(Photo credit: Rhona Wise-Imagn Images)
Tampa Bay starter Drew Rasmussen was nearly unhittable over seven outstanding innings, allowing just one hit as the American League East-leading Rays opened a three-game road series with a 6-0 blanking of the Miami Marlins on Friday night.
Coming off a rough 14-3 home loss Saturday against the Los Angeles Angels, Rasmussen (5-2) matched his season-high in length by rebounding and firing 87 pitches that shut down the Marlins and snapped Tampa Bay's four-game road skid.
The right-hander struck out nine and retired 21 of 22 batters he faced.
In the renewal of the Citrus Series, Junior Caminero reached base five times by going 3-for-3 with a pair of doubles, scoring three times and walking twice.
Ryan Vilade was 2-for-5 with two RBIs, Richie Palacios also drove in a pair and Cedric Mullins stroked a solo homer. Yandy Diaz had three hits and a run.
Speedy outfielder Chandler Simpson left the game with left thumb discomfort after two innings. Simpson also left Monday's game against the Detroit Tigers early after his helmet slipped off, bounced and hit him in the mouth on a steal attempt.
Miami sent out opener Ryan Gusto (0-1) in his first start, and the right-hander allowed three runs on three hits in two innings with a strikeout and a walk before turning it over to Tyler Phillips.
Phillips yielded three runs on seven hits in 4 2/3 innings with three strikeouts and three walks.
Javier Sanoja and Esteury Ruiz singled as the Marlins lost for the first time in four contests and were blanked for the fifth time this season.
Tampa Bay, who went 4-for-15 with runners in scoring position, outhit Miami 12-2.
After the Rays took two of the three in the first meeting in St. Petersburg in May, they did damage with two outs in the first inning. With two on, Owen Cassie tried to make a sliding catch of Palacios' sinking liner, but the ball deflected off the right fielder and rolled to the wall for a two-run triple. Vilade then made it 3-0 with a single.
The Rays added another run in the fifth on Jonathan Aranda's single to center that scored Caminero following his second double. Diaz lined a single off Phillips' foot, but the pitcher stayed in and kept it 4-0.
Mullins homered to right-center leading off the sixth, and Vilade had another RBI single in the seventh.
Cam Booser and Cole Sulser tossed one scoreless inning apiece to complete the Rays' fourth shutout of the season.
--Field Level Media
