TAMPA, Fla. — Junior Caminero hit a three-run homer, and the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Atlanta Braves 8-3 on Sunday in front of a sellout crowd of 10,046 at George M. Steinbrenner Field.
Yandy Díaz also went deep for Tampa Bay, which won two of three in the weekend interleague series at the spring training home of the New York Yankees, where the Rays are playing their home games this season due to hurricane damage to the roof at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg. It was the highest-scoring game for Tampa Bay so far this season.
Tampa Bay’s Joe Boyle (1-0) struck out seven batters and didn’t allow a hit while pitching into the sixth inning. Caminero committed a costly error in Atlanta’s three-run sixth, but he responded with a drive to right field in the bottom half for his third homer of the season. He also connected on Saturday, when the Braves won 5-4.
Atlanta finished with four hits in Sunday’s game while dropping to 1-9 on the road this season. At 4-11 overall, the Braves sit at the bottom of the National League East Division standings.
Tampa Bay, which won 6-3 in Friday’s series opener, is 7-8, ahead of only the Baltimore Orioles in the American League East.