LOS ANGELES (Interstat) — Kyle Tucker’s three-run homer in the second inning erased an early deficit and Miguel Rojas delivered a pinch-hit solo shot in the seventh to lift the Los Angeles Dodgers to a 4-3 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays on Monday night in front of 53,911 at Dodger Stadium.

The Dodgers improved to 46-27, while the Rays fell to 41-28. The game lasted 2 hours, 36 minutes.

Tampa Bay struck first, scoring two runs in the top of the first off Dodgers starter Eric Lauer. Junior Caminero led off with a double and scored on a homer to left by Ryan Vilade, his fourth of the season. The Rays added another run in the second on a sacrifice bunt by Taylor Walls that plated Austin Slater, giving the visitors a 3-0 lead.

The Dodgers answered in the bottom of the second against Rays starter Steven Matz. Mookie Betts doubled to left, and Max Muncy singled to put runners at the corners. Tucker then drove a 1-1 pitch to right-center for his sixth homer, tying the game at 3-3.

Both teams’ bullpens took over after the second inning, and the score remained tied until the seventh. With one out in the bottom of the seventh, Rojas, batting for Dalton Rushing, launched a 2-0 pitch from Rays reliever Cam Booser over the left-center fence for his second homer of the season, giving the Dodgers a 4-3 lead.

The Rays threatened in the eighth. Vilade led off with a single and advanced to second on a groundout. After a balk charged to Dodgers reliever Alex Vesia, Vilade moved to third, but Vesia induced a groundout and a flyout to end the inning.

Tanner Scott closed the door in the ninth, striking out one and allowing no hits to earn his eighth save of the season.

Kyle Hurt earned the win, pitching a scoreless seventh inning and striking out two while allowing one hit. Hurt improved to 2-1. Matz took the loss, falling to 4-4, after allowing three runs on two hits and a walk over two innings, striking out one.

Nick Martinez provided length for Tampa Bay, tossing 5 1/3 innings of relief. He allowed five hits and three earned runs while striking out six. Lauer started for the Dodgers and went six innings, giving up six hits and three earned runs with four strikeouts.

Tucker finished 2-for-4 with a homer and three RBIs. Vilade went 2-for-4 with a homer and two RBIs. Rojas was 1-for-1 with a homer. For the Rays, Caminero had two hits, including a double, and scored a run.

The game’s pivotal moment came in the bottom of the seventh. With the score tied 3-3, Rojas stepped in as a pinch hitter and drove a pitch from Booser deep to left-center. The solo homer broke the deadlock and proved to be the decisive blow, as the Dodgers’ bullpen held the Rays scoreless over the final two innings.

Tampa Bay outhit the Dodgers 8-7 but left four runners on base and could not capitalize on scoring opportunities after the second inning. The Rays went 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position following the second inning.

The Dodgers, meanwhile, did just enough offensively behind Tucker and Rojas. Their bullpen combined for three scoreless innings, with Hurt, Vesia and Scott allowing only one hit and striking out three.

The series continues Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium, with the same two teams meeting again. The Rays then return home to face the Washington Nationals on Friday, while the Dodgers host the Baltimore Orioles on Friday.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Los Angeles Dodgers 6, Tampa Bay Rays 4. Interstat’s ELO system had projected the Dodgers with a 66.60 percent probability to win. The Dodgers had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of minus-1.5. The total score of seven went over the over/under line of 8.5.