Junior Caminero hit a dramatic home run -- his 40th of the season -- lifting the Rays to a 3-1 comeback victory over Houston Friday night at Tropicana Field. It was Caminero's first-ever walkoff hit.
As soon as Caminero hit the ball, he turned and began to yell in celebration toward the bench.
It allowed the Rays to go to the post-season for the 10th time. They've reached the World Series twice but never won it.
The Rays had done very little offensively all night. They had just two hits against the Astros through eight innings. One of those, however. was a home run by Victor Mesa Jr. that tied the game at 1-1.
Rasmussen had a solid outing./KIM HUKARI
The Rays pitching was good enough to keep the game tied, however. Drew Rasmussen went seven innings and allowed just one earned run. He gave up a season-high eight hits, but the only run came on a fielder's choice ground-out.
Bryan Baker pitched the ninth inning for the victory.
With one out in the ninth, Jonathan Aranda doubled to right field to put a runner in scoring position. One pitch later, Caminero drove it 417 feet to left.
The Rays play again this evening at 6:30 at Tropicana. Ian Seymour (9-6) will start for the Rays against Peter Lambert (8-8).
Mesa homered for the third straight game./KIM HUKARI
At the start, it looked like a cakewalk. Before it was over for the Tampa Bay Rays, it was the trail of tears.
When a team loses at this time of the season, it can count on the things that slip through their fingers. That was true of the Rays on Thursday at Truist Field.
Start with a brilliant performance from Nick Martinez, who was going for his 15th win. He went 6 1/3 innings and allowed just two hits. Add in a game lost to the Yankees in the division race.
Ah, but the offense couldn't hold its own. The Rays got singles from three of their first four hitters, but had only two other hits the rest of the game. In that bases-loaded situation, Chandler Simpson hit into a double play.
Mesa Jr. homered for Rays./TIM WIRT
The Braves scored their three runs in the eighth, taking advantage of Kevin Kelly. Atlanta put together five straight hits, including a triple by Ozzie Albies and a double by Mike Yastrzemski -- neither of whom started the game.
The Rays' only run came on a pinch-hit home run by Victor Mesa Jr.
The loss allowed New York to close within three and a half games in the AL East race.
The Rays return home tonight for a game at 7:10 against the Astros at Tropicana Field. Drew Rasmussen will start for the Rays against Ethan Pecko (1-0) of Houston.
Griffin Jax, it turns out, wants to join in the fun.
Jax, the Rays' starting pitcher for the Tampa Bay Rays, was on a personal trail of tears. He had lost four of his last five games, giving up 19 runs.
Thursday night, in a 7-2 win over Atlanta, he returned. Jax threw five innings of two-hit baseball. He's now 7-10 on the year.
The Rays, who won the opener 7-1, have now outscored the Braves 14-3 in the series and have 21 hits.
Mesa Jr. has been hot./KIM HUKARI
The Rays jumped on Atlanta early, scoring three runs in the second inning and three in the third.
Victor Mesa Jr. has quietly become a major contributor for the Rays. He had a home run and a single and scored twice. Chandler Simpson also had two hits.
The Rays close out their series against the Braves today at 12:15 p.m. at Truist Field. Nick Martinez (14-4) will start against Martin Perez (8-9).
Peralta won his third straight game Tuesday night, shutting down the Atlanta Braves in a 7-1 win at Truist Park.
Peralta, whose struggles continued after he was acquired from the New York Mets, seems to have found new footing with the Rays. has given up just three runs and 12 hits in his last three games.
Peralta gave up three hits in the first inning, but only two thereafter. The bullpen threw three perfect innings in relief.
Caminero leads the league in homers./KIM HUKARI
Offensively, the Rays belted four home runs to lead its way to the win. Junior Caminero hit his 39th of the year in the first inning. He was followed with homers from Liam Hicks, Yandy Diaz and Richie Palacios.
Diaz, Caminero and Victor Mesa Jr. all had two hits for the Rays.
The Rays play the Braves tonight at 7:15 at Truist Field. Griffin Jax (6-10) will start for the Rays against Reynaldo Lopez (4-3).
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Sunday, 4 a.m. The Texas Rangers couldn’t wait to get to Jonathan Aranda. Looking back, perhaps they would like to rethink that. Aranda powered a three-run home run in the top of the 10th inning, leading the Rays to a 6-3 victory over the Texas Rangers. The Rays had led 3-1, but the Rangers came […]
Sunday, 3 a.m. Before you criticize, keep this in mind. A few months ago, they were strangers in shoulder pads. The quarterback didn’t know the receivers, who didn’t know the offensive linemen, who didn’t know the defensive backs, and so on. They were a roomful of mercenaries, brought in to form a team. So, yeah, […]
Saturday, 4 a.m. For once, Bryan Baker couldn’t slam shut the door. So Tyler Wells gave him a push. Baker, the top closer in the American League, came into the game seeking his 40th save as the Tampa Bay Rays led Texas, 7-5. But Baker, fighting illness, walked the first two batters he faced, and […]
Friday, 4 a.m. There are days you feel good about their chances. They will play well, or their opposition will play poorly, and you think that the Rays will be okay in their chase toward the American League East title. And then there are days like Thursday. Days when the offense dries up and the […]
Thursday, 4 a.m. Days like this aren’t supposed to happen in the middle of a pennant race. The Tampa Bay Rays were smothered Wednesday night, getting blown out 10-4 by the New York Mets at Tropicana Field. The Mets are the last-place team in the NL East. The Mets scored three runs in three different […]
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About Gary Shelton
• No one covers Tampa Bay like Gary Shelton.
• No one has seen as many moments, as many athletes, as many coaches as he has over the last quarter of a century.
• No one has won more awards, including two national Associated Press Sports Editors Best Columnist awards and eight top 10 finishes. He also just received his sixth Sportswriter of the Year award for Florida by the NSSA.
• No one has seen more big events, including 29 Super Bowls, 10 Olympics and 11 Final Fours. Gary still goes into the locker rooms to obtain his stories.
• No one has made you angrier, or laugh louder, or think harder about what he has written.
Now, he begins a website designed to keep him in touch with the readers who have grown up on his words.
