The Tampa Bay Rays achieved a thrilling walk-off victory in their season opener.

Tampa Bay won 3-2 against the Colorado Rockies in the season opener held on the 29th (Korea time) at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, Florida.

This winter, Tampa Bay signed a two-year contract with Kim Ha-seong worth $29 million (approximately 42.7 billion won) and formed a starting lineup with Curtis Mead (1st baseman), Yandy Díaz (designated hitter), Brandon Lowe (2nd baseman), Junior Caminero (3rd baseman), Christopher Morel (left fielder), Danny Jansen (catcher), Josh Lowe (right fielder), Johnny DeLucca (center fielder), and Taylor Walls (shortstop). Kim Ha-seong started the season on the injured list due to lingering effects from shoulder surgery he underwent last year.

The Tampa Bay lineup did not score any runs until the 6th inning. However, they began to rally from the 7th inning, and Cameron Mizner became the hero of the game with a walk-off home run. Mizner, a 27-year-old outfielder who made his big-league debut last year, still retains his rookie status. The Tampa Bay lineup recorded 7 hits and 1 home run with uniformly distributed hits.

Starting pitcher Ryan Pepiot pitched 6 innings, allowing 6 hits, 1 walk, and 1 hit batter while striking out 8 and giving up 2 runs (1 earned), but did not become the winning pitcher due to a lack of offensive support. The bullpen, consisting of Hunter Biggie (1 inning, no runs), Mason Montgomery (1 inning, no runs), and Pete Fairbanks (1 inning, no runs), performed well and laid the groundwork for the walk-off victory.

Colorado's starters included Brenton Doyle (center fielder), Ezequiel Tovar (shortstop), Ryan McMahon (3rd baseman), Kris Bryant (designated hitter), Michael Toglia (1st baseman), Hunter Goodman (catcher), Nick Martini (right fielder), Kyle Farmer (2nd baseman), and Jordan Beck (left fielder). McMahon recorded 3 hits, and Tovar and Goodman also had multi-hit games, but the bullpen failed to secure the team’s victory. Starting pitcher Kyle Freeland pitched 6 innings, allowing 2 hits, striking out 7, and not allowing any runs, but the bullpen wasted the win.

In the top of the 3rd inning, Colorado's lead-off batter Beck reached base due to a third baseman's error and advanced to second with a stolen base. Doyle struck out, but Tovar hit an RBI double to score the first run. In the 4th inning, lead-off batter Toglia reached base after being hit by a pitch and advanced to second with a wild pitch. Following Goodman's hit, with no outs and runners on 1st and 3rd, Martini struck out, but Farmer hit a sacrifice fly to bring the score to 2-0.

Tampa Bay began their comeback in the bottom of the 7th. Lead-off batter Brandon Lowe hit a single, and Caminero hit a double, creating a chance with no outs on 2nd and 3rd. Pinch hitter Jonathan Aranda drove in 1 run with a sacrifice fly, and then Jansen's walk and Jose Caballero's RBI single tied the game at 2-2.

With the score tied, Tampa Bay ended the season opener with a walk-off solo home run by lead-off batter Mizner in the 9th inning.

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