Adames hits grand slam, surging Tampa Bay Rays beat Marlins for sweep
MIAMI, Fla. - Willy Adames hit a grand slam and the surging Tampa Bay Rays beat the Miami Marlins 12-7 on Sunday to finish a three-game sweep.
Joey Wendle, Yoshi Tsutsugo and Kevin Kiermaier also went deep for the Rays, who have won 12 of their last 14 and have beaten Miami eight straight times since 2018. Tampa Bay improved to an American League-best 13 games over .500.
Blake Snell (3-0) allowed two runs on four hits in five innings. The 2018 Cy Young Award winner struck out five and walked two.
Miami starter Sandy Alcantara (1-1) was lifted after loading the bases with no outs in the fifth. Adames greeted reliever Robert Dugger with his grand slam, and Kiermaier later hit a two-run blast off Dugger.
Alcantara struggled in his first appearance since opening day. The right-hander, one of 18 Marlins players who tested positive for COVID-19 last month, allowed eight runs on six hits, walked two and struck out two.
Miami dropped under .500 (14-15) for the first time this season.
The Rays homered twice off Alcantara in the first. Wendle led off with a blast to right and Yoshi Tsutsugo followed with a two-run shot.
Miami snapped a 22-inning scoreless streak on Corey Dickerson’s homer in the fourth. It was the Marlins' first run scored against Tampa Bay in their last four home games.
Lewis Brinson also hit a solo shot and Garrett Cooper had a homer and a bases-clearing double for the Marlins.
Before the game, the Rays traded designated hitter José Martínez to the Chicago Cubs for two players to be named or cash. Martinez, acquired from the St. Louis Cardinals in the offseason, hit .239 with two homers and 19 RBIs with the Rays.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Rays: RHP Charlie Morton (right shoulder inflammation) threw a bullpen Sunday and manager Kevin Cash said he could rejoin the roster in the upcoming series against the New York Yankees. Morton was placed on the injured list on Aug. 10.
Marlins: 1B/DH Jesus Aguilar (back stiffness) missed his third consecutive game. Aguilar is hitting .280 with a team-leading 20 RBIs.
UP NEXT
Rays: RHP Tyler Glasnow (1-1, 5.14) will start the opener of a three-game series against the Yankees Monday night.
Marlins: Also heading to New York, the Marlins have not announced a starter for Monday’s makeup game against the Mets. The teams sat out the finale of a four-game series Thursday to protest racial injustice and the shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man, by police in Wisconsin.