This time, Rays’ offense leads win over Miami

by Gary Shelton on August 31, 2020

in general

Adames' grand slam leads Rays' victory../CHUCK MULLER

Monday, 4 a.m.

The last time they charged into New York, their season was just turning around.

Now, it is rolling downhill.

The Tampa Bay Rays prepared for their upcoming series against the New York Yankees by winning their fifth straight game. The last three of them came against the Miami Marlins, who finale scored a run (after four straight shutouts in Miami) but fell 12-7.





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The Rays lead the AL East by four games. They are 12-2 in their last 14 games.

The Rays showed off their power in the victory, hitting four home runs, including a grand slam by Willy Adames in a seven-run fifth. The Rays led 12-1 after their big inning, but Miami scored the game's final six runs to make it closer.

"It was what we needed," said Rays' manager Kevin Cash. "It was really encouraging to see. Their pitchers have been really tough on us the last two days. Tonight, it was a little bit of an explosion. The guys continued to put at bat after at bat together."

Joey Wendle, Yoshi Tsutsugo, Adames and Kevin Kiermaier all homered for the Rays.

“It was special," Cash said of Adames' homer. "That started everything going. Willy came up with the big hit. He had just missed the ball in his previous at bat on a breaking ball up in the zone. He made up for it for sure when he hit it at the right time with men on base."

Blake Snell was sharp early, but he seemed to be affected by the Rays long at-bat in the top of the fifth. He wasn't nearly as crisp when he returned.

“That was part of  our reasoning to take him out," Cash said. "He had more pitches and could have gone farther. That was a pretty long inning. I don’t think any of our pitchers are going to complain about that. He went and  threw in between in the tunnel a little bit. Then he added 30 pitches in the fifth and i thought was a good spot (to remove him)."

Reliever Anthony Banda came in, but was touched for five runs in an inning's worth of work.

The Rays will start Tyler Glasnow tonight at 7:05 in Yankee Stadium. New York will start Gerrit Cole.

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