ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Shane McClanahan battled through a tough third inning to give the Rays a strong six-inning start Saturday, and his teammates provided plenty of support in a 13-3 drubbing of the Angels.
Ji-Man Choi had four hits, Randy Arozarena three, Brett Phillips knocked in three and seven different players scored as the Rays won their fourth straight to improve to 47-31 and maintain their hold on first place in the American League East.
McClanahan allowed three runs in a four-hit, one-walk, nine-batter, 36-pitch third during which the Rays had the bullpen in action. He overcame a two-out error by rookie shortstop Wander Franco to get out of the inning, and he didn’t allow anything else over the next three innings, retiring nine straight.
The Rays took a 2-0 lead in the second, when Austin Meadows singled for his sixth hit in his past 12 at-bats, and Manuel Margot followed an out later with a home run.
The Angels came back with three runs off McClanahan in a messy but unlucky 36-pitch third. After a double and single from the bottom of the order, a Shohei Ohtani bouncer over first baseman Choi’s head and an Anthony Rendon blooper just inside the right-field line scored the runs.
The Rays came back with four runs in the fourth that ended the afternoon for ex-mate Alex Cobb, the Angels starter.
Singles by Arozarena and Choi got them going, then Joey Wendle singled in one run and Phillips — 0-for-his-last 15 and 2 for 29 — delivered the game’s biggest hit, tripling in two. Phillips then scored on a wild pitch by Cobb to make it 7-3.
Mike Zunino extended the lead with two outs in the sixth, hitting his fourth homer in his past six games and 16th overall, most among major league catchers (when playing the position).
The Rays kept piling on, adding five in the seventh. An Arozarena walk and a double by Meadows set them up. Choi doubled in one run, with a blast high off the right-field wall. Phillips singled in another, and Choi scored on an errant throw home. A bases-loaded walk and another infield single by Arozarena made it 13-3.
