Marc Topkin’s takeaways from Rays 6-3 win over Orioles

On Brandon Lowe’s huge play, what drew a big crowd on a Monday, Chaz Roe struggling yet again.

DIRK SHADD | Times
Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Chaz Roe (52) signals to the players in the field after Baltimore Orioles Renato Nunez (39) scored on a single to left hit by Orioles Pedro Severino (28) during the sixth inning at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, on Monday, July 1, 2019. — DIRK SHADD | Times Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Chaz Roe (52) signals to the players in the field after Baltimore Orioles Renato Nunez (39) scored on a single to left hit by Orioles Pedro Severino (28) during the sixth inning at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, on Monday, July 1, 2019.

Marc TopkinTimes staff

Published Jul. 2, 2019

Marc Topkin’s takeaways from Rays’ 6-3 win over Orioles on Monday:

* Brandon Lowe is going through another tough stretch at the plate, going into play Monday 1-for-his-last 14. But the hard work he’s done to improve his defense at second continues to pay off, such as his diving catch to shut down an Orioles rally in the sixth and keep the deficit at 3-2.

* The business model is not sustainable, of course, but the $2 ticket (and peanuts and fountain drinks) plan was obviously a hit, with more than 30,000 sold for the three Orioles games. It also showed that 20,441 fans can somehow find their way to the Trop even for those 7 o’clock games on a Monday night. Huh.

* Just when it looked Chaz Roe might have enough break back in his pitches to get straightened out, he struggled again. Sunday it was a hit to the only batter he faced. Monday was a bigger mess, starting the sixth with a double, a wild pitch and a game-tying RBI single that led to the Rays falling behind.

Up next:Kevin Kiermaier leads way as Rays beat Orioles 6-3