Drew Rasmussen Strikes Out 13 in Rays' 7-5 Win
Drew Rasmussen struck out 13 Red Sox hitters on Wednesday, and the Rays finished a 7-5 win that completed a three-game sweep. Boston dropped to 12 games below.500 after the loss, and the night again exposed how hard it was for the top of the lineup to make contact.
Rasmussen Overwhelms Boston
Rasmussen handled the Red Sox’s first four hitters so thoroughly that they went 0-for-11 with 11 strikeouts and one hit by pitch against him. According to the NESN broadcast, it was the first time since 1901 that a team’s top three batters struck out in nine straight plate appearances to start a game.
The right-hander set the tone early and kept Boston from settling in, forcing long swings and quick outs. For a lineup that had already been trying to find rhythm, the start never really arrived.
Boston’s Bats Stall Again
The Red Sox entered the trip with a 16-14 road record, then lost four straight after winning the opener in New York on Friday night. Their offense had already slowed in June, with Boston hitting.215 in eight games and averaging 3.3 runs per game since the start of the month.
That slump was a sharp drop from May 15 to May 31, when the Red Sox hit.279 with a.775 OPS in 15 games and averaged 4.7 runs per game. Wednesday followed that pattern. Boston briefly pushed back late, but the early damage had already been done.
Late Power in Tampa Bay
Caleb Durbin opened the eighth inning with a solo home run, and Ceddanne Rafaela followed with a three-run homer in the same frame. Justin Slaten then allowed a two-run home run in the bottom of the eighth, and Durbin added another homer in the ninth.
Chad Tracy called the trip bluntly after the road swing. “It was tough,” he said to reporters after the road trip. He added, “Got off to a really good start in New York, then the way it finished, yeah, I think it’ll be good for everybody to have a breather (Thursday).”
The Red Sox had Thursday off before returning home Friday, with Jake Bennett having taken Brayan Bello’s spot in the rotation after Bello was optioned to Triple-A Worcester last week. They have to carry Wednesday’s strikeout-heavy loss, the sweep, and the 12-game deficit below.500 back into the next home series.
