Rays rally in 8th to beat Blue Jays, win for 11th time in last 12

When you're pitching as well as the Rays have been, going a franchise-record-tying 12 games - two full weeks! - without giving up more than three runs, you're going to keep any deficit small.

And when you have the confidence and diverse offensive weapons the Rays do, you're going to find a way to come back and win a lot of those games.

Which was exactly what they did again on Tuesday, trailing by a slim margin into the eighth inning, then rallying for two runs and a 4-3 victory over the Blue Jays.

"I think that's the thing we've shown the most so far is that we're not going to give up," first baseman Jonathan Aranda said via team interpreter Kevin Vera.

"Regardless of the situation, regardless of the rhythm of the game, whatever is going on, we're never going to give up. And that's just the type of baseball that we play."

It was the Rays' 10th come-from-behind victory, matching the most in the American League. Even more impressive, it was their fifth when trailing in the eighth inning or later.

"We just, we really don't give in, don't give up," infielder Ben Williamson said. "We were down for, I think, all that game until the eighth, and I don't feel like anybody in the dugout felt like we were ever out of that."

The Rays improved to 23-12, winning for the 11th time in their last 12 games.

In another measure of their resolve, it was their franchise-record-tying eighth straight win in a one-run game, something they did in 2003 and 2008.

"It's a credit to (the players)," manager Kevin Cash said. "They do a good job of staying in the game, staying focused. Things are going our way right now, pretty obviously, but I'm happy that we just continue to find ways to take advantage of it."

Down 2-0 early, the Rays tied it with single runs in the third and fourth. The Blue Jays went back ahead in the fifth with another run off Drew Rasmussen, and it stayed that way until Aranda rapped the first of their four straight hits in the eighth off Jays reliever Tyler Rogers.

After earlier rapping a hit for his AL-leading 29th RBI, Aranda continued his recent torrid streak (9-for-17 over four games) by slicing a ball down the leftfield line and hustling for a double.

"I was going to second no matter what," he said.

Diaz, hitless in his first seven at-bats after returning Monday from left oblique tightness, singled up the middle (his 997th career hit) to score pinch-runner Taylor Walls.

Jake Fraley followed with a single to center that sent Diaz to second. Williamson then bounced a single through the middle that scored Diaz with the go-ahead run.

"I wasn't surprised at all," Diaz said via Vera. "We did our job against the pitcher. They weren't necessarily hard hits, but we were able to string those four hits together. Everybody was just prepared, and we did our job."

Cole Sulser, getting the call with Bryan Baker off after working three of the last four days, worked a 1-2-3 ninth to seal the latest comeback win.

"It's obviously a good thing," Diaz said. "I'm the first one to say it, that it's not over until you get out number 27. It's very inspiring, and it's a really good thing for this ballclub to just keep doing this thing and keep putting up good wins. ...

"When I think back on the years that I've been here, I think it's one of the most, if not the most, energetic groups that I've been around. We're just all very united. If we keep doing our job, we're just going to keep playing good baseball."

Though Rasmussen gave up a season-high seven hits over his six innings - questioning the pitch selection more than execution - and a walk, he posted his team-record 45th straight start allowing four or fewer runs.

It was his work, and the three relievers that followed, that put the Rays in position to win, as has been the case for much of their recent run. The only other time the Rays went 12 games without allowing more than three runs was Aug. 4-16, 2014.

"I think that the lineup certainly appreciates the pitching effort and knows that they're keeping us in every ballgame," Cash said. "We're winning games, but when we're down, they're keeping it right there (so that) with a baserunner and a swing of the bat and it's tied or (we) take the lead."

Rasmussen wanted to make sure the defense also gets credit and said there are some specific reasons why they have been pitching so well.

"I think we worry about the things we can control, and I think right now we're executing at a pretty high level," he said. "We're throwing strike one at an incredibly high clip. ... I really think that gives you the best chance to limit hard contact, for starters, and then on top of it limit runs as we start to look at the game as a whole.

"I think we're doing a really good job of getting ahead and then executing with two strikes once we get there."

Or, more simply: "It's a pretty good run."

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This story was originally published May 5, 2026 at 9:33 PM.