Junior Caminero’s 15th home run of the season, a two-run shot to left field, broke a 3-3 tie in the top of the eighth inning, and the Tampa Bay Rays defeated the Los Angeles Angels 8-3 in Anaheim, California on Sunday afternoon.
Victor Mesa Jr. also homered for the Rays, part of a five-run eighth that sealed the win for the Rays, who avoided being swept in the three-game series. The Angels had their four-game winning streak come to an end.
Right-hander Kevin Kelly (4-2) struck out three in two innings of relief to earn the win. The Rays used six pitchers in a bullpen game.
Los Angeles took an early 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning on Denzer Guzman’s single to drive in Jo Adell with two outs. But soon after, the Angels lost starting pitcher Grayson Rodriguez to lower back tightness while he was pitching in the top of the third inning.
Rodriguez exited the game with the bases loaded, and the Rays’ Chandler Simpson hit a two-out, two-run single off reliever Chase Silseth before the inning was over.
Tampa Bay’s Ben Williamson hit his first home run of the season in the top of the fourth inning to give the Rays a 3-1 lead.
Donovan Walton’s first home run as an Angel made it 3-2 in the bottom of the fifth inning, and Adell made it 3-3 with an RBI single. Left-hander Ian Seymour was charged with both runs in the inning.
After Caminero’s home run, Hunter Feduccia’s single in the eighth drove in Richie Palacios, then Mesa’s second home run of the season made it 8-3. All five runs in the inning were charged to Angels right-hander Sam Bachman (1-1).
The Angels threatened in the bottom of the eighth when Adell was hit by a Craig Kimbrel pitch and Nolan Schanuel walked to open the inning and Nick Madrigal walked with one out to load the bases.
Rays reliever Garrett Cleavinger came on and struck out the next two Angels to end the threat.
