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The New What Next: There’s Still Life in Those Rays, A Rays vs Twins Series Preview

To say the Rays 4-3 win against the Red Sox was important would be an understatement. In the throes of a horrible stretch, Jeremy Hellickson put together a solid outing, while Tampa Bay took advantage of Jake Peavy’s misgivings — coming up with key (I refuse to call them clutch) hits to give them a 3-1 lead and the subsequent one run win.

Tampa Bay heads to Minneapolis to take on the lowly Twins in a three game set — the final leg in the 2013 Knutson Cup. The Rays swept Minnesota in four games back in July while in the midst of a 21-5 stretch. In an ideal world, facing a sub .500 team could be precisely what the doctored ordered following Thursday night’s huge win. A cautionary tale is in order though, Tampa Bay didn’t fare too well against a pair of sub .500 teams on their most recent west coast trip. 

Looking Backward While Moving Forward: The “This Is Getting Tiresome” Edition

It all came down to one pitch. If executed properly, the Rays — who battled back from a 3-0 deficit to tie things up in the bottom of the eighth — would have found life in the bottom of the tenth. One pitch. But as fate would have it, Roberto Hernandez lobbed a very hittable slider over the plate to Mike Carp, a pitch that found its home over the wall in center field. Roberto’s errant pitch gave the Red Sox a four run lead they’d never relinquish.

Looking Backward While Moving Forward: Rays Drop Game One, 2-0

It’s been said you can’t win games if you don’t score runs. And if the Rays 2 – 0 loss (the eighth shutout of the year) to Boston Tuesday night did anything, its confirm that theory to a T. Tampa Bay wasted an outstanding 8 IP/3 H/2 R/2 ER/0 BB/9 K outing by David Price, dropping their seventh of 10 games and falling to 8.5 games behind the AL East leading Red Sox. At least you can’t blame Rays for not doing anything with RISP this time — only two runners reached second safely; James Loney in the second inning and Yunel Escobar in the eighth.

The New What Next: The Gauntlet Begins, Rays vs. Red Sox Series Preview

Let’s turn the clock back a bit — back to the middle of July when Tampa Bay was in the midst of a 21-5 stretch. The Rays waltzed into Fenway Park, in Boston, ahead of a highly anticipated battle for AL East dominance. Though the four game series was played over the course of seven …

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Looking Backward While Moving Forward: That’s More Like It

The Rays won the final game of the series in Seattle by a score of 4-1. Tampa Bay will come be home early tomorrow morning, having accumulated a bit of momentum following the lackluster 3-7 road trip. The Rays gained a game on the Red Sox following their loss against the Yankees, and hold a two game lead over the Orioles in the Wildcard race once again, thanks to Baltimore’s loss against the White Sox. Jake McGee was credited with his fourth win of the season, while Fernando Rodney picked up his 33rd save of the year.