Ray bats come back to life after Twins pitcher’s hands are checked, a total sweep

street. PETERSBURG – The Rays made it a clean Thursday.

After the umpires told Twins starter Bailey Ober to wash black stuff off his hand, the Rays quickly dissolved a right-hander. They used their strength and speed to beat the Twins 4-2, completing a three-game sweep in front of 12,584 at Tropicana Field.

The Rays (46-19) have won their sixth in a row and become only the fourth team in the wild card era (since 1995) to win at least 46 of their first 65 games in a season, joining the 1998 and 2022 Yankees, and 2001 Mariners.

Twins (31-32) lost five in a row.

Harold Ramirez came in, ninth, of the season. Luke Raley scored his second career hat-trick – his first on Tuesday and it came on a similar volley that was hit around the right corner. Wonder Franco snapped an 11-game hitting streak but stole his 22nd base.

Yonny Chirinos went 5 innings in a prompt start, allowing only 1 run, and Jason Adam made his 10th save, returning from his 4th save on Wednesday.

As he was out to take the mound down the fourth, Bailey was stopped by third base umpire C.B. Bucknor, who told him to go back to the dugout and clean his hands.

“There was a problem with some residue on his hand, and it wasn’t sticky,” said Chief Referee Jeff Nelson. “So out of an abundance of caution, we directed the pitcher to clean it up.”

The Rays said they did not ask for the check and were not aware of what had happened until plate umpire Chris Segal told them after the inning. However, they knew Uber was bad before the accident.

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Rays shortstop Wanderer Franco (5) steals third base, then home in the sixth inning. [ IVY CEBALLO | Times ]

Tampa Bay was not hit through the first three innings. Ober struck out the last six batters he faced before getting his hands clean.

But there was a difference after inspection, which Uber said bothered him.

“I had a lot of sweat on my hands, and I use rosin when I’m out on the court, so[Bucknor]thought it was too much and[he said]for me to just go back in there and wash my hands,” Ober said. “It took over my mind a little bit that I didn’t feel safe out there. Like, you never know if he’s checking me out again and he’s a little nervous that he can catapult me. It was a little hard to finish that match, but even after that I managed Taking out the first two men on that round.”

Raleigh tripled in the first round, and Ramirez hit a slider of 80 mph and 416 feet to dead center for two more parries.

“I didn’t know he was being screened,” Ramirez said. “We made a few adjustments, but it was definitely a different slider that threw me (in the fourth inning) than I (at bat) this time, it was right in the middle.”

Uber went only one half after that. He finished the season with seven hits over ​5.mw-parser-output .sr-only{border:0;clip:rect(0,0,0,0);height:1px;margin:-1px;overflow:hidden;padding:0;position:absolute;width:1px;white-space:nowrap} ⁄ innings, but struck out third, allowing four runs, and earning three.

Franco reached a fielder’s pick in the sixth and moved to second on Randy Arzarena’s career. With Raleigh at the plate and a 1-1 tally, Franco took off. Twins reliever Griffin Jakes got off the rubber and threw hard to third, allowing Franco to score with ease.

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“It looked like a good opportunity to go,” Franco said via team interpreter Manny Navarro. “I looked and he’d only had one look at second base, so I took advantage of that opportunity and went off.”

Rays starting quarterback Yonny Chirinos reacts after beating Minnesota Twins third baseman Royce Lewis in the fourth inning.
Rays starting quarterback Yonny Chirinos reacts after beating Minnesota Twins third baseman Royce Lewis in the fourth inning. [ IVY CEBALLO | Times ]

Franco’s 22 stolen bases rank third in the majors, behind Oakland’s Estori Ruiz (29) and Atlanta’s Ronald Acuna (28).

“Well, I mean, (Franco) is fast. Sometimes he can outrun a third baseman who reaches for the bag,” said Rays manager Kevin Cash. “He seemed kind of obliging and kept going. With — I think Raleigh was on the plate at the time — that third baseman was pushed to the short side. So it’s a tough game, and it played in our favour.”

Carlos Correa drove home the fourth with a home run that cleared the left midfield. The 407-foot blast was their first since May 13 and gave the Twins their only lead of the series.

It was the only run the Chirinos, called from Triple-A Durham on Thursday morning, allowed. Colin Bucci gave up his home run to the Twins’ Michael A. Taylor in the eighth.

“He did a good job,” Cash said of Cherinos. Said Leonie. They threw hits, hit pitches, had more hits and misses than he might have last time, and that was emboldened by his general outing.”

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