ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The breaks seemed to be going against the Rays on Tuesday night.
In the fifth inning alone, Corey Kluber went from having a no-hitter to a two-run deficit after two bloop hits, Boston’s first RBI bunt in seven years and a fly ball that fell between outfielders Randy Arozarena and Brett Phillips.
Then their fortunes changed, and so did the outcome of the game, as the Rays rallied for a 3-2 win.
All they needed was an infield single by Harold Ramirez, a two-out pinch-hit RBI single by Francisco Mejia and a Taylor Walls hit that struck reliever Matt Strahm on the left wrist and led to two run-scoring throwing errors.
The win improved the Rays to 47-40, moved them past the Red Sox back into second place in the American League East and, of more importance, atop the wild-card field.
Kluber gave the Rays six solid innings, allowing the two runs, four hits and one walk, striking out seven while throwing 88 pitches.
This is a big week for Kluber, who on Wednesday reaches the milestone achievement of 10 years in the major leagues.
“Definitely cool,” he said. “10 years is a long time, and to look back on where I started out 10 years ago and where I am now, a lot of cool things happened in between.”
He was dazzling early Tuesday, retiring the first nine Red Sox, five on strikeouts. When he walked Jarren Duran to start the fourth he quickly got a double-play grounder, and got through four innings facing only the minimum 12 batters.
But things changed — quickly, dramatically and oddly — in the fifth.
With one out, Kluber allowed his first hit, a blooper over shortstop by Alex Verdugo. Trevor Story swung at a 3-1 pitch that hit his right hand, and hurt him enough that he had to leave the game.
Rookie Jeter Downs came off the bench cold, took an awkward swing at the first pitch and blooped a single into left field, putting runners on the corners.
The Red Sox then played small ball with Franchy Cordero executing a safety squeeze by pushing a bunt toward first. That, per baseball-reference.com, was their first RBI bunt since 2015.
The Rays made it worse with a defensive misplay. Arozarena and Phillips both ran toward Bobby Dalbec’s drive to left-center field and Phillips slid, but neither came close to catching it as Boston extended its lead to 2-0.
The Rays took the lead in an odder sequence with two outs in the sixth inning, with Ramirez (who hustled for a leadoff infield single) and Isaac Paredes (who walked) aboard.
First Mejia, pinch-hitting for Ji-Man Choi against lefty Strahm, singled up the middle to make it 2-1.
Then came the weird part.
Walls hit a ball that struck Strahm on the left wrist, sending him to the ground. He scrambled, in pain, for the ball, but threw wildly past first, allowing Paredes to score.
First baseman Cordero chased down the ball and threw home, but errantly, as the ball bounced past catcher Christian Vazquez. Mejia came in to make it 3-2. Strahm left the game with what Boston said was a left wrist contusion.
