Something had been missing for the Rays, and they think they found it Friday night.
The never-say-die attitude and youthful enthusiasm the Rays played with much of last season returned Friday when they staged the largest comeback in franchise history. Down 7-0 midway through the fourth inning, the Rays rallied and rallied and rallied before finally winning on a walk-off homer by B.J. Upton.
"We didn't stop playing," Upton said. "The energy was still up in the dugout. ... Before I went to the plate, (Troy Percival) said, 'Let's play Rays baseball.'"
The Rays have been consistently inconsistent throughout the season, sputtering to a 17-20 start. Several times they've thought, and said, they had things straightened out, only to lose, and often lose badly, right after that.
Friday, they were convinced they were on to something.
"This is a steppingstone," Upton said.
RAYS 8, INDIANS 7: B.J. Upton led off the ninth inning with his first homer of the season to cap a comeback from a seven-run deficit, the largest in franchise history. LHP Scott Kazmir gave the Rays a bad start, but the bullpen combined for 5 2/3 scoreless innings.
