ST. PETERSBURG — Kevin Kiermaier returned. The problem was, so did Erasmo Ramirez.
Kiermaier turned a hustle double into a run. Ramirez, with help from his bullpen, made sure that was the Rays' only run in the Mariners' 7-1 victory Friday in front of 11,501 at Tropicana Field.
The Rays (60-64) scratched out four hits — three from Wilson Ramos — in losing for the 11th time in their past 14 games. They are a season-worst four games under .500.
Since climbing to a season-high seven games above .500 after a win in Oakland on July 18, they are 9-20.
What's more, they have averaged 2.97 runs per game since the All-Star break.
The Rays, who began the day three games out of the second wild-card spot in the American League, missed a chance to gain ground in the standings, or at least gain ground on the Mariners, one of four teams sitting between them and that last wild-card spot.
RELATED: Rays journal: Kevin Kiermaier returns, Mallex Smith sent to Triple A.
Ramirez, who was traded by the Rays last month, saw to that.
So did wasting a bases-loaded, one-out opportunity in the second inning when Adeiny Hechavarria and Daniel Robertson flied out.
The highlight of the night was Nelson Cruz's mammoth home run in the ninth inning off Brad Boxberger that was measured by MLB Statcast at 482 feet, making it the longest home run in Trop history.
"Cool," Cruz said. "Do they give me a prize for that?"
The good news: Rays rookie Austin Pruitt went seven innings. He allowed career highs in hits (11) and runs (six), but he saved the bullpen.
"Probably wasn't his sharpest, wasn't quite as crisp. Saying that, he still kept his pitch count really down and picked us up in a big way," manager Kevin Cash said. "The bullpen could have gotten blown up right there, and we don't need that to happen on top of everything else that's not going on."
RELATED: Roger Mooney's takeaways from Friday's Rays-Mariners game.
That the Seattle hitters were aggressive helped Pruitt, who threw 33 pitches while allowing three first-inning runs but followed with a nine-pitch second inning and a seven-pitch third.
"At that point (after the first inning), I'm thinking, 'All right, let's get through five here.' They were very aggressive, swung at the first pitch and allowed me to go deeper," Pruitt said.
Kiermaier missed 61 games with a right hip fracture and a lower back strain suffered during his first minor-league rehab stint with Class A Charlotte. He said before the game he hoped to inject some much-needed energy into the fading Rays.
"I don't think you can say one guy coming back and everything is going to turn," Cash said before the game. "If it works out that way, I'll stand corrected."
The night was also a homecoming for Ramirez, who made his first appearance at the Trop since being traded July 28 to Seattle for reliever Steve Cishek.
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Explore all your optionsEarlier this season, pitching coach Jim Hickey called Ramirez the MVP of the Rays' pitching staff for his ability to fill any role — starter, long relief, late relief. On Friday, he reminded the Rays that he could turn in a decent start, too.
"What can I say. This feels weird because it's been no more than a month (since the trade)," Ramirez said. "But in my mind, no matter where you go, you just have to execute every pitch. We're in the fight for the playoffs, so I cannot just come here and give up.
"I know I have a lot of friends on the other side, but at the same time, it's a game and I have to play for my team in this moment. Everything was working; the pitches were down at the right moment. I got out of the bases loaded. That gave me extra energy."