Tampa Bay Rays bounce back 8-5 to level series against Toronto Blue Jays – MLB Update
Tampa Bay Rays bounced back strongly as they beat Toronto Blue Jays 8-5 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida on Tuesday, May 22 in the second game of their three match series of the 2012 Major League Baseball regular season.
Luke Scott finally managed to get another MLB hit as he homered to left in the second inning to help the Rays get off to a flying start. The offence continued to put pressure on Blue Jays’ pitching rotation and Drew Sutton had an RBI double in the fourth
to double the lead to 2-0. Chris Gimenez also displayed some top quality hitting skills as he grounded into fielder’s choice to third to score for the Rays.
However, the star of the show was Carlos Pena who hit a towering three run home run in the fourth to let his team establish complete control over the contest. He had two hits in five at bats. Yan Gomes homered in the sixth as Toronto fought back to make
the score 5-7 but a home run from B.J. Upton in the sixth ensured a dramatic win for the Rays. Reliever Wade Davis was absolutely outstanding as he gave up just one run in two solid innings.
"You can't really quantify how much of a difference it makes, but Joe is really smart by shifting things like that," Pena said. "It changes the energy and good things like this happen, not only individually but as a team. We put up some runs on the board
and felt more comfortable."
"I liked his at-bats in general," Maddon said. "Overall it's just about a mindset. It's just about what you're thinking and changing that a little bit. It's all about confidence. When he gets his confidence going you're going to see a lot more of that."
The win will be of great importance for the Rays who had lost to the Blue Jays in the opening game of the series. It will be interesting to see if Joe Maddon and company can continue their excellent form to top the table in American League East division.
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