ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — At least the Rays put up a fight this time.
Having been blanked and beaten in the first two games against the American League-best Astros, the Rays took a lead into the eighth inning Wednesday, then gave it up and lost again, this time 5-2.
Brooks Raley was the culprit against his former Houston mates, taking over with a 2-1 lead, then allowing a leadoff double to Jeremy Pena, a long flyout that moved Pena to third, a bouncing RBI single over the drawn-in infield to Aledmys Diaz, then a long two-run homer to Kyle Tucker, the Plant High product.
The Rays were done in by a bit of a Tampa tandem, as Jesuit High product Lance McCullers Jr. worked seven strong innings for the win.
It was the first time the Rays were swept in a home series of three or more games since April 19-21, 2019, by Boston, ending the longest such active streak in the majors.
The Rays did end their scoreless streak, which started in the seventh inning Sunday, at 25 when they scratched out a run in the sixth to tie the score 1-1. They took the lead in the seventh on a homer by Isaac Paredes, his team-leading 20th. But Raley, who spent 2020-21 with Houston, couldn’t hold it. Martin Maldonado added a homer in the ninth for the Astros.
The loss dropped the Rays to 82-67, and further stalled their pursuit of a spot in the three-team AL wild-card field. They started the night two games behind the Blue Jays, whom they host in a four-game series beginning Thursday, and just a half game ahead of the Mariners, both of whom played later. The Rays had a 5 1/2-game lead over the pursuing Orioles.
The Astros, for the third straight game, scored in the first inning. Pena reached on a grounder that forced Jose Altuve (who led off with a single off Corey Kluber), stole second and scored on a two-out single by Diaz.
The Rays were blanked the first five innings by McCullers. They ended it with a run in the sixth.
Wander Franco got them started with one out, rapping a hit to right field and hustling to make it a double, extending his hitting streak to eight games. Franco went to third on a single by Randy Arozarena, then scored when David Peralta hit a hard grounder that Houston first baseman Yuli Gurriel couldn’t field cleanly and had to settle for the out at first.
The Rays then took the lead, also their first since Sunday, when Paredes homered to lead off the seventh.
The Rays got an encouraging performance from Kluber, who allowed only the one run over seven solid innings.
