Shane McClanahan allowed just a single run in seven innings of work, and Randy Arozarena, Kevin Kiermaier, and Brett Phillips each homered and drove in a pair as the Tanpa Bay Rays evened up their three-game series with the Detroit Tigers at one game apiece thanks to a 8-1 victory Tuesday evening at Tropicana Field.
Tampa Bay would score in four of the first five innings Tuesday night against Tigers starter Beau Brieske, wasting little time as Yandy Diaz and Harold Ramirez singled in the first, and Ji-Man Choi drove in Diaz with a fielder’s choice grounder for a 1-0 lead.
Kiermaier doubled the lead an inning later with his fourth home run of the year, and in the fourth, his RBI single scored Arozarena after he reached on a fielder’s choice and moved into scoring position on a balk.
Detroit got on the scoreboard in the fifth with a home run by Jeimer Candelario that led off the inning, but Phillips got that run back with a solo homer of his own leading off the bottom of the fifth. Choi would make it 5-1 with a run-scoring single later in the inning, and Arozarena’s saacrifice fly extended the lead to 6-1.
Tampa Bay added two more runs in the eighth off reliever Will Vest, with Arozarena homering to start the inning and Phillips lifting a sacrifice fly to make it an 8-1 game.
After McClanahan worked the first seven innings, Ralph Garza worked his way out of a bases-loaded jam in the eighth, then worked a scoreless ninth to finish out the game.
Tampa Bay can wrap up a series win with a victory on Wednesday afternoon, as Drew Rasmussen (3-1, 2.67 ERA) takes on Eduardo Rodriguez (1-2, 3.72 ERA). First pitch is scheduled for 1:10.
Steve Carney is the founder and publisher of St. Pete Nine. One of the people most associated with baseball coverage in Tampa Bay, he spent 13 seasons covering the Rays for flagship radio station WDAE, first as producer of Rays Radio broadcasts, then as beat reporter beginning in 2011. He likes new analytics and aged bourbon, and is the owner of one of the ugliest knuckleballs ever witnessed by baseball scouts.
