August 14, 2024; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks third baseman Eugenio Suarez (28) reacts after hitting a grand slam against the Colorado Rockies in the sixth inning at Chase Field. Mandatory credit: Rick Scuteri-USA TODAY Sports After losing three straight series, the Tampa Bay Rays assured themselves not only the weekend win, but they are going to sweep on Saturday afternoon in St. Petersburg, Fla.
Adding to the achievement, the opponent is one of the hottest teams in baseball – the Arizona Diamondbacks. SUPPORT?
After the team rallied to win 5-4 on Saturday, followed by Tampa Bay starter Jeffrey Springs won on Saturday for the first time since returning from Tommy John surgery. The Rays offense also woke up to produce 13 hits, a homer, a triple, three doubles and four stolen bases in a 6-1 victory.
Springs and four relievers, meanwhile, Arizona limited five singles and presented Rays manager Kevin Cash with win No. 800, the sixth highest among active managers.
“I didn’t even know until after the game,” said Cash, a 10-year captain for his hometown club. “I like it. I appreciate the guys. Every win is meaningful. This is a fun organization to get a lot of wins with.”
One of the Rays’ hottest players, outfielder Josh Lowe, was 1-for-4 with an RBI triple, a run and a stolen base on Saturday. He is hitting .340 in his past 15 games.
“I just simplified it and used a big part of the field,” Lowe said. “I think if I do that, that’s what happened to me.”
The Diamondbacks have won nine straight series dating to a 2-2 split with the Atlanta Braves in the next-to-last set before the All-Star break.
Even with the losses to start this series, the Diamondbacks are 18-5 in the past 23 games, buoyed by the bat of Eugenio Suarez.
The third baseman was 2-for-8 in the first two games against the Rays, including being hit in the hand by Ryan Pepiot’s pitch on Saturday. However, the pitch was decided by a swing, Suarez retired with a strike, but he stayed in the game and played on Saturday as well.
During 40 games that began on July 2, the Venezuelan slugger, who earned 49 hits for the Cincinnati Reds in 2019, batted .308 (45-for-146) with 25 extra-base hits. He led the majors with 37 RBIs during that stretch on Saturday.
Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said Suarez has put in the work to get the result.
“(Suarez has been) a good hitter for us the last month and a half,” Lovullo said. “He’s really had an impact on this team’s ability to score, and he should be proud of himself. He’s worked really hard to have those types of moments.”
With the Rays starting their West Coast trip on Saturday to face the Oakland Athletics, Los Angeles Dodgers and Seattle Mariners, Cash has opted for Sunday’s bullpen game and pushed slated starter Taj Bradley back to the opener of the trip.
Bradley is 0-2 with an 11.00 ERA in two August starts, so more extras can help the Los Angeles native.
Tampa Bay placed starter Zack Littell (shoulder strain) on the injured list Friday and called up left-hander Tyler Alexander from Triple-A Durham. He was expected to handle the bulk of the innings in Sunday’s final after right-hander Drew Rasmussen was the opener.
Alexander (5-3, 5.20 ERA), who last pitched for Sinar on August 10, is 1-0 with no runs allowed in two relief appearances in four innings. a 0.00 ERA in two relief appearances against Arizona totaling four innings.
Rasmussen (0-0, 5.40 ERA) has made three relief appearances for Tampa Bay this season, all since August 7. He has never faced the Diamondbacks.
Right-hander Merrill Kelly (3-0, 2.43) will pitch for the Diamondbacks in his second appearance since missing nearly four months with a shoulder strain. He went five effective innings — giving up two runs and three hits — in beating the Philadelphia Phillies 12-5 on August 11.
Kelly has faced the Rays only once, and it didn’t go well. In his 2019 rookie season, he lost after giving up seven hits in four innings (15.75 ERA) at St.
–Field Level Media
