Rays add to Monday’s celebration at Tropicana Field by beating Cubs
TAMPA, Fla. — Monday was about celebrating. The repairs to hurricane damaged Tropicana Field. The return of major-league baseball to downtown St. Petersburg, Fla., its home for the previous 28 seasons. The strength and resiliency of the Tampa Bay community. And after pregame ceremonies that included presentation of the flag by roof repairers, first responders and team staff who worked on the ...
Players line the bases during pregame ceremonies at Tropicana Field on Monday, April 6, 2026, in St. Petersburg, Fla..
CHRIS URSO/Tampa Bay Times/TNS
TAMPA, Fla. — Monday was about celebrating.
The repairs to hurricane damaged Tropicana Field. The return of major-league baseball to downtown St. Petersburg, Fla., its home for the previous 28 seasons. The strength and resiliency of the Tampa Bay community.
And after pregame ceremonies that included presentation of the flag by roof repairers, first responders and team staff who worked on the project; a national anthem by country star Eric Church and first pitches by St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch and Tampa Mayor Jane Castor, the Rays did their part on the field, beating the Cubs 6-4.
Cedric Mullins, Junior Caminero and Jonathan Aranda hit home runs, and relievers Kevin Kelly, Ian Seymour, Hunter Bigge and Bryan Baker combined for five one-run innings after Shane McClanahan lasted only four frames.
McClanahan put the Rays in an early hole, allowing two runs in a 32-pitch second. He opened with back-to-back walks on eight pitches, then after two strikeouts allowed a walk to load the bases and a two-run single to Nico Hoerner.
But his teammates got the runs right back.
After Chandler Simpson walked and stole his way to third, Mullins knocked a homer just over the right-field fence. The Rays made it 3-2 when Taylor Walls, activated unexpectedly from the injury list after a spring oblique injury, doubled with two outs, and scored when Yandy Diaz singled to short and Dansby Swanson made an errant throw.
The Rays extended the lead in the fourth when Caminero, after going without a homer (or RBI) for the first eight games, homered in his second straight.
The Cubs got a run in their sixth, and the Rays added two more in the seventh when Aranda went deep for his team-high third home run.
Baker gave up a solo homer in the ninth.
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