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A20 SPORTS
Tuesday 8 OcTOber 2019

Continued from Page 17 offseason, departed with starts, Greinke is 0-4 with a
Tampa Bay will use Diego an 8-1 lead. Four relievers 4.45 ERA. His start Monday
Castillo as an opener. finished the combined sev- was his first at the domed
Kiermaier got the wild-card en-hitter for the Rays, who stadium since May 2, 2010,
Rays going with his shot the have never been swept in when he was a member
second inning. Ji-Man Choi a playoff series. of the Kansas City Royals.
and Brandon Lowe added The Astros won the first Including Monday, he's al-
solo shots off Greinke, who two games with a pair of lowed eight homers in 36
has never won in Tampa dominating pitching per- innings.
Bay, and Willy Adames formances from Justin Ver- Greinke was pulled after 61
added a solo blast against lander and Gerrit Cole, pitches, and his ERA over
Wade Miley in the sixth. who combined to limit the 12 career postseason starts
Tampa Bay's four home Rays to one unearned run rose to 4.58.
runs matched a franchise and five hits with 23 strike- HOMER STREAK
record for a postseason outs over 14 2/3 innings. The Astros have homered in
game. The Rays also went Houston's other pitchers 28 consecutive games, in-
deep four times against have allowed 12 earned cluding the first three of the
the Boston Red Sox during runs in 11 1/3 frames, an ALDS. It's the second-lon-
the 2008 AL Championship ERA of 9.53. gest streak in major league
Series and did it again dur- With Morton on the mound, Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Charlie Morton (50) throws dur- history. The New York Yan-
ing the first inning of Game 3 of a baseball American League
ing last week's 5-1 wild-card and returning home for the Division Series against the Houston Astros, Monday, Oct. 7, 2019, kees homered in 31 straight
victory against the Athlet- first playoff game at Tropi- in St. Petersburg, Fla. games from May 26 to June
ics. cana Field in six years, the Associated Press 30 of this season.
Jose Altuve homered for Rays were confident they TRAINER'S ROOM
the Astros, who are one vic- would find a way to get the Rays averaged during Game 7 victories during Rays 3B Yandy Diaz, who
tory away from their third back into the series against the regular season — into a Houston's 2017 World Series came off the injured list for
straight appearance in the Greinke, an 18-game win- frenzy. The party continued run. He shrugged off yield- the final game of the regu-
ALCS. It was Altuve's 10th ner who was 8-1 with a 3.02 when Choi homered with ing Altuve's first-inning hom- lar season and then hom-
career postseason home in 10 starts after being ac- two outs in the third and er to hold the Astros potent ered twice in Tampa Bay's
run, tied with Chase Utley quired from Arizona at the Lowe led off the fourth with lineup in check while his of- wild-card win over Oak-
for the most by a second trade deadline. an opposite-field shot that fense was building a com- land, left the game in the
baseman in major league Kiermaier's homer to right- made it 5-1. fortable lead. second inning with left foot
history. Morton, who won center whipped a sellout Morton, meanwhile, re- GREINKE'S STRUGGLES soreness. He was replaced
29 games for Houston over crowd of 32,251 waving mained perfect in poten- In six career regular sea- by Matt Duffy.
two seasons before joining bright yellow rally towels — tial postseason elimination son appearances at Tropi- UP NEXT
the Rays as a free agent last more than twice the 14,734 games, including a pair of cana Field, including five Game 4 on Tuesday.q