ST. PETERSBURG --
\n\nBehind that dominant combination of sinkers, splitters and sliders, Chirinos struck out six and had control of the strike zone as 60 of his 88 pitches landed for strikes.\n\n“I just want to thank God for this victory,” Chirinos said through Rays Spanish translator Manny Navarro. “He gave me the opportunity to go out there, and it was a very good win.”\n\nChirinos could prove to be a big weapon for the Rays with his versatility as a spot starter and a bulk guy. He’ll look to build off this start when he takes on San Francisco later this week, but the 2019 season is off to a strong start for the 25-year-old.\n\n“We didn’t see him well at all,” Astros manager AJ Hinch said. “We didn’t have a lot of good swings. We had a couple of at-bats where things could have swung a little bit differently, but for the most part it was pretty high-end velocity. He had sink, the split was good, his breaking ball was good. We didn’t know whether or not he was going to stay in the game as long as he did. He was very effective.”\n\nAs Chirinos cruised through the Astros' lineup,
\n\n“He just has that knack for getting a lot of carry,” Cash said of Meadows’ home run. “That ball just kept going and going, but that was huge for us.”\n\nThe Rays took three of four from the Astros. They wanted to get off to a better start than they did in 2018, when they began 1-8, and they certainly accomplished that against one of the best teams in the American League.\n\n“I think it can validate that we can play with anybody,” Zunino said. “We believe that in this clubhouse, and now it’s just to go out there and prove that. I think we’re going to do that.”\n\n**Castillo earns first career save** \n