Isaac Paredes hit two homers and drove in a career-high six runs and Tyler Glasnow pitched six strong innings to lead the host Tampa Bay Rays to an 8-3 victory over the Texas Rangers on Friday in St. Petersburg, Fla.
Paredes finished 3-for-4 with an RBI double in the first, a three-run homer in the third and a two-run shot in the sixth to lead the Rays to their seventh straight win.
Manuel Margot and Taylor Walls each had a run-scoring single for the American League East-leading Rays, who won the first game of a three-game set between baseball's two winningest teams.
The Rays' offensive outburst was more than enough for Glasnow (1-0), who allowed only a run on one hit to go along with six strikeouts and three walks over in a dominant performance.
Leodys Taveras went 2-for-2 with two solo homers, two RBIs and a walk for the AL West-leading Rangers, who have dropped two straight following a five-game winning streak. Josh Jung also hit a solo homer for Texas.
After Tampa Bay took a 1-0 lead on an unearned run in the first when Paredes' two-out double to left scored Harold Ramirez, the Rangers tied the game in the third on Taveras' solo homer to right.
But Tampa Bay took the lead for good in the bottom of the inning. After Ramirez lined a two-out double to left, Randy Arozarena walked before Paredes cleared the bases with a homer to left off Andrew Heaney to give the Rays a 4-1 lead.
Heaney (4-4) allowed four runs (three earned) on four hits with five strikeouts and two walks in five innings before the Rays put the game away with a four-run sixth against reliever Spencer Howard.
After Arozarena led off by being hit by a pitch, Paredes hit a two-run homer to make it 6-1. Jose Siri walked and Christian Bethancourt followed with a base hit to left before Margot's single plated Siri. Walls singled three pitches later to score Bethancourt, pushing the lead to 8-1.
Howard allowed four runs on four hits and a walk and retired just one batter before he was replaced by John King, who got the final two outs to end the inning.
Taveras' second homer of the game made it 8-2 in the eighth before Jung capped the scoring for Texas with a solo homer in the ninth.
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