Jonathan Aranda’s 10th-inning sacrifice fly proved to be the difference Tuesday night as the visiting Tampa Bay Rays defeated the Toronto Blue Jays 7-6.
Taylor Walls’ single to right against Braydon Fisher (2-1) scored automatic runner Cedric Mullins to give Tampa Bay a 6-5 lead. Yandy Diaz walked before Walls took third on a wild pitch and scored on Aranda’s sacrifice fly on Daulton Varsho’s superb catch at the wall in center.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the 10th against Garrett Cleavinger, who worked around a two-out walk to earn his first save.
Ian Seymour (2-0) pitched a perfect ninth for the Rays, who are 5-0 against Toronto this season after taking the first two of this three-game series. Ryan Vilade homered for Tampa Bay, which has won three straight and 10 of 11.
Toronto overcame a 5-0 deficit with a five-run seventh.
The Rays scored once in the first against Patrick Corbin. Aranda and Junior Caminero singled, and Jonny DeLuca blooped an RBI double down the right-field line.
Tampa Bay scored two more in the third. Caminero singled, Ben Williamson doubled off the top of the left-field wall and Mullins looped a two-run single to right-center with two outs.
Corbin allowed three runs, nine hits and one walk with one strikeout in 4 1/3 innings.
Toronto threatened in the fifth against Shane McClanahan on Caminero’s error on a grounder to third and Ernie Clement’s single. McClanahan got out of the inning unscathed with a groundout and two strikeouts. He allowed no runs, one hit and no walks with seven strikeouts in five innings.
The Rays scored once in the sixth against Tommy Nance. Walls walked, stole second and took third on a groundout. He scored on a wild pitch that hit home plate umpire Chris Segal on the knee.
Vilade led off the seventh with a homer to left against Jeff Hoffman.
Clement began Toronto’s five-run seventh with a one-out single to left off Casey Legumina, scoring on pinch hitter Jesus Sanchez’s two-out double to left. Cole Sulser replaced Legumina and walked Brandon Valenzuela on a wild pitch that put runners at the corners. A run scored on George Springer’s infield single, and two more scored on Yohendrick Pinango’s double.
With Kevin Kelly pitching, the tying run scored when Guerrero’s chopper to the left side bounced off Caminero’s glove for his second error.
–Field Level Media
