CHICAGO — The Rays got a little help Sunday in snapping their four-game losing streak.
Taking advantage of a brutally bad first inning by White Sox starter Vince Velasquez, the Rays scored four runs and went on to a 9-3 win, their first since Tuesday.
After a perfect two-inning open by J.P. Feyereisen, the Rays used Chris Mazza, Jalen Beeks, Ryan Thompson, and rookie Tommy Romero to cover the rest of the game, combining for a three-hitter.
The Rays avoided a series sweep by the White Sox and got back to .500 at 5-5. They move on to face the Cubs for a three-game series but don’t even have to change hotel rooms.
Tampa Bay got its four runs on a combination of three singles, three walks (two with the bases loaded) and an error by Velasquez on a fielder’s choice comebacker.
Wander Franco and Randy Arozarena singled to get the inning started, and Ji-Man Choi walked to load the bases. Yandy Diaz walked to force in the first run. Velasquez’s error on Josh Lowe’s comebacker scored the second. A Manuel Margot single got the third run home. And Kevin Kiermaier drew another bases-loaded walk to make it 4-0.
Lowe also made the top defensive play, leaping at the leftfield wall to rob Sox leadoff hitter Tim Anderson of a home run.
The Rays took advantage of more Sox sloppiness to score four more in the eighth, Francisco Mejia singling in two runs, and Franco and Arozarena doubling in one apiece.
Kiermaier added a run-scoring single in the ninth. Gavin Sheets homered off Romero in the bottom half of the inning.
