MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (Interstat) — The Miami Marlins held off a late Tampa Bay Rays rally to secure a 4-3 victory Saturday evening at loanDepot Park, evening the season series at two games apiece and handing the Rays their fourth loss in five contests.

Miami improved to 30-35, while Tampa Bay dropped to 37-24. The game drew 12,443 fans and lasted 2 hours, 50 minutes.

For six innings, the game appeared destined for a pitcher’s duel. Rays starter Shane McClanahan worked five innings, allowing four earned runs on eight hits while striking out six. He took the loss, falling to 6-3. Marlins starter Lake Bachar delivered three scoreless innings, permitting no hits and striking out three, before turning the game over to a bullpen that combined for six shutout innings.

The scoreless deadlock ended in the bottom of the fifth. With one out, Marlins third baseman Javier Sanoja lifted a 1-0 pitch over the left‑field fence for his second home run of the season, putting Miami ahead 1-0. Sanoja finished 3‑for‑4 with the homer and two RBIs.

After Esteury Ruiz drew a walk, catcher Joe Mack doubled to center field, scoring Ruiz and extending the lead to 2-0. Xavier Edwards and Otto Lopez followed with consecutive singles to load the bases, but McClanahan escaped further damage by inducing a double play from Kyle Stowers.

The Marlins added two more runs in the sixth against reliever Kevin Kelly. Heriberto Hernández singled, Leo Jiménez singled, and Sanoja delivered an RBI single to left, tying the game at 3-3. Ruiz was then hit by a pitch to load the bases, and Liam Hicks lifted a sacrifice fly to right, scoring Jiménez and giving Miami a 4-3 lead. The rally ended when Joe Mack grounded into a double play.

Tampa Bay’s offense, which had managed only two hits through the first seven innings, finally broke through in the eighth against the Marlins bullpen. Victor Mesa Jr. walked, Nick Fortes was hit by a pitch, and Yandy Díaz doubled to center, scoring Mesa Jr. and cutting the deficit to 4-3. But Marlins reliever Calvin Faucher struck out Jonathan Aranda and Junior Caminero, then induced a groundout from Richie Palacios to strand runners at second and third.

The Rays mounted one last charge in the ninth. Ben Williamson walked, and Taylor Walls reached on a bunt single. Mesa Jr. grounded out, advancing the runners, and Chandler Simpson walked to load the bases. Díaz then singled to right, scoring Walls and cutting the margin to 4-3, with the tying run at third and the go‑ahead run at second. But Marlins closer Tyler Zuber entered and struck out Caminero swinging for the final out, earning his first save of the season.

Zuber worked one‑third of an inning, allowing no hits and striking out one. Winning pitcher John King tossed two‑thirds of a scoreless inning, improving to 3-1. Faucher contributed two innings of two‑hit, scoreless relief with three strikeouts. Anthony Bender added 1 1/3 hitless innings with two strikeouts.

For Tampa Bay, Casey Legumina fired two innings of one‑hit relief with three strikeouts, and Kevin Kelly allowed one hit over a scoreless inning with two strikeouts.

Díaz led the Rays with three hits and two RBIs. The Rays finished with five hits, while the Marlins collected 10.

Miami’s victory snapped a two-game slide after the Rays blanked the Marlins 6-0 on Friday. Tampa Bay had lost three straight entering that contest and has now dropped four of its last five overall.

Lake Bachar was the top star for Miami. In his three scoreless innings, he retired all nine batters he faced, following a strong outing June 2 at Washington in which he also threw 2 2/3 scoreless innings. Bachar’s performance set the tone for a Marlins bullpen that allowed only three hits over the final six innings.

The win was the Marlins’ fourth in their last six games after a five‑game losing streak. Miami next hosts the Rays in the series finale Sunday, then welcomes the Arizona Diamondbacks for a three‑game set beginning Tuesday.

Tampa Bay travels to Los Angeles for a three‑game series against the Angels starting Friday, June 12, after the Boston Red Sox visit Tropicana Field for a three‑game series beginning Monday.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Miami Marlins 4, Tampa Bay Rays 2. Interstat’s ELO system gave Tampa Bay a 51.70 percent probability to win. The Rays were installed as pregame favorites with a spread of minus 1.5. The total of seven runs went over the over/under line of eight.