Rays drop one to Baltimore in extra innings

by Gary Shelton on April 19, 2019 · 0 comments

in general, Tampa Bay Rays

Garcia sent the game into extra innings./JEFFREY S. KING

Thursday, 4 a.m.

So what does it take for the Tampa Bay Rays to lose a baseball game?

It takes a litany of bad plays. It takes a comeback that fell just short. It takes a reliever finally looking mortal. It takes a baserunning gaffe. It takes an ordinary night by Jalen Beeks.

Also, it takes 11 innings and the game-winning run by the light-hitting Chris Davis.

It all added up to a rare loss by the Rays, who fell 6-5 to the

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Castillo gave up his first run of the season./JEFFREY S. KING

Baltimore Orioles. The Rays were three runs down in the bottom of the eighth, but came back to force extra innings. The big blow was a 447-foot home run by Avisail Garcia with one out in the ninth.

Still, there were moments the Rays couldn't get out of their own way. After Garcia's home run tied the game at 5, Tommy Pham singled with his fourth hit of the night. But with Mychal Givens on the mound, Pham broke far too early for third on a steal attempt and was thrown out easily.

"One, the pitcher and his stuff," Pham said when asked what he was thinking. "You have a guy who is a great sinker baller. A plus sinker  and a plus slider. With me getting to third,  he would be less likely to bury those pitches. If I can get to third, it would help Choi. He might leave a ball up. That was going on in my mind. I wish I had given it one more pitch."

Said manager Kevin Cash: “He was trying to get to third, probably trying to put himself in a position where they bring the infield in. Tommy does a lot of things on the bases, in the outfield and obviously at the plate that can help us. It was an aggressive play on his end. I understand the thought process. They made a nice play recognizing it.”

Elsewhere in the loss:

-- Diego Castillo gave up his first run of the season and took the loss.

-- Beeks, who had given up four earned runs all season, gave. up three.

-- The Rays gave up 15 hits, including four by former farmhand Joey Rickard.

-- Four of the five relief pitchers gave up an earned run.

The Rays try to start another winning streak today when the Boston Red Sox come to Tropicana Field. The game begins at 7:10 p.m.

 

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