Josh Lowe’s 4 RBIs lead Blue Jays over Rays 7-6 as 20-year Junior Caminero makes debut
By Mark Didtler, The Associated Press on September 23, 2023.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) – Josh Lowe hit a three-run homer and a walk-off single that capped a two-run ninth inning, lifting Tampa Bay over the Toronto Blue Jays 7-6 on Saturday after the Rays wasted a five-run lead. Rays prospect Junior Caminero made his big league debut at 20 years, 80 days and went 1 for 4 with a walk. He beat out what would have been an inning-ending, double-play grounder in the ninth – the initial out call by first base umpire Alex Tosi was reversed in a video review. Lowe then sliced an opposite-field single down the left-field line off Jordan Romano (5-6), who blew a save for the fourth time in 40 chances. Yandy DÃaz had four hits, and DÃaz, Lowe and Christian Bethancourt homered for the Rays (95-61), who assured themselves no worse than the top AL wild card. The Rays started the day 1 1/2 games behind AL East-leading Baltimore, which played at Cleveland. Toronto (86-69) began the day holding the second AL wild card, one game ahead of Texas and 1 1/2 games in front of Seattle, which played at the Rangers on Saturday night. With the Blue Jays trailing 6-5, DÃaz doubled leading off the ninth, took third on Harold RamÃrez’s single and scored on Curtis Mead’s single. DÃaz, second in the AL batting race, raised his average to .327, Toronto trailed 5-0 and was down 5-4 in the eighth when Pete Fairbanks threw a run-scoring wild pitch, walked Vladimir Guerrero Jr, and Cavan Biggio, hit Matt Chapman with a pitch and forced in a run with a walk with Whit Merrifield. Fairbanks has blown four of 28 save chances. DÃaz hit leadoff homer and Lowe added a three-run drive in a four-run first against Hyun Jin Ryu. Bethancourt made it 5-0 on his fourth-inning homer. Rays starter Zack Littell took a shutout in the sixth but was pulled after the Blue Jays put two runners on with two outs due to Mead’s throwing error at third and a wild pitch on a strikeout. Shawn Armstrong entered and gave up four straight hits, including George Springer’s two-run double, Guerrero’s RBI single and Biggio’s run-scoring double. UNIFORM SELECTION Caminero is wearing No. 1. When asked why, he said with a smile through a translator “Because I am No. 1.” FANS IN THE STANDS The announced crowd was 22,655 as the Rays’ reached 1.4 million in home attendance for the first time since 2014. Tampa Bay has the major’s fourth-lowest home attendance this season TRAINER’S ROOM Blue Jays: 1B Brandon Belt (back) may be back in the next couple days. Rays: 2B Brandon Lowe (fractured right patella) and RHP Jason Adam (oblique) went on the IL. … LF Randy Arozarena (left quadriceps) didn’t play and is day to day. UP NEXT Blue Jays LHP Yusei Kikuchi (10-6) and Rays RHP Taj Bradley (5-7) are Sunday’s starters. ___ AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB 22-21
