DUNEDIN, Fla. — The reigning American League champions continue to live up to that title as the Tampa Bay Rays have extended their win streak to a whopping 11 games, one short of the club record set back in 2004.
The most recent win did not come easy after the Rays jumped out to a five-run lead in the first inning, highlighted by a grand slam off the bat of Joey Wendle.
Meanwhile, Toronto spent the rest of the game chipping away at Tampa Bay’s lead. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. hit a pair of homers for the Blue Jays; and by the 8th inning, things were all knotted up at five runs apiece.
It then took extra inning drama to keep the win streak alive.
The Rays added two more runs in the top of the 10th inning, only for the Blue Jays to immediately answer with a pair of their own in the bottom of the frame.
With the bases loaded and nobody out in the top of the 11th, the Rays were able to distance themselves once again from the Blue Jays. Francisco Mejia singled to drive in two, giving the Rays a 9-7 lead. Randy Arozarena then added some insurance with an RBI-double to make it 10-7. A groundout off the bat of Austin Meadows brought in the 11th run of the ballgame, and Manuel Margot drove in a couple more as the Rays refused to let up. Mike Brosseau capped off the top of the 11th with an RBI-single, giving the Rays a 14-7 lead.
Toronto added one more in the bottom of the 11th, but Tampa Bay ultimately held on for a sweep of their division rivals by a score of 14-8.
Tampa Bay will look to tie the franchise record of 12 wins in a row on Tuesday at home against the Kansas City Royals, a team below .500 with a 22-23 record.
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