ARLINGTON, Texas — Tampa Bay Rays left-hander Drew Smyly felt like a rookie again Sunday.
His first start since May 5 brought with it a case of the nerves.
The good news was that Smyly walked away healthy. The bad news was he walked away a loser on this day.
Smyly (0-2) suffered the loss in the Rays’ 5-3 defeat to Texas. Smyly hadn’t pitched in 102 days while recovering from a torn labrum in his left shoulder.
Smyly gave up five runs on seven hits and two walks over four innings. He struck out two, but was victimized by the two home runs from third baseman Adrian Beltre, which represented the go-ahead run, and Ryan Strausborger.
“Obviously, I’m not OK with the results, but it happens,” Smyly said. “Didn’t go my way today. I need to make better pitches. Overall, I was excited to be back out and look forward to the next game.”
Smyly got off to a bad start by walking speedy Texas leadoff hitter DeLino DeShields in the first. DeShields promptly stole second and scored on right fielder Shin Soo-Choo’s double.
“Rusty and lots of nerves,” Smyly said. “Felt like it was my first game all over again, but it’s not an excuse. I thought I did a good job of coming back and getting their 3-4-5 guys and limiting the damage.”