ST. PETERSBURG — The last two nights, the Rays’ lineup seemingly had an answer for everything the Blue Jays threw their way. They scored early and often on Thursday. They rallied late on Friday. They erased deficits and padded leads, and they put up at least 10 runs in back-to-back games for just the third time in the last four seasons.
But the Rays had no answers for Toronto in a 3-1 loss on Saturday night. What changed?
“Alek Manoah,” manager Kevin Cash said.
Toronto’s American League Cy Young Award candidate shut down whatever momentum Tampa Bay’s lineup built in the first half of this series, pitching seven scoreless innings to best Drew Rasmussen at Tropicana Field. Manoah allowed only four hits and two walks while striking out eight on a season-high 113 pitches.
“I got outdueled by a guy who’s thrown the ball really well this entire season,” said Rasmussen, who held Toronto to one run on three hits over 6 1/3 innings. “He’s a quality arm, and he continues to put good starts together.”
This one pushed the Rays (84-68) a game behind the Blue Jays (85-67) in the AL Wild Card race heading into Sunday’s series finale, which will be their final home game — and the end of a stretch of 18 games in 17 days — before they embark on a nine-game trip through Cleveland, Houston and Boston to end the regular season.
The Mariners’ win over the Royals pulled Seattle within a half-game of the Rays, who currently own the second AL Wild Card bid. However, Tampa Bay’s magic number to clinch a fourth straight postseason berth dropped to six, as Baltimore lost to Houston and fell four games back of the final Wild Card spot.
Getting into the postseason remains the Rays’ focus. To make a deep run into October, though, they’ll have to find ways to produce against their opponents’ aces and top relievers.
They have not yet resolved Manoah, who improved to 4-2 with a 1.42 ERA in seven career starts against the Rays. Then again, Manoah has been doing this to everyone lately. The Jays’ ace has bolstered his Cy Young case with a 1.13 ERA over his last seven outings.
“He’s just really talented. He’s got a good feel for what he wants to do,” Cash said. “I don’t think any hitter gets the same look consistently. Just a very good pitcher.”
The Rays eventually got to the Blue Jays’ bullpen, as Jose Siri singled off lefty Tim Mayza and scored on a two-out infield single by Harold Ramírez in the eighth inning. But it was too little, too late.
Saturday was the 12th time in their last 22 games that the Rays have been held to three runs or fewer. They scored only two runs, total, while being swept by the Astros earlier this week. They seemed to get back on track the last two nights, racking up 20 runs on 23 hits.
Then came Manoah on Saturday, when the Rays didn’t get a hit until the fourth and didn’t advance a runner to third base until the eighth. By that point, the Rays were already down three runs.
Rasmussen bounced back from a pair of four-run outings with a dominant start. The right-hander cruised through five innings, allowing only one hit, before getting himself in and out of a bases-loaded jam during a 26-pitch sixth inning. He reassured the staff he felt good enough to return for the seventh, he said, but it was made clear that his night would end as soon as a runner got on base.
That happened with one out, as Teoscar Hernández doubled to left and Rasmussen gave way to lefty reliever Brooks Raley.
“I thought I was in a really good position to go back out and get us three quick outs,” Rasmussen said. “Got a quick first out and then missed middle with a cutter, and it got well hit.”
For the second time in his last three appearances, Raley let a close game slip away. On Wednesday, the Astros turned a one-run deficit into a two-run lead against him. On Saturday, he walked Danny Jansen — the part that frustrated him most afterward — then immediately served up a three-run homer to Whit Merrifield.
“Wanted to throw a quality slider — and I did — and he put a good swing on it,” Raley said. “Unfortunately, that was kind of the end of the game right there in that spot, so obviously an emotional feeling.”
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