For the moment, everything is coming up Milhouse for the Rays. Not even a dazzling 2 R/5 H complete game outing by Alex Cobb was good enough Saturday night, as Tampa Bay’s anemic offense couldn’t muster more than a run in the 2-1 loss to the Athletics. Even then, that run came in a late game rally off former Ray Grant Balfour. It certainly doesn’t take into account all of the squandered opportunities leading up to that point.
Category Archives: The New What Next
Looking Backward While Moving Forward: Rays Drop Fifth in Six Games, September Call-ups Part One
It was a long night — the first of ten. I woke up this morning with a sickening feeling in my gut — and to be honest, I’m not certain if it had more to do with the booze I steadily consumed for six or so hours yesterday, or the Rays 4-3 loss to the A’s. Perhaps it was the unholy combination of both. Whatever the case, both happened, and both left me feeling empty. Adding insult to injury, Tampa Bay fell three-and-a-half games behind Boston in the AL East, and a half game behind Oakland for the first wild card slot. Bright side: The Rays have two more games against the A’s today and tomorrow.
The New What Next: Rays vs A’s – The Battle of the Bays
The good news: Tampa Bay has won nine of its last 15 with the pitching staff relinquishing only 2.6 runs, on average, per game. The bad: They’ve dropped four out of their last five, averaging only 2.6 runs per game in that stretch. Thursday’s game followed a familiar pattern; the pitchers put together a good enough start, yet the offense couldn’t muster anything. Rather, they were able to get eight runners on — but moving them over or driving them in? Not so much. You’ve got to love streakiness — one moment you’re feeling the highest of highs, and the next you feel like you’ve gotten punched in the stomach.
Looking Backward While Moving Forward: King Archer Strikes Again
The stats spoke for themselves; going into Wednesday night’s game, the Rays were 9-1 when Chris Archer pitched six or more innings. And after being in the throes of a three-game losing streak, what better pitcher to throw on the mound than King Archer? Suffice to say, the presumed rookie of the year put together another outstanding outing, going seven strong innings and leading the Rays 4-1 win against the Angels.
Looking Backward While Moving Forward: Rays Drop Third Straight, 6-5
To put it bluntly, after the 11-1 debacle against the Royals Monday, and the subsequent demotion of Jeremy Hellickson today, Tampa Bay really needed a big performance out of Roberto Hernandez Tuesday night. And with the exceptions of a Mike Trout blast in the fourth, and an unlucky break in the seventh, a solid performance they got. Sadly, Hernandez’s best outing in some time went to waste after Fernando Rodney let another save slip away in the 6-5 loss to The The Angels Angels of Anaheim. The Rays start the day two-and-a-half games behind the Red Sox after Boston crushed the Orioles by a score of 13-2.