Rays snap Twins’ winning streak at 6 with 3-2 win at No. 10 following Royce Lewis throwing error

MINNEAPOLIS – The Tampa Bay Rays scored on a throwing error by Minnesota’s Royce Lewis with two outs in the 10th inning for a 3-2 victory that ended the Twins’ six-game winning streak Wednesday night.

The Rays, who improved to a 25-11 record in games decided by one or two runs, won for just the fourth time in their last 12 games.

Jason Adam (4-1) pitched a perfect ninth for the win. Phil Maton worked a 1-2-3 inning in the 10th for his second save, with closer Pete Fairbanks unavailable after the thumb of his throwing hand was bruised by a comebacker the night before.

Jorge Alcala (1-2) hit Randy Arozarena with a pitch to start the inning. He threw a sinker into the dirt so wildly that it ricocheted off the backstop and straight to catcher Christian Vázquez for a relatively easy putout of autorunner Jose Siri at third.

Lewis, who caught Siri’s grounder with the bases loaded in the seventh and beat Amed Rosario to the bag for the inning-ending power out, lined a sharp chopper from Jonny DeLuca to his left and sent his deep throw ahead first baseman Carlos Santana who let Arozarena score the go-ahead run.

Lewis went 3 for 4 with a walk and a game-clinching home run in the fifth inning that broke part of a video board at Target Field.

Isaac Paredes hit his team-leading 11th home run in Game 3 off Twins starter Joe Ryan, who went six innings with a 2-1 lead before a bumpy performance from the bullpen. Ryan made another bid to make his first All-Star team, allowing one run on six hits and one walk.

Ryan, who was selected in the seventh round by the Rays in the same 2018 draft that picked up Bradley in the fifth round, was traded to the Twins in 2021 for 55-game veteran slugger Nelson Cruz. The Rays lost in the playoff division series about 2 1/2 months later.

Rays starter Taj Bradley allowed two runs on seven hits and two walks in six innings.

Lewis hit his eighth home run in 14 games since returning from a serious quadriceps muscle strain suffered in the season opener. With an exit velocity measured at 108.7 mph, this one ricocheted off the ribbon that faces the second deck above left field — and appeared to knock out a long section of LED lights that represented the rotating advertisements. The red Budweiser logos that existed at the time ended in a blank black spot, just like the rest that followed.

In 90 career major league games, including the postseason, Lewis hit 29 home runs with 74 RBIs.

Cole Sands relieved Ryan for the seventh and gave up a one-out bloop single to Ben Rortvedt, before pinch runner Jose Caballero stole second base and took third when shortstop Carlos Correa let the throw bounce out of his glove and into center field.

Yandy Diaz tied the game with the sweetest of singles, a bunt of sorts that dribbled down the third-base line where Lewis had no play.

TRAINERS ROOM

Fairbanks played catch without any issues before the game following his minor injury Tuesday. He said he feels normal and hopes to be available for action by Thursday.

FOLLOWING

The Rays will send RHP Zack Littell (2-5, 4.24 ERA) to the mound for the series finale Thursday afternoon, facing Twins rookie RHP Simeon Woods Richardson (2-1, 3.29 ERA) . Littell made his major league debut with the Twins in 2018, after being acquired from the Yankees in a trade the previous year.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB