ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Taylor Walls homered, six Tampa Bay pitchers combined on a six-hitter and the Rays beat the Texas Rangers 5-1 Saturday night.
Tampa Bay remained 1 1/2 games behind Toronto for the top AL wild card. The Rays hold a 5 1/2-game advantage over Baltimore, which is fourth in the race for the three wild cards.
Jonah Heim homered and Jon Gray (7-7) allowed two runs and two hits over 4 1/3 innings in his second start for Texas since returning from a left oblique strain.
The Rangers (63-82) were assured their sixth consecutive losing season. It extends the longest streak since the team moved to Texas from Washington in 1972.
Walls went deep to put the Rays up 3-1 on the first pitch from reliever Taylor Hearn, who replaced Gray in the fifth.
David Peralta, in the first, and Wander Franco, in the third, hit sacrifice flies as the Rays took a 2-0 lead. Isaac Paredes extended the advantage to 5-1 on a two-run double with two outs in the seventh against Dennis Santana.
Heim made it 2-1 with a fourth-inning leadoff homer against Ryan Yarbrough (2-8). Heim flied out to the right field warning track on a 3-2 pitch from Javy Guerra with the bases loaded and two outs in the fifth.
Yarbrough allowed one run and four hits in three innings after replacing opener Shawn Armstrong with two outs in the second.
Jalen Beeks didn’t allow a baserunner in the sixth and seventh. Jason Adam gave up a single in the eighth but hit the dirt to get out of the way of a hard-hit ball by Heim that resulted in an inning-ending double play.
NUMBERS
Texas SS Marcus Semien went 2 for 4 on his 32nd birthday. … Rangers slugger Nathaniel Lowe had two hits and improved his batting average to .310.
THE IN CROWD
The Rays passed 1 million fans in home attendance Friday night, which leaves Miami and Oakland as the only teams that haven’t reached the plateau this season. Tampa Bay has drawn under 1.3 million at home every year since 2015.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Rangers: RHP Joe Barlow (right index finger blister) joined RHP Spencer Howard (right shoulder impingement) on a rehabilitation assignment with Triple-A Round Rock.
Rays: 3B Yandy Díaz and OF Randy Arozarena were rested. … RHP Nick Anderson, who hasn’t pitched in the majors this season following right elbow surgery, has plantar fasciitis with Triple-A Durham. … Tampa Bay manager Kevin Cash said RHP Tyler Glasnow (Tommy John surgery) could make his third appearance with Durham on Sunday.
UP NEXT
Texas RHP Glenn Otto (6-8) will face Rays LHP Jeffrey Springs (8-4) on Sunday.
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