The Tampa Bay Rays wasted little time proving Wednesday's inability to score runs was an anomaly, as they began their nine-game road trip on Friday spoiling the San Francisco Giants' home opener with a 5-2 victory.
The Rays jumped on San Francisco Giants starter Dereck Rodriguez in the first inning for four runs -- all damage coming with two outs -- and rode solid pitching from starting pitcher Tyler Glasnow while fighting off late Giant threats.
Rodriguez, the son of baseball hall-of-famer Ivan "Pudge" Rodriguez, used only seven pitches to get through Austin Meadows and Tommy Pham in the first, but then Ji-Man Choi doubled and Brandon Lowe drove Choi home with another double on an 0-2 pitch to give the Rays their first run.
With Lowe at second, Yandy Diaz homered to left, and Kevin Kiermaier followed Diaz' homer with a blast of his own, this to deep center field, which gave the Rays a 4-0 lead.
Meanwhile, Glasnow was on his mark as he faced few threats, allowing three hits and striking out six over six innings.
Rodriguez settled down after the first inning, at one point retiring eight in a row before faltering in the 6th. He ended up absorbing the loss after pitching five and a third innings.
The Rays increased their lead to 5-0 in the top of the seventh with Austin Meadows doubling home Michael Perez, who led off the inning with a double of his own.
The Rays' bid for a shutout ended in the 7th after Wilmer Font gave up back-to-back doubles to Pablo Sandoval and Steven Duggar. Belt's double ended Font's night, and Adam Kolarek only needed one pitch to end the threat in the 7th, getting Brandon Belt to ground out.
The Giants again threatened in the eighth, loading the bases with no one out, but Adam Kolarek struck out Gerardo Parra, and Diego Castillo, who relieved Kolark, induced an inning-ending double play to Kevin PIllar.
The Giants once again brought the tying run to the plate in the ninth inning, but Jose Alvarado picked up his third save by getting longtime Ray Evan Longoria, playing in his first game against his former team, to fly out to end the game.
*The Rays committed their first two errors of the season, the first a throwing error by Ji-Man Choi. Brandon Lowe had a fielding error in the eighth.
*Longoria went 0-for-5.
Photo Courtesy Of Getty Images