The Tampa Bay Rays (65-69) defeated the Washington Nationals (53-81) 4-1 on Friday night in Washington, DC to win the opener of the three-game interleague series.
The Rays offense came from a two run blast from Brandon Lowe in the first inning, before Everson Pereia hit his first major league homer in the fifth that made it 3-1. Chandler Simpson added a RBI single in the ninth to make it a 4-1 final score. Adrian Houser allowed just one earned run in four innings of work while striking out four and walking three.
The Rays will now look to win the series when the two teams meet in the middle game of the three-game series on Saturday afternoon. First pitch Saturday is scheduled for 9:40 PM - Chris Adams-Wall begins pregame coverage at 3:30 PM on 95.3 WDAE & AM 620.
COVER PHOTO COURTESY GETTY IMAGES