Rays surge late to edge Padres 7-6 in St. Petersburg

Rays rally in the seventh

Kevin Kelly secured the victory for the Tampa Bay Rays, who defeated the visiting San Diego Padres 7-6 at Tropicana Field on Saturday, August 29, 2026. The home team overcame an early deficit and a mid-game tie to close out the contest with a decisive surge in the seventh inning.

The final score marked the Rays' 81st win of the season, improving their record to 81-54, while the Padres fell to 72-64. Attendance at the venue was 25,621.

Early scoring and home run exchange

The Padres struck first in the top of the first inning when Hicks singled to center, allowing Díaz to score. Tampa Bay tied the game in the third inning. Cronenworth doubled to center, driving in Harris, and Aranda followed with a home run to center field that traveled 453 feet.

The game remained tight through the sixth inning. France homered to right field for a 351-foot shot, scoring Machado and tying the game at 3-3. Caminero then hit a 426-foot home run to center to give Tampa Bay a 4-3 lead.

Decisive seventh inning

The Padres retook the lead in the top of the seventh. Machado singled to right, scoring Harris and Rengifo, with Tatis Jr. reaching third. Tatis Jr. subsequently stole home to extend the San Diego lead to 5-3.

However, the Rays responded immediately in the bottom half of the inning. Díaz singled to center, scoring Palacios and Walls, with the latter reaching on an error. Mullins also scored on a throwing error by second baseman Rengifo.

This sequence brought the Rays to a 6-3 lead. Simpson then singled to left, scoring Mateo and moving Caminero to second. The final run for Tampa Bay came as the inning concluded, sealing the 7-6 victory.

Pitching performance

Walker Buehler started for the Padres, pitching five innings and allowing seven hits and three earned runs while striking out three batters. He issued no walks. Nick Martinez started for the Rays, lasting six innings and allowing seven hits and three earned runs with four strikeouts and no walks.

Kevin Kelly pitched one and two-thirds innings for the winning side, allowing one hit and two walks while striking out two. He earned the win, improving his record to 6-3. Bryan Baker closed the game with one inning of scoreless relief, allowing no hits and one walk while striking out one.

He recorded his 39th save of the season. Other Padres relievers included Kyle Hart, Bradgley Rodriguez, Adrian Morejon, and Yuki Matsui, while Garrett Cleavinger pitched for Tampa Bay.

Sources

ESPN