AP

Rangers score 4 early, including Lowe HR, hold off Rays 4-3

Sep 16, 2022, 7:37 AM | Updated: 8:48 pm

Texas Rangers' Jonah Heim fouls off a Tampa Bay Rays pitch during the fifth inning of a baseball ga...

Texas Rangers' Jonah Heim fouls off a Tampa Bay Rays pitch during the fifth inning of a baseball game Friday, Sept. 16, 2022, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (AP Photo/Scott Audette)

(AP Photo/Scott Audette)


              Texas Rangers shortstop Corey Seager throws to first after forcing out Tampa Bay Rays' Christian Bethancourt during the second inning of a baseball game Friday, Sept. 16, 2022, in St. Petersburg, Fla. Taylor Walls was safe at first. (AP Photo/Scott Audette)
            
              Tampa Bay Rays' Jose Siri dives for a fly ball hit by Texas Rangers' Jonah Heim, who singled during the sixth inning of a baseball game Friday, Sept. 16, 2022, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (AP Photo/Scott Audette)
            
              Home plate umpire Malachi Moore looks in to the glove of Tampa Bay Rays catcher Francisco Mejia after Meijia collided with wall making a catch on a ball hit by Texas Rangers' Norman Lowe during the fifth inning of a baseball game Friday, Sept. 16, 2022, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (AP Photo/Scott Audette)
            
              Texas Rangers starting pitcher Martin Perez throws to first for the out on a bunt by Tampa Bay Rays' Manuel Margot, left, during the fifth inning of a baseball game Friday, Sept. 16, 2022, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (AP Photo/Scott Audette)
            
              Texas Rangers' Jonah Heim fouls off a Tampa Bay Rays pitch during the fifth inning of a baseball game Friday, Sept. 16, 2022, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (AP Photo/Scott Audette)

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Nathaniel Lowe hit his 25th home run in a four-run inning Friday night and the Texas Rangers beat the Tampa Bay Rays 4-3.

Lowe’s two-run homer was the fourth of five straight hits in the third inning off Corey Kluber, who gave up seven straight hits in the first inning in New York nearly a week earlier. It followed a two-run double by Corey Seager.

“The pitch to Seager wasn’t a bad pitch, tip your hat to him. I didn’t execute the pitch to Lowe and he did what he’s supposed to do,” said Kluber, who has allowed eight hits in consecutive starts for the first time in more than four years. “Two pitches, or I guess one pitch that I was really disappointed with … That’s how it goes.”

Rangers starter Martin Perez (12-6) gave up three runs and nine hits in 5 1/3 innings. Three of those were by Rays catcher Francisco Mejia, driving in runs with a single in the second and a double in the sixth.

Perez pitched at least five innings for the 27th start in a row, and gave up two runs in the second.

“They’re trying to hit balls in the alley and they hit some ground balls, got on base,” Perez said. “That’s what happens when you face a good team, but I think I made my pitches and we won.”

The Rangers are 19-10 in Perez’s starts this season, and 43-71 in starts by other pitchers.

Jose Leclerq pitched the ninth for his sixth save in seven attempts, retiring Harold Ramirez on a bases-loaded grounder to end the game.

The Rays, who opened a 10-game homestand, left at least one runner on base in every inning except the eighth, losing for the sixth time in eight games. They fell 1 1/2 games behind Toronto in the race for the top AL wild card spot while holding onto a 4 1/2-game lead over Baltimore in competition for the third wild card.

“We started off this month well. The last couple of weeks we’ve struggled a bit, but we’ve got to keep pushing forward,” Mejia acknowledged through a translator.

Kluber (10-9) gave up four runs on nine hits in 5 2/3 innings, striking out six.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Rays: LHP Brooks Raley was reinstated from the restricted list, and RHP Kevin Herget was optioned to Triple-A Durham. The unvaccinated Raley was unavailable for both of the Rays’ series in Toronto this summer.

LOOKING UP

The Rays, who traded Lowe in December of 2020, are not surprised by his 25 home runs. They are impressed to see him in contention for the AL batting title.

“We were confident he had that light-tower power,” Rays manager Kevin Cash said, “but the way he’s shown adjustability — for him to be hitting above .300 — is pretty remarkable.”

Lowe’s .309 batting average stood sixth among AL hitters before Friday’s game, 11 points behind league leader Luiz Arraez of Minnesota.

UP NEXT

LHP Ryan Yarbrough (1-8, 4.38 ERA) will make his 10th start of the season for the Rays on Saturday night after pitching five scoreless innings of relief Sunday against the New York Yankees. RHP Jon Gray (7-6, 3.79) will be making his second start for the Rangers since his return from the injured list with a left oblique strain.

___

More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

AP

Associated Press

Ex-Packer Guion gets 1 year for domestic violence assault

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Former Green Bay Packers defensive tackle Letroy Guion was sentenced to one year in jail after pleading no contest in a domestic violence assault at his home last fall. Brown County Circuit Court Judge Thomas Walsh also ordered Guion on Tuesday to serve three years’ probation and complete a domestic […]

1 year ago

Joe Jarzynka...

Associated Press

Durant eager for Suns debut vs. Hornets after knee injury

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Kevin Durant has been through quite a bit during his 15-year NBA career — but joining a new team midway through the season is a new one for the 13-time All-Star. The 34-year-old Durant doesn’t seem all that worried. Durant makes his highly anticipated Phoenix Suns debut on Wednesday night against […]

1 year ago

FILE - Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores stands on the sideline during the second half of an N...

Associated Press

Judge: NFL coach can press discrimination claims in court

NEW YORK (AP) — NFL Coach Brian Flores can pursue some of his discrimination claims against the league and its teams in court rather than through arbitration, a judge ruled Wednesday. The written decision by Judge Valerie Caproni in Manhattan was issued months after lawyers for the league tried to get the lawsuit moved to […]

1 year ago

Chicago Blackhawks goaltender Alex Stalock cools off in the first period during an NHL hockey game ...

Associated Press

Kane trade reinforces hard reality of Blackhawks rebuild

CHICAGO (AP) — After days of speculation, the harsh reality of the Chicago Blackhawks’ situation was reinforced by one move in a flurry of transactions ahead of the NHL trade deadline. Showtime is over, at least in Chicago, and a seemingly bright future is, well, way off in the distance. The reverberations of Chicago’s decision […]

1 year ago

FILE -  Yves Jean-Bart, president of the Haitian Football Federation, wearing a protective face mas...

Associated Press

Disgraced ex-Haitian soccer president announces he’s back

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Haiti’s former soccer federation president whose lifetime ban from sport over sexual abuse allegations was overturned last month announced Wednesday that he is reclaiming his position. Yves Jean-Bart’s defiant announcement could lead to a standoff with FIFA, which already has appointed an emergency management committee to lead the Haitian Football Association […]

1 year ago

FILE - Green Bay Packers' Aaron Rodgers walks off the field after an NFL football game against the ...

Associated Press

Rodgers says decision on future will come ‘soon enough’

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Aaron Rodgers says he will make a decision on his future “soon enough” as the four-time MVP quarterback ponders whether to play next season and if his future remains with the Green Bay Packers. Rodgers, 39, discussed his future while speaking on an episode of the “Aubrey Marcus Podcast” that […]

1 year ago

Rangers score 4 early, including Lowe HR, hold off Rays 4-3