The New What Next: Rays vs. O’s, A Series Preview of Sorts

The theme of this road trip is camouflage. Guess who's stoked? L-R: Matt Moore, Alex Cobb, Jeremy Hellickson, and Cesar Ramos (Photo courtesy of the Tampa Bay Times)
The theme of this road trip is camouflage. Guess who’s stoked? L-R: Matt Moore, Alex Cobb, Jeremy Hellickson, and Cesar Ramos (Photo courtesy of the Tampa Bay Times)

The Rays make their way to Baltimore Friday for the start of a three game set against the 23-17 Orioles. To call the Rays series loss to the Red Sox was a disappointment would be putting things mildly. Tampa Bay hoped to leave the confines of the Trop tied for third, yet they enter Baltimore in fourth place — back at .500 — following a pair of losses.

The Orioles, like the Rays, have dropped their last two games, entering the series 6-4 in their last 10 games. Baltimore has also scuffled a bit over the last 14 days, averaging just under four runs per game. That isn’t to say that Tampa Bay is somehow better suited to win the next three games though, rather the contrary.

The Rays averaged just over three runs per game against the Red Sox, while — with the exception of Cobb, Moore, Peralta, Ramos, and Leuke — the pitching staff largely dropped the ball. Let’s be honest; Hellickson — who gets the start Friday — has given up a pair of consecutive big leads, while Hernandez is still fairly unproven in the starting rotation. Consider too, that Tampa Bay has been less than impressive on the road, only winning six of 18 matches away from the Trop this year. Not good. The only consolation is that the Orioles are just one game over .500 at home.

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

Rays Hitters Vs. the Orioles Series Starters

Jason Hammel: Tampa Bay last faced Hammel on Opening Day and lost by a score 7-4. Hammel posted a 6 IP/3 H/3 R/3 ER/1 BB/2 K slash line on that fateful day. He’s still relatively unfamiliar to Tampa Bay, having only accrued 117 at-bats against the Rays in the last few years. Nevertheless he has been very good against the Rays, as evidenced by Tampa Bay’s combined .222 BA/.268 OBP/.427 SLG/.695 OPS slash line. Key Match-ups: Desmond Jennings (1-3, 2B, RBI), Kelly Johnson (6-21, 2B, HR, 2 RBI), James Loney (9-31, 2 2B, 3 HR, 8 RBI), Ben Zobrist (2-4, HR, 2 RBI).

Jair Jurrjens: Per Rotowire, “Jurrjens will be called up to start Saturday against Baltimore, FOX Sports reports.” According to scouting reports, “Jurrjens has a smooth, easily repeatable delivery, with a 3/4 arm slot. He knows how to pitch, and adds/subtracts on his fastball depending on the situation. He throws his fastball 63% of the time (averaged 91 mph). He also throws a decent slider (80 mph), and a change-up (83 mph). He’s been hurt by hitters getting extra base hits on his slider and change-up. He used to be a ground ball pitcher (52% in 2008), but that has slowly reversed, and he is now a fly-ball pitcher (40% gb%). He has below average K/9 (6.7), and average swing and miss % (8.9%). His walk rate is also league average (3.2 BB/9).” This will be his first appearance against

Chris Tillman: Per Rotowire, “Tillman was stellar Tuesday against the Padres, giving up just one earned run on four hits and two walks, while striking out seven in seven innings.” Tampa Bay handed it to Tillman back in April, tagging him for four runs on six hits — including a pair of homers — and two walks in five innings of work. Tillman is 1-3 with a plus five ERA in 30 total innings of work against the Rays since 2010, with Tampa Bay hammering him for 20 runs (all earned) and seven homers in that span. Key Match-ups: Sam Fuld (2-5, 2B, 2 RBI), Kelly Johnson (2-3, HR, RBI), James Loney (2-6, 2B, 2 RBI, 2 BB), Evan Longoria (7-15, 2B, 3 HR, 4 RBI, 3 BB), Ryan Roberts (1-3, HR, RBI, 2 BB).

Noteworthiness

  • Jeremy Hellickson is 6-3 with a 2.52 ERA in 12 starts against the Orioles. But he’s pitched with a lead in four consecutive starts and has not won any of them. No pressure, young Jeremy. See, despite a 5-1 record, Hammel’s ERA sits at 4.93 through eight starts. Meaning Helly has little to no wiggle room if the Rays can put together a lead Friday night. I’d imagine that Maddon may put him on a short leash.
  • The Rays have lost six of seven at Camden Yards.
  • According to Joe Maddon, “Twice during this homestand (Rodney has) been one pitch away from really being pretty darn good,” manager Joe Maddon said. “That’s the incredible nature of our game, and that’s part of the beauty of the game. But we’ll come back, we’ll play tomorrow, we’ll file this away, we’ll try to continue to get better and I think we will.” Umm, Joe…I typically agree with you. However, he was MORE than one pitch away from being pretty darn good Thursday night.

We’ll post more shortly.

 

 

Looking Backward While Moving Forward: Rays Drop the Second Consecutive Game to the Red Sox

Look at the bright side: we don't have to deal with these Masswipes for another month. (Photo courtesy of X-Rays Spex)
Look at the bright side: we don’t have to deal with these Masswipes for another month. (Photo courtesy of X-Rays Spex)

The Rays dropped their second consecutive game, following a blown save, 4-3 loss to the Red Sox Thursday night at Tropicana Field.

In short, Fernando Rodney looked horrible, directly contributing to the loss. Rodney walked the bases loaded in the ninth, subsequently giving up the go-ahead three-run double to Will Middlebrooks, handing Boston a one run lead they’d never relinquish. He could not find the zone to save his life, throwing 35 pitches in 2/3 of an inning, only 16 pitches going for strikes. Rodney’s crap-fest followed an excellent 6.1 IP/1 R/1 ER/3 H/1 BB/6 K outing by Alex Cobb. Both McGee and Peralta — who came on in relief of Cobb — looked great as well, combining for 1-2/3 innings if no hit ball.

You're right, this wasn't one of Rodney's better outings. (Courtesy of Brooks Baseball)
You’re right, this wasn’t one of Rodney’s better outings. (Courtesy of Brooks Baseball)

Offensively speaking, the Rays could only put three runs on the board even though 15 men reached base safely on seven hits and eight walks. While Tampa Bay was able to knock Felix Doubront out of the game after five-plus innings and 104 pitches (54 for strikes), he — like Lester the night before — was able to make the big pitch when necessary, stranding seven Rays on the bags.

Tampa Bay ultimately went 2-10 wRISP, stranding 12 base runners, while scarcely taking advantage of a pair of bases loaded opportunities. And though the Rays had a number of two-out opportunities to plate runs, only Ryan Roberts could take advantage, blasting a solo shot to left-center in the second inning.

It just goes to show, if Longo, Zobrist, and Loney aren’t clicking — they combined to go 1-11 with a pair of walks Thursday, while going 2-12 Wednesday night — Tampa Bay isn’t nearly as consistent — or potent — as it is otherwise. Hitting and scoring with constancy are contagious. Then again, so are not hitting or scoring with constancy.

The Rays ended their home-stand with a 6-4 record; not bad, but not nearly as good as it could — or should — have been. They’ll start a six game road trip in Baltimore Friday; one which will take them through Toronto before returning home to face the Yankees on May 24th.

Looking Backward While Moving Forward: Price Headed to the DL

David Price #14 of the Tampa Bay Rays pitches against the Boston Red Sox during the game at Tropicana Field on May 15, 2013 in St. Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by J. Meric/Getty Images)
David Price pitches against the Boston Red Sox during the game at Tropicana Field. (Photo by J. Meric/Getty Images)

The Rays will take on the Boston Red Sox Thursday night, in the rubber match the current three-game set. There really wasn’t much to like about the previous game. Tampa Bay gave up nine runs over the course of two innings, while the bats — though alive — couldn’t score more than two runs off Jon Lester — who was more lucky than dominant.

The biggest news of the night revolved around the removal of David Price after only 2-1/3 innings of work, due to left triceps tightness extending from a strain. This is the first injury of Price’s major league career, and the timing couldn’t be worse for the pitcher who has already been battered and bruised — metaphorically speaking — following a 1-4 start to the season, with a 5.24 ERA.

Price called for the training staff after feeling what he described as a tight feeling in his left triceps following a third inning single to David Ortiz. The discomfort was apparent — David clenched and unclenched his fist several times after the play.

Per Steve Carney of 620 WDAE, Price is headed to the 15-day disabled list. The question begs: If Price is added to the DL, who will take his place?

Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times speculates that Jake Odorizzi will more than likely get called up. Odorizzi is on the same pitching schedule as Price, while Chris Archer is on a limited pitch count after a set of abbreviated starts. Carney also noted that the Rays have decided to help out the bullpen for next few days, calling up Alex Torres since he has bullpen experience. Alex Torres (2-2, 2.39 ERA) has seven starts under his belt this season, and is third in ERA and strikeouts (49), while holding hitters to a .190 BAA. In any case, a starter should be added to the rotation by Monday.

In better news, Cesar Ramos looked really good Wednesday night, putting together a 3.0 IP/1 H/0 R/0 BB/2 K outing on 42 pitches (29 for strikes). Ramos has now gone 13 consecutive innings without relenting a run, while giving up only three hits in that span.

The New What Next

Alex Cobb (4-2, 3.09 ERA) will butt-heads with Felix Doubront (3-1, 6.40 ERA) and the Boston Red Sox Thursday night at Tropicana Field, with the first pitch scheduled for 7:10. If the Rays win tonight, they will again be two games over .500, they will have won their second consecutive series, and they will have ended their 10-game home stand with an impressive 7-3 record. You can read more on the match-up here.

Rays 5/16/13 Starting Lineup

1. Desmond Jennings CF
2. Luke Scott DH
3. Ben Zobrist RF
4. Evan Longoria 3B
5. Yunel Escobar SS
6. James Loney 1B
7. Sean Rodriguez LF
8. Jose Lobaton C
9. Ryan Roberts 2B
SP. Alex Cobb RHP

Looking Backward While Moving Forward: Rays Beat the Sox 5-4

Yunel Escobar and Jose Molina celebrate after scoring in the fourth inning against the Boston Red Sox. (Photo by J. Meric/Getty Images)
Yunel Escobar and Jose Molina celebrate after scoring in the fourth inning against the Boston Red Sox. (Photo by J. http://tampabayrays.co/wp-admin/post.php?post=6734&action=editMeric/Getty Images)

The Tampa Bay Rays beat the Boston Red Sox Tuesday night by a score of 5-3, taking the first game of a three game set from their AL East rivals. Tampa Bay has now won six consecutive games, while Matt Moore has become Major League Baseball’s only 7-0 pitcher on the back of a 6.0 IP/3 H/3 R/3 ER/2 BB/8 K/1 HR outing where he threw 100 pitches (62 for strikes). Fernando Rodney got his seventh save in his first 1-2-3 outing of the season.

John Lackey, on the other hand, was all but good, having gotten knocked out of the game with one out in the fifth inning after giving up five runs (all earned) on nine hits.

The Good

  • Matt Moore certainly may not have had his best stuff Tuesday night, but he had enough to shut the Red Sox down. Things got ugly in the first inning. Moore started the game by plunking Jacoby Ellsbury, then gave up a one out double to Dustin Pedroia. With two on and one out, Moore left a 1-0 meatball up in zone to David Ortiz; a pitch that found a home 402 feet down the right-field line. But Moore would settle down after that 33 pitch first inning, retiring 12 batters in a row at one point — five of which on strikeouts. The Rays LHP would relent only one other hit and two walks on the night, impressively throwing 13 deadly changeups for strikes (all for strikes, 5 for swinging strikes), locking up batter after batter. Matt Moore is the first Rays pitcher to start the season with a 7-0 record, winning eight consecutive games extending back to 2012.
  • The Rays only scored in one inning, though the hitters were able to continually apply the pressure to the Red Sox pitchers. That is to say, they didn’t score a few runs then seemingly give up as they had a couple of weeks prior. What’s more, the Rays have now held a lead in 26 straight games — though that includes the 10 in which they gave up the lead.
  • Holy moly, Jose Molina was on fire Tuesday night. Not only did he go 3-3 including a double, and not only did he score a run while driving in a pair, he also successfully laid down a sac bunt and actually tagged up on a medium-to-deep hit ball to center.
  • Hate on the Trop all you want, but weren’t it for the Trop, the Rays wouldn’t have scored the go ahead runs in the fourth inning on a Matt Joyce bloop that camouflaged itself nicely with the roof, and subsequently landing in fair territory.
  • The bullpen was electric… with the exception of Jake McGee, that is. Josh Leuke threw some filthy off-speed pitches in relief of McGee, ultimately getting Shane Victorino to line out to first, shutting down a seventh inning McGee borne jam. Joel Peralta posted a 14-pitch 1-2-3 eighth inning which included a come-backer for the first out, a David Ortiz pop-out, and and a swinging strike out of Mike Napoli on a fastball. Fernando Rodney finally looked like Fernando Rodney, posting his first 1-2-3 inning of the year while earning his seventh save. His Bugs Bunny changeup was in full effect Tuesday night, and his series of pitches (fastball-fastball-changeup) to ring up Jonny Gomes was beautiful. Rodney struck out the side to end the game, all on strike-three changeups, and all on swinging strikeouts.
  • James Loney: Another night, another multi-hit game, AKA James Loney: Another night, another extra base hit. Loney is now up to 15 extra base hits on the year; 12 doubles and three homers.

The Bad

  • To be fair to Jake McGee, he wasn’t terrible Tuesday night. He, however, wasn’t nearly as sharp as he had been in his previous two outings. McGee started the inning innocently enough by getting Will Middlebrooks to ground out to short. But it wouldn’t take long for Jake to get into a full blown jam after giving up a pair of walks to Drew and Ellsbury. Maddon made the call to the pen with two on and two outs after McGee threw 27 pitches, only 13 for strikes.

The New What Next

David Price will try to put together his second consecutive solid outing tonight, against a tough 5-0 Jon Lester. It won’t be easy. Even though Lester has cooled down following a torrid start to the season, the Rays splits against are in Lester’s favor. You can read more on Wednesday night’s match-up here.

Rays 5/15/13 Starting Lineup

Jennings CF
Johnson DH
Zobrist RF
Longoria 3B
Escobar SS
Loney 1B
Rodriguez LF
Molina C
Roberts 2B
Price LHP

Noteworthiness

  • Tonight’s game will be available on Sun Sports and ESPN. Three guesses which telecast we’ll be watching.

Rays 5/14/13 Starting Lineup, Etc

Joe Maddon does it again. Yes that is a Latin band, and yes those are plantains hanging in the clubhouse. (Photo courtesy of Marc Topkin/Tampa Bay Times)
Joe Maddon does it again. Yes that is a Latin band, and yes those are plantains hanging in the clubhouse. (Photo courtesy of Marc Topkin/Tampa Bay Times)

Rays 5/14/13 Starting Lineup

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

Noteworthiness

  • You can read more on tonight’s match-up here.
  • Desmond Jennings is back in center — hitting first — following a few days respite extending from a groin injury.
  • Per Marc Topkin, the initial lineup distributed in the press box listed Sam Fuld at short. As you can see above, that error was corrected.
  • Rays skipper Joe Maddon was back at it Tuesday, brining a Latin band into the clubhouse, and hanging nine bunches of three plantains by the players lockers (specifically by Fernando Rodney and Joel Peralta’s lockers). As you may recall, plantains were the Dominican mascot of the 2013 World Baseball Classic; something Rodney brought to the Rays in May after a rough month in April.