Tyler Glasnow put the Rays in an early hole Saturday afternoon, and they couldn’t quite hit their way out of it, losing, 6-3, to the A’s.
That made two straight losses for the Rays (18-17) after a five-game win streak, as they wrap up a week-long West Coast road trip and a stretch of 30 games in 31 days with a Sunday matinee in Oakland, Calif.
Also of concern Saturday, the Rays placed catcher Francisco Mejia on the 10-day injured list with rib cage discomfort, then lost center fielder Kevin Kiermaier during the game with a left wrist sprain.
Glasnow left the Rays down 3-0 in the second, and though they twice got to within one run, they couldn’t catch the A’s. Even after loading the bases in the ninth.
Glasnow got off to a bad start, walking leadoff batter Mark Canha, then allowing a first-pitch fastball homer to Seth Brown. That was the second homer in two swings for Brown, who hit the walkoff shot off Jeffrey Springs that ended Friday’s game.
Glasnow needed 30 pitches to navigate the first inning, and the second didn’t start particularly better. He struck out Tony Kemp, then allowed another homer, again on a first-pitch fastball, to catcher Austin Allen.
Glasnow settled down after that. He retired 13 of the next 15 to get two outs in the sixth, not allowing any other hits and walking two. For the day, he finished with 11 strikeouts and four walks on 101 pitches total.
After being perfect-gamed through six innings and no-hit through seven Friday, the Rays were quiet early again on Saturday, with two singles and two walks over the first five innings.
Then they got back into the game quickly in the sixth, and chased Oakland starter Frankie Montas. Austin Meadows stroked a leadoff double, then Brandon Lowe, in another funk with two hits in his previous 20 at-bats, delivered a two-run homer. That was his sixth of the season, third in his last nine games.
The A’s extended the lead to 4-2 in the seventh and had a chance for more as they left the bases loaded against reliever Hunter Strickland.
The Rays closed within 4-3 in the eighth. Yandy Diaz led off with a soft single against tough lefty Jake Diekman.
Lowe, just 1 for 36 against lefties, took advantage of the A’s shift and dropped a bunt down the third-base line for a hit. With two outs, Mike Zunino laced an RBI single to make it 4-3, but they got no more when Mike Brosseau took a called third strike.
The A’s added to their lead in the eighth, scoring on an errant throw by Brosseau and then another run.
