ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Erasmo Ramirez supported his strong pitching with a key defensive play in the second inning.
Ramirez pitched six innings of four-hit ball and likely saved two runs when he backed up third base and retrieved a wild throw from center fielder Kevin Kiermaier in the Tampa Bay Rays' 3-1 victory over the Houston Astros on Friday night.
"I just used instinct," said Ramirez, who won for the sixth time in seven starts and helped the Rays snap a four-game losing streak. "It was a good time to back up the bases. If the ball bounces into the stands, they're both going to score."
Ramirez had given up a solo homer to Colby Rasmus in the inning and then walked Cris Carter. When Jason Castro followed with a single, Kiermaier threw wildly over third base as both runners moved up.
"That ended up being a huge play because definitely if he's not there, that's another run," Rays manager Kevin Cash said.
Ramirez (8-3) struck out Jake Marisnick to end the threat and the Astros never scored again, losing for the sixth time in seven games.
Relievers Jake McGee, Kevin Jepsen and Brad Boxberger helped Ramirez limit the Astros to two runners over the final seven innings. Boxberger got the last three outs for his 21st save.
"It's good when all three of us throw because usually when all three of us throw, we're winning games," said McGee, who had not pitched in a week. The left-hander's 1 1/3 innings marked his longest appearance since last August 24 and his 16th straight scoreless appearance.
The Astros have scored only four runs while losing four straight.
"We've got to find a way to get out of this," Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. "Our starters are throwing the ball well enough to have better outcomes for them. We'll figure it out. . . It can be a cruel league sometimes when you're having a tough time scoring."
Brandon Guyer homered in the seventh for the Rays, who have won only twice in their last 13 games. It was his third homer of the season and his first since May 8.
Ramirez struck out five in his eighth straight start giving up two runs or fewer.
Houston starter Collin McHugh (9-5) retired 13 straight batters before Rene Rivera opened the sixth with a single and John Jaso followed with a double. David DeJesus and Evan Longoria had run-scoring grounders to give the Rays a 2-1 lead.
McHugh gave up three runs on four hits in seven innings, striking out six.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Astros: RHP Chad Qualls (pinched neck nerve) was reinstated from the 15-day DL and LHP Brett Oberholtzer was optioned to Triple-A Fresno. ... INF Jed Lowrie (torn right thumb ligament) is "swinging at an intensity of about 60 to 70 percent" and taking ground balls, according to manager A.J. Hinch.
Rays: RF Steven Souza Jr. (cut right finger) is set to take dry swings Saturday and might return when eligible to come off the 15-day DL July 21.
UP NEXT
Astros: LHP Dallas Keuchel (11-3) looks to become the AL's first 12-game winner. He would be the first Astros pitcher to have 12 victories prior to the All-Star break since Roy Oswalt (12-7) in 2005.
Rays: RHP Jake Odorizzi (4-5) will pitch for the first time since leaving a start June 5 with a strained left oblique. . . . The Rays optioned RHP Andrew Bellatti to open a roster spot for Odorizzi.
85°
Scattered Clouds
Ramirez pitched six innings of four-hit ball and likely saved two runs when he backed up third base and retrieved a wild throw from center fielder Kevin Kiermaier in the Tampa Bay Rays' 3-1 victory over the Houston Astros on Friday night.
"I just used instinct," said Ramirez, who won for the sixth time in seven starts and helped the Rays snap a four-game losing streak. "It was a good time to back up the bases. If the ball bounces into the stands, they're both going to score."
Ramirez had given up a solo homer to Colby Rasmus in the inning and then walked Cris Carter. When Jason Castro followed with a single, Kiermaier threw wildly over third base as both runners moved up.
"That ended up being a huge play because definitely if he's not there, that's another run," Rays manager Kevin Cash said.
Ramirez (8-3) struck out Jake Marisnick to end the threat and the Astros never scored again, losing for the sixth time in seven games.
Relievers Jake McGee, Kevin Jepsen and Brad Boxberger helped Ramirez limit the Astros to two runners over the final seven innings. Boxberger got the last three outs for his 21st save.
"It's good when all three of us throw because usually when all three of us throw, we're winning games," said McGee, who had not pitched in a week. The left-hander's 1 1/3 innings marked his longest appearance since last August 24 and his 16th straight scoreless appearance.
The Astros have scored only four runs while losing four straight.
"We've got to find a way to get out of this," Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. "Our starters are throwing the ball well enough to have better outcomes for them. We'll figure it out. . . It can be a cruel league sometimes when you're having a tough time scoring."
Brandon Guyer homered in the seventh for the Rays, who have won only twice in their last 13 games. It was his third homer of the season and his first since May 8.
Ramirez struck out five in his eighth straight start giving up two runs or fewer.
Houston starter Collin McHugh (9-5) retired 13 straight batters before Rene Rivera opened the sixth with a single and John Jaso followed with a double. David DeJesus and Evan Longoria had run-scoring grounders to give the Rays a 2-1 lead.
McHugh gave up three runs on four hits in seven innings, striking out six.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Astros: RHP Chad Qualls (pinched neck nerve) was reinstated from the 15-day DL and LHP Brett Oberholtzer was optioned to Triple-A Fresno. ... INF Jed Lowrie (torn right thumb ligament) is "swinging at an intensity of about 60 to 70 percent" and taking ground balls, according to manager A.J. Hinch.
Rays: RF Steven Souza Jr. (cut right finger) is set to take dry swings Saturday and might return when eligible to come off the 15-day DL July 21.
UP NEXT
Astros: LHP Dallas Keuchel (11-3) looks to become the AL's first 12-game winner. He would be the first Astros pitcher to have 12 victories prior to the All-Star break since Roy Oswalt (12-7) in 2005.
Rays: RHP Jake Odorizzi (4-5) will pitch for the first time since leaving a start June 5 with a strained left oblique. . . . The Rays optioned RHP Andrew Bellatti to open a roster spot for Odorizzi.
85°Scattered Clouds
7:10PM,EDT,July 10,2015
Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg, Florida
Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg, Florida
| View: Play-By-Play | Pitch-By-Pitch | Inning: All | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
| Houston - Top of 1st | SCORE | |
|---|---|---|
| Erasmo Ramirez pitching for Tampa Bay | HOU | TB |
| Altuve singled to center. | 0 | 0 |
| Altuve out at second on runner's fielder's choice. | 0 | 0 |
| Tucker grounded out to first. | 0 | 0 |
| Correa grounded out to third. | 0 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Tampa Bay - Bottom of 1st | SCORE | |
| Collin McHugh pitching for Houston | HOU | TB |
| Jaso flied out to center. | 0 | 0 |
| DeJesus struck out swinging. | 0 | 0 |
| Longoria walked. | 0 | 0 |
| Loney singled to right, Longoria to third. | 0 | 0 |
| Forsythe popped out to shortstop. | 0 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Houston - Top of 2nd | SCORE | |
| Erasmo Ramirez pitching for Tampa Bay | HOU | TB |
| Valbuena struck out swinging. | 0 | 0 |
| Gattis grounded out to third. | 0 | 0 |
| Rasmus homered to right (403 feet). | 1 | 0 |
| Carter walked. | 1 | 0 |
| Castro singled to right center, Carter to third, Castro to second advancing on throw. | 1 | 0 |
| Marisnick struck out swinging. | 1 | 0 |
| 1 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Tampa Bay - Bottom of 2nd | SCORE | |
| Collin McHugh pitching for Houston | HOU | TB |
| Cabrera struck out swinging. | 1 | 0 |
| Guyer struck out swinging. | 1 | 0 |
| Kiermaier grounded out to pitcher. | 1 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Houston - Top of 3rd | SCORE | |
| Erasmo Ramirez pitching for Tampa Bay | HOU | TB |
| Altuve grounded out to shortstop. | 1 | 0 |
| Tucker grounded out to third. | 1 | 0 |
| Correa struck out swinging. | 1 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Tampa Bay - Bottom of 3rd | SCORE | |
| Collin McHugh pitching for Houston | HOU | TB |
| Rivera struck out swinging. | 1 | 0 |
| Jaso struck out swinging. | 1 | 0 |
| DeJesus grounded out to shortstop. | 1 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Houston - Top of 4th | SCORE | |
| Erasmo Ramirez pitching for Tampa Bay | HOU | TB |
| Valbuena grounded out to first. | 1 | 0 |
| Gattis struck out looking. | 1 | 0 |
| Rasmus grounded out to first. | 1 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Tampa Bay - Bottom of 4th | SCORE | |
| Collin McHugh pitching for Houston | HOU | TB |
| Longoria flied out to center. | 1 | 0 |
| Loney grounded out to second. | 1 | 0 |
| Forsythe struck out swinging. | 1 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Houston - Top of 5th | SCORE | |
| Erasmo Ramirez pitching for Tampa Bay | HOU | TB |
| Carter flied out to center. | 1 | 0 |
| Castro struck out looking. | 1 | 0 |
| Marisnick fouled out to first. | 1 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Tampa Bay - Bottom of 5th | SCORE | |
| Collin McHugh pitching for Houston | HOU | TB |
| Cabrera grounded out to first. | 1 | 0 |
| Guyer grounded out to third. | 1 | 0 |
| Kiermaier flied out to left. | 1 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Houston - Top of 6th | SCORE | |
| Erasmo Ramirez pitching for Tampa Bay | HOU | TB |
| Altuve grounded out to third. | 1 | 0 |
| Tucker singled to left center. | 1 | 0 |
| Correa grounded into double play, pitcher to second to first. Tucker out at second. | 1 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Tampa Bay - Bottom of 6th | SCORE | |
| Collin McHugh pitching for Houston | HOU | TB |
| Rivera singled to left. | 1 | 0 |
| Jaso doubled to right, Rivera to third. | 1 | 0 |
| DeJesus grounded out to first, Rivera scored, Jaso to third. | 1 | 1 |
| Longoria grounded out to shortstop, Jaso scored. | 1 | 2 |
| Loney grounded out to second. | 1 | 2 |
| 2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Houston - Top of 7th | SCORE | |
| Jake McGee pitching for Tampa Bay | HOU | TB |
| McGee relieved Ramírez. | 1 | 2 |
| Valbuena doubled to left. | 1 | 2 |
| Gattis flied out to center. | 1 | 2 |
| Rasmus struck out swinging. | 1 | 2 |
| Carter grounded out to third. | 1 | 2 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Tampa Bay - Bottom of 7th | SCORE | |
| Collin McHugh pitching for Houston | HOU | TB |
| Forsythe flied out to center. | 1 | 2 |
| Cabrera grounded out to first. | 1 | 2 |
| Guyer homered to left (386 feet). | 1 | 3 |
| Kiermaier grounded out to second. | 1 | 3 |
| 1 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Houston - Top of 8th | SCORE | |
| Jake McGee pitching for Tampa Bay | HOU | TB |
| González hit for Castro. | 1 | 3 |
| González popped out to first. | 1 | 3 |
| Jepsen relieved McGee. | 1 | 3 |
| Conger hit for Marisnick. | 1 | 3 |
| Conger grounded out to second. | 1 | 3 |
| Altuve flied out to center. | 1 | 3 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Tampa Bay - Bottom of 8th | SCORE | |
| Joe Thatcher pitching for Houston | HOU | TB |
| Rasmus in center field. | 1 | 3 |
| Presley in left field. | 1 | 3 |
| Conger catching. | 1 | 3 |
| Thatcher relieved McHugh. | 1 | 3 |
| Rivera fouled out to first. | 1 | 3 |
| Jaso walked. | 1 | 3 |
| Butler hit for DeJesus. | 1 | 3 |
| Qualls relieved Thatcher. | 1 | 3 |
| Butler grounded into double play, pitcher to second to first, Jaso out at second. | 1 | 3 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Houston - Top of 9th | SCORE | |
| Brad Boxberger pitching for Tampa Bay | HOU | TB |
| Butler in left field. | 1 | 3 |
| Boxberger relieved Jepsen. | 1 | 3 |
| Tucker struck out looking. | 1 | 3 |
| Correa flied out to right. | 1 | 3 |
| Valbuena struck out swinging. | 1 | 3 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Houston Astros | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hitters | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | #P | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| Altuve 2B | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | .298 | .341 | .411 |
| Tucker RF | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 22 | .259 | .321 | .425 |
| Correa SS | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 13 | .273 | .301 | .508 |
| Valbuena 3B | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 19 | .201 | .285 | .435 |
| Gattis DH | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10 | .244 | .271 | .453 |
| Rasmus LF-CF | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 8 | .244 | .311 | .475 |
| Carter 1B | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 12 | .189 | .305 | .388 |
| Castro C | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | .211 | .279 | .364 |
a-González PH
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .249 | .272 | .407 |
Presley LF
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .300 | .364 | .300 |
| Marisnick CF | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | .241 | .277 | .377 |
b-Conger PH-C
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | .237 | .333 | .443 |
| Totals | 30 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 119 | |||
| a-popped out to first for J Castro in the 8th b-grounded to second for J Marisnick in the 8th | ||||||||||
| BATTING 2B: Valbuena (9, McGee) HR: Rasmus (11, 2nd inning off Ramírez 0 on, 2 Out) RBI: Rasmus (29) 2-out RBI: Rasmus GIDP: Correa Astros RISP: 0-4 (Marisnick 0-1, Carter 0-1, Gattis 0-1, Rasmus 0-1) Team LOB: 3 | ||||||||||
| FIELDING DP: 1 (Qualls-Altuve-Carter). | ||||||||||
Game Information
| Stadium | Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg, FL |
| Attendance | 17,129 (55.2% full) - % is based on regular season capacity |
| Game Time | 2:19 |
| Weather | indoors |
| Umpires | Home Plate - Sam Holbrook, First Base - Greg Gibson, Second Base - Toby Basner, Third Base - Chad Fairchild |
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