Monday, 4 a.m.
Even in the fireworks of the moment, even after a newly achieved sweep of a good opponent, there was a dark cloud over the Tampa Bay Rays Sunday evening.
Had they broken reliever Pete Fairbanks?
Fairbanks, the Rays’ usually reliable closer, blew his second straight save opportunity and was injured in a forgettable ninth inning. The Rays said Fairbanks had a strained lat and was headed for the injury list.
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.
Certainly, Fairbanks didn’t seem right even before he was injured. For the second straight game, he gave up a ninth inning home run (a three-run shot by Adrian Del Castillo) to tie the game. Fairbanks isn’t used as often as some relievers, but going into the weekend, he had 13 straight saves.
Except for Fairbanks’ injury, it was a wild victory for the Rays. Dylan Carlson’s opposite-field single to left brought home the winning run for an 8-7 win in the 12th inning.
The Rays will remember this one for the extra-inning win. Carlson is hitting .292 since being acquired from St. Louis.
His hit was the team’s 11th of the day. In their last three games, the Rays have scored 19 runs on 34 hits.
Brandon Lowe hit a two-run homer and finished with two hits. Carlson and Christopher Morel also had two.
The Rays no-hit the Diamondbacks for six innings, But Arizona scored one in the seventh, two in the eighth and three in the ninth to tie.
The Rays loaded the bases with no one out in the 11th but couldn’t score.
Edwin Uceta, the seventh Rays’ pitcher, got his first win.
The Rays now travel to Oakland for a 9:40 p.m. start tonight. Taj Bradley will start for the Rays against Joe Boyle.