Rays Lose Heartbreaker to Astros 2-1, Waste Scoreless Start From Ryan Pepiot

Ryan Pepiot had his second straight scoreless start, but Houston rallied with a run in the eighth and a walk-off homer from catcher Yainer Diaz in the ninth for a 2-1. Framberr Valdez pitched a nasty 83-pitch complete game for Houston.

Tampa Bay's Ryan Pepiot pitched into the seventh inning and didn't allow a run Friday night in Houston. | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

HOUSTON, Texas — Tampa Bay starter Ryan Pepiot was brilliant on Friday night, pitching into the seventh inning while allowing just two hits. It still wasn't enough.

The Astros tied the game in the eighth inning on a throwing error and won it on Yainer Diaz's solo home run in the bottom of the ninth, walking off with a 2-1 win.

Pepiot — and the Rays, who had won eight of night before Friday — deserved a better fate. As great as he was, Houston starter Framber Valdez was just as impressive. He gave up a leadoff home run to Jose Caballero, but then pitching a complete game, allowing just three hits and needing only 83 pitches to finish off the Rays.

“(Pepiot) was awesome,” Rays manager Kevin Cash told reporters afterward. “You feel for him. You could say both pitchers deserve a win out of that game the way they performed. Our guy was going toe to toe, was super efficient.”

The game zipped along, played in just 2 hours, 1 minute, the fastest game of year. There wasn't much action because both starters were practically unhittable.

Pepiot allowed a leadoff single to Jake Meyers in the third inning, but he was wiped out by a double play. He gave up a two-out single to Christian Walker in the seventh inning, and that's when Cash came out to get him, having thrown 93 pitches. Kevin Kelly, fresh of the injured list, got the last out in the inning. Pepiot pitched seven scoreless innings in his last start on Sunday vs. Toronto.

Things unraveled a bit in the eighth inning for the Rays. Meyers led off the inning with a double and then Zach Dezenzo hit a ball up the middle. Curtis Mead, who was playing second base with the left-hander Valdez on the mound, back-handed the ball on the shortstop side of second base, but he throw to first was wild and Meyers scored easily to tie the game.

ZACH DEZENZO I REGRET EVERYTHING BAD I EVER SAID ABOUT YOU I LOVE YOU ASTROS TIED BALL GAME LETS GO #ASTROS https://t.co/5hGf3WFAHp

— Devoted Astro Fan (@DevotedAstroFan) May 31, 2025

Garrett Cleavinger came in to pitch the ninth and got the first two outs, but Diaz homered to rightto win it. The Rays are now 29-28 on the season.

Valdez's 83-pitch complete game was the most efficient outing in the majors since Chicago Cubs righty Kyle Hendricks had an 81-pitch complete game in 2018. Valdez (5-4) also had an eight-inning complete game in a 2-0 loss to Kansas City on April 26. After the Caballero homer, he retired 24 of the next 25 batters.

“I think it’s one of my best outings in my career so far,” Valdez told reporters after the game. “Sometimes there’s things that are going to motivate you to have a good outing. I think he ran into a little bit of luck on that second pitch. I said, ‘Yeah, this is the last run they’re going to get off me. It’s the last they’re going to hit off me.’ That motivated me [for] the rest of the game.”

The two teams meet again on Saturday, with first pitch at 4:10 p.m. ET. Zack Littell (4-5, 3.97 ERA) will start for Tampa Bay, while Colton Gordon, a St. Petersburg native, will pitch for the Astros. He started against the Rays on May 19 in Tampa and gave up three runs in 5 1/3 innings. He doesn't have a decision in his three starts, but Houston has won all three games.