Thursday, 4 a.m
In the race for ace of the Tampa Bay Rays, enter Drew Rasmussen's name to the list.
Rasmussen was overpowering Wednesday afternoon in a 7-5 victory over the Boston Red Sox at Tropicana Field. The win completed the sweep of Boston and lengthened the Rays' winning streak to four games.
For the second straight game, Rasmusen (6-2) was impressive. He went seven innings and allowed just two hits and no runs. He struck out 13 runners, and struck out the top four in the Sox lineup all 11 times he faced them.
Coupled with his recent start over the Florida Marlins, Rasmussen has given up just three hits and has struck out 22 batters.
Rasmussen left with a 5-0 lead, and it looked like the win would be easy. The bullpen was shaky, however, giving up five runs in two innings.
The Rays' offense was led by Nick Fortes, who had four hits and scored four runs, and Yandy Diaz, who had three hits and drove in two. Tyler Walls had two hits.
Cedric Mullins had a two-run homer in the eighth to lengthen a one-run lead to three runs.
The Rays are off today. They travel to Los Angeles to play the Angels in Anaheim's Angels' Stadium. Shane McClanahan will start for the Rays against a yet-to-be named starter for the Angels.
