Shane Baz leads way for Rays on dreamy night vs. Red Sox

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Manager Kevin Cash was talking about starter Shane Baz and some of the other young Rays pitchers before Tuesday’s game when he said, “It’s easy for us at this point in the season; you can dream on the what-ifs a little bit moving forward.”

By the end of the 8-3 win over Boston, there was plenty for the Rays to feel good about.

Baz, the 25-year-old right-hander who returned to the mound in July after two-plus years of injury issues, delivered another impressive start.

He worked seven strong innings, allowing only two hits and the two runs on a Triston Casas homer while striking out six and walking one, improving to 3-3 with a 3.21 ERA.

In the process, he became the first pitcher in Rays history to make five straight starts of five-plus innings with three or fewer hits. Blake Snell and Shane McClanahan each had worked four.

Junior Caminero, the 21-year-old rising star, homered, doubled and made a leaping catch of a liner to third base.

As part of a season-high-matching four home runs from an oft-quiet offense, the Rays got one each from outfielders Josh Lowe and Jose Siri, who they hope will be more consistent going forward. And another from veteran Brandon Lowe, who is one shy of reaching the 20-homer mark for the third time in four years.

Even what looked to be a reality-check moment turned out well. The Rays started the eighth by loading the bases but made two quick outs without getting a run home. Siri saved them by blooping a double to shallow left that scored three.

The win improved the Rays to 74-77, keeping them within six games of the No. 3 American League wild-card Twins. In terms of a more realistic goal, it moved them within one game of the Red Sox for third place in the AL East.

The Rays improved their chances to finish the season with a winning record for the seventh straight season, now needing to win at least eight of their final 11 games. They can ensure a winning record at Tropicana Field by going 3-2 or better the rest of the week.

The Sox, scrambling to stay in the wild-card race, took a 2-0 lead when Baz walked Wilyer Abreu with two outs in the second and gave up the homer to Casas. Baz allowed only one other hit, a single to Abreu leading off the fifth. He then got Casas to ground into a double play. The only other Sox baserunner on his watch came when Christopher Morel botched a fly to left.

The Rays got one run back when Caminero hit a 107-mph line-drive homer in the fourth off starter Nick Pivetta. They got four more in the fifth. Josh Lowe led off with a homer to left-center off Pivetta, then Siri dropped one over the short wall in the left-field corner. After Yandy Diaz’s double chased Pivetta, Brandon Lowe greeted reliever Bailey Horn with a two-run homer to right, Lowe’s 19th of the season.

The Sox got a pinch-hit homer by Romy Gonzalez off reliever Garrett Cleavinger in the eighth.