Taj Bradley Flirts With No-Hitter, Looks Great in Rays' 5-1 Win Over Royals

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Taj Bradley really needed this. And everyone who follows the up-and-down Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher really needed this, too.

Bradley, who had allowed at least five runs in each of his last three starts and was getting perilously close to losing his job in the Rays' rotation, was brilliant on Tuesday night. He pitched 6 2/3 innings against the Kansas City Royals, and didn't allow a run — retiring the first 16 batters he faced.

He lost his perfect game with a one-out walk in the sixth, and gave up a two-out double to Jonathan India two batters later, but he got Royals star Bobby Witt Jr. to fly out to left to end the threat. After two outs in the seventh, he allowed a single to catcher Salvador Perez, so Kevin Cash took him out in favor of lefty Mason Montgomery, but it was a job well done on just 87 pitches.

And much needed.

“(He) set a tone early on with the strike-throwing, got in a good rhythm and really built off that,” Tampa Bay manager Kevin Cash told reporters after the game. “We were all pretty pumped for Taj. I know it’s been a grind for him the last couple of starts, but he was able to rebound and really give us a good start.

“His stuff is really electric, like it was (Tuesday night in Kansas City). The person, he cares a lot. He wants to go out there when he competes. He wants to do well. And we appreciate that.”

The Rays gave Bradley plenty of offensive help, too. Catcher Danny Jansen hit a two-run homer in the second inning to start the scoring. The blast, his eighth of the season, came after a Jose Caballero single.

They added a solo run in the fourth, with a Jonathan Aranda single starting it off. He went to third on a throwing error and then scored on a sacrifice fly by Jansen to make it 3-0. They added another run in the fifth when Yandy Diaz — who's now hit in 14 straight games — reached safely on an infield single and then scored on a throwing error by Royals starter Kris Bubic three batters later on a slow-roller by Aranda.

They added the fifth run in the eighth when Junior Caminero opened the inning with a double, went to third on another Aranda single and scored on a Jake Mangum ground ball. The Rays lost the shutout in the bottom of the ninth when Kevin Kelly gave up an RBI single to Vinnie Pasquantino.

The Rays outhit Kansas City 11-4, with Diaz and Aranda both getting three hits. Aranda is now hitting .332 on the season. That's good hitting, good pitching and another error-free night defensively.

They are 44-35 now, back to a season-high nine games over .500. And with the New York Yankees losing 5-4 in 11 innings at Cincinnati, the Rays are now just one game out of first in the American League East.