Rays rally to beat Cubs on late HRs by Junior Caminero, Nick Fortes

Marc Topkin, Tampa Bay Times on Sep 13, 2025

Published in Baseball

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CHICAGO — Saturday was looking like another one of those kinds of days for the Tampa Bay Rays.

They rallied from an early three-run deficit only to see arguably their best reliever, Garrett Cleavinger, give up a two-out homer in the seventh to Michael Busch.

Then, after Junior Caminero got them even by hitting his 43rd homer to lead off the eighth, it looked like they might blow it again before Brian Baker got them out of the inning.

But ultimately, Nick Fortes delivered the biggest hit, a 421-foot home run to open the ninth, leading them instead to a 5-4 win.

Closer Pete Fairbanks had a hand in it, too, pitching into and out of a ninth-inning jam for his 26th save. He allowed the first two Chicago Cubs to reach base but retired the next three.

The win halted the Rays’ second three-game skid in a week, improving their record to 73-75 and keeping them within at least 7 1/2 games of the Seattle Mariners and Houston Astros, who were tied for the third American League wild-card spot (as well as the AL West lead) and playing later Saturday.

Caminero moved to within three homers of tying the Rays single-season record of 46 set by Carlos Pena in 2007. Caminero also notched his 107th RBI, matching Aubrey Huff’s 2003 total for fourth most by a Ray. Pena also holds that record, with 121.

The Cubs jumped out to a 3-0 lead against Drew Rasmussen, who was making his career-high 29th start.

They got one run in the first on a homer by DH Moises Ballesteros, with the ball going off the hands of former Cub Anthony Rizzo, who was sitting in the left-center field bleachers for a few innings as part of his retirement ceremonies.

The Cubs extended their lead to 3-0 in the fourth with a two-out rally off Rasmussen. Nico Hoerner singled and stole second, and when Rasmussen fell behind Ballesteros 3-0 they chose to put him on. That didn’t work out well, as Dansby Swanson followed with a double to left that scored both.

Rasmussen worked five innings, allowing three runs on four hits and a season-high-matching three walks.

The Rays started their comeback in the fifth in an unlikely manner — a triple by rookie first baseman Bob Seymour. Richie Palacios’ groundout to second got Seymour home.

The Rays added two more in the sixth.

Yandy Diaz led off with a single and scored on Brandon Lowe’s double. With two outs, pinch-hitter Jake Mangum delivered a single that scored Lowe to make it 3-3.

The Cubs went back ahead 4-3 in the seventh on a two-out home run by Busch off Cleavinger. The Rays tied it in the eighth on Caminero’s blast to center.

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