Rays drop 4th straight in 'frustrating' walk-off loss in Texas

ARLINGTON -- The good news for the Rays is they got their trip to Globe Life Field out of the way early.

That might be the silver lining after the Rays lost to the Rangers, 4-3, on a walk-off single by Jonah Heim against reliever Edwin Uceta in the ninth inning Sunday afternoon. If they see this place again this year, it will be in the postseason.

The Rays’ fourth straight defeat dropped them to 4-5 on the year, completed a weekend sweep and continued their baffling struggles against the Rangers, specifically at this ballpark. Tampa Bay has lost nine straight games at Globe Life Field and 11 of the last 12 matchups against Texas dating back to July 17, 2023.

“Frustrating. We've got to find a way to pull out a win here,” manager Kevin Cash said. “Not scoring enough runs, not doing things on defense that we need to do -- it resulted in a good team taking advantage of us.”

The Rays’ last win at Globe Life Field was on June 2, 2022. Their nine-game skid here is their longest at any venue since dropping nine straight at Seattle’s T-Mobile Park (then known as Safeco Field) from May 9, 2016-June 3, 2018. Overall, they are now 6-16 since the park opened in 2020, the club’s lowest winning percentage (.273) at any Major League venue in franchise history.

The Rays haven’t held a lead at any point over the past four games, and they’ve only scored 11 runs during that skid.

“I wouldn't say [the series was] frustrating. It's more bothersome,” Uceta said through interpreter Eddie Rodriguez. “But it's just a matter of continuing to focus on what we can do and just take it from here.”

The decisive inning unfolded in a hurry. After getting two quick outs, Uceta -- who broke out with a 1.51 ERA in 30 appearances for the Rays last season -- surrendered a double to Josh Smith on a 2-2 changeup. Uceta got Heim to whiff on a first-pitch cutter, but the catcher knocked the next one to center for the game-winning hit.

“I was just simply attacking the zone, like I always do. They put the ball in play, and you saw the results,” Uceta said. “Those are my best pitches. It wasn't for me today.”

Cash said he thought Uceta threw the ball well and credited Heim for “just a good piece of hitting.” The Rays’ real issues came earlier in the game.

The Rays tied the game in the fourth on an RBI single by Kameron Misner, but that was all they managed against young starter Kumar Rocker. And they fell behind in the sixth, when Corey Seager smashed a full-count slider from lefty Garrett Cleavinger over the right-field wall.

Texas tacked on another run in the seventh against reliever Manuel Rodríguez. Heim reached on a two-out error by Brandon Lowe, then stole second to move into scoring position. It was Heim’s first steal in almost a year (April 15, 2024) and only the ninth of his six-year career.

That was part of a troubling trend all weekend. The Rangers stole four bases on Sunday and 10 in the series, capitalizing on the Rays’ inability to hold runners and stop them from stealing. Heim’s swipe cost them, as he scored from second on Leody Taveras’ single to center.

“We've got to get better at that,” Cash said. “Manny's [run] comes back to holding runners. I don't know how that situation unfolds if we don't let Jonah Heim steal second base on us.”

Much like they came back to tie the game Saturday, they erased a two-run lead in the eighth inning of Sunday’s series finale. Ben Rortvedt worked a leadoff walk against reliever Marc Church, then Yandy Díaz blasted a double over Adolis García and off the right-field wall.

Then came a pair of productive, run-scoring outs to tie the game, 3-3, as Brandon Lowe’s groundout brought home Rortvedt and Junior Caminero’s sacrifice fly scored pinch-runner Jonny DeLuca.

“I think we've kind of jokingly talked about this building and our lack of success over the past couple of years, but it's frustrating,” said starter Drew Rasmussen, who limited Texas to one run on three hits and a walk while striking out four over five innings. “Our offense, they continue to battle, they continue to fight, they continue to score runs in big moments. And it would have been really nice to get one of these two, that's for sure.”

If there’s any more good news to be found, maybe it’s this: The Rays are off Monday, and they’ll spend the next two weeks at home at George M. Steinbrenner Field.

“I think I look at it the other way,” Rasmussen said. “Right after this series, I'd like to play tomorrow.”