Now offense is also a problem for struggling Rays, who lose to Marlins
MIAMI - The Rays have been doing work and making moves, such as bumping Steven Matz to the bullpen, in an effort to get their pitching back on track.
But after Saturday's 4-3 defeat by the Marlins, there are also fair questions to ask about their lack of offense. The loss was the Rays' ninth in their last 12 games, and in seven they have scored three or fewer runs.
"The bats were hot at the beginning of the year, and now they're not necessarily as hot, but that doesn't mean we're not going to be a good offensive team," said veteran DH Yandy Diaz, via team interpreter Kevin Vera.
"So right now, we've just got to keep at it, just keep having a good mindset in moving forward."
That matters because when the Rays score three or fewer they are 6-17. When they score more than three, they are 31-7.
It seemed the Rays, who dropped to 37-24 overall but still hold the best record in the American League, were going to go quietly Saturday the way the game unfolded early.
Facinga septet ofMiami relievers on a planned bullpen day, and the inherent challenges of a different pitcher in each at-bat, the Rays went 12 up and 12 down over the first four innings, were held hitless until the sixth and didn't score until the eighth.
Only some help from an old friend, former longtime Rays closer Pete Fairbanks, allowed them to make it close at the end.
Fairbanks took over in the ninth and made a big mess, allowing two runs and five of the seven batters he faced to reach while throwing 39 pitches and getting only two outs.
Down 4-1, the Rays rallied as Ben Williamson drew a leadoff walk, then with one out Taylor Walls dropped a bunt single. Fairbanks got Victor Mesa Jr. to ground out, but the runners moved up to third and second.
That mattered because with speedy Chandler Simpson pinch-hitting, Fairbanks threw a wild pitch, allowing a Rays run.
After Simpson walked, Diaz stepped in against Fairbanks, a teammate from 2019-25, and singled to right, cutting the lead to 4-3.
"I looked forward to going up against him, and I was able to get the base hit," Diaz said.
Jonathan Aranda, in a 1-for-18 skid, fouled off three pitches to work an eight-pitch walk, loading the bases and bringing up Junior Caminero.
The Marlins had seen enough from Fairbanks and pulled him, bringing in Tyler Zuber - who actually also was a Ray, albeit very briefly, in July 2024 - and he got that elusive final out, striking out Caminero.
"I expect the effort; they've shown that all season long," Rays manager Kevin Cash said. "Just had a bunch of good at-bats and didn't do their pitcher any favors by expanding out of the zone. (He) threw a lot of pitches.
"We just came up a little bit short right there at the end."
Caminero, who in Friday's win reached base five times (three hits, two walks), was 0-for-5 Saturday with three strikeouts, leaving seven men on.
"Today's a new day. Today I went 0-for-5, but you look at (Friday), I went 5-for-5 (in reaching base). It's just the way the game works, and you try to do your part, but (Saturday) it didn't go our way," said Caminero, via Vera.
Especially in the ninth inning.
"I was trying to put it in play," Caminero said. "I was trying to be the hero, and it didn't work out. But that's what happened.''
The Rays were in position to rally following a good but not great outing from Shane McClanahan, who posted four zeroes to start but ended up allowing a season high-matching four runs (including just his third homer of the season) while working into the sixth.
"I felt I actually competed, pitched, threw the ball pretty well (Saturday). Unfortunately, that's just sometimes how baseball is," he said.
"I don't feel like the results really matched how I thought (Saturday) went, in terms of the effort and the execution. They just put the ball in play, and good things happened."
The first run came on a leadoff homer in the fifth by Javier Sanoja, just the third McClanahan has allowed over 12 starts. The second came on a ball Joe Mack hit to deep left-center that got over the head of Richie Palacios, the usual second baseman who was making his first appearance of the season in the outfield.
Three straight singles in the sixth led to another Miami run, then McClanahan hit Esteury Ruiz with his 81st and final pitch to load the bases. Reliever Casey Legumina did well to allow just one more on a sac fly.
Still, the Rays had their chances with the guys they'd want at the plate.
In the sixth with two on and one out, Aranda struck out and Caminero grounded out. In the eighth, with the bases loaded and no outs, but Aranda and Caminero both struck out and Palacios grounded out. And again in the ninth.
"We had some good at-bats (Friday) and then (Saturday) we had the middle of the lineup come up," Cash said, "and their pitchers did a good job of making some big pitches."
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This story was originally published June 6, 2026 at 7:59 PM.