The rays took the lead on only two batters in the game and kept two out in the second half of the eighth inning. When, as has been too often this season, the lead disappeared in a period of just a few batters. Again, the bloated lead came late and thanks to the Rays Bullpen. This time, the appreciated addition of the Rays to the Deadline, Griffin Jax, was called upon to throw a scoreless eighth and to maintain a 2-0 ray lead. Towards the end of the eighth, Jax had surrendered three hits, the last of which brought the Mariners first by a run. It was a goad, two-out, three-run explosion of the bat from the leading home run hitter of the competition.
Cal Raleigh, ahead with 2-0 in the count, sat on a sweeping machine that caught too much off the plate and pulled it to the deep right field. Just like that, the rays on the last three outs were on a point.
Matt Brash and his Sub-2.00 Era came up for the ninth and quickly worked by Brandon Lowe, Junior Caminero and Josh Lowe, threw the side and handed the rays a crushing loss.
This was a game that you couldn’t lose. The rays received a masterful start of Drew Rasmussen that drove through six scoreless innings. He hit four, did not walk and only spread four singles. Again, Rasmussen was all night in and around the zone and quickly worked on the Line -up of the Mariners. Randy Arozarena and Donovan Solano both tagged him for a few singles, but that was it. Kevin Cash and the Rays couldn’t have asked anything from him.
Opposite Rasmussen was Luis Castillo who was also very good in seven innings. Castillo made two mistakes and both left the garden. The solo shot of Brandon Lowe, his 21st of the year, came in the first inning and quickly gave the rays a 1-0 lead. Caminero appeared on a high fastball in the sixth inning and launched his 31st explosion of the year, and third in his last two games. In total, the rays only gathered five hits on the night and only the two runs. Castillo all five gave the hits, threw five and did not run any.
In short, as is usually the case in one run games, that is five hits and two runs just won’t cut it. Rasmussen did his job. Clavinger did it too. Jax did not do it and did not do the violation.
Maybe Yandy Diaz or Ha-Song Kim could have made a difference tonight. We can’t and not know, because they never got the chance despite the fact that they have come a day off. But what is clear is that this setup without Aranda is too thin if Yandy and Kim are absent. Too thin if you try to move the ground in the wildcardrace after a gloomy July. Too thin against this Mariners staff.
On a positive note to end the night, Tristan Peters made his debut and looked comfortable in the middle. He went 0-3 on the record but worked a few good cutting rings.
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