Player of the gameFreddy PeraltaTBA5.0ip 0h 0er 4k
The final three weeks of the regular season were supposed to be a test for the Rays. A grind. A slog. A real challenge to their position atop the American League standings. So far, they’re making it look easy. After winning a three-game series in Atlanta against the National League East-leading Braves, the Rays came home, clinched a spot in the postseason and rolled to a weekend sweep of the AL West-leading Astros with a 14-4 rout on Sunday afternoon at Tropicana Field. It was Tampa Bay’s Major League-leading and franchise record-setting 15th sweep of the season. “We're a division leader as well, so it just kind of goes to show the team that we are,” first baseman Jonathan Aranda said through interpreter Kevin Vera. “The Braves and Houston are teams that are fighting for a playoff spot, too, so they're teams that we might be able to see in the future or similar teams that we'll face in the postseason.” The lopsided victory made the Rays the first team in the AL to record 90 wins, pushed their record to a season-high 31 games over .500 at 90-59, improved them to 50-25 at the Trop this season and maintained their four-game lead over the Yankees (86-63) in the AL East with 13 to play. The Rays said all the right things during a rowdy, post-clinching celebration inside their clubhouse on Friday night, pointing out that it was merely the first step toward their ultimate goal of winning the division. The way they played in Saturday’s narrow victory and Sunday’s romp was a good indication that they meant it. “We're not done,” second baseman Richie Palacios said. “We got to celebrate and all, but that's not where this road ends.” The outcome of the series finale was never really in question, as the Rays jumped out to a three-run lead in the first inning and never looked back. The only drama was whether there might be some history made before Houston left town. Starter Freddy Peralta continued his incredible turnaround with Tampa Bay, firing five hitless innings. He walked three batters in the third inning, but third baseman Junior Caminero made a nice play and throw on a grounder by Isaac Paredes to leave the bases loaded.
