The Rays bullpen proved just insufficient on the night, as the Rays (9-11) lost to the Blue Jays (9-10) in the bottom of the 11th inning. The Rays had the lead going into the 8th inning, thanks to 7 strong frames from Jeremy Hellickson, but Joel Peralta allowed a deep double to Edwin Encarnacion that tied the game.
The game stretched into extra innings as Juan Cruz and Cesar Ramos combied for 2 and 1/3 silent innings. Unfortunately, the Rays hitters went down quickly late in the game, and the Blue Jays finished the night on a two-run blast off John McDonald's bat.
Some highlights from the game:
- Jose Bautista came within a single of the cycle, hitting a double, a triple, and a homer -- all off the Rays starter Jeremy Hellickson.
- Sam Fuld continued his legend, going 3 for 5 with a triple and 2 steals.
- Johnny Damon also added a pair of doubles, going 2 for 5 on the night.
- The Rays had only 2 walks all night, both coming from Sean Rodriguez. Last year, the team's patience at the plate and speed on the base paths made them one of the top run-scoring offenses in the league. Surprisingly, the 2011 Rays have drawn very few walks so far.
The Rays will play game 2 of the 3 game series tomorrow afternoon, with game time slated for 1:07 p.m. ET.