St. PETERSBURG, FL – Wonder Franco scored three, Francisco Mejia broke the tie with a fly in the eighth inning, and the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Tampa Bay Rays 2-1 on Friday. Baltimore Orioles.
Tampa, the current monarch of the MLS East Division, was victorious in its opening game of the season.
Franco began his decisive attack with a single blow to the right of loyalist Dillon Tate. It was the 21-year-old’s first meeting since signing an 11-year contract worth $182 million during pre-season.
In his rookie season, he hit 0.288 with seven home runs and 39 RBIs in 70 games.
Rookie Ji-Man Choi walked and Rookie of the Year Randy Arrozarina arrived last year on an inland trip to load the bases off the right hand of Puerto Rican Jorge Lopez (0-1).
Brandon Lowe hit hard playing on the board, which kept Franco off the rules. Then Mejia raised his sacrificial balloon to the left meadow.
Andrew Kittridge (1-0), fifth of seven bowlers at Tampa Bay, pulled off the inning.
For the Orioles, Venezuelan Anthony Santander scored 3-1 in one game, and Robinson Chirinos 3-0. Mexican Ramon Urillas 4-1. Dominican Henri Mathieu 3-1, Kelvin Gutierrez 3-0, Rugend Odor 1-1.
For the Cuban Rai, Yandy Diaz 4-1 in the round and Arosarina scored 4-2. Dominican Franco 4-2, Mejia without an official role but with RBI Manuel Margo 2-2. Colombian Harold Ramirez 3-0.