ST. PETERSBURG — Cedric Mullins went 4-for-4 with two bunt singles, a home run and a stolen base as the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Miami Marlins 7-2 at Tropicana Field, extending their home winning streak to 11 straight games and matching the 2008 squad for the third-longest such streak in franchise history.
Mullins became the first player in the Majors this season to record multiple bunt hits in the same game. He dropped a perfect bunt single in the second inning, stole second, then advanced to third and scored on a Taylor Walls chopper to drawn-in first baseman Christopher Morel. He bunted for another hit in the fourth, launched a 1-1 slider from Marlins starter Janson Junk for his third homer of the season in the sixth, and capped the night with an infield single off Morel’s glove — his first four-hit game since May 2023. The combination of multiple bunt hits, a homer and a stolen base in the same game had not been accomplished since Brayan Rocchio did it for the Cleveland Guardians in a 12-inning win over the Yankees on Aug. 20, 2024.
The Rays have outscored opponents 51-14 during the 11-game home streak and have won 29 of the past 36 Citrus Series meetings against Miami. Tampa Bay has won 17 of its past 20 games overall and 24 of 31 since April 10, improving to an American League-best 29-14. The club has not lost consecutive games since a three-game skid against the Pirates and Reds from April 19-21.
Lefty Ian Seymour opened on the mound in his first start of the season, allowing just one run over two innings. Right-hander Jesse Scholtens followed with five innings on 68 pitches — 44 strikes — surrendering one run on five hits with no walks. Reliever Casey Legumina handled the eighth and ninth, giving the rest of the bullpen a breather after an off-day.
Veteran designated hitter Yandy Díaz added to the offense by pulling a first-pitch sweeper from Junk for his sixth home run of the season in the first inning. The blast was Díaz’s 105th homer as a Ray, breaking a tie with Carl Crawford for seventh most in franchise history. Díaz had been mired in a season-worst 0-for-15 skid before collecting his 11th multi-hit game of the season in Toronto earlier in the week. The Rays are now 20-4 this season when scoring first.
Tampa Bay and Miami continue their Rivalry Weekend series at Tropicana Field with the second game of the set scheduled for Saturday afternoon in St. Petersburg.