X-Rays Spex

A Below Average Rays Fan Blog

LBWMF: Rays punish Blue Jays, 11-3; Andy Fletcher’s liberal strike zone

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Austin Meadows collected three hits in his debut with the Rays Friday night. (Photo Credit: Tampa Bay Rays)

The Tampa Bay Rays struck early and often Friday night, bouncing back from a soul-crushing loss to defeat the Toronto Blue Jays, 11-3.

We’ve got a bunch of guys who are quick to forget a loss, manager Kevin Cash said. They bounced right back and put pressure on the defense and the pitchers right out of the gate.

The Rays remain mathematically alive in the AL Wildcard race, although they will need help from the Twins and Orioles this weekend, as they sit 6.5 games behind the Athletics and 8 games behind the Yankees with 9 games remaining.

Austin Meadows, the 23-year-old outfielder that was acquired at the trade deadline in the Chris Archer deal, came up big, collecting three hits while driving in three and scoring twice. Meadows replaced Ji-Man Choi, who was pulled due to a knee soreness in the sixth inning and singled in his first at-bat, cashing in a pair of runs, before he swiped second and scored later in the inning.

In the inning that followed, Meadows drove in Mallex Smith from second when a ground ball found its way through a hole in the left side of the infield. Two batters later, he came around to score when Joey Wendle doubled to center.

Meadows finished the night 3-for-3 with a pair of singles and a one-out double in the ninth.

I felt pretty good up in the box (Thursday night), Meadows said. I thought I felt good as well tonight. … I was able to pull out three hits right there and help the team.

Smith affected the outcome once more, reaching base three times and scoring two runs while plating one. He was pulled from the game in the seventh inning with an ankle injury that he sustained running into the outfield wall to make a catch in the fifth.

The defensive change was a precautionary move as Rays manager Kevin Cash expects Smith to be in the lineup Saturday afternoon.

Tommy Pham continued to prove his worth in the lineup, pushing his on-base streak to 23 games with a 2-for-3 night, which included a pair of walks, two RBI and a run scored.

After the game, Pham spoke to why he has been so productive in spite of getting banged up since the trade deadline:

I’ve been driving the ball. There haven’t been as many ground balls as earlier in the season. I think that’s key for me, using the whole field because I hit the ball hard, and when I use the whole field, it’s kind of hard to defend.

According to Aaron Rose (MLB.com) Pham has increased his average launch angle by 2.9 degrees since joining the Rays on July 31, according to Statcast™. Coming into Friday night, it had led to 10.6 percent fewer ground balls and an OPS 286 points higher than the .730 he posted with St. Louis this season.

All told, the Rays plated 11 runs on 15 hits and eight walks, again without the benefit of hitting any homers.

The New What Next

Tyler Glasnow (2-6, 4.22 ERA) will get the start for the Rays on Saturday after a disastrous seven-run, two-thirds inning performance in his last start against Toronto. He’ll pitch opposite of Thomas Pannone (3-1, 3.77).

Tyler Glasnow allowed the only hits on the night and struck out six over six scoreless innings, allowing the right-hander to pick up his first victory with Tampa Bay in nine starts. The only other baserunner against Glasnow came on a one-out hit by pitch of Rougned Odor in the first inning. Odor later swiped second base and moved up 90 feet on a wild pitch. He, however, struck out Adrian Beltre with two outs to escape the threat.

After the rough first inning, Glasnow found a rhythm on the mound and retired the next 11 batters he faced — taking a no-hitter into the sixth inning.

But with two outs In the bottom of the fifth, the right-hander allowed an infield single to Isiah Kiner-Falefa for Texas’ first hit on the night.

Be that as it may, outside of a bad start against the Toronto Blue Jays on September 5, in which he allowed seven runs and lasted just two-thirds of an inning, Glasnow has been strong for the Rays, allowing one run or fewer in five of his nine starts, and yielding two hits or fewer in five starts.

He was outstanding. I liked everything, Rays manager Kevin Cash said. I thought he was out of rhythm in the first inning, and I thought he did a nice job of kind of calming the situation down, getting the ball over the plate. He had the breaking balls, the fastballs going, and he threw some changeups. … He’s done just outstanding. The runs he’s given up, it seems like they come off solo home runs a lot, which is fine. Keeping guys off base, and if they’re going to get you, you’d rather it be a solo shot. With the exception of Toronto, we’ve been in every single game. He’s given us an opportunity to win every single game that he’s been out there.

Thomas Pannone allowed two runs on four hits and two walks while striking out six across seven innings on Sunday. Pannone got off to a shaky start after giving up two runs in the first inning, though he managed to bounce back and finish his day with six consecutive scoreless frames. The 24-year-old has appeared in just 10 games this season for Toronto (four starts) and owns a 3.77 ERA and 1.06 WHIP with 21 punchouts through 31 innings. Pannone has appeared in two games against the Rays this season, allowing two runs on four hits across 2-2/3 innings. Key Matchups: Willy Adames (1-2), Joey Wendle (1-2, 2B)

Rays 9/22/18 Starting Lineup

Smith CF
Pham LF
Duffy 3B
Cron 1B
Wendle 2B
Adames SS
Meadows RF
Gomez DH
Sucre C
Glasnow RHP

You can read about the series in our preview.

The New What Next: Rays vs Blue Jays — the penultimate series preview

Noteworthiness

— Ji-Man Choi is not expected to start Saturday.

— After being tossed from Thursday’s game, Carlos Gomez went to the clubhouse and posted several tweets criticizing the performance of home plate umpire Andy Fletcher. Gomez didn’t back down Friday, accusing Fletcher of missing “more than 30” pitches.

He’s the one that should have been thrown out last night because he’s the only one who didn’t do his job, Gomez said.

Gomez will likely be punished by the league, although he does have a point. Fletcher did have a rather liberal strike zone Thursday night as illustrated by Brooks Baseball.

Note: green “dots” are balls, red “dots” are strikes.

Rays bounce back to defeat Athletics, 7-5; TV deal rumblings

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It had the feeling of a postseason ballgame at the Trop on Saturday night, as the Rays bounced back to beat the Athletics, 7-5. (Photo Credit: X-Rays Spex)

With the game tied late at four runs apiece, Jake Bauers hit a go-ahead three-run home run to right off Jeurys Familia, as the Tampa Bay Rays evened the series against the Oakland Athletics with a 7-5 victory Saturday night.

The Rays needed a win in order to stay relevant, and that’s exactly what they got. As Orestes Destrade once said of the improbable run by the 2011 Rays, “Probable no, possible yes” — a mantra we at X-Rays Spex have staked ourselves to until the tragic number, etc tells us otherwise.

It would appear that Kevin Cash feels the same, although he also noted an added benefit of playing in games that matter, saying:

We want to be playing baseball games in these types of series for many years to come. We have a bunch of guys here who are gonna be here for many years to come and it’s a core group. Any lesson, any win, any tough loss that they can pull something positive from it will benefit us in the long run.

Tampa Bay took leads of 2-0 and 4-2 in the second and sixth innings, yet Oakland battled back to tie each time.

Familia entered the game in the bottom of the eighth and walked both Joey Wendle and Brandon Lowe to set up Bauers for the dramatic three-run, go-ahead blast — his 11th homer of the season.

Familia’s sequence of pitches which set up the homer was questionable at best, starting Bauers off with two off-speed pitches which had the rookie expanding his zone early as he got down in the count 0-2. Yet Familia tried to sneak a thigh-high 96 mph fastball over the inner third of the plate, past Bauers, and well … the rest is history.

It feels pretty damn good, excuse my language, Bauers said. It’s been a pretty long month for me personally, to contribute to a win like that and let emotions out in a positive way, it feels pretty good. … I think (the bat flip) might have felt better. It’s nothing to do with disrespect or showing people up, it’s just purely letting out a lot of pent up emotions out. Hitting a game-winning home run is a big thing, whether you’re 100-for-100 or 0-for-100. … The homer felt great; the bat flip felt better.

Brandon Lowe initially put the Rays ahead, 2-0, with a two-run homer off of Dean Kiekehefer, his fifth of the season.

Yet Oakland ground away at Yonny Chirinos, cutting the lead to 2-1 on a Jed Lowrie RBI single in the third, and tying the game on a Matt Olson solo homer in the sixth. Chirinos, however, settled down in the fourth inning and, at one point, retired 10 in a row and kept Tampa Bay in it.

The Rays responded in the bottom of the sixth when Wendle drew a leadoff walk and scored on Kevin Kiermaier’s RBI triple into the right-field corner.

Bauers followed with a sac-fly to right, scoring Kiermaier and putting the Rays up by two. Nevertheless, Oakland bounced right back in the top of the seventh to even the score again. Mark Canha doubled off reliever Adam Kolarek to score Marcus Semien and cut the lead to one. Canha later scored from third on a passed ball with two outs.

Oakland threatened once more in the top of the eighth inning, loading the bases with one out against Vidal Nuno, yet the southpaw caught Marcus Semien looking at strike three, and Andrew Kittredge coaxed a ground out from Canha to end the threat.

Even though Sergio Romo allowed a solo homer to Chapman in the ninth, he got the final three outs of the ballgame to preserve the victory.

The New What Next

The Rays will look for the series win on Sunday afternoon with Diego Castillo (3-2, 3.31 ERA) taking the mound as the opener. Jalen Beeks (4-1, 5.57 ERA) should see some mound time as well. There is also the possibility that Tyler Glasnow could pitch on regular rest. They’ll be opposed by Mike Fiers (12-6, 3.29 ERA).

Beeks boasted neither fastball command or control Monday night. After escaping a pair of threatening situations in his first two innings of work, Francisco Lindor hit a one-out single to right, and Michael Brantley doubled to right-center. Jose Ramirez followed by looping a ball into shallow centerfield that fell beyond Brandon Lowe and in front of Smith for a double, chasing Beeks after 2-1/3 innings (51 pitches, 33 strikes, 65% strike rate, 8/13 first-pitch strikes) and making it 4-2. That made for the third consecutive short outing by the right-hander after he built up his arm back in August.

Fiers allowed one run on four hits and one walk while striking out seven in six innings on Tuesday. He picked up the win. His remarkable run since getting traded to Oakland continued, as the right-handed Fiers is now 5-0 with 42 strikeouts across 39.2 innings (seven starts) in an Athletics uniform. He has won six straight decisions overall, and only needed 84 pitches (56 strikes, 66% strike rate, 18/22 first-pitch strikes) to cruise to this quality start. Fiers is 1-1 with a 5.14 ERA in four starts against the Rays, and 1-1 with a 7.31 ERA in three career starts at Tropicana Field. Key Matchups: Ji-Man Choi (1-3, 2B), Matt Duffy (2-7), Mallex Smith (1-3), Jesus Sucre (2-5)

Rays 9/16/18 Starting Lineup

Smith RF
Duffy 3B
Choi DH
Cron 1B
Lowe 2B
Kiermaier CF
Adames SS
Bauers LF
Sucre C
Castillo LHP

You can read about the series in our preview.

The New What Next: Rays vs. Athletics, part two — a series preview

Noteworthiness

— Ahhh, September baseball games that matter… Tampa Bay has used 16 pitchers over the past 18 innings, allowing seven runs over that stretch while striking out 20.

— In “No shit, Marc Topkin” news, on Sunday the Rays’ beat writer (for the Tampa Bay Times, one of the area’s biggest cheerleaders for the fleecing of taxpayers out of almost a billion dollars) iterated something that both Noah Pransky (WTSP News) and X-Rays Spex discussed months ago, when news of the team’s new TV deal with SunSports initially leaked to the public.

As Topkin writes:

As quiet as it’s been about the rich new TV deal that’s long been under discussion, might the Rays might feel getting it done — and news leaking of how much they’re getting — could hurt their negotiating position over their share of costs for the new stadium?

Back toward the start of the season we wrote:

It has been widely speculated that a new TV contract could be a significant step toward the team being able to afford a new stadium, while also giving the Rays an opportunity to increase the payroll. However, there is reason to pump the brakes on that point of view.

As Noah Pransky (Shadow of the Stadium, WTSP News) writes, they always knew that money was coming. That is, while the Rays will have a ton of new revenue pouring in, it’s plausible that the “new” money will have been budgeted already.

“Its likely not “new” revenue that the team is all of a sudden going to commit to payroll or a new stadium; they are revenues the team was already budgeting.”

Pransky also noted (Twitter link) that the TV deal probably will not change much on the stadium front. The Rays did not want the financial numbers to go public for a reason: it would reduce the team’s leverage by making the case for public subsidies even harder.

It’s easy for payroll hawks and stadium proponents — on either side of the bay — to get excited about the news, although it’s probably wiser to be cautiously optimistic.

If anything, Topkin’s 46-word prognosis lends an air of legitimate media credibility to what we, and others, have been saying (even if it was months after the fact).

LBWMF: Rays drop critical game to the Athletics in extras, 2-1

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Tommy Pham scored the Rays only run Friday night. (Photo Credit: Tampa Bay Rays)

The Rays dropped a tight extra inning contest to open the critical three-game set against the Athletics on Friday, as Oakland defeated Tampa Bay, 2-1. Tampa Bay starts the day nine-games back in the AL Wildcard race with 16 left to play, with the loss diminishing their already slim hopes of playing relevant baseball in October.

We understood where we were, where we stood, third baseman Matt Duffy said after the game. I guess still mathematically there’s hope. We understood how big each one of these games was. A little discouraging.

But we still have two more games. And there’s a lot to play for, for everybody in this room really other than chasing down these guys, so we’re still going to go out there with the same mindset.

Diego Castillo opened the game and delivered two perfect innings, striking out four. Ryan Stanek worked around a walk for a scoreless third, setting up Ryan Yarbrough to pitch the bulk of the innings.

Yet Oakland opened the scoring against Yarbrough in the top of the fourth, when Matt Chapman doubled with one out and scored on a two-out infield single from Matt Olson, that squirted just beneath the glove of a diving Willy Adames. Nevertheless, the Rays answered in the bottom of the inning when Tommy Pham reached on a two-out to out bloop double to center and Joey Wendle singled to left, scoring Pham and tying the game.

Former Ray Edwin Jackson worked five strong innings for Oakland before Shawn Kelly tightroped his way through a scoreless sixth when Tampa Bay had a golden opportunity to break the tie.

Mallex Smith led off the inning with an infield single before Matt Duffy laid down a bunt which the Athletics struggled to field, putting runners on first and second. The right-handed reliever wild pitched both runners into scoring position, but Ji-Man Choi struck out and Pham popped out leaving the Rays with one out to play with against Oakland’s mighty ‘pen. After Wendle was intentionally walked, Willy Adames struck out looking to end the frame.

The at-bat of the game, Adames said, and I didn’t get the job done.

Chaz Roe, Adam Kolarek, and Andrew Kittredge got key outs in the middle innings to keep the Rays within striking distance, and Jose Alvarado struck out the side in a perfect eighth.

For the Athletics, Ryan Buchter and Lou Trivino kept Tampa Bay off the board in the seventh and eighth innings.

Sergio Romo followed with his first appearance since September 4th, retiring Oakland in order in the ninth on 12 pitches. Meanwhile, Blake Treinen took the mound in the ninth for Oakland and hit Brandon Lowe with one out. Lowe advanced to second when Kiermaier grounded out to first, and the Rays got a second chance when Chad Pinder tripped over the left-field bullpen mound after chasing down Jake Bauers’ popper in foul territory. But Bauers popped out to send the game into extra innings.

Instead of leaning on Romo in the top of the tenth, Rays skipper Kevin Cash called on Jaime Schultz who surrendered the go-ahead homer to Davis to open the inning.

I definitely didn’t execute, Schultz said after the game. My plan is to go up in the, and I let it leak out over the plate right to his strength. He is a threat anytime. You’ve got to be cautious. The guy has 41 home runs, now 42.

All told, the Rays used nine pitchers and allowed only three hits, although the third hit proved costly.

Everything bullpen-wise worked really well; we didn’t get any points for them, Cash said.

Treinen returned to the mound for the tenth and retired the Rays in order to end the game.

The New What Next

The Rays and Athletics will continue this important series Saturday evening at Tropicana Field. Ryne Stanek (2-3, 2.58 ERA) is slated to open the game for Tampa Bay while Yonny Chirinos (4-5, 3.81 ERA) will likely throw the bulk of the innings. Like the Rays, Bob Melvin will utilize the opener strategy with Liam Hendriks (0-1, 5.94 ERA) taking the mound for Oakland.

Stanek will make his 52nd appearance of the season (his 26th start). The right-hander threw one scoreless inning with a walk on Friday night.

Chirinos allowed three earned runs on seven hits across 6-1/3 quality innings in a win over Baltimore on Sunday. He struck out six. Chirinos turned in the equivalent of a quality start, getting through his six-plus frames on an efficient 94 pitches (59 strikes, 63% strike rate, 16/25 first-pitch strikes). The right-hander has generated mixed results since assuming his current role, but he’s been sharper of late — considering Sunday’s line, Chirinos has allowed four earned runs over 13-1/3 innings while generating a 3.67 K/BB over his last two turns on the mound.

Hendriks will make his fifth start of the season in the opener role. The right-hander has allowed just one hit and no runs in his last three outings in that capacity, but Hendriks is 0-1 with a 3.72 ERA in 19-1/3 innings in his career against Tampa Bay.

Rays 9/15/18 Starting Lineup

Smith RF
Duffy 3B
Choi DH
Pham LF
Wendle SS
Kiermaier CF
Lowe 2B
Bauers 1B
Ciuffo C
Stanek RHP

You can read about the series in our preview.

The New What Next: Rays vs. Athletics, part two — a series preview

LBWMF: Tampa Bay Rays fall to Shane Bieber and Cleveland, 2-0

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(Photo Credit: X-Rays Spex)

Tyler Glasnow put together another quality start against Cleveland, yet Shane Bieber was just a bit better on Tuesday against the Tampa Bay Rays. The Rays saw their 12-game home win streak come to an end with the 2-0 loss — their first home loss since August 8th.

With the game tied at zero in the fifth inning, Yan Gomes launched a 0-1 breaking ball over the centerfield wall, his 14th home run of the season. An inning later, Edwin Encarnacion crushed a first-pitch fastball into the left-field seats, his 30th.

Those were the only runs Glasnow would allow across seven innings as he limited Cleveland to six hits while striking out three.

It was a solid bounce-back performance for the right-hander, who gave up seven runs in his previous outing against Toronto. Glasnow has given up just three runs in 14 innings against Cleveland, yet he has not received any run support.

Bieber, who gave up four runs across 5-1/3 innings on September 1, was dominant Tuesday night. In the first inning, Tommy Pham hit a single, which was the only hit allowed by the right-hander until Ji-Man Choi’s two-out base hit in the sixth. Even though Bieber issued a career-high three walks, the command of his four-seam fastball was masterful, which helped to set up a career-high 11 strikeouts.

That is not to say Tampa Bay didn’t have scoring opportunities.

In the fourth inning, Pham walked then swiped second to start the frame. However, Bieber struck out Choi and C.J. Cron before Joey Wendle lined out to second. Then in the seventh inning, Wendle hit a first-pitch double to left-center before  Bieber got Willy Adames to ground out to short and Brandon Lowe to fly out to shallow left. Things began to look up ahen Jake Bauers worked a four-pitch walk, which chased the right-hander in favor of southpaw Brad Hand. Matt Duffy (back strain), who hadn’t started for the second consecutive day, pinch-hit for Nick Ciuffo, and walked on four pitches to load the bases for Mallex Smith and his .365 batting average vs. left-handers. But as fate would have it, after Smith worked the count to 3-0, Hand came back on a 3-2 pitch to get Smith to pop out to shallow left to end the threat.

Meanwhile, Vidal Nuno and Andrew Kittredge combined to keep Cleveland off the board in the eighth, and Jaime Schultz did the same in the ninth, keeping Tampa Bay in the game.

Hand came back out an inning later and retired the side. Finally, Wendle singled to open the ninth against closer Cody Allen, but the Rays got nothing more.

The New What Next

Blake Snell (18-5, 2.06) will get the start in the final game of the series, pitching opposite of Carlos Carrasco (16-8, 3.41 ERA).

Snell threw five innings of scoreless ball on 90 pitches on Friday but was chased in the sixth after giving up a one-out infield hit to Cedric Mullins, then a two-run homer to Joey Rickard. It was Rickard’s fourth homer against Tampa Bay this season, giving him 17 of his 23 total runs batted in against the Rays. All told, Snell struck fanned nine and allowed five hits across 5-1/3 innings and 104 pitches (72 strikes, 69% strike rate, 15/20 first-pitch strikes).

I felt like I was around the zone, for the most part, Snell said. The offense did very well. Gave me a quick lead. All credit goes to them.

Carrasco allowed two runs (one earned) on six hits while striking out 14 across eight innings on Friday. Carrasco surrendered an unearned run in the fifth inning on a sacrifice fly, followed by another run in the seventh. Despite fanning 10 or more batters for the fifth time this season, he left with the game tied at two apiece. The right-hander was sharp following an uncharacteristic outing his last turn through the rotation, allowing five runs across 6-1/3 innings against the Rays. The 31-year-old owns a solid 3.43 ERA/2.95 FIP with 199 strikeouts over 168 innings this season. Carrasco is 4-4 with a 3.21 ERA in nine career starts against the Rays, and 4-0 with a 1.11 ERA in four starts at the Trop. Key Matchups: Willy Adames (2-3), CJ Cron (2-3, 2B, HR, RBI), Brandon Lowe (1-3, HR, RBI), Tommy Pham (2-4, 3B, RBI), Mallex Smith (1-3), Joey Wendle (1-4, 2B, RBI)

Rays 9/12/18 Starting Lineup

Smith RF
Wendle 3B
Pham LF
Choi DH
Lowe 2B
Kiermaier CF
Bauers 1B
Sucre C
Velazquez SS
Snell LHP

You can read about the series in our preview.

The New What Next: Rays vs Cleveland, part two — a series preview

Noteworthiness

— Per Marc Topkin, Kevin Kiermaier didn’t want to provide details of what team called “general illness,” but said “It was a tough couple of days for me,” and that he had never felt that bad before, but “Time and rest have helped.” Eager to be playing today.

LBWMF: Rays chase Corey Kluber; walk it off against Brad Hand for 6-5 win

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Ji-Man Choi’s walk-off home run gave the Rays their 12th consecutive home win, setting a new franchise record. (Photo Credit: Tampa Bay Rays)

The Tampa Bay Rays chased Corey Kluber in the second inning on Monday but eventually lost a three-run lead. Yet at the end of the day, the Rays won in the bottom of the ninth inning in dramatic fashion, as Ji-Man Choi hit a two-out, two-run walk-off homer against Brad Hand for a 6-5 victory. With the win, Tampa Bay set a new franchise record with 12 consecutive at home.

Cleveland took the initial lead in the first inning against opener Diego Castillo when Michael Brantley walked with one out, was wild pitched into scoring position, and moved up to third on a groundout. Edwin Encarnacion followed with a single to left, putting Cleveland in front. Although that was the only hit Castillo would allow, as the right-hander gave up just one hit in the first two innings.

Yet the Rays knocked perineal Cy Young Award contender Kluber out of the game in a four-run, 44-pitch second inning to take the lead. Joey Wendle started the rally with a one-out triple to right-center before Willy Adames hit a ground ball past a drawn-in infield to tie the game at one each. After Brandon Lowe went down looking for the second out, Jake Bauers worked a nine-pitch at-bat before he homered to right-center, his first since August 1.

Nick Ciuffo then doubled, Mallex Smith walked, and Pham had an infield hit, loading the bases before Ji-Man Choi was hit by a pitch, forcing home the fourth run — chasing Kluber.

From there Tyler Olson struck out CJ Cron to end the threat as the momentum swung back to Cleveland’s side. Olson, Oliver Perez, Dan Otero, and Andrew Miller combined for 4-1/3 innings of one-hit ball, striking out 10 batters along the way. The only hit they any of them allowed was a Mallex Smith double, which was erased when he unsuccessfully tried to steal third base to end the fourth inning.

However, Cleveland began its comeback in the fifth inning against Jalen Beeks, who boasted neither fastball command or control. After escaping a pair of threatening situations in his first two innings of work, Francisco Lindor hit a one-out single to right, and Michael Brantley doubled to right-center. Jose Ramirez followed by looping a ball into shallow centerfield that fell beyond Brandon Lowe and in front of Smith for a double, chasing Beeks after 2-1/3 innings (51 pitches, 33 strikes, 65% strike rate, 8/13 first-pitch strikes) and making it 4-2. Ryne Stanek and Adam Kolarek got the final two outs in the inning.

Cleveland tied the game in the sixth inning against Kolarek. Melky Cabrera led off the inning with a line drive single to right. Then with one out, Yan Gomes singled to left, bringing to the plate pinch hitter, and former Ray, Brandon Guyer. With runners at first and second, Guyer hit a two-run double over the head of Smith in centerfield, tying the game.

Cleveland capped their scoring in the seventh inning against Chaz Roe and took the lead in doing so. Roe hit Ramirez with a 3-2 pitch then stole second. After Encarnacion struck out, Ramirez swiped third with Yonder Alonso at the plate. With the infield drawn in, Lowe made a diving stop on a hard grounder to second. However, his throw was late, and Ramirez crossed the plate to take the late lead.

From there, Neil Ramirez pitched a scoreless seventh, and Cody Allen worked around a “runner on the corners” jam the eighth, setting the stage for the final frame.

Southpaw Brad Hand took the mound in the bottom of the ninth and quickly put down pinch-hitter Carlos Gomez and Smith for the first two outs of the inning. Nevertheless, Pham ground single through the right side to set up Choi, who crushed a 0-1 fastball into the right-field seats for Tampa Bay’s ninth walk-off win of the season.

Because both the Athletics and Mariners had off-days, the Rays were able to pick up a half-game on both, ending the night 7-1/2 games behind Oakland in the AL Wildcard race, and tied with the Mariners who previously stood between the Rays and A’s.

The New What Next

Tyler Glasnow (1-5, 4.64 ERA) will get the start for Tampa Bay in the second game of the series, pitching opposite of Shane Bieber (9-3, 4.63 ERA).

Glasnow was hit hard by the Blue Jays on Wednesday, allowing seven runs on five hits and two walks while recording just two outs. He struck out two. The right-hander just didn’t have it in this one, as Glasnow couldn’t make it out of the first inning. He issued a leadoff walk before allowing four of the next five batters to reach via base hits, putting Toronto up 3-0. Glasnow then served up a three-run homer to Aledmys Diaz. Adding insult to injury, the 25-year-old was almost out of the inning, but a wild pitch allowed Billy McKinney to reach base on a strikeout and Glasnow was chased after having thrown 39 pitches. The disastrous outing raised his ERA from 3.95 to 4.64.

Bieber allowed four runs (three earned) on seven hits and one walk while striking out six across 6-1/3 innings on Thursday against the Blue Jays. All four of the runs against Bieber came in the fourth inning when he allowed four of the first five batters he faced to reach base. It was an impressive outing for Bieber otherwise, as 15 of his 19 outs came on either groundballs or strikeouts, limiting Toronto’s chance to do damage. It was a welcome change for Bieber, who had failed to record a quality start in three of his past four starts. The Rays tagged Bieber for four runs on nine hits across 5-1/3 innings on September 1. Key Matchups: Willy Adames (1-2), Jake Bauers (1-2, 2B), Ji-Man Choi (2-3, 2 2B), Matt Duffy (1-3, 2B, 2 RBI), Brandon Lowe (1-2), Joey Wendle (2-3, 2B)

Rays 9/11/18 Starting Lineup

Smith CF
Pham LF
Choi DH
Cron 1B
Wendle 3B
Adames SS
Lowe 2B
Bauers RF
Ciuffo C
Glasnow RHP

You can read about the series in our preview.

The New What Next: Rays vs Cleveland, part two — a series preview

Noteworthiness

— No Matt Duffy (back), no Kevin Kiermaier (illness) again tonight for the Rays. Duffy said his back is feeling better, and an MRI didn’t show anything of concern. He is available off the bench tonight, based on pain tolerance. While there is no set timetable, Duffy is eyeing Friday for a potential return to the lineup.

— On the subject of where Rays fans are or aren’t, John Romano (Tampa Bay Times) said it best:

Oh sure, the Ybor City vision is still a long way from completion. The odds remain high and financing options remain scarce.

… As I’ve said, over and over, residents have no obligation to support a baseball team, a restaurant or a museum. How anyone spends their discretionary dollars is entirely up to them.

The point I’m making is larger.

The success, or in this case the struggles, of a pro sports team is more emblematic of a region’s vitality. Markets that lose MLB or NFL teams invariably overspend while trying to get back into the game for that reason.

That doesn’t mean Tampa Bay will wither if the Ybor City deal falls through. And it doesn’t mean that taxpayers should hand over their wallets if it comes to that.

— Preach Craig, preach: