Rays snap Rangers' winning steak
ST. PETERSBURG -- Brandon Guyer delivered a pinch-hit, three-run homer and Nathan Karns held the Rangers' bats in check as the Rays took a 8-2 win Friday night at Tropicana Field.
Guyer pinch-hit for David DeJesus in the sixth when Alex Claudio replaced starter Yovani Gallardo. Guyer hit the first pitch he saw from Claudio, planting an 85-mph sinker in the left-field stands for his second home run of the season and a 5-0 lead.
"Huge knock by Guyer, kind of separated the game for a couple of innings," Rays manager Kevin Cash said.
Ironically, Guyer's homer was the second from the fifth spot in the order as DeJesus gave the Rays a 1-0 lead with a solo home run in the second.
"The two home runs were the difference in the game," said Rangers manager Jeff Banister. "Other than the pitch to DeJesus, Gallardo threw the ball well."
Meanwhile, Karns posted seven scoreless innings before Adam Rosales homered to lead off the eighth. After Delino DeShields followed with a single, Karns was lifted as the Rangers continued to threaten.
Video: TEX@TB: Rosales cuts into Rays' lead with solo homer
Xavier Cedeno took over for Karns and allowed singles to Shin-Soo Choo and Elvis Andrus to load the bases before he struck out Prince Fielder. Kevin Jepsen took over and allowed a sacrifice fly to Adrian Beltre in advance of striking out Carlos Peguero with the bases loaded to end the threat.
Video: TEX@TB: Peguero loses bat while swinging
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Guyer's blast: Guyer came through when the Rays needed a big hit by hitting a pinch-hit three-run homer with one out in the sixth that blew the game open. Had the Rangers managed to retire Guyer and escape the jam, they would have trailed only 2-0 with three innings to play. More >
Video: TEX@TB: Guyer on three-run homer, 8-2 win
Beltre comes up short The Rangers trailed 5-0 going into the eighth but Rosales led off with a home run. The Rangers then loaded the bases with one out with Beltre at the plate and Jepsen on the mound for the Rays. Beltre hit a 0-1 fastball to deep right center but fell a few feet short of a grand slam. Instead it went for a sacrifice fly and the Rangers' rally fell short. Jepsen walked Kyle Blanks but Peguero struck out to end the inning. More >
Video: TEX@TB: Beltre brings in DeShields with a sac fly
Karns masterful: Karns threw seven scoreless innings before getting the hook in the eighth after surrendering a home run and a single. The right-hander allowed two runs on four hits and two walks while striking out nine in seven-plus innings. He threw a career-high 117 pitches. More >
Video: TEX@TB: Karns strikes out career-high nine Rangers
Andrus fumble costly: The Rays led 1-0 going into the bottom of the sixth. Kevin Kiermaier led off with a grounder to Andrus, who tried to backhand the ball and fumbled it. He recovered quickly but not enough to get Kiermaier. The error helped open the door for the Rays' four-run inning.
QUOTABLE
"I hate making errors, but when a pitcher is throwing like that, it hurts a little more," -- Andrus, on his sixth inning error
"I thought our guys had really good at-bats. Gallardo pitched a heck of a ballgame. Stayed at the bottom of the zone. We were just patient enough to wait him out to hit some mistakes." -- Cash, on the Rays' offense against Gallardo
SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS
Gallardo has lost four straight games with a 4.70 ERA in that stretch. It is only the second time in his career that Gallardo has had a four-game losing streak. He had one in 2013 with the Brewers. His run support average from the offense in those four games is 0.78. More >
Video: TEX@TB: Gallardo strikes out Longoria to end the 4th
Karns went from throwing a career-low 66 pitches in his previous start to throwing 117 on Friday night.
WHAT'S NEXT
Rangers: Left-hander Ross Detwiler pitches against the Rays at 7:10 p.m. ET/6:10 p.m. CT Saturday at Tropicana Field. Detwiler, looking for his first win, has a 2.19 ERA in his last two starts after a 10.95 ERA in his first three outings.
Rays: Jake Odorizzi was scheduled to start, but had to be scratched due to lingering effects from a flu bug moving around the team. Matt Andriese has been recalled from Triple-A Durham to make the start.
Watch every out-of-market regular season game live on MLB.TV.