Rays can't build momentum, land on .500 for 23rd time

NEW YORK -- Before closing out the Rays’ 6-4 win over the Yankees on Sunday afternoon, Pete Fairbanks was watching the television broadcast of the game and saw a fact that grabbed his attention. Tampa Bay had lost Friday and won Saturday, so it was back to being a .500 team for the 22nd time this season.

“I would love it if we didn’t have a 23rd,” Fairbanks said, hoping for the kind of run that has so far eluded the Rays this season.

But the Rays lost Monday’s wraparound series finale at Yankee Stadium, 9-1, splitting a four-game set in the Bronx and dropping the season series against the Yankees, 7-6. And for the 23rd time, already a full-season franchise record, they have won as many games as they’ve lost: 50 and 50.

“The timing of it kind of puts a little bit of a different perspective on it, obviously,” starter Zack Littell said. “You want to come out of here with three of four, and we had a really good opportunity to do that. And we just didn't.”

Littell allowed five runs on nine hits, including a career-high-tying three homers, and two walks over 5 2/3 innings as he fell to 3-7 with a 4.46 ERA on the season. Meanwhile, Yankees starter Carlos Rodón held the Rays to only two hits while striking out 10 over seven dominant innings. New York pulled away in the end, with Juan Soto clubbing homers in the seventh and eighth.

Thus, the Rays bookended this four-game series with uninspiring performances, with two impressive all-around wins in between. And with the Trade Deadline only eight days away and their front office reportedly looking to buy and sell, they haven’t made much meaningful progress in the standings.

“Every loss is disappointing. There’s really no other way to get around it,” second baseman Brandon Lowe said. “It sucks we had an opportunity to win another series and take three out of four from the Yankees, but they're where they are for a reason. They’re a good team.”

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The Rays had a chance Monday to pull two games above .500, a spot they have not reached since they were 25-23 on the morning of May 20. (They’ve spent just one day at three games over .500, their high-water mark.) But it quickly became apparent this wouldn’t be Tampa Bay’s day.

After launching four home runs in each of their past two games, the Rays couldn’t do much of anything at the plate on Monday afternoon. They worked two walks and had three hits, including a fifth-inning homer by Jose Siri that broke up Rodón’s no-hit bid, and they didn’t have a single at-bat all day with a runner in scoring position.

The Yankees had lost each of Rodón’s past six starts and all three of the left-hander’s outings against the Rays since last year. But he was on top of his game this time, allowing only two hard-hit balls while producing 16 swinging strikes.

Siri was the only one who got to Rodón, launching a solo homer on his 29th birthday and taking a long trot around the bases to celebrate. According to manager Kevin Cash, it was “as good as we’ve seen [Rodón] throw” against the Rays.

“When he's right, we know how talented he is,” Cash said, “and unfortunately we saw it today.”

After striking out the side in the first inning, Littell surrendered back-to-back homers to Austin Wells and Anthony Volpe to begin the second. He allowed another solo shot to struggling veteran DJ LeMahieu in the fifth.

“Bad pitches that got hit out, but solo shots are just going to happen,” Littell said. “I just didn't execute pitches. They did a nice job forcing me into the zone, and they hit the mistakes I made. They did what they were paid to do.”

But the toughest moment for Littell might have come in the fourth. The right-hander permitted a pair of hits to begin the inning then struck out Volpe and retired Alex Verdugo. Oswaldo Cabrera hit a grounder that Lowe ran and slid for, but the ball bounced off his glove and into right field for a two-run single.

Littell felt he executed the pitch and essentially got the result he wanted, but noted it “was by no means an easy play” for Lowe to make. Lowe, on the other hand, placed the blame on himself and said as much to Littell after making a similar play the following inning.

“I’ve got to make the play, simple as that,” Lowe said. “Two runs that shouldn’t be counted toward Lit there. … No excuses on that.”

“Didn’t have much go our way on either side of the ball,” added Littell. “Frustrating game, definitely one we want to just kind of move on from.”