ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Shane McClanahan pitched six effective innings, Brett Phillips drove in three runs and the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Los Angeles Angels 13-3 Saturday for their fourth straight win.
Manuel Margot and Mike Zunino homered for Tampa Bay. Ji-Man Choi had four hits and drove in two runs as the Rays improved to 6-0 against the Angels this season
The Angels have lost five in a row overall.
McClanahan (3-2) allowed three runs and four hits, all coming in the third inning.
Phillips, hitless in his previous 15 at-bats, connected on a two-run triple to deep center off Alex Cobb (5-3). He scored on a wild pitch during a four-run fourth as Tampa Bay went up 6-3.
Phillips added an RBI single in a five-run seventh that made it 13-3.
Cobb dropped to 0-6 in eight starts against his former team after giving up six runs and six hits in four innings. He went 48-35 with Tampa Bay from 2011-17.
Shohei Ohtani bounced an RBI double over Choi at first base and Anthony Rendon flared a two-run double down the right-field line off an 100-mph fastball from McClanahan as the Angels took a 3-2 lead in the third.
The Angels loaded the bases later in the third when rookie shortstop Wander Franco was charged with his first big league error after misplaying Taylor Ward’s two-out grounder. McClanahan avoided further damage by getting a fly ball from José Iglesias.
Margot hit a two-run drive off Cobb during the second. It was just the third homer allowed by the right-hander in 11 starts this season.
Zunino hit his 16th homer in the sixth.
Franco went 0 for 4 and had his average drop to .105. He is hitless in 16 at-bats since having a homer and double Tuesday in his major league debut. He walked with the bases loaded in the seventh.
OHTANI!
Ohtani’s homer off a catwalk about 65 feet above the right-field stands Friday continued to be a topic of discussion.
Los Angeles manager Joe Maddon believes it went farther than the estimated 453 feet.
“If it didn’t hit the ring I’m not sure it would have gone out” a laughing Rays manager Kevin Cash said. “Nobody else can do what he does, both sides of the ball.”
Cash is also amazed at Ohtani’s foot speed.
“He gets down the line as fast as anybody I’ve seen,” Cash said.
BONUS BULLPEN
The Rays have the best AL bullpen ERA and a key contributor from the 2020 AL championship team, RHP Nick Anderson, is throwing off a mound and expected back in August.
Anderson (right elbow sprain) had an 0.55 ERA in 19 games last year.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Rays: LHP Josh Fleming (right calf strain) went on the 10-day IL.
UP NEXT
Angels LHP Patrick Sandoval (2-2) will start Sunday. Rays LHP Ryan Yarbrough (4-3) will either start or follow an opener.
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