Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Alfaro’s 9th-inning single lifts Phils past Rays
ST. PETERSBURG, FLA. » Jorge Alfaro hit a go-ahead single with two outs in the ninth inning and the Philadelphia Phillies won their fourth straight game by beating the Tampa Bay Rays 2-1 on Friday night.
Alfaro’s ground single to left field off closer Alex Colome (0-2) scored Scott Kingery, who doubled, for a 2-1 lead.
Edubray Ramos (1-0) got the final out in the eighth with a runner on third before Hector Neris worked the ninth for his second save.
Tampa Bay dropped to 0-6 when allowing three or fewer runs.
Vince Velasquez permitted one run, four hits, one walk and had seven strikeouts in 6 2/3 innings for the Phillies, who were coming off a three-game sweep of Cincinnati.
Jake Faria, coming off a start Saturday at Boston in which he gave up eight runs in 1 2/3 innings, limited Philadelphia to one run and two hits over 5 1/3 innings. He struck out seven and walked two.
Philadelphia tied it at 1 on Carlos Santana’s RBI single in the sixth off reliever Jose Alvarado, who ended the inning by striking out Nick Williams with the bases loaded.
Tampa Bay took a 1-0 lead in the second when C.J. Cron singled, went to second on a wild pitch and scored on Mallex Smith’s single.
The Rays came within a few feet of another run in the fourth. Matt Duffy’s two-out fly was dropped by Aaron Altherr, but the right fielder recovered to throw out Duffy at second just before Cron slid across the plate.
Faria held the Phillies hitless until Williams opened the fifth with a single. Williams was then picked off first by catcher Wilson Ramos.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Phillies: RHP Tommy Hunter (strained right hamstring) will take part in an extended spring training game Saturday . ... Philadelphia manager Gabe Kapler said RHPs Jerad Eickhoff (strained right lat) and Mark Leiter Jr. (strained right forearm) are both getting closer to throwing off a mound.