Field Level Media
Sep 30, 2020
Hunter Renfroe hit the first postseason grand slam in club history to lift the Tampa Bay Rays to an 8-2 win over the Toronto Blue Jays on Wednesday to complete a sweep of their American League first-round series in St. Petersburg, Fla.
Mike Zunino started the second-inning scoring with a two-run homer for the top-seeded Rays, who will face the winner of the wild-card series pitting the New York Yankees against the Cleveland Indians.
Randy Arozarena went 3-for-4 with two doubles and an RBI for Tampa Bay.
Rays right-hander Tyler Glasnow (1-0) allowed two runs on six hits while striking out eight in six innings. Both runs scored came on solo homers by Danny Jansen.
Toronto starter Hyun Jin Ryu (0-1) allowed seven runs (three earned), eight hits and one walk in 1 2/3 innings. Shortstop Bo Bichette made two errors behind him.
The Rays scored once in the first inning on the strength of four singles.
Mike Brosseau led off with a single to left field but was thrown out trying for a double. Arozarena and Brandon Lowe followed with singles and Manuel Margot hit a two-out RBI single. Bichette's throwing error on Renfroe's grounder loaded the bases, but Ryu ended the inning with a strikeout.
Tampa Bay struck for six runs on two homers in the second. Kevin Kiermaier led off with a single and Zunino homered.
Arozarena doubled with one out, Yandy Diaz walked with two out and Bichette's error on Margot's grounder loaded the bases for Renfroe, who homered to left.
The grand slam put an end to the outing for Ryu, who was replaced by Ross Stripling.
Jansen led off the third with a home run to trim Toronto's deficit to 7-1. The Rays restored their seven-run lead in the bottom of the inning on Brosseau's single and Arozarena's RBI double.
Toronto rookie Nate Pearson was perfect in the fourth and fifth innings. He struck out five batters using a fastball that reached 100 mph.
Tampa Bay left-hander Aaron Loup allowed a single in the seventh before Ryan Thompson replaced him with two outs to end the inning on a groundout. He added two strikeouts in a perfect eighth.
--Field Level Media