A stumble, then magic: 'No quit in us'

ATLANTA -- Leading off the third inning against left-hander Drew Smyly, Kevin Kiermaier chopped a cutter to first baseman Freddie Freeman, slipped out of the batter’s box and tumbled onto the dirt. The veteran center fielder rolled over, sat up and laughed it off.

Kiermaier’s stumble was a good representation of the Rays’ start in their series finale against the Braves. So was the way he responded.

Coming off one of their ugliest losses of the season on Saturday night, the Rays found themselves hitless and down by three runs after four innings on Sunday afternoon, then they rallied all the way back to beat the Braves, 7-5, at Truist Park.

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Once again, the Rays showed a unique ability to make every deficit feel like a temporary inconvenience. Sunday was Tampa Bay’s second comeback victory of the series and 28th of the season. That total is the second highest in the Majors, behind Boston’s 29, and it accounts for more than half of their 55 wins.

“There's no quit in us. I've known that for years now,” Kiermaier said. “Just don't ever count us out, no matter what, until that 27th out is made.”

It took four innings on this overcast Sunday afternoon. Smyly, the former Ray, held them hitless while allowing just one walk to the first 13 hitters he faced. Meanwhile, Tampa Bay made a few mistakes in the field as veteran starter Rich Hill allowed three runs in four innings.

Kiermaier might have best represented what the Rays accomplished as they clinched their third straight series victory, playing what manager Kevin Cash praised as “just an awesome game” all around. The veteran center fielder ended the fourth inning by slamming hard against the outfield wall to make a leaping catch on a fly ball hit by Dansby Swanson and keep the Braves’ early lead at 3-0.

“Little plays like that go a long way throughout the whole season,” Kiermaier said. “We're made on pitching and defense, so [I was] happy to see that one go on the glove. Hit my head a little bit on the wall, but it didn't hurt. So we're good to go.”

Perhaps it was no coincidence that the Rays’ lineup came to life right after that.

Brandon Lowe broke up Smyly’s no-hit bid with a check-swing single against the shift to lead off the fifth, then All-Star catcher Mike Zunino pulled a double down the left-field line. The Rays managed to get both runners home -- Lowe on a wild pitch, Zunino on a sacrifice fly by pinch-hitter Austin Meadows -- and shifted some momentum away from the Braves.

“Even if we make errors, we always recover from them and we keep on going forward. I think this is the best team,” Yandy Díaz said through interpreter Manny Navarro. “The game ain’t over until that 27th out is made.”

The Rays received contributions from all over the place in their latest comeback effort. Rookie Wander Franco tied it up in the sixth, launching his third career home run a Statcast-projected 418 feet out to center field. Franco had been badly fooled by Smyly in each of his first two at-bats, striking out on curveballs each time, but Smyly hung a curve to Franco -- and the top prospect did not miss it.

Two hours before the game, the 20-year-old Franco expressed his desire to “show everyone that I can play.” How would he go about doing that without putting too much pressure on himself?

“The adjustment that I need to make is just [to] go back and play like I used to play,” Franco said through Navarro. “I've got a lot to show, and I still think I have a lot to prove at this level.”

The Rays’ bullpen has played a big role in most of their comeback wins this season, preserving leads and holding deficits where they are to keep the lineup within striking distance. But the Braves were relentless, scoring once in the sixth to again gain the lead before the Rays pulled ahead for good in the seventh.

Joey Wendle reached on a leadoff single to center against lefty A.J. Minter. Up came Kiermaier, who slapped an RBI double to right field. Kiermaier promptly stole third base, putting himself in position to score the go-ahead run on Meadows’ second sacrifice fly of the game. Pinch-hitter Francisco Mejía then pulled a double to right off right-hander Luke Jackson, another key contribution off the bench.

Díaz capped the rally and gave the Rays a three-run lead by ripping his fifth home run of the season out to center field.

“Sometimes it doesn't show up in the first two or three innings,” Cash said, “but these guys do a good job of showing up when those big moments arise to be able to come back.”

As their record shows: The Rays may occasionally be down, but they are never out.

“That's what good teams do,” Kiermaier said. “They come back. They keep leads. It doesn't always work out like that -- we'd much rather get out to a quicker start -- but just kind of how it's been as of late, where it takes us a few more innings then we'd like to get some momentum going for us.”