Rays 0, Astros 5: Rays drop their first home game of 2023

If you held out hope until the very last out that the Rays were going somehow mount a six run comeback to walk-off their 3rd game of the year, I wouldn't blame you... I did. It would have marked their 15th consecutive home victory to begin the year and their 21st win in their first 24th game. However, Luis Garcia had other plans, tossing six shutout innings and keeping the Rays’ bats as silent as they have been all year.

Drew Rasmussen made his fifth start of the year in search of his fourth win. Instead, he departed in the fifth inning having surrendered five runs on four doubles and a pair of singles. He would take the loss, his second of the year. Prior to the top of the fifth, Rasmussen had thrown four scoreless innings. He finished the day with 4.2 innings of work, five strikeouts, two walks, and nine hits allowed.

The Rays tallied only four hits, three of which came at the top of the order from Diaz, Franco, and Arozarena. Taylor Walls had the only other hit on the day moving his average to .333 on the year.

Out of the pen, Heath Hembree made his Rays debut, tossing 1.1 scoreless innings. Poche, Beeks, and Adam finished off the night with three more scoreless innings.

In other news, Jose Siri made his return to the lineup against his former team, so that was fun.

This was just one of those games that you are going to get across a slate of 162. The Rays will go for the series win in their second rubber match of the year tomorrow at 6:40 p.m..