Reshuffled and reinforced Rays 'pen locks down series win

HOUSTON -- The Rays’ bullpen has taken on a different look over the past month.

Veteran right-hander Phil Maton was dealt to the Mets in early July. High-leverage setup man Jason Adam is now with the Padres. Versatile right-hander Shawn Armstrong, a multi-inning arm who had been the Rays’ designated opener for more than a year, is a Cardinal.

But Tampa Bay’s staff has hardly taken a step back, and the Rays’ pitching depth was on display again during a 1-0 win over the Astros on Sunday afternoon at Minute Maid Park.

Opener Hunter Bigge, bulk-innings lefty Tyler Alexander and right-handers Edwin Uceta, Manuel Rodríguez and Pete Fairbanks combined to pitch the Rays’ eighth shutout of the season, holding the Astros to three singles and three walks while striking out 12.

The Rays have posted a Major League-best 2.78 ERA in 15 games since the All-Star break. The personnel has changed during that time, especially with relievers like Uceta and Rodríguez stepping into bigger roles, but their performance has hardly wavered.

“We're throwing the ball really well right now,” said Alexander, who struck out five over 4 1/3 innings. “Starters are going deep. Relievers are shutting it down. I like what I'm seeing with our arms.”

After dropping Friday night’s series opener, the Rays bounced back to win the last two games -- their first time with consecutive victories at Minute Maid Park since Aug. 1-3, 2017. Doing so pushed their record (57-54) to a season-best three games over .500 for the third time this year.

They also improved to 10-1-2 in their last 13 series, with the only loss during that time being a three-game sweep in Arlington a month ago. Tampa Bay has also won 11 straight rubber games; the last team to do so in a single season was Oakland (12 straight) in 1989, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

“Big win, there's no doubt,” manager Kevin Cash said. “This ballpark has been a challenging place because they've had such a good team, so to win a ballgame 1-0 here, really impressed with the guys.”

The Rays needed their pitching to be sharp in the series finale. Their lone run came in the third inning, when Dylan Carlson hit a leadoff double off Astros starter Spencer Arrighetti and scored on a Brandon Lowe double to right field.

Overall, the Rays managed only six hits and four walks while striking out 15 times. It was their fourth straight game with at least 12 strikeouts, tying a franchise-record streak last seen from Aug. 10-13, 2017.

“It doesn't matter if we struck out 15 times. We're the ones that won, 1-0,” said first baseman Yandy Díaz, who is day to day after exiting with a left wrist contusion in the sixth inning. “But the pitchers did a good job doing what they did.”

It started with Bigge, the opener. Starting for the first time since he was pitching for Harvard in 2019, the recent trade acquisition struck out Jeremy Peña and left with two outs and the bases loaded.

Facing arguably the highest-leverage situation of the game, Alexander calmly struck out Jon Singleton with three straight sweepers to escape. He was efficient and effective after that, getting the Rays into the sixth inning with a lead.

Then came Uceta and Rodríguez, two of the season’s most pleasant surprises.

After breezing through two perfect innings, Uceta -- the 26-year-old right-hander who spent nearly three months in Triple-A after signing a Minor League contract last December -- has a 1.19 ERA with 27 strikeouts in 13 appearances for the Rays.

It’s a similar story for Rodríguez, who has taken a giant step forward into a high-leverage role. He was thrust into a big spot on Sunday, asked to handle the dangerous hitters atop Houston’s lineup -- Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman and Yordan Alvarez -- with a one-run lead in the eighth inning. Rodríguez was up to the challenge.

“Mentally, I try to just keep it the same,” Rodríguez said through interpreter Manny Navarro . “My job is to get three outs out there, so mentally I just try to keep that and stay focused and just try to do my job and stay confident.”

The hard-throwing right-hander caught Altuve looking at a slider for a called third strike, got Bregman to pop out on two pitches then fired a 97.8 mph fastball upstairs to whiff Alvarez.

That set up Fairbanks for one of his most dominant innings of the season in the ninth. The right-hander threw 11 pitches and forced the Astros to whiff on six of their seven swings as he picked up two strikeouts and his 21st save.

“Those three guys come in, just tip your hat to the other team, say good luck,” Lowe said, “and I'm glad those guys are on my side.”