Cubs vs Rays Recap: Rays Rally Past Cubs 6-4

The Tampa Bay Rays hosted the Chicago Cubs at Tropicana Field on Monday, April 6. Both teams wanted a win early in the season, and the Rays left with a 6–4 victory. The game moved back and forth, with big hits and momentum swings that kept fans on edge. Tampa Bay used steady pitching and big swings to take the lead, while Chicago fought back late. This match showed how one big inning can change everything quickly.

Chicago grabbed the first lead in the second inning when Hoerner singled to left. Busch and Swanson scored on that hit, and Amaya advanced to second with two outs. Tampa Bay answered in the bottom half of the second when Mullins hit a two-run homer to tie the game. Then Díaz reached with an infield single and scored after a throwing error by Swanson, giving the Rays a 3–2 lead heading into the third inning.

The Rays took control in the third when Caminero blasted a 401-foot homer to left. That hit made the score 4–2 and gave Tampa Bay a cushion. Later, in the seventh inning, Aranda hit a two-run homer to right-center that extended the lead to 6–3. Those two long homers were the turning points because they changed the scoreboard quickly and forced Chicago to play catch-up for most of the game.

Chicago tried to rally in the sixth and ninth innings, but it was not enough. In the sixth, Busch hit a sacrifice fly that made the score 4–3 and kept hope alive. During the ninth, Shaw blasted a solo shot that cut the gap to 6–4, but the Cubs ran out of time. Tampa Bay closed the game with that two-run margin. The Rays improved their record to 4–5 while the Cubs fell to 4–5 after the loss.