DeLuca DeLivers walk-off win, sweep for Rays

ST. PETERSBURG -- What kind of difference did rookie outfielder Jonny DeLuca make in his first three games with the Rays?

“We’re 3-0 since he got here. That’s all,” said shortstop José Caballero.

DeLuca has introduced himself to the Tampa Bay faithful with some big hits, but none bigger than his two-run triple in the 10th inning of Sunday’s 7-6 victory that secured the Rays’ second walk-off win of the season and a three-game sweep of the Mets.

“Baseball is a hard game and it's fun to contribute,” DeLuca said. “I'm just glad I was able to contribute to these three wins.”

After driving in three runs in his season debut Friday, DeLuca tallied three more RBIs on Sunday. He’s the third player to tally at least six RBIs within his first three games with the Rays. The other two players are Herbert Perry (six in 1999) and Mike DiFelice (seven in 1998).

After the Mets scored a run in the top of the 10th to break a 5-5 tie, DeLuca brought home Caballero and catcher Ben Rortvedt when he drove an 0-2 changeup from Mets left-hander Jake Diekman to left-center field and out of the reach of Harrison Bader, whose diving attempt was all for naught as the ball rolled to the wall.

DeLuca came to the Rays along with Sunday’s starting pitcher, Ryan Pepiot, from the Dodgers as Tampa Bay’s return in the Tyler Glasnow trade this past offseason. He was enjoying a productive spring before he was hit by a pitch on his right hand on March 10, resulting in a fracture that sidelined him for about six weeks.

• Pepiot expects to make next start after taking liner off leg

However, the 25-year-old outfielder said that it didn’t take him long to find his timing once he began a rehab assignment at Triple-A Durham on April 25. He slashed .300/.440/.650 over six games with the Bulls before arriving in St. Petersburg for this weekend’s series. That good timing came with him.

“He's a guy that we really were excited about in Spring Training,” manager Kevin Cash said. “When he broke the hand, that was really unfortunate for him, but we talk about guys that are baseball players, he certainly presents that. He's going to go off and have good at-bats. He's going to steal a base when he needs to. He’s going to do a lot of things to help you win. And he certainly did there with that final at-bat.”

The Rays were down to their final at-bat -- actually their final strike -- in the bottom of the ninth inning with Randy Arozarena facing Mets closer Edwin Díaz. He gave Arozarena nothing but sliders through the first five pitches of the at-bat, running the count to 3-2. So Arozarena had a pretty good idea of what to expect on pitch No. 6.

“I said, ‘Well, if he’s going to throw me one on the fifth pitch, he might as well throw me one on the sixth pitch,’” Arozarena said via team interpreter Manny Navarro.

Arozarena got what he was looking for -- an 89.9 mph slider on the inner half of the plate -- and roped it into the left-center-field seats for a game-tying solo clout. It was the ninth time in franchise history that the Rays hit a tying or go-ahead homer when they were down to their final strike. It last occurred on June 7, 2022, when Taylor Walls hit a walk-off three-run homer in the 10th inning of a 4-2 triumph over the Cardinals.

Arozarena is still batting only .143 on the season and did strike out three times before his heroics, but with two dingers during this sweep, he may be close to snapping out of his early-season funk.

“He's an incredible player and I'm excited to see [Sunday’s homer] propel him into being normal Randy,” DeLuca said.

Each of the Rays’ victories over the Mets were come-from-behind efforts. They last achieved a series sweep with three comeback wins when they did the trick against the Rockies from Aug. 22-24, 2023. It was a much-needed course reversal for the club following a frustrating 1-5 road trip leading into this series.

“Wins were needed,” Cash said. “I felt like we won every possible way. Kind of got into a slugfest Friday night. A well-pitched game and some good at-bats last night. Today had a little bit of everything, and we were able to come out on top.”