The Tampa Bay Rays snapped their three game skid on Monday, beating up on Scott Kazmir and the Houston Astros by a score of 9-2. Tampa Bay starts the day at 59-59 with 44 games left, and tied with the Minnesota Twins just 2-1/2 games back in the Wildcard race.
Coming into the game, Kazmir allowed just one hit with two outs and runners in scoring position before the second inning this season before. Yet that all changed after Evan Longoria punched a base hit to right-center and Logan Forsythe walked with two outs in the first. Asdrubal Cabrera drove home Longoria on a blooped single to center, then Tim Beckham — who got the start at second base — blasted an 0-2 pitch into the Crawford boxes in left for an early four run advantage.
Speak softly and hit 3-run home runs. Show us how it’s done, @t_beckham22. #RaysUp WATCH: http://t.co/QF2pymzljn pic.twitter.com/8rEIDfBYYj
— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) August 18, 2015
It was Beckham’s sixth homer, and first since May 22nd. Of the 38 pitches Kazmir threw in the first, 27 came with two outs.
Houston struck back with single runs against Erasmo Ramirez in the second and fourth innings. In the second, Carlos Gomez reached on a beautifully placed bunt single up the third base line, then moved to second on a slow Colby Rasmus comebacker. Evan Gattis followed by hitting a ball against the shift that Beckham successfully tracked down ranging to his left. However, Beckham uncorked an off-balance throw that sailed wide of Daniel Nava at first. Gomez came home on what was scored as an infield hit and a throwing error by Beckham — his first of two.
Gattis hit his 18th homer of the season on an 0-2 pitch to make it a two-run contest in the fourth.
How Gattis muscled a pitch (circled above) that was high and well off the plate is beyond me!
Yet the Rays weren’t willing to settle with just four runs, and they struck again in the fifth and sixth innings. In the fifth, Kazmir loaded the bases on singles by Brandon Guyer and Desmond Jennings, and a free pass of Logan Forsythe. Cabrera followed by crushing a sacrifice-fly to center, extending the lead. Tampa Bay chased Kazmir in the sixth after Daniel Nava and Kiermaier reached safely on a single and a walk (respectively). Curt Casali was able to sacrifice Nava to third before the Astros’ skipper called upon RHP Josh Fields, who inherited runners on the corners. Pinch-hitter John Jaso singled off Fields, giving the Rays a four-run lead once again.
The Astros attempted to mount a rally in the sixth, however, they came up empty handed. Ramirez made quick work of Gomez and Rasmus, yet another Beckham throwing error — on what should have been a routine ground ball out — and a walk of Luis Valbuena, spelled the end of the hurlers night. Ramirez earned his 10th win of the season after posting a solid 5.2 IP/6 H/2 ER/1 HR/2 BB/2K (102 pitches) start.
We decided he had gone about as far as he could go, Cash said following the game.
Steve Geltz entered the game in relief and got the final out of the inning. He came back out and worked a 1-2-3 seventh. Geltz has now stranded 21 of 23 inherited base runners this season.
Brandon Gomes was next, and the righty worked an efficient 1-2-3 eighth — punctuated by a pair of strikeouts of Gomez (swinging) and Rasmus (looking).
With the way the Rays pitching staff has been of late, compounded by the fact that the home run happy Astros are more than capable of pouncing on any mistakes, it was crucial for the team to put a few more insurance runs on the board. Even though those extra runs came late, Tampa Bay struck again in the ninth. Longoria led off the inning with his third single of the game, and Forsythe took advantage of a Rasmus error on a routine fly-ball to put two on with none out. Cabrera singled home Longoria, and Casali lined a two-run, two-out single to center to cap the scoring at nine.
Two multi-RBI nights in @CurtCasali‘s last four games. Productive. #RaysUp WATCH: http://t.co/H2puTZTA4J pic.twitter.com/bTU0ECX4KE — Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) August 18, 2015
Finally, despite allowing the leadoff batter (Gattis) to reach on a walk and allowing a two-out single to Jose Altuve, Enny Romero worked a scoreless ninth, and put the Astros out of their misery.
The Rays ended the contest with 15 hits off four Houston pitchers. They now have 10-plus hits in five straight games (for the first time since August 2012), and 10-plus hits in 14 of their last 18 games.
The New What Next
Jake Odorizzi (6-6, 3.09) will make his 20th start of the season on Tuesday, opposite of veteran right-hander Scott Feldman. Odorizzi hopes to improve on his last outing when he allowed six earned runs in six-plus innings against the Braves. He has won both of his career starts against the Astros, logging 13 scoreless innings in those outings. Feldman, the starting pitcher in the only two wins of the Astros’ recent nine-game road trip, is 1-1 with a 2.93 ERA in five starts since being activated from a 45-game DL stint after tearing his medial meniscus. You can read about the pitching matchup in our series preview.
Rays 8/18/15 Starting Lineup
Jaso DH
Sizemore LF
Longoria 3B
Loney 1B
Forsythe 2B
Cabrera SS
Nava RF
Kiermaier CF
Casali C
Odorizzi RHP
Noteworthiness
— Of 2B/INF Tim Beckham’s seven errors this season, two were committed Monday, and five have come at second base. Kevin Cash might want to rethink not having Logan Forsythe at second in what was an important game.
— It certainly doesn’t hurt that Tampa Bay went 6-17 wRISP (.353 BA) and scored six two-out runs.