Just under three hours after Masahiro Iwakuma’s first pitch, the Tampa Bay Rays evened up the series at one game apiece, thanks to a 2-1 come from behind victory against the Mariners. The contest had all the trappings of a pitching duel; a pair of pitchers at the top of their game, an incredibly tight one run lead, and a late inning rally against Fernando Rodney. David Price put together a one-run, complete game gem — striking out 12 (all on his fastball) along the way. His final line: 9 IP/6 H/1 ER/0 BB/12 K/108 pitches (81 strikes, 75% K%). Iwakuma was great, but Price was better. Suffice it to say, Late Night with the Rays ended with adulation and exhaustion on the part of those of us who stayed up to watch. That being said, below is a recap of the ninth…because, you know, I’m tired and at work.
The Ninth Inning
…Though David Price tossed a gem over the previous eight innings, all would have been for not if the Rays couldn’t mount a comeback against Fernando Rodney and the Mariners — a hefty task, considering the scoring opportunities were few and far in between all night.
Mount a rally — and a comeback — they would, and it all started with a two-strike solo shot to right-field by David DeJesus, on a mistake change-up left out and over the plate. James Loney was next, smacking a single to put the go ahead run on base. Loney was pinched for Sean Rodriguez, a move that paid dividends in the end. Desmond Jennings was next to join in on the BABIP fun. Jennings moved SeanRod to second on a hard hit single just beneath the glove of shortstop Brad Miller. With two on and no outs, Matt Joyce (who accrued two hits off Iwakuma in his previous at-bats) became the co-offensive hero of the night when he plated the go-ahead run on an RBI gapper, easily scoring the speedy Rodriguez from second. With the pressure mounting on the Rays’ former closer, Rodney loaded the bases on a four-pitch walk of Yunel Escobar, and his night was done. Rodney exited the field to a chorus of jeers and boos. And he wonders why Tampa Bay didn’t extend an offer following the 2013 season. The Rays took the 2-1 lead they wouldn’t relinquish, after bringing eight men to the plate in the ninth.
Price was masterful all night, and though he had a significant number of pitches under his belt, Joe Maddon put him back on the mound to close out the game — the inning (and game) was his, and his alone. Robinson Cano led off and worked the second full count of the game against Price. Call it luck or kismet, but Price caught Cano looking at an outside fastball for the first out of the inning.
Corey Hart was next and he smacked a liner to Matt Joyce in left field, giving the Mariners one last chance to tie the game. Justin Smoak quickly fell behind by an 0-2 count after Price got ahead on a foul ball and a strike (looking) over the plate. Smoak took the next pitch, only to end the game on a 1-2 swinging strikeout. Rays win! Game over! Time for sleep!
The New What Next
Jake Odorizzi will try to close out the series on a high note this afternoon, when the Rays take on Brandon Maurer and the Mariners. Odorizzi was much improved in his last start, striking out 11 Indians over five shutout innings.
“That was the highlight — the big overall picture was how we mixed and stuck to what we wanted to do the whole time,” Odorizzi said. “Now it’s time to eliminate some three-ball counts when possible and not make extra pitches when I don’t need to. That’s the biggest part in making the next step, is cutting out the pitches that don’t take you too far.”
You can read about today’s matchup in our series preview.
Rays 5/14/14 Starting Lineup
Joyce LF
Zobrist 2B
DeJesus DH
Longoria 3B
Loney 1B
Myers RF
Jennings CF
Escobar SS
Hanigan C
Odorizzi RHP
Noteworthiness
- I could watch the ninth inning rally against Fernando Rodney over, and over…and over:
- Joe Maddon purchased a lot of horrible (read: classic) cologne prior to yesterday’s game, and encouraged the Rays to wear it in the dugout. On a related side note, Walgreen’s saw their greatest surge in Drakkar Noir sales in some time. I digress. David Price, wearing Aqua Velva, said he and Chris Archer watched some 2012 (his Cy Young Award winning season) highlights before the game, and he was determined to pitch that way Tuesday. Mission accomplished.
- I wrote this yesterday, but it bears mentioning once more: I’ll be writing a piece titled “The Case For Wilson Betemit,” tonight. My question to you, dear friends, is this: Who would you rather see on the bench for the Rays, and why? Your choices are: Betemit, Sean Rodriguez, Logan Forsythe, and Brandon Guyer.
- Do you like fun, beer, baseball, beer, hotdogs, and…well beer? Then mosey on down to Green Bench Brewing Company May 30th, for our Rays watch party!
- Alex Cobb felt good after having thrown his second simulated game Monday. He is set for what could be the final test, ahead of his return from a strained oblique, with a rehab start Saturday. “He came out of it well,” Maddon said. Cobb is likely to pitch for the Class-A Stone Crabs in Port Charlotte, with his tentative return — assuming all goes well — set for May 22 vs. Oakland.
- We reported yesterday, that Enny Romero was set to arrive in Seattle prior to Tuesday night’s contest. It turns out that LHP Erik Bedard had a sore pec, while there were undisclosed issues with other pitchers on the staff, eliciting the response from the Rays to add pitching depth just in case. Bedard went out for a brief throwing session with head athletic trainer Ron Porterfield, who said he was good to go for Thursday’s scheduled. The Rays reached him in Detroit to tell him he wasn’t needed after all, and headed back to Durham instead.