ST. PETERSBURG -- Whether it’s lingering jetlag from their perfect West Coast trip, running into a couple of American League East rivals desperately trying to play their way back into the postseason race or simply one of those stretches every team goes through, wins aren’t coming easily for the Rays right now.
Their 7-6 victory against the Blue Jays on Wednesday night at Tropicana Field was not easy, either. They benefited from some fortunate bounces, bunted their way to two runs and watched a comfortable lead turn into their 18th one-run win of the season.
But after dropping four of their first five games on this homestand, it certainly beat the alternative.
Here are three takeaways from the AL-leading Rays’ 76th win of the season.
1. They took what they were given, then took more
Even good teams need good luck sometimes, right?
The Rays got some in the fourth inning, courtesy of Toronto left fielder Jesús Sánchez. With the bases loaded and one out, Richie Palacios hit a fly ball to shallow left field. Sánchez completely misread it and let the ball drop in front of him, allowing two runs to score.
Sánchez previously misread Junior Caminero’s high fly ball to the left-field corner in the first inning, which bounced over the short wall for a ground-rule double and set up Yandy Díaz’s two-run homer.
But good teams also make their own luck, right?
The Rays did that in the fourth inning. With Cedric Mullins on third and Palacios at second, Taylor Walls dropped a sacrifice bunt. Kazuma Okamoto fielded it and flipped it to the plate, but Mullins slid home safely. Chandler Simpson immediately dropped another bunt and raced to first, beating the throw and driving in Palacios.
That all set up Walls to score on a groundout by Caminero, capping a five-run frame that proved to be the difference in the game.
2. The rotation has had a rough turn
The Rays began this shaky homestand with a bullpen game, but the starting staff hasn’t exactly stepped up to stabilize things the past five days.
Ian Seymour, who will start Thursday afternoon’s finale, had the best outing of the bunch on Saturday, a quality start in which he allowed three runs over six innings.
Freddy Peralta showed some encouraging signs, but his start Sunday ended on a sour note after 4 2/3 innings. Shane McClanahan also looked close to normal in his return from the injured list Monday, but he wound up being charged for three runs in 3 1/3 innings.
The Rays have been able to rely on Nick Martinez and Drew Rasmussen all season, but even they struggled against the Jays. Martinez was hit early and often Tuesday, allowing six runs in his shortest start of the season, whereas Rasmussen’s trouble came later.
After retiring nine of the first 10 batters he faced, Rasmussen surrendered a homer to Alejandro Kirk in the fourth then allowed four runs on five hits, a walk and a sacrifice fly during a seven-batter span in the fifth. That turned a sizable lead into a narrow edge.
3. The back end of the bullpen got the job done
Cam Booser allowed a run in the sixth, a rarity for the hard-throwing left-hander, but his fellow high-leverage relievers pulled off another high-wire act to protect Tampa Bay’s one-run lead.
Right-hander Kevin Kelly picked up four outs, bridging the gap from the sixth through the seventh. Trade Deadline acquisition Tyler Wells handled the eighth, and All-Star closer Bryan Baker -- fresh off his first career five-out save on Monday night -- did his part in the ninth as he recorded his MLB-leading 36th save.