Fortes' tiebreaking double in 9th gives Rays 3-2 win over Brewers

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Nick Fortes hit a tiebreaking two-out double off Trevor Megill in the ninth inning as the Tampa Bay Rays edged the Milwaukee Brewers 3-2 on Monday night.

Milwaukee took its first loss after opening the season with a three-game sweep of the Chicago White Sox.

Megill (0-1) retired the first two batters he faced and had a 1-2 count on Jonny DeLuca before walking him. Fortes sent a first-pitch fastball into the gap in right-center to bring home DeLuca.

Ian Seymour hit Sal Frelick with a pitch to start the bottom of the ninth before retiring the next two batters. Kevin Kelly picked up his first save by getting Blake Perkins to ground out.

All the runs before the ninth came on homers.

Yandy Díaz continued his blistering start by leading off the game by sending a 1-2 pitch from Kyle Harrison over the left-field wall. Díaz, who also singled in the second, is 11 for 20 this season.

William Contreras put Milwaukee ahead with a 415-foot drive over the center-field wall in the sixth.

The Rays tied it in the seventh when DeLuca delivered a 438-foot blast over the wall in left-center.

Milwaukee wasted a chance to break the tie in the eighth as Garrett Cleavinger (1-1) struck out Gary Sánchez to strand runners on first and second.

Both starting pitchers were making their debut with new teams.

Harrison came to Milwaukee as part of a six-player trade with Boston that sent third baseman Caleb Durbin to the Red Sox. Nick Martinez joined the Rays on a one-year, $13 million deal.

Martinez struck out three and allowed six hits, two runs and no walks in six innings. Harrison struck out eight and gave up one run, four hits and one walk in five innings.

After recovering from Tommy John surgery and a triceps injury, Shane McClanahan is scheduled to make his first major league start since August 2023 for Tampa Bay on Tuesday. Brandon Woodruff (7-2, 3.20 ERA in 2025) pitches for Milwaukee.

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

Milwaukee Brewers' Brice Turang (2) steals second base past Tampa Bay Rays' Ben Williamson during the eighth inning of a baseball game Monday, March 30, 2026, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Aaron Gash)

Milwaukee Brewers' Angel Zerpa pitches during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Tampa Bay Rays, Monday, March 30, 2026, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Aaron Gash)

Tampa Bay Rays' Garrett Cleavinger pitches during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers, Monday, March 30, 2026, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Aaron Gash)

Tampa Bay Rays' Nick Fortes hits an RBI double during the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers, Monday, March 30, 2026, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Aaron Gash)

Tampa Bay Rays' Nick Fortes watches his RBI double during the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers, Monday, March 30, 2026, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Aaron Gash)

CHICAGO (AP) — Edward Cabrera was just about perfect in his debut with the Chicago Cubs.

Cabrera pitched six crisp innings in Monday night's 7-2 victory over the Los Angeles Angels. The right-hander struck out five while throwing 80 pitches in the opener of a three-game series, 49 for strikes.

“He did a tremendous job,” catcher Carson Kelly said. “Had good command with everything. He's got electric stuff. Having all those pitches and keeping guys guessing, I think there's not one pitch you can sit on, and I think that's what really makes him special.”

Cabrera set the tone for his outing with a first-inning strikeout of Angels star Mike Trout. The three-time AL MVP fouled off a 97.2 mph fastball before fanning on a full-count curveball on the eighth pitch of the at-bat.

“I just went out there and gave it my 100% like I always tend to do,” Cabrera said through a translator. “I had faced him before, but I just wanted to go out there and give it my absolute best regardless of who was up to bat.”

Cabrera, who turns 28 on April 13, was acquired in a January trade with Miami for outfielder Owen Caissie and infield prospects Cristian Hernandez and Edgardo De Leon. Caissie is 5 for 13 with a homer and four RBIs in his first four games with the Marlins.

Wearing custom Cubs-themed cleats, the 6-foot-5 Cabrera allowed two baserunners in his first start of the year. Yoán Moncada walked with one out in the second, and Nolan Schanuel singled to right in the fourth.

After allowing his only hit of the night, Cabrera got Jorge Soler to bounce into an inning-ending double play. He pounded his glove with his fist as he made his way off the mound.

“As he got into it, he had everything working,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. “Carson felt really comfortable with kind of any pitch, any count. With his stuff, if we get into that mode, it's going to be a tough night for hitters.”

Cabrera, who made his major league debut with Miami in 2021, went 8-7 with a 3.53 ERA in a career-high 26 starts and 137 2/3 innings last year. He agreed to a $4.45 million, one-year contract with Chicago a day after the trade, avoiding salary arbitration.

He became the first Cubs pitcher to throw six shutout innings while allowing one or fewer hits and one or fewer walks in his team debut since Don Cardwell on May 15, 1960, against St. Louis.

“Just goes right after guys,” Kelly said of Cabrera. “He's like ‘I think I’m the best every time I take the mound, and I truly believe that,' and I think he's going to go out there and bring that energy every single time.”

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

Chicago Cubs pitcher Edward Cabrera (30) pitches against the Los Angeles Angels during the first inning in a baseball game Monday, March 30, 2026, in Chicago. (AP Photo/David Banks)