Fortes, Caminero Power Rays Past Astros 3-1 on July 4

Rays Extend Winning Streak

The Tampa Bay Rays continued their dominant stretch of play, securing their ninth straight victory with a 3-1 win over the Houston Astros at Daikin Park on Saturday. The contest, attended by 36,039 fans, featured offensive production from the Rays' lineup that proved too much for Houston's pitching staff to contain.

Offensive Highlights

Tampa Bay’s offense found its rhythm in the sixth inning, breaking a scoreless tie with back-to-back home runs. Fortes opened the scoring by homering to left center, a 391-foot shot that gave the Rays a 1-0 lead. Houston responded immediately in the same frame as Alvarez launched a 427-foot home run to right center, tying the game at 1-1.

The Rays regained the lead in the seventh inning when Caminero hit a home run to left field, measuring 374 feet. This solo shot restored Tampa Bay’s advantage at 2-1. The final run of the game came in the eighth inning. Fortes doubled to center field, and Walls crossed the plate to score, extending the Rays' lead to 3-1. The Astros were unable to mount any further offensive challenges, and the Rays held on for the victory.

Pitching Performances

Spencer Arrighetti started for Houston, delivering six innings of work. He allowed two hits and one earned run while striking out four batters and issuing one walk. Steven Okert entered the game in the seventh inning, pitching one inning and allowing one hit and one earned run. He took the loss, dropping his record to 1-1. Enyel De Los Santos pitched two innings for the Astros, giving up two hits and one earned run with two strikeouts.

On the mound for Tampa Bay, Nick Martinez pitched 5.1 innings, allowing three hits and one earned run while striking out three batters. Kevin Kelly came on in relief and pitched 1.2 scoreless innings to earn the win, improving his record to 5-3. Casey Legumina pitched a perfect inning for the save opportunity, striking out no batters. Bryan Baker closed out the game with a scoreless tenth, recording one strikeout and earning his 23rd save of the season.

Final Records

With the victory, the Tampa Bay Rays improved their record to 52-33. The Houston Astros fell to 43-47 on the season.

Sources

https://www.espn.com/mlb/game/_/gameId/401816008