TAMPA, Fla. (Interstat) — Drew Rasmussen struck out 13 over seven scoreless innings, allowing only two hits, as the Tampa Bay Rays defeated the Boston Red Sox 7-5 on Wednesday afternoon at George Steinbrenner Field. Tampa Bay (40-25) built an early lead with single runs in the third and sixth innings and three in the fifth. Yandy Díaz drove in two runs, Nick Fortes went 4 for 4 and Cedric Mullins hit a two-run homer in the eighth. Boston (27-39) rallied with four runs in the eighth, capped by Ceddanne Rafaela’s three-run homer, and added one in the ninth. Caleb Durbin homered twice and drove in two for the Red Sox. Rasmussen (6-2) dominated before Garrett Cleavinger earned his second save despite allowing a run in the ninth. Jake Bennett (1-2) took the loss, giving up four earned runs in five innings. Attendance was 16,504, and the game lasted 2 hours, 34 minutes. Tampa Bay swept the three-game series, winning its fourth straight against the Red Sox.

TAMPA, Fla. (Interstat) — Caleb Durbin homered twice and Ceddanne Rafaela blasted a three-run shot to give Boston a late lead, but Cedric Mullins answered with a two-run homer in the bottom of the eighth inning as the Tampa Bay Rays defeated the Boston Red Sox 7-5 on Wednesday afternoon at George Steinbrenner Field. Durbin led off the eighth inning with his second homer of the game, a solo shot to left field that tied the score at 4-4. After Isiah Kiner-Falefa walked, Andruw Monasterio struck out. Jarren Duran singled to center, putting runners at the corners, and Rafaela followed by launching a fly ball to left that cleared the wall, giving Boston a 5-4 lead. The outburst came against Tampa Bay reliever Steven Matz, who allowed two earned runs on two hits in one-third of an inning. Cole Sulser followed and surrendered the Rafaela homer, charged with two earned runs of his own in one-third of an inning. But the Rays answered immediately in the bottom half. Nick Fortes singled off Boston reliever Garrett Cleavinger, and Chandler Simpson entered as a pinch runner. Mullins followed with a fly ball to right center that cleared the wall for his sixth homer of the season, putting Tampa Bay ahead 7-5. The Rays tacked on two runs in the inning, matching the four Boston had just scored, and that proved to be the decisive margin. Fortes finished 4-for-4 with two doubles and two runs scored, leading a Rays offense that collected 13 hits. The catchers’ performance included a double in the third inning that set up Tampa Bay’s first run. Fortes led off the third with a double to center and advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt by Cedric Mullins. Taylor Walls followed with a sacrifice fly to center, scoring Fortes and giving the Rays a 1-0 lead. Tampa Bay added three runs in the fifth inning to extend the lead to 4-0. Fortes again doubled to lead off the inning, this time his 10th double of the season. After Mullins struck out, Taylor Walls laid down a bunt single that moved Fortes to third. Yandy Díaz singled through the left side to score Fortes. Austin Slater followed with a double that deflected off Boston pitcher Jake Bennett, scoring Walls and moving Díaz to third. Bennett intentionally walked Junior Caminero to load the bases, and Ryan Vilade hit a sacrifice fly to right field that scored Díaz. The Rays tacked on another run in the sixth inning to make it 5-0. Fortes led off the inning with a single to left, and Walls followed with a single to right. Díaz singled to left, scoring Fortes and moving Walls to second. Slater grounded into a fielder’s choice to end the inning, but the damage had been done. Boston’s offense was dormant through the first seven innings against Rays starter Drew Rasmussen. The right-hander dominated, striking out 13 batters and allowing only two hits over seven innings. He walked one and did not allow an earned run. Rasmussen improved to 6-2 on the season. The Red Sox finally broke through in the eighth inning against the Tampa Bay bullpen. Durbin’s homer tied the game, and Rafaela’s three-run shot gave Boston the lead. But Mullins’ answer in the bottom half restored the Tampa Bay advantage. Durbin hit his third homer of the game in the top of the ninth inning, a solo shot to left field, to cut the deficit to 7-5. Isiah Kiner-Falefa walked on a challenge that overturned the original call, but Andruw Monasterio struck out to end the game. Cleavinger earned his second save, allowing one earned run on one hit while striking out one in one inning of work. Bennett took the loss, falling to 1-2. He allowed four earned runs on nine hits over 4 2/3 innings, striking out two and walking two. The Red Sox bullpen allowed three runs over 3 1/3 innings. The win improved Tampa Bay to 40-25 on the season. The Rays have won four consecutive games against Boston, including the first two games of this three-game series. Boston fell to 27-39. Tampa Bay’s offensive attack featured multi-hit games from Fortes, Díaz, and Walls. Díaz had two hits, including the go-ahead single in the fifth. Walls had two hits and drove in a run. Slater had one hit and an RBI. Caminero had one hit. Aranda had one hit. Boston managed only six hits in the game. Durbin had two homers and drove in two runs. Rafaela had the three-run homer. Duran added a single. Yoshida had a single. The Red Sox struck out 16 times in the game, a figure that included nine strikeouts through the first four innings. The game took 2 hours, 34 minutes to complete. Attendance was 16,504. Both teams continue their seasons this weekend. Boston returns home to face the Texas Rangers. Tampa Bay travels to Anaheim to play the Los Angeles Angels. Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Tampa Bay Rays 5, Boston Red Sox 4. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Tampa Bay with a 53.40 percent probability to win. Tampa Bay had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of -1.5. The total score of 12 went under the over/under line of 7.5.

PREVIEW: Red Sox at Rays ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (Interstat) — The Tampa Bay Rays will try to complete a three-game sweep of the Boston Red Sox on Wednesday evening at George Steinbrenner Field. First pitch is scheduled for 6:40 p.m. EDT, with the weather forecast calling for clouds and a game-time temperature of 88 degrees. Tampa Bay (39-25) has won the first two games of this series, taking a 3-1 victory Monday and a 4-3 win Tuesday. The Rays lead the American League East, while Boston (27-38) sits last in the division. Right-hander Drew Rasmussen will start for Boston. Rasmussen is 5-2 with a 3.12 ERA this season. He has not faced Tampa Bay this year. Tampa Bay had not announced a starting pitcher as of Wednesday morning. Players to watch Boston: Right-hander Payton Tolle is scheduled to pitch in relief after starting Tuesday’s game. Tolle took the loss, allowing four earned runs on nine hits over six innings. In his last five appearances, Tolle is 2-3 with a 3.82 ERA and 27 strikeouts in 30 2/3 innings. He pitched eight scoreless innings in a win at Atlanta on May 16. Tampa Bay: Right-hander Nick Martinez is available out of the bullpen. Martinez started Tuesday’s win, allowing three earned runs on six hits over seven innings. In his last five outings, Martinez is 3-2 with a 3.60 ERA. He has struck out 13 batters in 30 innings over that stretch. Recent history The Rays have won three of the last five meetings between the teams this season. Boston’s two wins came at Fenway Park on May 8 (2-0) and May 10 (4-0). The Red Sox lost both games in Tampa earlier this week. Simulator projection Interstat’s game simulator projects a 5-4 victory for Tampa Bay. Upcoming schedules Boston returns home Friday to open a three-game series against Texas. The Red Sox then host Toronto for three games starting Tuesday, followed by a six-game road trip to Seattle and Colorado. Tampa Bay travels to Los Angeles for three games against the Angels starting Friday. The Rays then face the Los Angeles Dodgers for three games beginning Monday, followed by a six-game homestand against Washington and Kansas City.