ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Shane Baz allowed two runs and two hits over seven innings, Jose Siri homered and drove in four runs, and the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Boston Red Sox 8-3 on Tuesday night.
Baz (3-3) struck out six and walked one, and set a team mark with his fifth consecutive start of giving up three hits or fewer over five-plus innings.
Siri hit one Tampa Bay’s three homers during a four-run fifth inning and extended the Rays lead to 8-3 with his three-run bloop double to left in the eighth.
Junior Caminero, Josh Lowe and Brandon Lowe also homered for the Rays. Tampa Bay trails Minnesota by six games for the final AL wild card, and would also have pass Boston, Seattle and Detroit.
Triston Casas and Romy Gonzalez homered for Boston, which is five back of the Twins with 11 games remaining.
After Caminero hit a fourth-inning solo homer, Josh Lowe and Siri homered during the fifth against Nick Pivetta (5-11) to give the Rays a 3-2 lead.
Pivetta appeared to be in discomfort and touched his right shoulder after striking out Logan Driscoll. Pivetta stayed in the game after being checked out and allowed Siri’s 339-foot homer down the left-field line and Yandy Díaz’s double that ended his night.
Bailey Horn replaced Pivetta and gave up Brandon Lowe’s two-run homer that made it 5-2.
Pivetta allowed four runs and five hits over 4 2/3 innings.
Casas had seven hits in his previous 49 at-bats before he put the Red Sox up 2-0 with his second-inning homer. Gonzalez hit a pinch-hit homer off Garrett Cleavinger leading of the eighth.
Kevin Kelly worked the ninth to extend his scoreless streak to 20 1/3 innings and complete a three-hitter.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Red Sox: RHP Bryan Mata (right hamstring) will most likely not make his major-league this season.
Rays: Shane McClanahan (Tommy John surgery) will throw to hitters on Sept. 26.
UP NEXT
Red Sox manager Alex Cora said there is a “big chance” that RHP Tanner Houck (8-10, 3.24 ERA) will make his first start since Sept. 4 on Wednesday night against Rays RHP Ryan Pepiot (8-6, 3.76 ERA). Houck has been slowed by right shoulder fatigue. Pepiot was pulled after two innings on Sept. 12 because his velocity was down.
