Rays re-find their groove, then nearly lose it, in win vs. A's

Joey Knight, Tampa Bay Times on Jul 2, 2025

Published in Baseball

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TAMPA, Fla. — The central Florida sun disappeared behind the clouds early Wednesday afternoon, and for at least a couple of innings, seemed to take any remaining slivers of Rays mojo with it.

The hottest team in baseball once upon a June, the Rays entered Wednesday’s overcast matinee against the A’s trying to snap out of a mini-funk in which they had dropped four of their last five.

And while more of the same swoon tarnished Wednesday’s outset and finish, the Rays stabilized in between. Now, they embark on a 10-day, 10-game road odyssey with at least a smidgen of momentum in the overhead bins.

A five-run sixth inning propelled Tampa Bay (48-39) to a 6-5 triumph before a sellout Steinbrenner Field audience of 10,046. Five days after a dreadful start at Baltimore, Rays right-hander Ryan Pepiot overcame another bleak beginning Wednesday, ultimately allowing four hits and striking out nine over six innings.

The A’s made it tense in the bottom of the ninth, scoring three runs off two relievers before right-hander Edwin Uceta struck out Nick Kurtz with the bases loaded on a full-count change-up.

After retiring the game’s first two batters on six total pitches, Pepiot threw a slider on his eighth that Brent Rooker sent 390 feet, well beyond the left-field wall. The next inning, Max Schuemann sent the first pitch he saw from Pepiot — a four-seam fastball — over the wall in left center.

Ten batters in, Pepiot had allowed two homers and had tied his season-high for walks surrendered in a game (three). Toss in his dreadful 1 2/3-inning stint Friday at Baltimore, and Pepiot surrendered six runs on seven hits with five walks in a 3 2/3-inning span.

But after issuing a walk immediately following Schuemann’s homer, Pepiot retired seven in a row.

Meantime, left fielder Jake Mangum trimmed the Rays’ deficit to 2-1 in the bottom of the second with a 404-foot blast that ricocheted off the center-field wall, resulting in the 24th inside-the-park homer in franchise history.

Josh Lowe’s leadoff home run in the sixth tied the score, and Brandon Lowe followed with a double to right center to extend his hitting streak to 18 games — tied for third-longest in club history. Yandy Diaz then drew a full count against A’s starter Mitch Spence before sending an 84-mph slider 415 feet to center for his 14th home run, giving the Rays a 4-2 lead.

Rookie Chandler Simpson and catcher Matt Thaiss added two-out RBI-singles later in the inning, priceless insurance runs in light of the A’s’ three-run ninth inning.