Junior Caminero recorded his first career three-homer performance and the Tampa Bay Rays carried a no-hit bid into the ninth inning of a 13-2 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Thursday afternoon in St. Petersburg, Fla.
Ian Seymour (4-1) struck out seven batters and walked one over 6 2/3 innings in relief of opener Casey Legumina, who worked the first 1 1/3 frames. Craig Kimbrel gave up a two-run homer to Carter Jensen with one out in the ninth inning to break up the no-hit bid.
Caminero homered in the first, fifth and eighth innings as the Rays pounded out 15 hits and gained a split in the four-game series with the Royals.
Matt Garza recorded the only official no-hitter in Rays history after blanking the Detroit Tigers 5-0 on July 26, 2010.
Seth Lugo (3-5) gave up seven runs on seven hits in five innings of work. The right-hander walked two and struck out three in 90 pitches.
Jonathan Aranda singled with one out in the first inning and Caminero homered to left field to stake Tampa Bay to an early 2-0 lead.
The Rays added on in the fourth, as Cedric Mullins singled with two outs and Taylor Walls walked after a challenged pitch that would have ended the inning. Victor Mesa Jr. homered to right field to extend Tampa Bay’s lead to 5-0.
Caminero sparked another rally in the fifth when he homered to left with two outs.
Richie Palacios started another rally when he reached on a bunt single. He scored when Chandler Simpson doubled to make it 7-0.
The Rays made it 8-0 in the seventh inning after Yandy Diaz and Aranda each doubled to start the inning.
Tampa Bay scored five more in the eighth, highlighted by Caminero’s third home run.
Mullins and Walls singled to lead off the inning and Mullins scored on a ground out to make it 9-0.
Nick Fortes singled in Walls to make it 10-0.
Aranda then reached on an infield single and Caminero blasted a three-run shot to left for his 19th homer of the season.
