Jankowski drives in winning run as Tampa Bay beats Milwaukee 3-2 after historic rain delays

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Travis Jankowski had a pair of hits including the winning RBI single in the ninth inning in Tampa Bay's 3-2 win over the Milwaukee Brewers on Saturday after the first home field weather delays in Rays teams history.

Jankowski singled off closer Trevor Megill to bring home rookie Kameron Misner, who was walked by Grant Anderson (1-2) and stole second.

The hit might have produced a close play at the plate but the ball snuck under the glove of left fielder Isaac Collins. Misner scored two of Tampa Bay’s three runs.

A journeyman who spent spring training with both the Cubs and White Sox before the Rays acquired him last month, Jankowski also gave Tampa Bay a 2-1 lead with a fourth-inning sacrifice fly.

Pete Fairbanks (3-1) pitched the ninth.

Jackson Chourio put Milwaukee on the board with a first-pitch solo homer off Taj Bradley in the third. In the fifth, Joey Ortiz snuck a solo homer inside the right-field foul pole, his first home run since Sept. 20.

Following a 38-minute rain delay in the bottom of the fifth, pitchers from both teams combined to retire 19 straight until the Brewers’ ninth, when consecutive batters reached on errors. After Fairbanks walked Rhys Hoskins to load the bases, Fairbanks got a popup and flyout to preserve the tie.

Precipitation delayed the first pitch by 27 minutes, the first home rain delay in Tampa Bay’s 28-year franchise history. The skies opened again in the bottom of the fifth. The Rays are temporarily playing at Steinbrenner Field after Hurricane Milton shredded Tropicana Field’s roof in October.

Fans were given free ponchos to mark the occasion.

In the series finale on Sunday, Chad Patrick (2-3, 3.08 ERA) starts for Milwaukee against Tampa Bay’s Drew Rasmussen (1-3, 3.09).

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Tampa Bay Rays' Taylor Walls, right, watches his RBI double off Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Tobias Myers during the fourth inning of a baseball game Saturday, May 10, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Milwaukee Brewers' Grant Anderson pitches to the Tampa Bay Rays during the ninth inning of a baseball game Saturday, May 10, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Pete Fairbanks reacts after getting out a jam against the Milwaukee Brewers during the ninth inning of a baseball game Saturday, May 10, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Tampa Bay Rays' Travis Jankowski celebrates after his walkoff hit off Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Trevor Megill during the ninth inning of a baseball game Saturday, May 10, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Tampa Bay Rays' Travis Jankowski, right, watches his RBI single off Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Trevor Megill during the ninth inning of a baseball game Saturday, May 10, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

The Washington Commanders are bringing aboard D.J. Williams, whose father is Super Bowl-winning quarterback Doug Williams, as their new QBs coach, a person with knowledge of the move told The Associated Press on Wednesday night.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the team had not yet announced the hiring of the younger Williams, who was the quarterbacks coach this past season for the Atlanta Falcons.

The move was first reported by ESPN.

D.J. Williams was an offensive assistant and assistant QBs coach for Atlanta in 2024.

Before that, he spent five seasons with the New Orleans Saints as an offensive assistant.

He played quarterback in college at Grambling State, the same school where his father was a QB before being a first-round NFL draft pick. The older Williams went on to play for the Washington franchise and was the Super Bowl MVP when the club defeated the Denver Broncos 42-10 after the 1987 season.

Doug Williams is now an executive with the Commanders.

D.J. Williams replaces Tavita Pritchard, who was Washington's quarterbacks coach during Jayden Daniels' AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year campaign in 2024 and left the Commanders during this past season after being hired by Stanford as its head coach.

David Blough, who was the assistant QBs coach under Pritchard and helped fill in after he moved on, was promoted last week to offensive coordinator. The previous OC, Kliff Kingsbury, agreed with head coach Dan Quinn two days after Washington's 5-12 season ended that it was time to part ways.

Quinn still also needs to find a new assistant QBs coach, offensive line coach and defensive coordinator. The former DC, Joe Whitt Jr., was fired after the season.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL

FILE - Atlanta Falcons offensive assistant quarterbacks coach D.J. Williams warms up players before coaching against the Las Vegas Raiders in an NFL football game, Dec. 16, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Jeff Lewis, File)