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Rays’ Early Hope Shattered by Braves’ Big Bats

The Tampa Bay Rays opened their series against the Atlanta Braves with a glimmer of hope before proceeding to get A-town stomped in a 7-3 loss.

The Rays had a glimmer of hope, taking an early 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning. Yandy Díaz led off with a single, and Randy Arozarena was hit by a pitch, putting runners on first and second with no outs. Amed Rosario hit a double to right field, driving in Díaz and advancing Arozarena to third. With a promising start, the Rays had the chance to build on their momentum. However, back-to-back strikeouts by Jose Siri and Jonny DeLuca halted their progress, leaving the Rays with just one run. This was the best chance for the Rays to attack Braves’ starter Chris Sale before he settled into a groove.

When the Braves came to bat in the bottom of the first, the bottom fell out for the Rays’ hopes in this game. Michael Harris II started with a single, followed by Ozzie Albies doubling to right, pushing Harris to third. Harris appeared to injure himself running the bases, bringing in J.P. Martínez as a pinch runner. Marcell Ozuna stepped up and crushed a three-run homer to right-center field, quickly turning the win probability odds in the Braves’ favor. Not stopping there, Matt Olson doubled, and Austin Riley, who had an outstanding game, doubled him home, making it a 4-1 Braves lead. A throwing error by Rays pitcher Zack Littell on a ground ball from Adam Duvall allowed Riley to score, ending the inning at 5-1 in favor of Atlanta.

Littell’s struggles continued into the second inning. After getting Albies to ground out, he walked Ozuna. With two outs, Riley struck again, this time with a two-run homer to left-center, bringing the score to 7-1. In two innings, Littell left two sliders almost in the same spot over the plate that Riley feasted on. Littell’s night was done after just two innings after giving up eight hits and seven runs (six earned) on 59 pitches.

The Rays’ bullpen took over from the third inning on and did an admirable job of damage control, holding the Braves scoreless for the rest of the game. Kevin Kelly, Phil Maton, Chris Devenski, and Jason Adam each pitched in to stop the bleeding, ensuring no further runs crossed the plate.

Despite the bullpen’s effort, the Rays’ offense struggled to make a comeback against Braves starter Chris Sale. After a rocky start, Sale settled in and dominated, striking out seven over seven innings. His command over the Rays’ lineup was evident as Tampa Bay managed only five hits and two runs off him, and Sale retired batter after batter with a mix of fastballs and sliders that left the Rays flailing.

The Rays managed a minor rally in the late innings, but it was too little, too late—or too Littell, too late, if you will.

One of the few bright spots for the Rays was Richie Palacios, who had an impressive game after entering after Jose Caballero left the game in the bottom of the third inning due to illness. In the seventh inning, Palacios doubled to left field, driving in Jose Siri, for his first RBI of the game. In the ninth, with Siri again on base after hitting a double, Palacios singled to right field to drive him in. Palacios’ two-RBI performance was a silver lining to a dreary night for Tampa Bay.

The Rays' three-game road win streak has ended. The good news is that they can start a new streak tomorrow at 4:10 p.m. when RHP Ryan Pepiot takes the mound for the Rays and former Ray RHP Charlie Morton gets the start for the Braves.