ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Fittingly, a few hours after the Rays received their diamond-filled American League Championship rings at Tropicana Field, right-hander Tyler Glasnow sparkled like never before in Monday night’s 1-0 victory against the Texas Rangers.
Glasnow took a no-hitter into the fifth inning, set a career high with 14 strikeouts and allowed just three baserunners in his 7 2/3-inning, 102-pitch masterpiece.
Glasnow dazzled. Despite his dominance, the Rays’ offense mostly fizzled.
Willy Adames finally provided a razor-thin cushion with a two-out solo home run in the seventh inning. The Rays needed a save from right-hander Diego Castillo who struck out the side in the ninth, getting ex-Ray Nate Lowe on a game-ending strike three with the tying run in scoring position.
Glasnow allowed an eighth-inning leadoff single to Jose Trevino, then recorded his 14th strikeout, getting Eli White to chase. After a forceout at second base on Glasnow’s 102nd pitch, Rays manager Kevin Cash came to the mound.
The thunderous boos quickly were replaced by thunderous cheers — at least as thunderous as a pandemic-limited crowd of 3,627 fans could muster — as Glasnow walked to the dugout following the best outing of his major-league career.
After beginning the season with a pair of no-decisions, Glasnow (1-0) was dominant from the start.
He struck out the side three times in the first six innings. He retired the first 11 batters before surrendering a two-out walk to Gallo in the fourth inning.
In the fifth, Glasnow lost the no-hitter when White got a one-out single on a hard grounder up the middle. Second baseman Brandon Lowe stopped it, but had no play as it bounded away.
The Rays, meanwhile, struggled mightily against Rangers starter Dane Dunning and left-handed reliever Taylor Hearn. With two outs in the seventh, the Rays had just six baserunners and 11 strikeouts.
That’s when Adames came up big against Hearn. He drove it high and deep to left-centerfield. White jumped at the wall and Adames’ blast had just enough to get over the fence.
That was all Glasnow needed.
He got relief help from left-hander Cody Reed, who coaxed Anderson Tejeda into a grounder to end the eighth. In the ninth, right-hander Diego Castillo surrendered a leadoff single to ninth-place hitter Leody Taveras. After striking out Isiah Kiner-Falefa and David Dahl, he walked Gallo.
That prompted a mound visit from pitching coach Kyle Snyder.
Castillo got Nate Lowe on two fouls, then a called strike three.
Everyone — including Glasnow — could finally exhale
