Rays come up short against Tigers in marathon 13-inning affair
DETROIT (AP) -- There is never a good way to give up the winning run in a 13-inning game that has extended past midnight.
Tampa Bay reliever Andrew Bellatti may have found one of the worst.
After retiring the heart of Detroit's order in the 12th, Bellatti's own mistake helped the Tigers win the game 8-7 in the 13th.
James McCann led off the 13th with an infield single, and Bellatti (0-1) couldn't pick up Jefry Marte's bunt attempt, putting runners on first and second.
"It is very frustrating," Bellatti said. "That's a play that we practice 100 times a season. I just got moving too fast."
Andrew Romine followed with another bunt, moving the runners to second and third with one out, and Rajai Davis hit a fly ball to shallow left-center. McCann decided to challenge Grady Sizemore's arm, and it paid off as the throw home was weak and offline.
"There's always a chance that your defense can bail you out, but that game is entirely on me," Bellatti said. "If I make a simple play on the bunt, we're out of that inning and going to the 14th."
Davis has been a constant presence in the series for Detroit, both good and bad. On Monday, he hit two homers -- only the second time he had done that in his career -- to lead the Tigers to a 5-4 victory.
On Tuesday, he homered again, struck out three times, dropped a routine fly ball with the bases loaded and was involved in four replay challenges.
"Everything is just blurry right now," Davis said. "I can't say that I've ever been a part of anything like that before, or even seen anything like that before."
Kyle Ryan (2-3) picked up the win.
J.D. Martinez put the Tigers up 7-6 in the eighth with a leadoff homer off Tampa Bay's Nathan Karns, who hadn't made a relief appearance since pitching in Class-A ball in 2012. Karns pitched three innings without allowing another run.
"I have a whole new respect for the guys in the bullpen," Karns said. "Obviously, I didn't want to start with my second pitch getting hit out, but after that it was about limiting the damage."
Once again, though, the Tigers couldn't close a game. Closer Bruce Rondon started the ninth by walking Kevin Kiermeier, and James Loney hit a pinch-hit single.
With one out, Rondon walked Daniel Nava to load the bases, and Evan Longoria lifted a routine fly ball to deep left. Davis dropped the ball, allowing Kiermaier to score the tying run.
The teams combined to use 29 position players and 16 pitchers, 10 for Detroit, matching the franchise record set in 1998.
The Tigers took a 1-0 lead in the third on Davis' third homer in two games of the series - only the second time he had homered in consecutive games.
Tampa Bay tied it in the fourth when Mikie Mahtook tripled over Martinez's head in right and scored on Longoria's sacrifice fly.
The Rays went ahead in the sixth. Kiermeier started the inning with a walk, and took third on J.P. Arenciba's single. Al Alburquerque replaced Matt Boyd and gave up RBI singles to Sizemore, Longoria and Logan Forsythe.
Alburquerque balked to move Longoria and Forsythe to second and third with one out, and Tim Beckham added an RBI single off Tom Gorzelanny to give the Rays a 5-1 lead.
The Tigers loaded the bases with no outs in the bottom of the inning, and Matt Andriese replaced Ramirez to face Martinez. He fouled off three two-strike pitches before drawing a walk.
Alex Colome struck Nick Castellanos, but then hit McCann in the head with an 89 mph fastball. The ball hit McCann squarely on the helmet, above the left temple, but he simply trotted to first, pulling the Tigers within 5-3.
After Colome struck out Tyler Collins, Andrew Romine hit a single to left, making it 5-4, but Martinez ran through third base coach Dave Clark's stop sign, then froze. Instead of throwing home, Longoria went after McCann, and Martinez was able to score before the tag.
Tampa regained the lead on Nava's RBI single in the seventh, but Anthony Gose singled with one out in bottom of the inning, took third on consecutive wild pitches by Colome and scored when Rene Rivera threw wildly to third on the second one.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Rays: OF Steven Souza (left hand fracture) played five innings for Triple-A Durham, going for 0 for 2 with a HBP, and will now move his rehab assignment to High-A Charlotte as they play in the Gulf Coast League playoffs.
Tigers: DH Victor Martinez missed his second straight game with a respiratory illness. His status for Wednesday night is unknown. . LHP Daniel Norris (oblique) and RHP Anibal Sanchez (rotator cuff) are both on pace to pitch in a simulated game Saturday.
UP NEXT
The teams finish the three-game series Wednesday night, with Jake Odorizzi (6-8, 3.35) facing Detroit's Kyle Lobstein (3-6, 5.02). Lobstein will be making his second start after missing more than three months with a shoulder injury.
