Brandon Lowe leads Rays to rubber-match win over Blue Jays

Brandon Lowe hit two home runs, right-hander Zack Littell pitched into the eighth inning and the visiting Tampa Bay Rays defeated the Toronto Blue Jays 8-3 on Thursday afternoon.

Littell (3-5) allowed three runs, eight hits and one walk with two strikeouts and induced three double-play grounders in 7 1/3 innings.

Brandon Lowe had four RBIs and three hits, Josh Lowe had a home run among three hits and Kameron Misner added a homer for the Rays in the rubber match of a three-game series.

Addison Barger, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Nathan Lukes had solo homers for Toronto.

The Rays struck early against right-hander Kevin Gausman (3-4). Josh Lowe, playing for the first time since March 28 because of an oblique strain, lined a single to left to lead off the game. Brandon Lowe lofted the next pitch, a fastball at the top of the strike zone, into the Rays' bullpen in right.

Tampa Bay added a run in the second. Jose Caballero singled and Taylor Walls placed a bunt single down the third-base line. After a double steal, Danny Jansen singled to left to score Caballero but Walls was thrown out at home by Lukes.

Barger homered to right center on Littell's hanging splitter to make it 3-1 in the bottom of the second.

Gausman continued after Junior Caminero's 116-mph line drive hit him on the hip in the third inning. Gausman retrieved the ball on the first-base line and tagged Caminero.

The Blue Jays cut the lead to one with two outs in the third when Guerrero lined a hanging slider over the left field wall for his fifth home run of the year.

Misner homered to right center on a hanging slider to lead off the Rays' fourth. Josh Lowe hammered a one-out homer to center on a fastball in the fifth to make it 5-2.

Tampa Bay added a run in the sixth on Caballero's double and Chandler Simpson's two-out single. Mason Fluharty replaced Gausman, who allowed six runs, 10 hits and no walks with six strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings.

Lukes homered with one out in the eighth. Bo Bichette followed with a double, his third hit. Manuel Rodriguez replaced Littell and got out of the inning for Tampa Bay.

Josh Lowe singled and Brandon Lowe homered in the ninth against Jose Urena.

--Field Level Media