ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Two teams with nearly identical records and similar losing streaks meet as the Los Angeles Angels and Tampa Bay Rays play four games at Tropicana Field, with both teams desperately trying to regain positive momentum before the All-Star break.
"The team, we played our tail off. We battled," Rays starter Chris Archer said Sunday after another late-game meltdown turned into a 5-1 loss to the Tigers to complete a four-game sweep. "It's a tough one to lose because we really battled up until the end."
The Rays (33-48) have lost 16 of 18 games as they officially enter the second half of the season, and their bullpen has given up runs in 17 of those games.