Tyler Glasnow was particularly nasty on Monday, coaxing 27 swings and misses (26% whiff rate)

Another night, another nasty Tyler Glasnow outing. Leaning heavily on his four-seamer, Glasnow, not to mention the power stroke of Willy Adames, proved to be more than the Texas Rangers could handle, as the Tampa Bay Rays walked away with their second 1-0 win of the season on Monday.

Glasnow got the start and was electric from the jump, striking out seven of the first nine batters he faced, and not allowing a base runner until Joey Gallo walked with two outs in the fourth. Meanwhile, Eli White broke up the right-hander’s no-no with an infield single one out into the fifth. He, however, was erased on a strikeout/caught stealing double play.

Favoring his 96-98 mph four-seamer, while also leaning on his cut-slider and curveball, Glasnow struck out 14 total batters — one shy of the franchise record (set by Chris Archer and James Shields) — across 7-2/3 fantastic innings. He scattered just two hits and a walk and posted a career-best 27 swings and misses (26% whiff rate) on 102 pitches (73 strikes, 72% strike rate). In short, he filled the zone with strikes and challenged hitters with practically unhittable stuff, and earned his first “W” of the season.

Meanwhile, Dane Dunning started for Texas and threw four scoreless innings in a tandem start with Taylor Hearn. Dunning allowed runners in scoring position in the first, second and fourth innings, and Hearn did the same in the fifth. However, they got out of those jams unscathed and stranded six runners overall, and four in scoring position. The Rays went 0-for-6 wRISP in the process.

Yet, Tampa Bay got its love run in the seventh inning when Willy Adames homered on the first pitch from Hearn with two outs in the frame. It just barely cleared the railing and snuck over the wall in left-center field.

Finally, tasked with preserving a one-run lead, Diego Castillo entered with the game on the line in the ninth, and, well…Texas made it interesting. Leodys Taveras — who stepped into the box at-bat 0-for-20 batting left-handed with 11 strikeouts — singled through the left side on a 1-0 pitch. Castillo was able to bounce back and strike out Isiah Kiner-Falefa and David Dahl, Texas’ top hitter, Joey Gallo, walked on a full count pitch. With two one and two out, Castillo fanned former teammate Nate Lowe (looking) to end the game.

A win is a win even when it is stressful.

The New What Next

The Rays have an opportunity to win their homestand on Tuesday with Ryan Yarbrough (0-1, 5.06 ERA) on the mound. He’ll pitch opposite of Kyle Gibson (1-0, 7.11 ERA).

Ryan Yarbrough allowed six runs on nine hits and a walk while fanning two across five innings against the Red Sox on Wednesday. The lefty opened the season with a strong performance against Miami, tossing 5-2/3 shutout frames while striking out three, however, he wasn’t able to repeat the feat against Boston, as he barely managed to complete five innings. Yarbrough held the Red Sox without a run through the first three innings, but the wheels fell off in the fourth inning and he was eventually chased in a six-run fifth. Yarbrough is 1-0 with a 4.91 ERA in two career outings (one start) against the Rangers.

Kyle Gibson threw six shutout innings on Wednesday against Toronto. He scattered six hits and a walk while striking out eight. Gibson had a nightmarish first start of the season against the Royals, allowing five runs on four hits and three walks over one-third of an inning. Yet, he successfully quieted the Blue Jays’ bats, allowing him to lower his ERA to 7.11. Gibson is 4-5 with a 5.12 ERA in 11 career outings (10 starts) against Tampa Bay. Gibson relies primarily on a 93 mph two-seam sinker and an 84 mph slider, while also mixing in an 85 mph changeup, a 93 mph four-seam fastball, and a 79 mph curveball. Key Matchups: (3-4, HR, RBI), Mike Brosseau (1-1, 2B, 2 RBI), Yandy Díaz (1-3), Brandon Lowe (2-7, 2B, 3B, RBI), Brett Phillips (1-3), Joey Wendle (3-10, 2B, 3B)

You can read about the series in our preview, while the starting lineup is below.

Rays 4/13/21 Starting Lineup

  1. Meadows LF
  2. Arozarena RF
  3. Wendle 3B
  4. B. Lowe 2B
  5. Diaz 1B
  6. Tsutsugo DH
  7. Adames SS
  8. Phillips CF
  9. Zunino C
  10. Yarbrough LHP

Leave a comment