September 18 – In the final home game of the regular season in St. Louis on Tuesday night, Brandon Lowe hit a two-run homer – one of Tampa Bay’s three home runs in the fifth inning – to give the Rays an 8–3 win over the Boston Red Sox.
Josh Lowe and Jose Siri also drove in four runs each for the Rays in the fifth inning. Siri went 2-4, including a double and four runs.
Junior Caminero went 2-for-4 with a home run and a double for Tampa Bay (74-77).
Rays starting pitcher Shane Baez (3-3) allowed two runs on two hits in seven innings. The right-hander earned his third win in four decisions with six strikeouts and a walk.
Tristan Casas hit a two-run homer and Romy Gonzalez hit a deep shot for the Red Sox (75-76), who lost for the fifth time in seven games.
Boston starter Nick Pivetta (5-11) worked well through three innings but ultimately gave up three solo homers in 4 2/3 innings. The right-hander allowed four runs on five hits, walked no bases and struck out six.
The Red Sox took a 2-0 lead in the second inning when Casas hit an 83-mph curveball off the Falcons for his ninth homer, followed by Wilier Abreu scoring two with one out and the bases loaded.
Pivetta, meanwhile, faced just 10 batters over three innings and allowed just one run to Jonathan Aranda on his first two hits.
However, Caminero hit Pivetta with a 94 mph long ball to left center in the fourth quarter to cut the Rays’ lead to 2–1.
In the fifth inning, the Rays hit three consecutive home runs to take a 5–2 lead.
Josh Lowe hit a 92 mph fastball to left-center for his first home run, tying the game 2–2. With two outs, Sealy hit his 18th homer to give Tampa Bay a one-run lead.
After Pivetta struck out on Yandy Díaz’s double, Brandon Lowe relieved reliever Bailey Horn and hit his team-high 19th home run in the complete game to increase the lead to 5–2.
González hit a pinch-hit home run in the eighth inning, his fifth, but Sealy hit a three-out insurance double in the bottom of the inning for the final advantage.
——Visual-level media
