Tyler Glasnow tossed seven scoreless innings, while Mike Zunino collected a pair of hits, including a monster home run, as the Tampa Bay Rays won a second straight game over the Athletics, 2-0. The Rays ended the night a game over .500 and seeking their third consecutive win in Thursday’s matinee contest.
Glasnow got the start against Oakland and scattered five hits while walking two and striking out 10. It was the second consecutive game with double-digit punchouts for the right-hander, who threw 97 pitches (67 strikes, 69% strike rate) overall. He also threw 22 of 27 first-pitch strikes. Glasnow mixed his pitches effectively, leaning heavily on his high octane heater (51 thrown) and his cut-slider (33 thrown). And while he tossed just eight curveballs, four of them were thrown for strike three.
The only time Glasnow found himself in trouble came two outs in the sixth after he allowed a double to Mitch Moreland against the shift, and a first-pitch single to left off the bat of Matt Chapman — putting runners on the corners. Chapman moved up 90 feet on a wild pitch, yet Glasnow got Seth Brown to weakly ground out to Willy Adames, thus maintaining Tampa Bay’s lead. Glasnow capped his night with a perfect seventh inning. Of the Rays’ four combination shutouts this season, three were started by Tyler Glasnow, who is averaging over six innings per start.
Meanwhile, Tampa Bay had some chances to score early on against Cole Irvin before the go-ahead run in the fifth inning. Manuel Margot doubled to right-center with one out in the first, however, he was caught trying to swipe third to end the frame.
Then in the fourth inning, Yandy Díaz reached safely a one-out infield hit, however, he was doubled off first on Kevin Kiermaier’s fly-ball out to center. Díaz apparently forgot how many outs there were before he was caught well past second.
Yet battery mate Mike Zunino single handily, well … double handily, put Glasnow on the winning side of the ledger in the fifth inning. Prior to the frame, Tampa Bay had not put a runner beyond second against starter Irvin, who entered the contest having allowed just one run across 15-1/3 consecutive innings.
However, all that changed when Zunino blasted a 113 mph, 466-foot home run for a one-run lead. Zunino now holds the team lead in home runs at five.
They extended the lead in the sixth inning, starting when Brett Phillips walked after falling behind in the count. Phillips moved up to third on a line-drive base-hit to left-center by Randy Arozarena. Margot made up for his caught stealing when he hit an RBI single to right, capping the scoring.
Jeffrey Springs took over in the eighth inning and pitched a perfect frame while striking out two. But, after Springs got the first out in the ninth, he surrendered an infield single to Matt Chapman before Sean Ryan Murphy, who homered in the first two games of the set, was asked to pinch-hit. That ended of Springs’ night, enter Diego Castillo.
Murphy hit the first pitch he saw into the hole at short although Adames dove to keep it on the infield. Castillo was able to collect himself and strike out Tony Kemp for the second out of the inning before Viamel Machin grounded out to first, ending the game.
The New What Next
The series finale is set for Thursday afternoon. Shane McClanahan (0-0, 0.00 ERA) will get the start, pitching opposite right-hander Chris Bassitt (2-2, 4.13 ERA).
Shane McClanahan was added to the taxi squad before Wednesday’s contest; he will make his regular-season debut Thursday afternoon. The southpaw allowed one hit and no walks while striking out seven across three scoreless innings this spring. McClanahan flashed triple-digit heat and a mid 80’s slider during the 2020 postseason, not to mention a sinker which he leaned on sparingly. And while he has never pitched above Double-A during the regular season, I have my doubts that this stage will prevent a larger obstacle for the 24-year-old, who debuted with the team during the 2020 postseason.
Chris Bassitt allowed two earned runs on eight hits and a walk while striking out eight across six innings, earning on Saturday against the Orioles. Bassitt allowed two runs in his third consecutive start, although his last two turns were nearly identical; he allowed two runs in six innings while striking out eight. Bassitt, however, struggled more in his first three starts, surrendering nine earned runs across 16-1/3 innings with 11 strikeouts to eight walks. Bassitt is 0-1 with a 1.86 ERA in two career outings (one start) against the Rays. He relies primarily on a 93 mph sinker and an 89 mph cutter, while also mixing in a 94 mph four-seam fastball, an 86 mph changeup, and a 71 mph curveball. Key Matchups: Kevin Kiermaier (1-4), Manuel Margot (1-2)
You can read about the series in our preview, while the starting lineup and Noteworthiness are below.
Rays 4/29/21 Starting Lineup
- Kiermaier CF
- B. Lowe 2B
- Arozarena LF
- Meadows DH
- Wendle 3B
- Brosseau 1B
- Mejía C
- Adames SS
- Phillips RF
- McClanahan P
Noteworthiness
— Following Wednesday night’s game, the Rays optioned Louis Head back to the alternate site to make room on the active roster for McClanahan.