The Yunel Escobar Home Run Gesture Controversy, AKA Manufactured Ballyhoo At Its Best

Tampa Bay Rays v Toronto Blue Jays

I almost considered writing a piece defending or criticizing Yunel Escobar for the home run gesture kerfuffle that came in the ninth inning of Monday’s game. But it dawned on me: the manufactured ballyhoo is void of anything worth writing about. That is to say, I couldn’t care less.

The consternation surrounding gesture — like that surrounding Fernando Rodney not shooting the moon earlier in the season — is manufactured by people who are willing to jump to conclusions about any little thing. Has Yunel gotten himself in trouble before? Sure. Is this anything like that? Absolutely not. So why in the hell are people so hot and bothered by something that is ultimately meaningless? The answer eludes me.

People, just let Joe Maddon and the Rays handle this in the manner they see fit, and butt out.

Looking Backward While Moving Forward: Odorizzi Looks Good, Lueke Does Not

Jake Odorizzi settled in nicely, posting a 5.0 IP/5 H/3 R/3 ER/1 BB/6 K line on 92 pitches (58 for strikes).
Jake Odorizzi settled in nicely, posting a 5.0 IP/5 H/3 R/3 ER/1 BB/6 K line on 92 pitches (58 for strikes).

The Tampa Bay Rays dropped the first game of their current three game against the Toronto Blue Jays by a score of 7-5, in an afternoon game at the Rogers Center Monday. Jake Odorizzi took the mound against RA Dickey, in his debut performance with the Rays.

Going into Monday’s game, the expectation for Odorizzi was to go five to six innings, while keeping the score low. Lets be realistic here; Dickey could have been spotty, brilliant, or somewhere in between — as he was Monday — so it was imperative for Odorizzi to keep things close enough for the Rays could break things open against a reliever. Looking back on Odorizzi’s start, I think it’s safe to say that he met/exceeded the expectation set before him. That isn’t to say his ride was completely smooth, rather on the contrary. However he — as with Chris Archer before him* — adjusted well, stringing together a solid five inning outing.

Odorizzi got roughed up in the first inning, giving up two runs on three hits and a sac fly — all on 29 pitches. He started the game by giving up a leadoff single to Melky Cabrera, following that up with a Jose Bautista strikeout and an Edwin Encarnacion single to left-field. With runners on the corners and only one out, Adam Lind worked a 12-pitch at bat that resulted in a sac-fly RBI to score Cabrera. Brett Lawrie was next, hitting a triple that scored Encarnacion. Colby Rasmus ended the inning by flying-out to left. The young righty started to put things together in the second inning, however the human element would ultimately tack one more run onto his final line.

Henry Blanco hit a ball down the left field line that Sam Fuld fielded perfectly, subsequently throwing a bullet to Ben Zobrist who tagged him out. But Blanco was ruled safe by C.B. Bucknor. even though the replay clearly showed that he was out. Suffice to say, neither Zobrist nor Joe Maddon were happy. Regardless, the call stood and the mistake came back to haunt Odorizzi when Cabrera doubled in Blanco, giving the Blue Jays a 3-1 lead.

Yup, he definitely looks safe. (Photo courtesy of Jason Collette)
Yup, he definitely looks safe. (Photo courtesy of Jason Collette)

Odorizzi threw a one-two-three third inning, striking out both Adam Lind and Brett Lawrie on a curveball. He would have a one-two-three inning once more in the fifth, striking out Bautista for the second time. Ultimately retiring ten of the last eleven hitters he faced, Odorizzi relied heavily on his four seam fastball, while throwing 63% of his 92 total pitches for strikes. Jake McGee came on in relief in the sixth inning and absolutely dominated the Jays, putting together a 1-2-3 inning with two strikeouts. But things went south for the Rays from there.

Josh Lueke entered the game in the seventh and lacked any semblance of fastball control. After walking walking Emilio Bonifacio, Bautista, and Munenori Kawasaki, Lueke gave up a three-run double to Encarnacion, giving the Blue Jays a 6-3 lead they’d never relinquish. Kyle Farnsworth came on in relief of Lueke and got the final out of the seventh on one pitch. Don’t get too excited; Farnsworthless gave up the seventh run of the day in the eighth inning on the backs of a two-out Blanco walk, and a Kawasaki triple.

Tampa Bay was able to score the bulk of their runs off RA Dickey in the first and third innings, while attempting to mount a two-out rally in the ninth inning against Casey Janssen. You can read a fairly good scoring summary here. To be fair to the Rays offense, five runs on seven hits and five walks should have been enough. The responsibility for the loss should be placed squarely on Lueke’s shoulders.

The New What Next

The Rays look to recover with Alex Cobb on the mound, as he takes on Ramon Ortiz and the Blue Jays Tuesday. You can read about the pitching match-up here. We’ll post the starting lineup when it becomes available.

Rays 5/21/13 Starting Lineup

Jennings CF
Joyce RF
Zobrist 2B
Longoria 3B
Loney 1B
Scott DH
Johnson LF
Lobaton C
Escobar SS
Cobb RHP

Noteworthiness

  • Evan Longoria’s hitting streak now sits at 14 games. He has also reached base safely in a MLB high 43-of-44 games.
  • Fun fact of the day: The Rays are the only AL club, and one of three in MLB to be .500 or better on this date in each of the last six years. The other two? The Cardinals and the Braves. How’s thar for history, Yankees and Red Sox fans.

*Think back to Archer’s first start as a Ray last season against the Nationals

Looking Backward While Moving Forward: Rays Sweep O’s, Head to Toronto For A Three Game Set

Matt Joyce and Yunel Escobar celebrate after highly contested home run in Sunday's Rays/Orioles game in Baltimore. (Photo courtesy of the Tampa Bay Times)
Matt Joyce and Yunel Escobar celebrate after highly contested home run in Sunday’s Rays/Orioles game in Baltimore. (Photo courtesy of the Tampa Bay Times)

The Tampa Bay Rays ride into Toronto Monday on a huge wave of momentum, following the Rays 3-1 win against — and series sweep of — the Baltimore Orioles. Sunday’s match-up wasn’t a high scoring affair like the previous two games, however the Rays scored just enough to win the game, while Matt Moore shut the door on the Orioles in an excellent outing. Matt Moore became the second left handed starter age 24 or younger to start a season 8-0, following an outstanding 7.0 IP/5 H/1 R/1 ER/1 BB/3 K outing. The first pitcher to do so? Oh, just some guy named Babe Ruth.

Moore certainly wasn’t overpowering, only striking out three Orioles hitters. He was able to smother any of the Orioles uprisings though, giving up just one hit in four wRISP scenarios. You wouldn’t know that Moore has had a problem with walking batters by looking at his final line; Moore walked only one Sunday. If there is one criticism of Moore’s outing, it would be the number of three ball counts he got himself into. He, however, was able to execute the perfect pitch, inducing a good numbers of ground-outs and pop-outs.

The surging Tampa Bay Rays have now won eight of their last ten games, while the Blue Jays have lost their last two games, going five-and-five over the same ten game stretch. We — for the most part — are familiar with what the Blue Jays have to offer since both teams faced off against one another on their recent ten-game home stand. The Rays are now three games over .500 for the first time this season, tied with the Orioles for third place in the AL East. Though a series win against the Jays may not help Tampa Bay with divisional placement, it would provide a springboard of momentum for the Rays who are set to take on the Yankees in the following series.

Rays and Blue Jays series starters
Rays and Blue Jays series starters
Rays and Blue Jays offensive production at home, away, and over the last 14 days
Rays and Blue Jays offensive production at home, away, and over the last 14 days
Rays and Blue Jays by the numbers
Rays and Blue Jays by the numbers

Rays Hitters Vs. the Blue Jays Series Starters

RA Dickey: Per Rotowire, “Dickey will take the mound Monday against Tampa Bay, as Sunday’s game at the Yankees has been postponed due to the weather, Sportsnet reports.” The Rays last saw Dickey a few weeks back at the Trop in a game where he posted a 6.0 IP/5 H/3 R/2 ER/ 5 BB/5 HR slash line. Dickey improved on things in his following start against the Giants, giving up two runs on six hits, while striking out 10 and walking two. As has been his year, it’s kind of hard to guess which RA Dickey you’ll face. Only one thing is certain: he’s not the dominant pitcher that he was in 2012. The hot hitting Tampa Bay Rays will look to pounce on Dickey and the Blue Jays Monday, though you can’t rule out the idea that he could string together a second consecutive quality start. Too, Dickey’s numbers against the Rays don’t really make a compelling argument in favor of Tampa Bay. Key Match-ups: Kelly Johnson (2-7, 2B, BB).

Ramon Ortiz: Per Rotowire, “Ortiz will make his scheduled start Tuesday against the Rays, Barry Davis of Sportsnet reports.” The current Rays have little-to-no experience against the 39 year-old Ramon Ortiz. In fact, only three players have accrued any at-bats against the fastball/slider/changeup pitcher — Kelly Johnson, James Loney, and Luke Scott. Largely a pitch to contact pitcher, hitters have made Ortiz pay for any mistakes, especially on his two-seam fastball. Key Match-ups: Kelly Johnson (2-5, HR, 3 RBI), Luke Scott (2-5, 3B).

Mark Buehrle: Per Rotowire, “Buehrle allowed five runs on six hits, walking three and striking out four over six-plus innings of a 5-0 loss to the Yankees on Friday night.” Tampa Bay lost to the Blue Jays by a score of 8-7 the last time the Rays faced Buehrle. It should be noted that the Jays win had absolutely nothing to to with Buerhle’s performance though. Buehrle got tagged for seven runs (all earned) on nine hits — including a pair of homers — and two walks in a six inning outing. His last outing against the Yankees wasn’t much better, posting six innings of five run ball. The Rays have now posted a combined .324 BA/.356 OBP/.468 SLG/.824 OPS slash line, with eight players hitting over .300 against Buehrle. Key Match-ups: Yunel Escobar (4-9, 2B, RBI, BB), Sam Fuld (1-3), Desmond Jennings (1-3, BB), Kelly Johnson (3-9, RBI), James Loney (3-9, 2 2B), Evan Longoria (6-18, 2 2B, HR, 2 RBI, 2 BB), Jose Molina (9-27, 2B, HR, 2 RBI, 2 BB), Sean Rodriguez (4-10, 2B, RBI).

Noteworthiness

  • Tampa Bay split the recent four-game series with the Blue Jays at two games apiece. 
  • The Rays seek their 13th win in 18 games at Rogers Centre on Monday.
  • Per Yahoo Sports, “The Blue Jays were outscored 12-2 in those two games in New York after posting a 36-15 margin in their previous four.”
  • The Rays have outscored the Blue Jays 93-54 in their last 17 road games in the series.
  • Monday marks Jake Odorizzi’s debut with the Rays. Odorizzi is 4-0 with a 3.83 ERA in eight starts at Triple-A Durham this season. He was 0-1 with a 4.91 ERA in his first two major league starts last September with the Royals, both against Cleveland.
  • Also per Yahoo Sports, “Tampa Bay’s Evan Longoria doubled off the right-hander in that game as part of his career-high, 13-game hit streak. Longoria, batting .385 (20 for 52) during that run, is 17 for 33 (.515) during an eight-game hit streak against the Blue Jays.”

 

Looking Backward While Moving Forward: Rays Rally in the Ninth to Beat the O’s 10-6

Photo courtesy of Getty Images
Photo courtesy of Getty Images

Going into Saturday’s game against the Orioles, I almost forgot what it felt like to be on the other end of a blown save win (or loss, depending on your perspective). After all, the Rays have blown so many leads — and subsequently wins — thus far, it almost seemed inconceivable that the opposite could be true. But low and behold the opposite was true this fine day, as the Rays came from behind to score six runs in the ninth to win their second consecutive game against the O’s by a score of 10-6. This summary could be broken into three chapters: The Hernandez Innings, The Torres Innings, and The Ninth Inning. Note: If you’d like a blow by blow account of the game, check out our Tumblr page where our witty repartee can be read.

The Hernandez Innings

It was evident from the get-go that Roberto Hernandez didn’t have his stuff. It became even more evident after the first; an inning where he gave up four runs on seven hits — including back-to-back homers by Adam Jones and Chris Davis. Hernandez threw 28 pitches for strikes (36 total) in the first, but he left those strikes in very hittable locations and the Orioles made him pay.

Roberto Hernandez first inning strike zone plot (Courtesy of Brooks Baseball)
Roberto Hernandez first inning strike zone plot (Courtesy of Brooks Baseball)

He almost got out of the second inning unscathed, having given up a base hit to Nick Markakis who was subsequently thrown out trying to steal a base. Let me emphasize that once more: HE WAS THROWN OUT — BY MOLINA — TRYING TO STEAL A BASE. Fausto, urm…Roberto came out again in the third inning, following a Rays three run rally, and promptly plunked the first batter he faced, Chris Davis. Joe Maddon had enough of Hernandez’s shenanigans and pulled him in favor of Cesar Ramos.

Ramos saw his scoreless streak come to pass after Nate McLouth scored on a fielders choice in the fourth. Ramos ultimately posted a 2.0 IP/4 H/1 R/1 ER/1 BB/2 K slash line on 47 pitches (29 for strikes). Alex Torres came on in relief of Ramos, and what an outing he had.

The Torres Innings

Posting a 4 IP/0 H/0 R/2 BB/3 K slash line on 49 pitches (31 for strikes), Alex Torres was the quiet hero of the day, shutting down a dangerous Orioles lineup and keeping the Rays bats in the game. Leading the way with his two-seam fastball — which he threw for strikes almost 78% of the time — Torres attacked the Orioles hitters, keeping the Birds off balance by moving his pitches around the zone. Torres impressively jammed batters in on the hands, while inducing a good number of weakly hit ground-outs and pop-outs on pitches well inside and outside of the zone. Simply put, Torres was precisely what the Rays needed.

Alex Torres strike zone plot (Courtesy of Brooks Baseball)
Alex Torres strike zone plot (Courtesy of Brooks Baseball)

The Ninth Inning

Prior to Tuesday night’s match-up against the Padres, Orioles closer Jim Johnson hadn’t blown a save in 35 outings; a fact that Dick Stockton pounded into the collective heads of every viewer of Saturday’s game. A comeback against Johnson seemed improbable at best. But that’s the beauty of baseball — just because something is improbable, it’s not impossible. The Rays are evidence of that.

Johnson handily got Luke Scott to ground out to second-base for the first out of the inning, but the tide would begin to change in the next at-bat.

With a 3-1 count, Jim Johnson threw a ball up in the zone to Kelly Johnson who absolutely crushed the pitch — sending it 401 feet to left field — bringing the Rays within one run of a tie. The momentum shift began. Johnson couldn’t find the zone to save his soul and proceeded to walk the next two batters, Jose Lobaton and Yunel Escobar. With two on and one out, Desmond Jennings blooped a single to left field, just out of the reach of Nate McLouth. Matt Joyce — who up to that point plated three runs — joined in on the ninth inning fun, sending a two-run double to right-center. That would be all for the Orioles maligned reliever.

With the tough Darren O’Day on the mound, Ben Zobrist sent a 2-1 pitch to right-field, plating both Desmond Jennings and Matt Joyce. O’Day then gave up the third consecutive double to Rays, on an Evan Longoria bloop hit to shallow right which moved both runners into scoring position. O’Day would walk the next two batters, giving the Rays a four run lead that they would not relinquish. Ironically, the 10th run came on a bases loaded walk to — you guessed it — Luke Scott. As you may recall, Scott walked in the game winning run about two weeks prior.

Josh Leuke would come on in relief of Alex Torres after Kelly Johnson grounded into an inning ending double play. He handed the Orioles their fourth consecutive loss — their fifth in six days — while the Rays ended the night having won the series. Tampa Bay is once more two games over .500.

The New What Next

Matt Moore will take a stab at winning his eighth game of the season Sunday against Chris Tillman and the Orioles. You can read more on the pitching match-up here.

Rays 5/19/13 Starting Lineup

Jennings CF
Joyce RF
Zobrist 2B
Longoria 3B
Loney 1B
Scott DH
Johnson LF
Lobaton C
Escobar SS
Moore LHP

Noteworthiness

  • Jake Odorizzi will be activated Monday (he’s already with the team in Baltimore), while LHP Jeff Beliveau will replace Alex Torres on the roster for Sunday’s game. Suffice to say, it’s sad to see Torres go back down to Triple-A, especially after his outing Saturday. But the Rays needed a pitcher who would be available to pitch Sunday, which Torres would not have been. Too, Torres would have been sent down to make room on the roster for Odorizzi.
  • DRaysBay published an interesting piece on the Rays organizational pitching depth. It’s worth your time.
  • Looking Backward While Moving Forward: Rays Avoid Disastrous Comeback, Take Game One

    (Photo courtesy of the Tampa Bay Times)
    (Photo courtesy of the Tampa Bay Times)

    The Tampa Bay Rays were ultimately able to walk away from Friday night’s game against the Baltimore Orioles with their heads held high, even if the outcome was less than operative. We should all be thankful that the Rays offense was able to step up, tagging the Orioles for 12 runs on 17 hits and five walks. After all, both Jeremy Hellickson and Kyle Farnsworth did something that they’ve been want to do all season, give up a sizable number of runs late in the game. I’ll go more in-depth below, in a segment I like to call The Good, Bad, and the Argyle: A Game Summary.

    The Good

    • 12 runs on 17 hits and five walks. The Rays were able to prove their inability to score runs off the Boston Red Sox was not the start of a trend that many a Rays fan has become familiar with over the last few seasons. Tampa Bay was able to score runs in four different innings, holding their feet to the throats of the Orioles pitchers all night. It all started in the first inning when Matt Joyce, Ben Zobrist, and Evan Longoria went back-to-back-to-back with a single, a double, and a sac fly to plate a run. Then Zobrist hit a single to start off the third inning, and was moved to third on a Longoria single to right. James Loney plated a run on a sac fly to left. Hammel walked Luke Scott and promptly gave up a three-run — 380 ft — homer to Kelly Johnson, giving the Rays a 5-3 lead. After striking out Longoria to start the fifth inning, Hammel gave up a single to Loney and a walk to Scott, moving Loney into scoring position. With a pair of runners on base and only one out, Johnson sent a single to deep right-field, plating a run and moving Scott to third. Alex Burnett came on in relief of Hammel and walked Jose Lobaton. With two on base, Yunel Escobar blistered a two-RBI ground rule double to deep center. Desmond Jennings would cap the Rays scoring in the sixth with a two-RBI single to center. But the Rays weren’t done scoring. Burnett came back out in the sixth, and quickly gave up a ground rule double to Longoria. Buck Showalter had seen enough, pulling Burnett in favor of Troy Patton who wasn’t much better. Patton went on to give up a single to Loney, an RBI sac-fly to Scott, a double to Johnson, and an RBI single to Escobar, giving the Rays an eight run lead to send the sixth.
    • The Rays went 6-for-12 wRISP Friday night, scoring eight runs with two outs.
    • When Longoria, Loney, and Zobrist are consistent, they’re deadly. The Rays triple-threat combined to go 6-for-12, scoring five runs while driving in two. Kelly Johnson was pretty great as well, coming within a mere of hitting for the cycle. Johnson ended the night going 3-for-5 with a single, a double, and a homer, while scoring twice and plating four runs.
    • Don’t look now, but Longoria is on an 11-game hitting streak.
    • I don’t want to sour on Hellickson. To be fair, he was pretty great between the second and eighth innings. Helly settled down after giving up three runs in the front two innings, at one point retiring eight in a row. He didn’t have a great feel for his curveball to start the game, but he would ultimately be able to throw it for strikes almost 79% of the time. He was also able to attack hitters with his four-seam fastball and change-up, throwing each for strikes 68% of the time.
    • Joel Peralta = savior. Peralta came on in relief of Kyle Farnsworth who was initially tasked with getting the final out of the eighth inning. Peralta wouldn’t relinquish a hit or a walk in his 1-1/3 inning — 16 pitch (11 for strikes) — outing, lowering his ERA to 1.83. Say what you will about Peralta, who’s had a few shaky outings this season. If ever you needed any validation for his recent off-season contract extension, look no further than last night’s — GAME SAVING — outing.

    The Bad

    • Jeremy Hellickson and Kyle Farnsworth, oy vey. I know it’s irrational to say this, but both seem to have a masochistic streak. Hellickson can’t seem to avoid the big inning to save his soul, while Farnsworth (editors note: he will now be called Farnsworthless until he can straighten out his act) can’t seem to get an out. The Orioles eighth inning scoring summary (below) speaks volumes:
    Orioles eighth inning scoring summary (Courtesy of ESPN)
    Orioles eighth inning scoring summary (Courtesy of ESPN)
    • Ian Malinowski of DRaysBay asserts that, “Farnsworth has not looked good. These might be the type of struggles that get worked out in triple-A, if at all.” Here-here.

    The Argyle

    • Didn’t I say that a certain someone would be stoked for the camouflage themed road trip. Per the times,

    The Rays camo-themed road trip to Baltimore was right “up the alley” for DH Luke Scott, an avid hunter, who brought a rifle bag along. “Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to bring my props,” he said, smiling. But Scott joked INF Ryan Roberts‘ tattoo-covered body makes him a natural. “Technically, he can just take off his shirt and he’d be camouflaged enough,” Scott said. ” ‘Tatman’ is his own camouflage, so to speak. He’s camo full-time.”

    The New What Next

    Roberto Hernandez and the Rays aim to win their second consecutive game, against Jair Jurrjens and the Orioles Saturday afternoon. You can read more on the match-up here.

    Rays 5/18/12 Starting Lineup

    Jennings CF
    Joyce RF
    Zobrist 2B
    Longoria 3B
    Loney 1B
    Scott DH
    Johnson LF
    Molina C
    Escobar SS
    Hernandez RHP

    Noteworthiness

    • Don’t forget, Saturday’s game is nationally televised on Fox.
    • We’ve yet to put our stamp of approval on any band this season. That changes now. Today I offer you streaming audio from Baltimore’s Dead Mechanical. Their new album OK Night is set to drop in July. Have an affinity for gritty pop-punk and 90’s influenced indie rock? Then Dead Mechanical is right up your alley. Their last album was excellent, and if the two songs (linked below) are any indication, this one will be great as well.
      • Click this to be redirected to Dead Mechanical's Bandcamp page
        Click this to be redirected to Dead Mechanical’s Bandcamp page