Tampa Bay starter Ryan Pepiot dominated over five no-hit innings, and the Rays opened a crucial four-game home series by notching their season-best seventh straight win, 4-2 over the Cleveland Guardians on Thursday.
Pepiot (11-10) used 90 pitches to overwhelm Cleveland, which managed just two walks and a hit batter against the fireballing right-hander, who struck out six.
Tampa Bay’s Christopher Morel went 3-for-4 with two runs and an RBI. Jake Mangum had two hits, a walk, run and a stolen base. Carson Williams singled, drove in two and walked as the Rays (71-69) won for the 10th time in 12 games.
Jose Ramirez homered and singled while Kyle Manzardo went deep for Cleveland (69-70), which did not put a runner in scoring position and fell to 5-10 in its past 15 games.
Over five-plus frames, Guardians starter Logan Allen (7-11) yielded four runs (three earned) on six hits. He fanned four and walked two.
The Rays, who dropped two of three games last week in Cleveland, broke through on Thursday with an unearned run in the first inning. Guardians shortstop Gabriel Arias committed a two-out throwing error, and Morel made the visitors pay by lashing a single to left for a 1-0 lead.
Pepiot cruised through the opposition early on despite having to endure a lengthy delay after plate umpire Austin Jones received a bloodied chin after taking a foul ball straight back, and a mound repair was needed, too.
The home side was able to add another tally in the fourth after Morel opened with a single and Mangum walked. After both runners tagged up and advanced on a flyout, Williams grounded a two-out infield single in the hole between third and short to double the Rays’ lead.
With Pepiot out after five innings, Cleveland managed its first hit when Ramirez lined a two-out single to right-center in the sixth.
Tampa Bay created a gap with small ball in the sixth, using two bunts to plate a pair. Pinch hitter Josh Lowe’s fielder’s choice and Williams’ safety squeeze pushed the margin to 4-0.
Ramirez and Manzardo went back-to-back off Pete Fairbanks in the ninth, but Fairbanks rallied with three straight outs to close the game.
–Field Level Media
