Thursday, 4 a.m.
Jose Caballero had had enough.
Five straight losses. Dozens of players stranded on base. A general malaise settling over the clubhouse.
And so it was that Caballero jumped on the first pitch he saw from Yusei Kikuchi Wednesday night. The bases happened to be loaded at the time, giving Caballero his first career grand slam and giving the Rays a 4-0 lead they would not surrender in a 5-4 victory.
Content beyond this point is for members only.
Already a member? To view the rest of this column, sign in using the handy "Sign In" button located in the upper right corner of the GarySheltonSports.com blog (it's at the far right of the navigation bar under Gary's photo). Not a member? It's easy to subscribe so you can view the rest of this column and all other premium content on GarySheltonSports.com.
Oh, the Los Angeles Angels drew back to 4-3. That brought up Yandy Diaz in the seventh, whose first home run of the year made it 5-3.
Diaz and Curtis Mead each had two hits for the Rays.
The Angels hit four solo home runs to make it a game.
Ryan Pepiot got the win for Rays. Pete Fairbanks, a night after blowing a save, picked up his second save by working a scoreless ninth.
The Rays and Angels conclude their series today at 1:10 p.m. at Steinbrenner Field. Zack Littell will start for the Rays against Jose Soriano.