ST. PETERSBURG —Twins designated hitter Logan Morrison had a message for the rays swimming in the tank just beyond the wall in left center.
“Swim low. I’m back, boys,” the former Rays slugger said before Minnesota’s game on Friday.
Although he never landed one in the tank, Morrison wasn’t far off when he took a rip on a hanging 2-2 slider from Rays ace Chris Archer that ended up in the right field seats in the top of the second. It was the first home run of the season for Morrison, who finished 1-for-4 against his former mates.
Before signing as a free agent on a one-year, $6.5 million contract with Minnesota this spring, Morrison spent the previous two seasons with Tampa Bay, slugging 52 home runs in 256 games. Morrison just missed a splash down into the rays’ tank again in the top of the fifth, flying out at the wall just feet in front of the onlooking elasmobranchs. (Editor’s note: Elasmobranchs are the family of cartilaginous fish which includes rays, skates and sharks.)
It was a former Twin, Denard Span, who put the harsh on Morrison’s homecoming buzz and give the Rays an 8-7 win in extra innings in a game that featured five lead changes, a grand slam and a half-baked finish that ended with a replay review. With two outs in the bottom of the 10th inning, Span slapped a grounder to Twins first baseman Joe Mauer, who sprawled out diving to make the play. Pitcher Zach Duke was late covering the bag, leaving Span safe at first — a call that was later challenged — and pinch runner Johnny Field motoring toward the plate. Duke’s throw home sailed wide and gave the Rays (6-13) their third win in four days.
“It felt like I got a piece of the base but apparently they didn’t see it on replay so it doesn’t matter much,” Duke said.
“It was huge,” Span said. “We could have easily hung our heads and gave up. I think it’s a good character win. We showed a lot of grit tonight.”
The Rays’ offense had several opportunities to jump on Twins starter Lance Lynn that went up in smoke, including the third when Ramos walked to lead things off and Mallex Smith was able to reach base on fielder’s choice that failed to nail the lead runner. The next batter, Aideny Hechavarria, put the Rays on the board with single back up the middle. Lynn then walked Denard Span to load the bases but Lynn was able to get out of the inning after getting Carlos Gomez to roll up a 4-6-3 double play.
The two teams continued to pass the lead back-and-forth. The Twins briefly went ahead in the fifth after Eduardo Escobar smoked a line drive to center field that was just too much for a diving Smith to hang onto. After a replay review upheld the call on the field that Smith coughed it up after hitting the green, Max Kepler would bring Escobar in with an infield single to make it 2-1. Ramos and Hechavarria would spark up another Rays rally in the bottom of the frame with a single and walk, respectively, and would come around to score on a two-run double by Span.
Archer, who came into the game with a 7.84 ERA, pitched well into the seventh when he was cashed out after issuing a walk to Escobar with two outs. Reliever Jose Alvarado came on with the fire and was able to strike out Kepler to strand the runner. Archer finished the day with five strikeouts and a walk while scattering four hits.
The Rays finally seized their opportunity in the bottom of the frame after Smith walked and Hechavarria doubled with no outs in the seventh. Span cleared the pipes with a single to right off reliever Taylor Rogers. Daniel Robertson would tack on another with an RBI single to right. Span finished the night 2-for-5 with a walk and a stolen base.
The Twins erased that deficit in the top of the eighth. A pair of walks by Robbie Grossman and Dozier, plus a single by Joe Mauer would load the bases for Rosario who took a hanging slider from Sergio Romo up and over the fence in right field for a grand slam to tie things back up at six each. Kepler completed the comeback with a go-ahead solo shot in the ninth. Tampa Bay would spoil the homecoming of another former Ray, closer Fernando Rodney, in the bottom half of the inning. Rodney plunked Gomez to set up an RBI single by Brad Miller that tied the game at seven and send the game into overtime.
“We feel sexy about it,” Gomez said of the veterans stepping up when it mattered. “It’s not how old you are, it’s how you feel and I feel hot every day.”
Ramos doubled to put the winning run in scoring position and set the stage for the wild final play. Ramos finished the evening 2-for-4 with a pair of runs scored. Minnesota’s Brian Dozier led off the sixth with a single for his 14th consecutive game with a hit — the longest active streak in the Majors.
#Twins DH Logan Morrison on return to the Trop to face former #Rays teammates. pic.twitter.com/xCPCqa661B
— j. Scott Butherus (@JScottButherus) April 20, 2018
LOMO’S RETURN
Morrison, who came into the game batting .068 and just two RBI, admitted that he and the team might be experiencing a little bit of burnout after returning from a trip to Puerto Rico to play a series against the Indians and multiple games being cancelled because of inclement weather.
“It’s been a crazy start to the season and I don’t know if has anything to do with it or not,” Morrison said. “With all the stuff we’ve gone through already it feels like we’ve been playing for about three and a half months… That Puerto Rico trip was a lot of fun but tiring. It was six hours there and three to get back. We had a 16-inning game so it was good to get that off day yesterday.”
After losing five games so far this season to getting snowed out, Morrison was at least glad to be back in the controlled climes of the Trop.
“Being comfortable playing baseball is a lot better than not being comfortable playing baseball and I think anybody will tell you that,” Morrison said.
However, as far as familiarity goes, Morrison said that playing at Tropicana isn’t much of an advantage for him. Last season he hit .219 with 11 home runs and 35 RBI at home compared to .272/27/50 on the road.
“If you look at the numbers, I did all my damage on the road last year,” Morrison said. “I mean I’ve played here a lot but I don’t know if I’m comfortable here.
UP NEXT
The Rays will continue their three-game set with the Twins on Saturday at 6:10 p.m. ET. Lefty Blake Snell (2-1, 2.95) will square off against Minnesota’s Kyle Gibson (1-0, 3.68). Snell is coming off a second consecutive strong start. He has allowed just two earned runs over his last 12 1/3 innings while striking out 19. All fans will receive a Rays car sun shade as part of the homestead giveaway.
