Lowe ignites Rays' offense with two homers

ARLINGTON -- Despite his struggles, the Rays knew it was only a matter of time before Brandon Lowe broke out of his postseason slump. Manager Kevin Cash kept inserting Lowe in his usual No. 2 spot in the lineup, banking that Lowe was too talented of a hitter to stay in a slump forever.

Game	Date	Result	Highlights
Gm 1	Oct. 20	LAD 8, TB 3	Watch
Gm 2	Oct. 21	TB 6, LAD 4	Watch
Gm 3	Oct. 23	LAD 6, TB 2	Watch
Gm 4	Oct. 24	TB 8, LAD 7	Watch
Gm 5	Oct. 25	LAD 4, TB 2	Watch
Gm 6	Oct. 27	LAD 3, TB 1	Watch

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• Postseason schedule and bracket

With the team showing faith in his ability, Lowe mentioned that he was looking for a way to repay Cash and the Rays for sticking with him through his toughest stretch in the Majors. He found his way on Wednesday, launching two home runs in the Rays' 6-4 win over the Dodgers in Game 2 of the World Series at Globe Life Field.

• Box score

"He can go quiet for a little while, but he can get as hot as anybody in baseball. Hopefully that's the trend that we're looking at moving forward," Cash said. "You gotta be able to be tough-minded, and Brandon is, a lot of our guys are. You feel for them when it's not coming as easy as you'd like, but we owe it to our guys to stick with them. And Brandon, go ahead and get hot now and feel good about yourself."

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Yes, the Rays' offense has certainly been quiet this postseason and has suffered from too many strikeouts. With 10 hits on Wednesday, they snapped a streak of 10 games with eight hits or fewer, a Major League record. But even with Lowe and some other key players struggling, the results haven't been as bad as you may think. Including Wednesday, Tampa Bay has five games with five or more runs this postseason. That may seem low, but in comparison, the Dodgers, who are seen as a much superior offensive team, have seven such games.

"It's going to have to be everybody contributing, like you've seen all year," third baseman Joey Wendle said. "Obviously they have some special talent over there on the offensive side of the ball, but we're confident in what we can do as well. I think you saw a lot of that tonight."

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Lowe got the scoring started in the first inning with a solo home run off Dodgers starter Tony Gonsolin. It came on a 3-1 fastball that Lowe shot the other way with an exit velocity of 105.9 mph. His second homer, however, was perhaps more impressive. Lowe was behind 0-2 in the count when Dustin May tried to finish him off with a curveball. When Lowe is right, he's able to catch up to any fastball, but maintain enough bat control to hold for the breaking ball. He did just that, sending May's curveball the other way for a two-run homer. It was his second opposite-field homer of the game after hitting none during the regular season.

"To say that my mind wasn't going different places during that kind of struggle, I would be lying to you," Lowe said. "There were times that I wasn't feeling too good, but that's what's so great about this team. As soon as I started dragging my feet, somebody was right there to pick me up and tell me to keep going. Just pure joy going into that dugout after hitting that home run."

• Sidewinding Loup puts Dodgers on tilt

While Lowe led the offensive attack on Wednesday, the Rays had eight different players record a hit, showing once again that they have one of the deepest lineups in the American League despite the lack of name recognition.

Manuel Margot continued his impressive postseason with a two-hit effort. Wendle stayed clutch with a key two-run double in the fourth inning. Ji-Man Choi, Austin Meadows and Yandy Díaz worked big at-bats. Randy Arozarena tied Derek Jeter for most hits by a rookie in a single postseason, and he was just an afterthought. That's the sign of a good offense.

"We have a complete offense," Cash said. "I know they've been quiet, but we have a lot of confidence in this group that we can be really balanced and have good at-bats and put pressure on pitchers and opposing defenses."

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There's no secret that the Rays are built on pitching and defense. It's what carried them to an AL pennant and what will ultimately give them a chance to win the first championship in franchise history.

But contrary to popular belief, the Rays have a more than capable offense, one that could give the Dodgers some fits in the World Series. They had the seventh-highest OPS in the AL in the regular season. They drew the second-most walks in the Majors behind only the Yankees. They also finished among the league leaders in doubles and triples.

No, they don't have the handful of All-Stars that the Yankees, Astros and Dodgers have, but when they're clicking, the Rays are dangerous. They made that statement on Wednesday, proving to everyone that the World Series won't be a one-sided affair.

• Facts and figures from World Series Game 2

"It's one through nine and then some with the guys on the bench," Lowe said. "It's a scary lineup to face and I think we have a lot more to prove."