As expected:
Game 1: Quick, someone get me rewrite - this script is all messed up. The Rays took a 5-4 lead into the 8th inning only for Nick Anderson to give up 4 runs as they lost the opener of the homestand 8-5 to the Chicago White Sox. Dustin May got off to a bit of a rough start allowing 4 runs in the first 3 innings but settled down nicely after that to get through 7 at only 91 pitches, and he could have been left in. But I figured Anderson was the safer bet with the middle of the order due and that was proven wrong almost instantly when the first batter he faced, Eloy Jimenez roped a double into the gap. Anderson whiffed Yoan Moncada and got to 2-2 on Michael Chavis and another K looked likely but instead Chavis singled to score Jimenez. After retiring the newly-signed Nick Castellanos, another new Chicago signing, Jason Heyward, singled and that brought up backup catcher Connor Wong who stunned Anderson and the Trop crowd with a long homer to the rays tank in RCF to make it 8-5. And while all this was going on, Rays castoff Kirby Yates shut them out for 2 1/3 allowing only a walk, and then another former Ray Will Harris got them in the 9th after a couple of singles were wiped out by Austin Meadows hitting into a game-ending double play. Earlier Meadows had continued his hot streak with a 2-run HR in the first, and Alec Bohm hit another one as well in the 3rd before the Rays regained the lead in the 4th on a Chicago throwing error and a Vidal Brujan RBI groundout. But Wong rewrote the script and the Rays suffered a shock loss.
Game 2: In what will go down as one of the more memorable games of the season, Wander Franco's walk-off HR in the 19th inning (yes, the 19th inning) gave the Rays an 8-7 win over the White Sox. The Rays trailed for most of the regulation 9 innings as Walker Buehler wasn't his sharpest, yielding a 3-run HR to Yoan Moncada and only striking out 3 while allowing 5 runs and 9 hits over 7 innings. Alec Bohm had his 11th HR in the 2nd and Seth Beer had an RBI double later that inning but the Rays trailed 5-3 in the bottom of the 8th. The Sox brought in lefty Aaron Fletcher to pitch and with a man on and Beer due up, Spencer Torkelson pinch-hit and he drilled a 507-ft HR to LCF to tie the game. But the tie was nearly short-lived as in the top of the 9th, Jasseel De La Cruz walked Nick Castellanos who went to 2nd on a ground out. Andrelton Simmons drilled a single to center and Castellanos tried to score but was gunned down by Brandon Marsh. So off to extras we went, and Mitch Keller tired in his 3rd inning of relief in the 14th and gave up a couple of runs to put the Sox up 7-5. But in the bottom of the inning Marsh led off with an infield single, Vidal Brujan doubled him to 3rd and Wander and Austin Meadows hit sac flies to tie it back up. So on we trudged, Asa Lacy threw 3 scoreless innings despite walking as many batters and the last man in the pen, Sandy Gaston came on in the 18th and threw a pair of scoreless innings setting the stage for Wander's walk-off blast off Kirby Yates, which got Gaston the win. Every reliever was used except Nick Anderson, who was tired, so we may need to call up an arm from Durham for tomorrow's game. Scott Barlow (out of options) is due to return from his rehab assignment anyway, and despite his solid pitching Gaston is the likely choice to go down.
Game 3: White Sox bats were once again too much for Rays pitching in an 8-6 loss. Chicago scored 8, 7 and 8 runs in the 3 games and the Eloy Jimenez-Yoan Moncada duo were tough on them the whole time. Today, Jimenez bashed 2 HRs including a 3-run shot off Jose Alvarado in the 7th that turned a 4-3 Rays lead into a 6-4 deficit from which they never recovered. Some sloppy defense hurt the Rays early, with Rafael Devers' throwing error allowing 2 unearned runs to score in the 2nd, but it looked like the Rays had overcome that largely due to a big 2-run double from Triston Casas in the 4th. With Matt Manning at 95 pitches going into the 7th, I left him in, only to give up 2 hits to start the inning. Alvarado came in and got the next two out but couldn't slip one by Jimenez. Ian Hamilton then gave up a 2-run HR to Tuesday's hero, Connor Wong, to make it 8-4 and although Wander and Austin Meadows hit back-to-back jacks in the bottom of the 8th it wasn't enough. Manning ended up 6 7 5 3 1 5 and took a tough loss between the defense and the manager's decision. One good sign from the game is that Vidal Brujan had 3 hits, hopefully snapping out of his slump.
Team record: 41-21. Up next: a weekend 4-game home series vs Oakland, including a rare scheduled doubleheader for Saturday.