Yandy Diaz’s two-run single capped a three-run eighth inning as the Tampa Bay Rays rallied for a 4-3 win over the Seattle Mariners to open a three-game series on Monday in St. Petersburg, Fla.
After Ben Rortvedt’s ground-rule double pulled the Rays within 3-2, Andres Munoz replaced Austin Voth on the mound for Seattle. Jose Caballero walked before Diaz chopped a grounder past first baseman Ty France to score Jose Siri and pinch runner Jonny DeLuca for the lead.
Pete Fairbanks fanned two in a perfect ninth for his 12th save, after Phil Maton (1-2) tossed 1 1/3 scoreless innings.
Diaz went 2-for-5 to extend his hitting streak to 17 games, the second-longest active run in the majors behind the Pittsburgh Pirates’ Bryan Reynolds’ 21.
Richie Palacios and Siri had two-hit nights as the Rays won for the fifth time in six games.
Tampa Bay starting pitcher Taj Bradley fired 5 1/3 innings, allowing one run on two hits while striking out eight and walking four.
Seattle’s Cal Raleigh slugged his 13th home run and Mitch Garver hit his ninth, but the Mariners fell to 2-5 on their nine-game road trip.
Seattle starting pitcher Bryan Woo tossed three-plus innings before leaving with an apparent right leg injury. The right-hander allowed one run on five hits while fanning three with no walks.
Voth (2-2) was charged with three runs on two hits and a walk in two-thirds of an inning.
On an 0-1 pitch from Bradley in the fourth inning, Raleigh got all of the right-hander’s 96 mph fastball and ripped a deep solo homer to right center — sending it an estimated 423 feet.
That blast gave Raleigh a majors-best 70 home runs since 2022, the most by a player whose primary position is catcher.
Following Palacios’ leadoff hit in the fourth inning, Woo delivered one pitch to Taylor Walls and grimaced in pain while shaking his right leg. He attempted to make one practice delivery, could not complete it and was removed from the game by manager Scott Servais.
Reliever Tayler Saucedo threw an errant pickoff attempt down the right field line, moving Palacios to third. Saucedo then delivered a wild pitch to knot the game.
In the visiting seventh, Garver roped a two-run homer to left field on a 3-2 fastball from Chris Devenski to put the Mariners up 3-1.
–Field Level Media
