Matt Duffy’s three-run double highlighted a five-run sixth inning and the last-place Tampa Bay Rays beat the AL East-leading Toronto Blue Jays for the second straight game, 7-5 on Saturday night.
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The Rays took game one 8-3, and on Saturday Tampa made it two in a row with a 7-5 victory. He struck out seven – six looking – walked one and retired his final 10 batters. Marco’s coming off a brilliant 7 inning outing vs. the Baltimore Orioles where he allowed 4 hits and just a single run while striking out 4 and walking just a single batter.
After struggling against Marco Estrada in the first five innings, the Tampa Bay Rays started to break through in the sixth and Matt Duffy came up with the big hit.
That moment in the first inning, when Josh Donaldson launched an 85-mph changeup into Tropicana Field’s B-ring catwalk was one of them and that moment two pitches later when Edwin Encarnacion drove a loud double into the left-center field gap to plate Donaldson was another. “We got two runs up on the board in the first and then didn’t scratch one across until too late”. Bobby Wilson, Logan Forsythe, Kevin Kiermaier and Evan Longoria opened the inning with consecutive singles. Josh Donaldson has been crushing on 147 hits with 108 runs, 34 homers and 92 RBI. “I was most happy with the fact that I got back to a competitive nature on the mound, where I wasn’t worrying anymore about my mechanics or injury possibilities”.
Manager John Gibbons chose to shake things up after realizing that a couple of off days would have interrupted the rhythm of his six-man rotation. “They piled on right there”.
Kevin Jepsen yielded a tiebreaking two-run homer to Russell Martin in the eighth inning, and the Rays missed out on a chance for a three-game sweep with a 5-3 loss to the Blue Jays on Sunday.
Forsythe had three of the Rays’ 13 hits and scored twice.
Let’s pick things up 3rd inning where Devon Travis singled with one out.
If Liriano can successfully adjust to coming out of the bullpen, then he has the potential to be a real asset for the Jays. He has gone deep nine times and driven in 24 runs over his last 18 games.
This week, the Blue Jays hit the road to take on two AL East division opponents.
OF Steven Souza Jr., who has struck out 144 times in 105 games, was out of the Rays’ lineup for the fourth time in five games. “To be honest with you, the guys that are in there (Nick Franklin, Corey Dickerson) are really producing”.
Their season was lost months ago, but over the past few weeks they have served notice that if wrecking the hopes of their rivals is the only satisfaction left for them, well. bring it on.
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From the very beginning on Friday night, there were times when Rays right hander Alex Cobb looked every bit like the pitcher trying to bounce back from Tommy John surgery that he is. With his trusted personal catcher and noted Estrada Whisperer behind the plate, things began to come undone for Estrada and the Blue Jays. The 26-year-old left-hander has moved up three levels this season, jumping from high-A to triple-A, and owns a 2.76 ERA through 16 1/3 innings with Buffalo. David Wells won 20 in 2000.
