There was a palpable, post trade, feeling of despair that permeated The Trop Friday night. You could feel it in the stands, and though you’d never hear the players make mention of anything of the sort, you could see it in the on field action — the Rays seemed slow, void of spark until the ninth inning. Though the trade was a major blow to the esteem of the 25+ guys in the dugout, at some point they’d have to emerge from the proverbial fog and prove they could still be competitive without Price. That point was last night. The Tampa Bay Rays defeated the Los Angeles Angels by a score of 10-3, Saturday night.
The offense came to life — scoring 10 runs on 16 hits — Rays’ starter Chris Archer pitched six innings while recording nine strikeouts, and CJ Wilson allowed six runs in only 1-1/3 innings in his first start since returning from the disabled list.
Brandon Guyer provided the Rays with their first baserunner of the game by working a seven pitch, two out walk in the bottom of the first inning. Evan Longoria gave the Rays an early 2-0 lead by hitting a home run into the left field stands.
The Rays were able to extend their early lead to six runs in the bottom of the second inning. James Loney started the hit show with a one out single to center — extending his on base streak to 21 games. Curt Casali was next, working a free pass and giving the Rays a real threat. Logan Forsythe proved his worth, driving in Loney and moving Casali to third with a single up the middle. With runners on the corners, Desmond Jennings laid down a beautiful bunt back to Wilson who, in a flummoxed state, could neither throw out Jennings at first or Casali at home. Ben Zobrist followed with the second consecutive bunt which loaded the bases with only one out. Guyer ended Wilson’s night early with a two RBI single to center that plated Forsythe and Jennings, giving Tampa Bay a commanding lead. Cory Rasmus came on in relief of Wilson and retired Longoria and Sean Rodriguez to end the inning, but not before the damage was done.
The Angels were able to cut the deficit in half in the top of the fourth by scoring three runs against Archer. Albert Pujols got things started with a seeing eye single that fell in right field for a hit. Archer was on cruise control up to the point, (tossing 14 of 15 first pitch strikes) but his command started to waiver and spiral out of control. After he rung up Josh Hamilton, Archer walked Eric Aybar to put runners on first and second. Howie Kendrick put the Angels on the board, scoring Pujols on a ground rule double to right field and moving both runners into scoring position in the process. LA tacked on two more runs on a David Freese groundout, and a Hank Conger RBI double to right. But Archer finally got out of the inning by striking out Kole Calhoun.
Despite scoring opportunities in the fourth and sixth innings, the Rays wouldn’t put up any insurance runs until the eighth. Logan Forsythe led off the inning with a towering home run to left. Jennings attempted to make up for his egregious at-bat the night prior with his second hit of the night, a single to left. Zobrist followed with his fourth hit of the night, an RBI double to left (he moved to third on an error charged to shortstop Aybar). With first base open, the Angels decided to intentionally walk Longoria, bringing the pinch hitting Matt Joyce to the plate. Joyce did what he couldn’t the night previous, hitting a single to center — scoring Zobrist from third. Yunel Escobar nailed the coffin shut with an RBI base hit of his own, giving the Rays a 10-3 advantage they wouldn’t relinquish.
In the seventh inning, Joel Peralta put together his third consecutive clean outing since returning from the DL, culling a Mike Trout strikeout on a fastball in the process. And while Brad Boxberger ran into one out trouble in the top of eighth after walking Hamilton and Aybar, he was able to end the inning with a pair of Kendrick and Freese strikeouts.
Kiermaier ended the game by himself in the ninth inning with Cesar Ramos on the mound. First he threw Cron out at home after he attempted to score on a Chris Iannetta single to right. Down by seven, the Angels manager called for a review of the play to see if Casali was blocking the plate. The play stood. The game ended when Ramos coaxed a pair of poppers out of Calhoun and Trout, both to Kiermaier in right.
The New What Next
The Rays will go for their third consecutive home series win with Alex Cobb on the hill this afternoon. He’ll be opposed by the Angels ace Jered Weaver. Weaver (11-6, 3.62) — Subway’s all-time best pitchman — is a far cry from his previous ace-like self. I mean, had you told me at the height of his prowess, that he’d relinquish four or more runs, seven times in a partial season, I’d have laughed in your face. But that’s the reality for the tall RHP, whose fastball velocity has been on a constant decline over the last few seasons. The Rays lone 2014 win against The The Angels Angels came against Weaver, in a well pitched, 7 IP/2 ER start. Tampa Bay has posted a productive .284 BA/.333 OBP/.503 SLG/.836 slash line against Weaver, and the Rays will try to continue that success, Sunday. You can read about the pitching matchup in our series preview.
Rays 8/3/14 Starting Lineup
Kiermaier CF
Zobrist RF
Joyce DH
Longoria 3B
Loney 1B
Escobar SS
Forsythe 2B
Molina C
Guyer LF
Odorizzi RHP
Noteworthiness
- Per Marc Topkin, 1B/OF/DH Mike Carp, designated for assignment by Boston, could be of interest. RHP, released by Oakland, probably not. … Since both designated-for-assignment Ps Erik Bedard and Juan Carlos Oviedo can refuse outright assignments to the minors, they have to soon be released or traded. … In what wouldn’t be good news for the Rays, ESPN’s Buster Olney says the Red Sox are expected to go hard to sign Shields this winter.
- Thanks for all the birthday wishes! I guess 30 isnt so bad after all, now all I need is a bday homer, a rays win and some cake to celebrate! — Matt Joyce (via Twitter)