The Tampa Bay Rays and Boston Red Sox met again late Saturday afternoon for the second-to-last time this season in a battle for sole possession of the title of third-best team in the AL East. Perhaps more importantly, the Rays’ second straight win secured a series win and gave the Rays a chance to finish with an 81-81 win on Sunday…because nothing could be more fitting.

Shane Baz made his 14th start of the season after retiring from multiple injuries and ended his season in 2024. The young right-hander pitched six innings of two-run baseball. Baz struck out seven, walked one and allowed just three hits. He picked up the win, his fourth of the year, and finished the year with a 3.06 ERA and 1.06 WHIP over 79.1 innings. The Rays will certainly be excited to see what he brings to the table in 2025.

Facing Baz was Red Sox starter Kutter Crawford, who didn’t fare so well and was eliminated after just 4.1 innings. He gave up six earned runs, five hits and four walks. The loss was his 16th of the year.

The Red Sox scored first when Casas hit a solo shot in the first inning to give the Sox a 1-0 lead, but Junior Caminero answered in the third with a two-run shot that scored Yandy Diaz and the gave Rays a 2-1 lead. The explosion was his sixth this year.

Caminero led the Rays 3-5 with a home run, three runs batted in and two runs scored.

He extended the lead in the fifth with an RBI single that scored Diaz again. Aranda followed with an RbI single of his own scoring off Brandon Lowe. Josh Lowe followed with a two-run single of his own that drove in Caminero and Aranda. The Rays would take a 6-1 lead and never look back.

A wild pitch from Baz gave the Red Sox their second and final run of the night. In the following half inning, Morel hit the runback with an RBI single of his own, giving the Rays a 7-2 lead.

That score stood and with the win the Rays grew to 80-81. They will play their last game of the 2024 season tomorrow and will send Ryan Pepiot to the ball. He will be looking for his ninth win. With a win, the Rays would avoid their first loss of the season since 2017, when they lost 80-82.