The veteran has helped solidify the back of the rotation as the Yankees await the return of Luis Gil (potentially in July).

“It’s been a whirlwind, but it’s been a lot of fun,” said Yarbrough, who signed with the Yankees three days before the season began. “I think it’s just been having a really good approach, talking with the pitching staff and [Austin] Wells about great game planning of really mixing speeds, keeping them guessing up there and getting ahead and putting them in situations where they’re having to swing the bat and no free passes.”

Yarbrough’s first start came when Clarke Schmidt was scratched due to side soreness on May 3.

A few days later, the Yankees designated Carlos Carrasco for assignment, clearing the way for the 33-year-old Yarbrough to enter the rotation full-time, and it has gone just about as well as the Yankees could have hoped.

With Yabrough’s latest gem, Yankees starters have posted a 2.70 ERA over their past 38 games, allowing two earned runs or fewer in 29 of them.

The soft-tossing Yarbrough — he threw five different pitches Monday that ranged from 69 mph to 89 mph — just gets the job done a little differently than the rest of the group, with Boone describing him as “elbows and knees.”

“It’s a treat [to watch him],” Volpe said. “He’s had the career he’s had and the success he’s had for a reason. I think maybe you don’t appreciate it until you see it on a consistent basis and you’re on his team and you really get to appreciate it. He has really, really good stuff. It’s not surprising, despite the velocity, that guys are taking swings like he’s throwing 95-plus. When you’re able to command it and attack hitters the way he does, it’s not a fun at-bat from the other side.”

Yankees bats were silent through three innings Monday against Angels right-hander Jack Kochanowicz, who retired the first nine batters he faced.

And then, quite literally, they got incredibly loud in the fourth inning. Ben Rice smoked a 104.3 mph single through the left side.

Trent Grisham laced a 107.4 mph single up the middle. Aaron Judge drilled a 103.6 mph single to third base.

Pop, pop, pop, and the Yankees were suddenly in business with the bases loaded for Cody Bellinger, who walked on four pitches to tie the game at one.

One out later, Volpe joined the party with a bullet double on an 0-2, 97 mph fastball that came off the bat at 104.8 mph and cleared the bases for the 4-1 lead.

“Just keep it simple, get the ball up and get it to the outfield,” said Volpe, who is batting .284 with an .838 OPS over his past 27 games, with nine of his past 16 hits going for extra bases. “He had good stuff and he was trying to barrel it in on you and get ground balls. … I wanted to stay within myself, stay within my approach and see where it went.”