Marlins blank Rays to take the series in Miami

Photo by Wayne Masut I The Scrum Sports

Stretch of 16-straight against sub-.500 teams doesn’t start well in South Beach.

After what turned into the second-longest game in franchise history on Tuesday night, the Rays and Marlins got back to work at 1:10 PM today.

Happy 4^th of July, everyone! The Miami stretch of the Citrus Series wrapped up today from Marlin’s Park. The Rays sent RHP Matt Andriese to the hill making his fourth start. The Marlins welcomed back Jose Urena off the DL.

Pitcher’s duel early

It was all zeros in the run column for both sides until the sixth inning.

Andriese would pitch a shutout through two for the Rays. Urena would strikeout six through five shutout.

RHP Ryan Weber, just called up from Durham overnight, would look solid through his first two innings.

Starlin having a series

Starlin Castro went 4-for-4 in game one. He was quiet in game two. Today he would get the scoring started with a one-out single in the sixth off Weber. A mis-played ball in centerfield by Kevin Kiermaier and a bobble by Carlos Gomez who was backing him up, would allow the next hitter, JT Riddle, to drive him home with a triple.

JB Shuck would drive home Riddle when Willy Adames tried to come home on his ground ball.

Gomez, whose struggles have been quite polarizing this season, destroyed a water cooler in the Rays dugout earlier in the game after he thought a pitch hit him while he checked a bunt swing. The umpire said he didn’t check in time. He promptly struck out on the next pitch.

Carlos Gomez https://t.co/3OCDrBNqqu

— The Scrum Sports (@TheScrumSports) July 4, 2018

“I get hit by the pitch, you can see my hand,” Gomez said after the game. “Then you strike out, what you expect? We are human. Sometimes we get mad, that doesn’t make us unprofessional.”

He chuckled, “If they fine me for this I got enough money.”

Riddle me this…

With the score still 2-0 in the home eighth, Hunter Wood put Riddle a double away from the cycle allowing his 5^th home run of the season into the right field seats.

Marlins take the series

Robertson got to second with two outs in the the top of the ninth off Miami closer, Brad Ziegler, but C.J. Cron struck out to leave him there and end the ballgame.

The Rays begin this 16-game stretch v teams under .500 dropping two of three to Miami on the road.

Thursday is an “off day” before heading to New York to face the Mets.

NEXT UP:

The Rays (43-43) travel to New York for three against the Mets (33-49) beginning Friday. It’s likely Ryne Stanek will “open” that series.