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LBWMF: staying alive, Tampa Bay Rays defeat Baltimore, 8-3

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Wilson’s second inning grand slam was the difference in last night’s ball game. (Photo Credit: Tampa Bay Rays)

Wilson Ramos hit a second inning grand slam, the difference in Friday night’s game, while Alex Cobb battled through six innings, as the Tampa Bay Rays pounded the Orioles, 8-3, in Baltimore. Evan Longoria’s third inning solo shot tied the club record for home runs set last season. Tampa Bay starts the day still hanging on to its slim postseason chances, five games back of the last Wildcard spot with eight games left to play.

After a pair of 1-2-3 frames by Ubaldo Jimenez and Alex Cobb, Logan Morrison started the Rays’ second inning rally when he was hit by an 0-2 pitch. The HBP came just one pitch after Morrison painfully fouled a ball off his ankle. Suffice it to say he was in a lot of pain following that plate appearance, yet he stayed in the game. Steven Souza Jr. and Corey Dickerson went back-to-back with seeing eye singles (to center and right, respectively) loading the bases for the Buffalo. Ramos didn’t waste any time, and belted a first-pitch fastball 439 feet into the left field seats for an early four-run lead.

It was the fourth grand slam for Tampa Bay this season, and the 10th homer for Ramos in 2017.

Yet Baltimore answered in the bottom of the frame against Cobb, loading the bases on a pair of seeing eye singles, and a walk. Austin Hays hit a sacrifice-fly to center to put the Orioles on the board, while their second run crossed the plate on the first of two wild pitches by the right-hander.

Determined not to have their death warrant signed on this fateful evening, the Rays bounced back with two more runs in the top of the third. Evan Longoria homered to start the inning, his 19th of the season and the 216th of Tampa Bay’s 2017 campaign, tying the franchise record set last year. After Morrison and Ramos reached on a couple of base hits sandwiched around a couple of outs, Adeiny Hechavarria drove in the second run of the frame on a base hit to center, chasing Jimenez.

The run support was more than enough for Cobb, who battled throughout his start — only collecting one clean frame in the first. Yet the right-hander made the all important big pitches when he needed to, while also benefitting from his defense. For example, in the third inning, with a runner in scoring position, Dickerson threw out Manny Machado at the plate as he attempted to score on an Adam Jones single, cutting down a potential run.

Baltimore got one run closer when Chris Davis hit a solo homer in the fourth, however, Dickerson’s fifth inning RBI double, scoring Souza, again gave Tampa Bay a four-run lead.

Steve Cishek took over for Cobb in the seventh inning and worked around a single, while Tommy Hunter fanned the side in the side on 15 pitches in the following inning.

The Rays scored one last run in the ninth on Lucas Duda’s double to right-center — snapping an 0-20 skid, and scoring Kevin Kiermaier, who was hit by a pitch.

Finally, Brad Boxberger worked around a one-out walk in the ninth inning, fanning the side and putting Baltimore out of its misery.

The New What Next

Jake Odorizzi (9-8, 4.46 ERA, 5.72 FIP) will take the mound for the Rays in the third game of four, pitching opposite of former Rays right-hander Jeremy Hellickson (2-5, 7.29 ERA, 6.57 FIP).

Odorizzi no-hit the Red Sox into the sixth inning on Sunday before he allowed a walk and a two-run homer to Jackie Bradley Jr. The right-hander had a live fastball, coaxing 15 swings-and-misses on his 96 pitches, including 10 on his 61 fastballs. Odorizzi has now allowed just three earned runs across 16-1/3 innings in his last three starts.

Hellickson, in his last start against the New York Yankees on Sunday, was shelled for six runs on four hits (including two home runs) and four walks over just three innings of work. The former Ray has given up three runs or fewer in only four of his nine starts as an Oriole, while performing to a 7.28 ERA/6.16 FIP since the All-Star break. Suffice it to say, the right-hander hasn’t looked nearly as good as he did in his year and a half stint with the Phillies. Key Matchups: Lucas Duda (7-14, 4 2B, 2 HR, 5 RBI, BB), Wilson Ramos (3-10, HR, 3 RBI)

You can read about the series in our preview.

Rays 9/23/17 Starting Lineup

Kiermaier CF
Duda 1B
Longoria 3B
Morrison DH
Souza Jr. RF
Dickerson LF
Ramos C
Miller 2B
Hechavarria SS
Odorizzi RHP

Noteworthiness

— Adeiny Hechavarria has been a very good acquisition for the Rays. How good? Hechavarria hasn’t committed an error since August 1. Compare that with Orioles SS Tim Beckham, who has committed 9. Per Marc Topkin (Tampa Bay Times) during that time, Hechavarria ranks first in the league at the position with a 1.000 fielding percentage; Beckham is 25th of the 27 qualifiers at .959. I’d argue that it would be wise for the Rays to offer Hechavarria a long-term deal — or in the very least a contract extension — move Miller off 2B, and allow Willy Adames and Daniel Robertson to platoon the middle infield. Then again the Rays ownership is notoriously cheap, so…

LBWMF: Rays and Odorizzi falter in Queens, drop first game of the series, 5-1

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(Photo Credit: Robert “The Party Animal” Peters)

The Tampa Bay Rays started off well Monday night, but the Yankees took control in the fourth inning against Jake Odorizzi — and due to a crucial fielding error by Trevor Plouffe — as they rolled to a 5-1 victory.

Tampa Bay took a 1-0 lead in the second inning against C.C. Sabathia, after Lucas Duda drew a leadoff walk and Adeiny Hechavarria shot a two-out triple to left-center, scoring a run.

And while the Rays had multiple chances to tack on runs in the third, fourth, fifth, sixth and eighth innings, they couldn’t push a runner across the plate. Their best opportunity came in the third inning after Peter Bourjos and Kevin Kieirmaier (swinging) went back-to-back with bunts against a hurler that notoriously has a hard time fielding them.

Sabathia was clearly frustrated, and it appeared that the Rays were on the cusp of breaking things open. Yet with none out and two on, Plouffe struck out looking. Then on a double steal, Kiermaier overslid second bag and was called out. Finally, Evan Longoria grounded out to end the inning.

Sabathia was lifted after 4-1/3 innings, having allowed eight baserunners but just one run. With two on and one out, David Robertson struck out Longoria on a 92mph full count at the bottom of the zone, then fanned Duda to end the fifth. Sound the trombones, the Rays went 0-9 wRISP.

Meanwhile, Odorizzi looked really good the first time through the order. He reverse pitched New York’s batters early in those at-bats, leaning on his curveball (since he didn’t have his splitter), then blew them away with a well located fastball that coaxed a good number of swings and misses. Though he held the the Yankees hitless over the first three innings, they came back to answer big in the fourth.

I’ll let Ian Malinowski (DRaysBay) spin the tale of woe:

Then the second time through the order came around in the fourth inning, and Odorizzi walked Aaron Judge on four pitches, and followed it up by allowing a line drive single to Gary Sanchez. That put runners on the corners with no outs. Danger.

Didi Gregorius sent a fly ball to right that sacrificed home one run, but Odorizzi struck out Starlin Castro, and it seemed like he was going to escape. Matt Holliday hit a grounder down the third base line, and Trevor Plouffe (Longoria was the designated hitter, Plouffe was in the field) had lined up. But the ball went under his glove for a run-scoring E5.

Jacoby Ellsbury reached via catcher interference*, and Todd Frazier hit a no-doubter three-run homer.

*It’s real difficult to see a catcher’s interference from the outfield. Ellsbury hit a foul ball towards us, everyone in front of us stood up, and when they sat back down, Ellsbury was standing at first base rather than in the box. We decided catcher’s interference was the only thing it could be, but it took us a while. “What just happened?” moments are rare when you’re watching on TV. They’re kind of fun.

Odorizzi’s night was done fter after 52-pitch fourth inning. For context Odo threw 43 pitches in the first three innings alone. He went to three-ball counts in just two of the first nine at-bats, but that number blossomed to seven three-ball counts to seven of the last 10 batters he faced.

The bullpen did its job after Odorizzi, although the damage had been done. Chaz Roe, Andrew Kittredge, Ryne Stanek, Chase Whitley and Sergio Romo held the Yankees off the board over the final 5-1/3 innings. Roe was the luckiest of the five, getting away with five consecutive misplaced pitches against Starling Castro and Matt Holiday, but coaxing a weak grounder to third, and a flare to right.

Friends, I’ve tried to stay optimistic and beat the drum for Tampa Bay’s playoff hopes, but with 17 games left to play, one simple truth stands out: this is not a postseason contending team. Just do us a favor, at least look like you’re having fun!

The New What Next

Tampa Bay will play the second game of the series Tuesday night with Blake Snell (3-6, 4.36 ERA, 4.44 FIP) on the mound. He’ll pitch opposite of Sonny Gray (3-4, 2.74 ERA, 4.06 FIP).

Snell allowed six runs on seven hits (including two homers) across four innings in a no-decision against Minnesota on Wednesday. He fanned seven and did not issue a walk. Snell reportedly did not feel like he used his fastball well enough, which resulted in the end of a career-long streak of five consecutive starts lasting six innings or longer. The 7/0 K/BB looks good in theory, however, Snell in the strike zone left a pair of pitches over the plate to Brian Dozier and Ehire Adrianza who made him pay with two homers. Be that as it may, he has posted a respectable 3.92 ERA since the All-Star Break.

Gray allowed one run (unearned) on six hits and two walks in Thursday’s win over Baltimore. He struck out five over 5-2/3 innings. Gray struggled his last time out, yet this time he pitched around eight baserunners to limit the damage. The right-hander — who limited the Rays to two-runs on seven hits over 6-1/3 innings on July 19 — is rebounding from his 2016 campaign with a 3.22 ERA/1.17 WHIP/8.6 K:9. Key Matchups: Corey Dickerson (3-11, HR, 3 RBI), Danny Espinosa (1-3, HR, RBI), Kevin Kiermaier (3-12, 2B, HR, 3 RBI), Evan Longoria (10-26, 4 2B, HR, 3 RBI, BB)

You can read about the series in our preview.

The New What Next: Rays vs Yankees — a home away from home series preview

Rays 9/12/17 Starting Lineup

Kiermaier CF
Duda DH
Longoria 3B
Morrison 1B
Souza RF
Dickerson LF
Ramos C
Miller 2B
Hechavarria SS
Snell LHP

LBWMF: Matt Andriese, Rays allow nine runs for second consecutive day

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Like his predecessor the night before, Matt Andriese was knocked out of the game early on. (Photo Credit: Tampa Bay Rays)

For a second consecutive day, the Tampa Bay Rays were beaten up in Boston. Matt Andriese was knocked out in the second inning after he allowed eight runs (six earned), as the Red Sox plated nine runs for the second straight day.

Chris Archer allowed three first inning runs on Friday and, wouldn’t you know it, Andriese played follow the leader and did the same. Eduardo Nunez led off the first inning with a single to left, swiped second, then scored on Dustin Pedroia’s two-run homer into the seats over the Green Monster.

One has to question Andriese’s sequence of pitches in that at-bat, as he followed a dust-off pitch with a heater that was up and over the inner third of the plate — right in Pedroia’s juice zone.

From there, things spiraled out of control for the Rays, who appeared to be no match for the very aggressive Red Sox. One such example of Boston’s aggressiveness came with one out in the first after Mookie Betts singled, then stole second, and finally advanced to third on a Wilson Ramos throwing error. Betts, well…bet on Wilson’s arm, and won the gamble. Betts later scored on Mitch Moreland’s groundout to a confused duo of players on the right side of the infield, Adeiny Hechavarria and Danny Espinosa, neither which knew who was responsible to field the play in the shift.

When all was said and done, Boston plated nine runs on 15 hits, but just one homer. Credit where it’s due, the Sox have an approach at the plate, while the Rays don’t, hence their 0-6 wRISP on the night. Sometimes swing away and hit homers works, yet often times it doesn’t. That is to say, I’m envious of Boston. Let those words never be spoken again.

The New What Next

The Rays will try to salvage the final game of the series on Sunday with Alex Cobb (10-9, 3.64 ERA, 4.18 FIP) on the mound. He will start opposite of Rick Porcello (9-16, 4.67 ERA, 4.57 FIP).

Cobb held the Twins to one run on three hits and two walks while striking out seven over 5-2/3 innings on Monday night. After giving up his only run in the first inning Cobb went to work, putting down 12 of the next 13 batters on six strikeouts, a double play, and five ground ball outs — keeping the Rays in the ball game until they could break things open in the sixth inning.

Porcello continues to be victimized by the long ball, as he was taken deep three times by Toronto in his last turn; he has given up 35 homers on the season. He has now given up at least three home runs three times this season, and has given up multiple homers a whopping 10 times. Porcello has eclipsed his career high in homer runs by 10, the main reason he’s performed to a 4.67 ERA this season. After dominating the league in 2016, Porcello is 6-10 with a bloated 5.38 ERA at Fenway, and 1-3 with a 5.18 ERA in four starts (24-1/3 IP) against the Rays this season. Key Matchups: Peter Bourjos (2-7), Curt Casali (3-10), Corey Dickerson (8-32, 4 2B, HR, 3 RBI), Danny Espinosa (1-3, HR, 3 RBI), Evan Longoria (14-55, 6 2B, 2 HR, 7 RBI, 4 BB), Brad Miller (10-32, 3 2B, 7 RBI, 4 BB), Brad Miller (10-32, 3 2B, 5 HR, 9 RBI, 2 BB), Logan Morrison (10-34, 3 2B, HR, 5 RBI), Mallex Smith (2-8, 3B), Steven Souza Jr. (9-30, HR, RBI, BB)

You can read about the series in our preview.

Rays 9/10/17 Starting Lineup

Kiermaier CF
Duda 1B
Longoria 3B
Morrison DH
Dickerson LF
Hechavarria SS
Miller 2B
Ramos C
Smith RF
Cobb RHP

Noteworthiness

— Marc Topkin (Tampa Bay Times) writes, that if the Rays are going to salvage their season, six players have got to step up:

3B Evan Longoria. He called himself out a couple of weeks ago as the player who most needed to step up, and who are we to argue. Longoria’s numbers — .265 with 18 homers, 77 RBIs, a .756 OPS going into play Saturday — aren’t horrible, but they’re not good enough for the No. 3 hitter in the lineup who relishes the chance to be the man they can count on. “There’s definitely times when I feel like it’s clicking,” Longoria said. “It just hasn’t gone on for a prolonged period of time this year.” Like August, for example, when he hit just .240, with one home run (as part of his Aug. 1 cycle), 10 RBIs and a .677 OPS. He has been better thus far in September (.296) and did reach base multiple times in four straight games.

RHP Jake Odorizzi. Was much, much better in his last start, taking a no-hitter into the seventh against the Twins. And the Rays have to hope that is a sign he is finally back to form, because until then he had been a mess, with some questions about how much longer he’d get to stay in the rotation as he has battled injuries and inconsistency much of the season. Consider that in his previous six starts Odorizzi was 1-3 with a 6.49 ERA and got past four innings only once. Odorizzi seems likely to be the designated starter to be traded this winter, as his arbitration-fueled salary, $4.1 million this year, climbs past what the Rays feel is his value, so a strong finish also can do all parties well.

2B Brad Miller

DH Lucas Duda

LF Corey Dickerson.

I didn’t plan to lump these together, but Cash did when the subject came up a week ago, and it’s still the case. “We need to get some of our lefties going, no doubt,” Cash said. “They know who they are. They are doing everything they can. It’s not for lack of work. They’re working. They’re just kind of in a little bit of a funk.”

Miller is the biggest concern because he has had the biggest dropoff, from the guy who hit .243 last year with 30 homers and 81 RBIs to the guy hitting .191 this year (around two DL stints) with seven and 31. And his struggles are only exacerbated by the success of Tim Beckham, whom the Rays traded to Baltimore at the July 31 deadline to open second base for Miller to play every day. In his first 36 games as an Oriole, Beckham hit .353 with six homers, 20 RBIs and a .965 OPS. In the same span, Miller hit .168-3-7-.608.

Duda has been something of an all-or-nothing addition from the Mets, hitting .193 as a Ray with 11 of his 22 hits for homers, and four for doubles. Worse, he went into play Saturday 8-for-his-last-56, with seven homers. Dickerson has yet to regain the first-half form, and drive, that carried him to an All-Star selection. He hit .333 with 17 homers, 39 RBIs and a .955 OPS in his first 75 games but in the 60 since is just .212-9-21-.660.

LHP Dan Jennings. Acquired to be a high-leverage lefty for this season, and two more, Jennings has not shown much to inspire confidence, with a 5.91 ERA in his first 19 appearances with the Rays. Of the first 54 batters he faced, 24 have reached base (10 walks, 14 hits). He allowed homers to lefties in back-to-back appearances (after one previously all season) and five times left without recording an out.

LBWMF: Rays drop opening game of series to Red Sox, 9-3

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If Chris Archer threw his bullpen session with a compression sleeve on his arm, perhaps he wasn’t ready and/or healthy enough to make a start last night. (Photo Credit: Tampa Bay Rays)

Here’s the deal: some of us — like me — are busy making hurricane contingencies. As with the Tampa Bay Rays’​ players who live locally, this is a scary moment for all of us who live in the area. With that in mind, below is Neil Solondz’s (Rays Radio) recap of Friday night’s disaster of a ball game:

Chris Archer’s return to the mound on Friday got off to a tough start at Fenway Park. The Rays (70–72) and Archer never recovered, and fell to Boston 9–3 in the opener of a three-game set against the top team in the AL East.

Archer was coming off a Saturday start where he left after allowing a pair of homers in Chicago due to forearm tightness. This outing didn’t go better, as Archer allowed a ground single to center by Dustin Pedroia, then an opposite field bloop double to Andrew Benintendi to begin the first. Then Mookie Betts tucked a fly ball to right just inside the Pesky pole for a three-run homer, and a 3–0 Boston lead.

Archer eventually threw 33 pitches in the first. After a scoreless second and third, Archer didn’t retire a batter in the fourth.

Rafael Devers looped an opposite field double to left, and Christian Vazquez dumped a single to right where Steven Souza Jr injured his left knee near the side wall. With men at the corners, Jackie Bradley Jr singled to center, making it 4–0. Dustin Pedroia grounded to first, and Logan Morrison mishandled it for a run-scoring error. Benintendi then hit a grounder through the middle for a 6–0 advantage, chasing Archer.

Chaz Roe entered, and walked Mookie Betts to load the bases. Hanley Ramirez singled to left, scoring a run to make it 7–0. Mitch Moreland then grounded into a double play, scoring the fifth and final run of the frame, to make it 8–0.

Tampa Bay went without a hit until the fifth against Drew Pomeranz before Brad Miller singled through the middle with one out. Jesus Sucre then belted a two-run homer into the Monster seats in left, his fifth, to get the Rays on the board.

The Rays had one chance to get back into the game against the Red Sox bullpen in the seventh. Joe Kelly allowed a pair of hits and a walk, and left with the bases loaded and one out. Addison Reed got former Mets teammate Lucas Duda to loop a ball to right. Dustin Pedroia had the ball go off his glove, but recovered to force Kevin Kiermaier at second, as a run scored to make it 8–3. Evan Longoria then hit a bullet toward second that Pedroia extended for and caught, ending the inning.

Christian Vazquez doubled in a run with two out in the seventh against Ryne Stanek, answering that tally and capping the scoring. That was the only run allowed by the Rays bullpen over the final five innings, but the damage already had been done.

The New What Next

The Rays will play the second game of the series on Saturday night with Matt Andriese (5-2, 3.78 ERA, 4.79 FIP) starting opposite Chris Sale (15-7, 2.85 ERA, 2.20 FIP).

Andriese made his first start since returning from a hip injury on Sunday … although he posted a dud, allowing five earned runs on six hits over five innings against the Whit Sox. Nevertheless he earned a win in Boston on May 14th in a 5.0 IP/4 H/2 ER/4 BB/5 K outing.

Sale is in the throes of his first slump of the season, having lost three of his last four starts. The southpaw was tagged for three solo homers, including the first back-to-back job he’s allowed in his big league career. The Yankees did as they are wont to do, fouling off a ton of balls, working over Boston’s ace, and subsequently getting his pitch count up to 109 before he was pulled from the game. The left-hander’s experienced a drop-off since the calendar flipped to August, performing to a 4.57 ERA, while allowing seven homers in as many starts. As it was written elsewhere, his performance in 2017 mimics a career pattern of tailing off in the final two months of seasons past; Sale’s ERA is under 3.00 from April to July in his career, but it’s over 3.00 in August and closes in on 4.00 in September/October. Still, Sale is 3-1 with a 2.48 ERA in four starts against Tampa Bay this season. Key Matchups: Curt Casali (2-6, 2B, HR, RBI), Kevin Kiermaier (3-8, HR, 3 RBI, BB), Logan Morrison (5-14, HR, RBI, BB), Trevor Plouffe (14-49, 2 2B, 2 RBI, BB), Wilson Ramos (3-6, 2B, HR, 3 RBI)

You can read about the series, and I’ll post the starting lineup upon availability.

Rays 9/9/17 Starting Lineup

Kiermaier CF
Puello LF
Longoria 3B
Morrison 1B
Plouffe DH
Ramos C
Hechavarria SS
Bourjos RF
Espinosa 2B
Andriese RHP

Noteworthiness

— Souza is out of tonight’s lineup as expected, with Peter Bourjos taking over in right field, and Cesar Puello holding it down in left.

— Two of Marc Topkin’s (Tampa Bay Times) takeaways from last night’s game were particularly on point:

  1. Starting RHP Chris Archer turned out not to be such a good thing. Archer unexpectedly deemed himself ready to go after leaving last Saturday’s start due to forearm tightness, but though he looked healthy, he didn’t make it out of the fourth inning.
  2. Losing RF Steven Souza Jr., who left Friday’s game with a bruised left knee, for any amount of time will be a serious blow to the lineup. Though slumping of late, Souza has been one of the Rays’ most productive players overall and is capable of getting hot and carrying them.

LBWMF: Odorizzi one-hits the Twins while the Rays win their second straight, 2-1

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Jake Odorizzi was impressive Tuesday night, tossing 6-2/3 innings of one hit baseball. (Photo Credit: Tampa Bay Rays)

Jake Odorizzi threw no-hit ball for 6-1/3 innings on Tuesday night, while Lucas Duda homered and drove in both of Tampa Bay’s runs. When all was said and done, the Rays held on to a slim lead against Minnesota, defeating the Twins 2–1. Tampa Bay now has won the first two games of their series with the AL Wildcard leaders, and end the night two-games back with 22 left to play.

Odorizzi retired the first 12 batters in order, thanks to a lively cut fastball that kept Minnesota’s batters off-balance for much of the night. The right-hander worked the four quadrants of the zone very effectively, especially up in the zone (if not above it), coaxing a fair number of swings and misses, as well as weak fly-ball outs that — surprising to most — stayed inside the park. When he didn’t throw his cutter, he leaned on a plus curveball which he used to get ahead of lefties. Minnesota didn’t get its first baserunner until the fifth inning, when Eddie Rosario led off the frame with a walk, although he was quickly erased on a 6-4-3 double play.

The Twins didn’t collect their first hit until the seventh inning after Joe Mauer slapped a sharp grounder up the middle that ricocheted off of second-base and high up into the air. Adeiny Hechavarria was able to field the ball barehanded, however, he couldn’t couldn’t throw out the hustling Mauer. Odorizzi struck out the next hitter, then was pulled in favor of LOOGY Dan Jennings afterward. He struck out seven.

Bartolo Colon allowed just two earned runs while scattering five hits over 6-2/3 innings. He struck out five and walked one.

Duda broke a scoreless tie with a solo home run in the fourth inning — his 27th of the season.

Duda plated the second run in the bottom of the sixth, driving in Evan Longoria on a double off the right-field wall.

Moments That Mattered

— With runners on the corners in the sixth inning, reliever Steve Cishek, who took the mound in relief of Jennings, was able to get Byron Buxton to fly out to centerfield to end the threat. Cishek has not allowed a run in 17 appearances since joining the Rays (18 IP).

— Robbie Grossman, in his first game since being activated from the disabled list, led off the ninth inning against Alex Colome with a solo homer to right field, pulling the Twins within a run. Colome walked Mauer before he allowed a single by Polanco to put runners on the corners with just one out. The right-hander came back to coax a 6-3 double play to end the game.

If I may, Colome made things a little too interesting, and he owes Hechavarria at least a beer.

The New What Next

The Rays look to sweep Minnesota in the series finale on Wednesday afternoon with Blake Snell (3-6, 4.02 ERA, 4.37 FIP) on the mound. He will be opposed by 6′ 10″ right-hander Aaron Slegers (0-0, 2.84 ERA, 5.19 FIP).

Snell pitched well in his last start, tossing 6-2/3 innings of one-run ball on an efficient 85 pitches. At times he worked ahead of batters, and at others he fell behind. However, he did a good job to battle and get back into those at-bats. Snell took advantage of an aggressive White Sox lineup, although he wasn’t dominant per se. In all fairness, the southpaw was helped in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings by ground ball double plays — each of which was started by Adeiny Hechavarria.

Slegers will be recalled from Triple-A Rochester to make his second big league start. The right-hander struck out 10 batters in each of his last two outings in the Minors.

The scouting report on Slegers (per Puckett’s Pond):

Fastball (55) – Slegers will work typically around the 90 MPH mark with his fastball, usually working 90-92, touching 94. What makes his fastball effective is the plane he gets from his 6’10” height and the tremendous late vertical movement he gets on the pitch, with a bit of arm side sink. When he “dips” to a traditional 3/4 arm slot, he can get a touch of cut on his fastball as it moves in on lefty hitters.

Change Up (50) – Slegers does not get the same sort of movement on his change as he does on his fastball, which does make the pitch easier to distinguish, but he has excellent arm deception on the pitch. If he struggles in location on a pitch, it seems as if this is the pitch he struggles most on, however, and the more “straight” movement on the pitch allows the ball to get driven hard.

Slider (45) – Many guys get a “sweeping” slider from a tall angle, but Slegers typically has more of a slurvy slider that has a short horizontal break as well as vertical break. While the pitch would be an excellent ground ball pitch in the lower third of the zone, he seems to get better break on the pitch when he works the ball roughly thigh-high to belt-high. Slegers also can get more of a sweeping movement to lefties by “dipping” to a traditional 3/4 arm slot. The fact that the pitch’s movement is fairly gradual and not exceptionally sharp is what keeps the pitch from rating higher.

You can read about the series in our preview.

Rays 8/6/17 Starting Lineup

Kiermaier CF
Dickerson DH
Longoria 3B
Duda 1B
Souza Jr. RF
Miller 2B
Hechavarria SS
Smith LF
Sucre C
Snell LHP

Noteworthiness

— According to Marc Topkin (Tampa Bay Times), the Rays are making contingency plans as Hurricane Irma approaches. As we noted on Tuesday, the team pushed their departure to Boston back from Wednesday until Thursday afternoon to allow more time for players and traveling staff to get their families situated or headed out of town.

They also will pack for extra days in case they can’t fly back into TIA as planned on Sunday night and/or if next week’s series against the New York needs to be relocated from Tropicana Field.

Topkin writes,

Rays executives expect to talk extensively today with Major League Baseball officials about that scenario, with a decision expected by Friday.

The most logical option would be to play the games at Yankee Stadium as the home team, but while convenient, that would present a competitive disadvantage. The Rays visit Yankee Stadium Sept. 26-28, but it’s unlikely they would seek to swap series given the revenue difference.

Another option would be to play at a neutral site, as the Astros and Rangers did at the Trop last week due to Hurricane Harvey damage in Houston. Available options in the northeast could include the Mets’ Citi Field and the Orioles’ Camden Yards.