The Tampa Bay Rays started their 6 game road trip off on a good note Tuesday with a commanding 10-4 victory over the Kansas City Royals.
Here is what you need to know about the contest.
It was another solid outing for the veteran pitcher on Tuesday, as Griffin Jax continues to shine in his new role and to surge in his MLB career with Tampa Bay. He went 6 innings, allowing 3 runs off 5 hits, and picked up 5 strikeouts in the process. He was awarded the win, his 4th of the season, and lowered his ERA to 3.45 on the year.
Advertisement
Kevin Cash went with 3 bullpen arms following Jax on Tuesday, and the trio shut down Royals hitting. Between Cam Booser, Cole Sulser and Craig Kimbrel, the relief staff only allowed one hit across the 3 innings of work. That hit, however, was a solo homer from Royals star Bobby Witt Jr. in the bottom of the eighth inning off Sulser. Still more than enough work to hold off the comeback.
Junior Caminero is good at baseball. Shocking to hear, I know. The 22-year-old hit his 23rd homer of the night on Tuesday, continuing to see the ball extremely well. According to MLB Stats, he is just the 4th player since 1900 to homer in 5 straight games at his age.
It was a holistic team effort for the Rays in the victory, as everyone in the starting lineup found themselves on the mound multiple times during the outing. Taylor Walls was the only Rays batter who did not record a hit, but found himself on base twice from two of the 11 walks Tampa Bay picked up in the contest.
Advertisement
Yandy Diaz, who gave the club a bit of a scare in the final home game Sunday after leaving early due to shoulder discomfort, was in the starting lineup and looked just fine. He finished the day going 1-4 with a walk and a run against the Royals. His batting average now sits at .334 and is currently holding the top spot in all of baseball.
The Rays will head into July sitting at 49-33 and with a 1.5-game lead on the New York Yankees for the AL East division lead. They will return to action for game two of the three-game series at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City on Wednesday. Shane McClanahan (6-5, 3.30 ERA) will get the start for the Rays. He will face Royals right-hander Seth Lugo (3-5, 4.18 ERA). First pitch is scheduled for 7:40 PM EST.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source sports.yahoo.com ’
