In St. Petersburg, Florida, Dane Dunning pitched impressively, holding the Tampa Bay Rays to just one hit through six innings, while Josh Jung contributed significantly with a home run and four RBIs, leading the Texas Rangers to a commanding 9-3 win on Monday night. The matchup between these two teams, reminiscent of their postseason clash last year, saw Dunning dominating until Richie Palacios broke through with a solo home run in the seventh inning.

Despite this, Dunning’s performance waned as he allowed two more runs before exiting the game. Jung’s offensive prowess proved pivotal, particularly against Ryan Pepiot, who made his debut for the Rays following an offseason trade. Jung’s three-run homer in the first inning set the tone, and he later added an RBI single in the sixth. Adolis García, meanwhile, marked his 100th career home run with a solo shot against Rays reliever Chris Devenski, his third homer in four games this season.

García also contributed another run by getting hit by a pitch with the bases loaded in the ninth inning, sealing the Rangers’ victory.

During their championship run in 2023, the Rangers achieved an impressive 11-0 record on the road, commencing their journey with consecutive wins over the Rays at Tropicana Field as part of a sweep in the best-of-three AL Wild Card Series. Tampa Bay struggled offensively, managing only two extra-base hits and scoring just one run across 18 innings.

Following Dane Dunning’s solid performance, David Robertson took over (1-0) after Dunning allowed three runs and three hits over 6 1/3 innings. Left-handed pitcher Brock Burke entered the game in the ninth inning and secured the final three outs.

Ryan Pepiot, acquired in December alongside outfielder Jonny DeLuca in exchange for Tyler Glasnow and outfielder Manuel Margot, struggled, giving up six runs and four hits in 5 2/3 innings. Despite this, Pepiot, making his 11th career start, displayed promising moments that exemplified why Tampa Bay is enthusiastic about his potential.

Although he initially faced difficulty, Pepiot settled down after allowing two walks at the start of the game, ultimately surrendering a three-run homer to Josh Jung, his second of the season. Texas’ offense was relatively quiet thereafter, managing only three hits over the subsequent five innings, including singles by Wyatt Lanford in the fourth inning and Corey Seager in the sixth, along with Jung’s RBI single that extended the lead to 4-0.