Carlos Pena (above) led the way as the Rays offense snapped out of it's slump. Tampa Bay mounted a rally with five runs over the last two innings of the ballgame, forcing game five tomorrow in Arlington. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)Up 2-1 in the eighth inning, with one of the best bullpens in baseball and only five outs remaining, the Texas Rangers (2-1) appeared poised to exercise previous playoff demons with the first playoff series victory in team history.
Unfortunately for the Rangers, the combination of Darren Oliver - who hadn't allowed a hit in three innings over the first two games of the series - and Neftali Feliz allowed the Rays to climb back into the series by allowing three runs on five hits in 1 2-3 innings pitched.
"I don't think we gave them anything. I think the runs they put on the board they earned," Washington said. "The eighth and the ninth, they took it. We'll bounce back (Sunday)."
After scoring only one run on five hits through the first seven innings of the ballgame, the Tampa Bay Rays (1-2) belted-out six hits and scored five runs over the final two. First baseman Carlos Pena had both of his hits, an RBI single in the eighth and two-run homer, and drove in three runs, allowing Tampa Bay to live to fight another day.
"I was so nervous, hoping we didn't get swept," said Carl Crawford, who had a solo-homer for the Rays in the ninth. "I feel so much better. It feels like we're winning the series right now."
Fortunately for the Rangers, they still have two chances to close this thing out. Sunday afternoon will provide a great opportunity with Tommy Hunter, who has had a lot of success in Arlington this season, getting the start. Hunter was 7-0 this season at the Ballpark in Arlington, with a sub-.300 earned run average.
First pitch is scheduled for 12:07 p.m.
(Portions of this article were taken from The Associated Press)
No comments:
Post a Comment