Rays lose to Cubs as Drew Rasmussen misses start with baby coming early

Marc Topkin, Tampa Bay Times on Apr 7, 2026

Published in Baseball

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TAMPA, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Rays’ plans for Tuesday’s game, and their chances to win, changed significantly around 10 a.m.

The Rays thought they were in good shape for opening-day starter Drew Rasmussen to make his scheduled start against the Chicago Cubs with his wife, Stevie, four days from her due date with their second child.

Until Tuesday morning anyway, when Stevie called Rays head athletic trainer Joe Benge to tell him things had accelerated.

Her initial thought was to wait and see if the pace would interfere with Drew’s start in the 6:40 p.m. ET game, but all parties quickly agreed on the proper plan to address the more pressing matter.

“I know Ras was hoping to get through certainly (Tuesday’s) start, but that didn’t happen. So we’ll adjust here on the fly‚” manager Kevin Cash said before the game. “It happens. So hope all goes well. And excited for him and Stevie for sure.”

Without Rasmussen, the Rays (5-6) had a rough night, losing 9-2.

Their new plan was to use several of their multi-inning relievers, and it didn’t go well. Each of the three — replacement starter Mason Englert, Cole Sulser and Yoendrys Gomez — gave up runs and 16 hits total on the night.

And their teammates didn’t do much against Cubs fill-in starter Javier Assad, held without a hit into the fifth inning and to six on the day. They got their two runs while down 7-0 in the eighth.

Englert retired five of the first six Cubs, but got into his first bit of trouble in the second, allowing three consecutive two-out hits, to Dansby Swanson, Michael Conforto and Matt Shaw, which led to two runs.

Englert gave up two more to start the third.

A leadoff double by Alex Bregman and a single by Pete Crow-Armstrong set the Cubs up. An errant throw to second by catcher Nick Fortes trying to catch Crow-Armstrong stealing allowed Bregman to score, and a sac fly by Moises Ballesteros made it 4-0.

The Cubs added a run off Sulser in the sixth after loading the bases on three singles. The run scored on a force out at second that was the Rays’ highlight of the day. Shortstop Taylor Walls gloved the ball and tossed it behind his back to Richie Palacios at second.

Gomez allowed a homer to Crow-Armstrong in the seventh, a run in the eighth on two singles and a stolen base, and a two-run homer to Ballesteros in the ninth.

Though Rasmussen said Monday that he felt he was in the clear to pitch Tuesday, he did note that their first child, Rhett, came 10 days early. Their second child is a daughter.

The Rays explored getting a pitcher from Triple-A Durham, which was playing in Moosic, Pennsylvania, home of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre team, but there was no roster move before the game.

Rasmussen can be placed on the paternity list for up to three days and replaced on the active roster. Of the pitchers on the Rays’ 40-man roster at Durham, Jesse Scholtens would offer the most length in covering innings.

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