The Tampa Bay Rays (49-40) defeated the Boston Red Sox (47-43) 5-4 on Thursday night at Tropicana Field. The win gave the Rays a sweep in the four game series against their AL East opponent, and Tampa Bay now has a two game lead for second place in the division race.
The Rays fell behind 3-0 in this game - after Rafeal Devers homered in the fourth, Boston got two more runs in the sixth, including a RBI double from Xander Bogaerts.
Tampa Bay rallied in the seventh, tying the game with a RBI double from Josh Lowe and a RBI single from Taylor Walls. Yandy Diaz then came through with a two-run single to give Tampa Bay a 5-3 advantage. Alex Verdugo hit a solo homer in the ninth, but the Rays would hold on to a 5-4 win, thanks to Jalen Beeks closing out the ninth for his first save of the season.
Though he didn't pick up the win, Drew Rasmussen had an effective outing for the Rays, throwing six innings in which he allowed three earned runs on four hits while striking out five and walking one. Tommy Romero (1-0, 7.71) picked up the win out of the bullpen.
The Rays now begin a three game series against the Baltimore Orioles at Tropicana Field on Friday night. First pitch Friday is scheduled for 7:10 PM - pregame coverage begins with Jay Recher hosting the Inside PItch at 6:00 PM on 95.3 WDAE & AM 620.
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