ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – The Rays had plenty of fireworks early and late in Friday night’s 8-7 win over the White Sox at Tropicana Field.
A first-inning home run by Harold Ramirez off Chicago starter Michael Kopech marked the 20th straight game that the Rays have homered. That ties the all-time mark from the start of a season set by the Seattle Mariners in 2019.
Appropriately, it was a ninth-inning home run that kept the Rays (17-3) perfect at home. They improved to 11-0 at the Trop this season when Brandon Lowe blasted a full-count Reynaldo Lopez delivery into the right field seats.
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Trailing 7-5, Christian Bethancourt led off with a home run to right to make it a one-run game. Yandy Diaz followed with a single to set the stage for Lowe.
“It’s an awesome feeling,” said Lowe, of his first career walk-off homer. “I think it might be the first walk-off homer of my life, honestly.”
The Rays became the first team to win their first 11 home games since the 2009 Los Angeles Dodgers. They tied the fourth-longest season-opening home win streak in the modern era (since 1900) and Saturday can match the 1911 Tigers with 12 straight. The all-time mark is 17 by the 1907 New York Giants.
Ramirez’s homer capped a four-run first inning, which has been the most productive inning for the Rays so far this season with 25 runs crossing the plate. It also the extended the homer streak, which Tampa Bay can set Saturday (4:05) when Shane McClanahan takes the mound against Dylan Cease.
“Pretty impressive,” said manager Kevin Cash of equaling the record. “It feels like it’s been spread around throughout the lineup.”
Indeed it has. Each of the 12 Rays who have homered have circled the bases at least twice. Seven players have at least four homers, though none with more than six.
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