Tampa Bay Rays: Brandon Lowe and the tale of an inning

Brandon Lowe went from the highest of highs to the lowest of lows in the span of an inning for the Tampa Bay Rays.

It was probably now or never for the Tampa Bay Rays. There were runners on first and second with one out in the bottom of the sixth. Brandon Lowe stepped up to the plate, facing Pedro Baez. If the Rays were going to mount a comeback, this seemed to be their best opportunity.

Baez had a 2-2 count on Lowe, and attempted to put him away with a 95 MPH fastball on the outer edge of the plate. Instead, Lowe got just enough to poke the ball to left center for a home run, giving the Rays the lead.

As the Rays clung to that one run lead, it seemed as though Nick Anderson Time had come. Instead, Aaron Loup began the inning, and promptly put runners on second and third. After a strikeout of Max Muncy, Anderson was finally summoned.

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It appeared that he was about to escape that jam. Anderson struck out Will Smith, then intentionally walked Cody Bellinger to bring up pinch hitter Joc Pederson. Naturally, the Rays employed the shift, and Pederson obliged with a line drive just to the right of Lowe. However, he was unable to come up with the catch, as the Dodgers scored twice to take the lead.

In the span of an inning, Lowe had the highs and lows of baseball all in one. He had been the potential hero, his three run blast putting the Rays on top, giving the bullpen a chance to save the day. Then, as Pederson’s line drive went off of his glove, he turned into a possible goat, two runs scoring because he was unable to make that extra step in time.

In the end, Lowe was taken off the hook. Thanks to a timely base hit by Brett Phillips, and the Dodgers defensive miscues, the Rays were able to escape with an 8-7 victory, tying the series at two games each. But that inning was a reminder that, more often than not, the baseball gods will take away as quickly as they will give.

Brandon Lowe experienced the highs and lows of baseball in the span of an inning. Fortunately for the Rays, they were able to come back and get the victory.