Rays Lose to the A’s in First Series Game

Tuesday night, the Tampa Bay Rays took on the Oakland Athletics for the start of their three-game series. These teams kicked off their series at the Ray’s home field, with the A’s picking up a 3-0 victory on the road. The Rays are looking to break their losing streak, as the A’s want to win the series.

This Tuesday has strong Monday energy. pic.twitter.com/kHpjM0J8kv

— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) May 29, 2024

Series Kickoff

Zack Littell started off this series as the starting pitcher for the Tampa Bay Rays. Rookie Mitch Spence followed up as the starting pitcher for the Oakland A’s.

José Caballero pulled together the first hit for the team for the night at the bottom of the sixth.

The first runs in the game were scored in the top of the sixth thanks to A’s player Miguel Andujar. He hit one over the corner wall scoring his team three runs.  In the bottom of the ninth, the Rays had a chance to tie the score with a player on first and second but couldn’t get it done.

Rays Looking to Improve

The Rays have been struggling this season. This loss gives them at a 15-18 record at home. Tampa is 26-29 for the season after its recent series losses to the Red Sox and the Royals.

The lineup struggled in this game as they were just 3-for-29 with a pair of walks and eight strikeouts. They did not earn any extra-base hits and no player got on multiple times. This was the eighth straight game Tampa has had had eight or fewer hits.

Recently, Manager Kevin Cash has tried moving players in and around the lineup in attempts to improve their offense performance. The Rays are hoping that getting guys like Brandon Lowe back in the lineup will rejuvenate the offense.

Despite these issues, Zach Littell pitched incredibly well through seven innings. Although he did allow the three-run homer, his team’s lackluster offense ultimately lost Tampa the game.

Looking to Wednesday

$10 still gets you in the door to see your Rays take on the A's.

— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) May 28, 2024

The second game of the series is set to take place on Wednesday at 6:50pm at Tropicana Field.