Looking Backward While Moving Forward, the Project X Edition (Rays 8/19/12 starting lineup included)

Tampa Bay Rays’ Evan Longoria is congratulated after hitting a two run home run in the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels in Anaheim, Calif. on Saturday, Aug. 18, 2012. (AP Photo/Christine Cotter)

I almost feel pangs of sadness for CJ Wilson…almost. I mean, the poor guy can’t catch a break. That he now has 10 consecutive starts without a win must really be weighing on his shoulders. I’d imagine that it could almost drive someone to drink. I’m almost inclined to console him…almost.

Credit where it’s due, his first four innings were pretty solid. With the way Wilson was pitching, combined with a less than quality eight run, 2-2/3 inning outing by Alex Cobb, a third win in a row seemed all but a pipe dream. Then two things happened: A) Maddon called in reinforcements from the pen, and B) Wilson got BABIP’d to death by the Rays in the fifth.

Cobber gave up eight runs on 12 hits including two dingers, where as the bullpen with Burke Badenhop, JP Howell, Kyle Farnsworth, Jake McGee, Joel Peralta, and Fernando Rodney at the helm, gave up practically nothing, stabilizing things on that end. The bullpen gave the offense a fighting chance to get back into the game after posting a combined 6.1 IP/3 H/0 ER/3 BB/6 K line. And get back into the game they did in the fifth inning.

Admittedly, things felt hopeless going into the fifth inning. Keep in mind that BJ Upton was the only Ray to reach base safely, and that was way back in the first inning. Jeff Keppinger led off the inning with a prompt ground out. Sean Rodriguez came up to the plate next and reached on a base hit. Ryan Roberts followed SeanRod with a base hit, and Jose Lobaton did his part by walking. The Rays were far from being back in the mix of things, but the game started to feel somewhat exciting with the bases loaded and only one out. Sam Fuld opened the floodgates for Tampa Bay, hitting an RBI single and giving us fans a glimmer of hope. CJ Wilson started to lose control of his pitches at this point.

Wilson walked Desmond Jennings to bring in a run then struck out BJ Upton, bringing him just three pitches away from getting out of the inning with a mere flesh wound. But before he could record that final out, Ben Zobrist creamed a base clearing double to left, bringing the Rays within striking distance of the Angels. With Zobrist on and two out, Evan Longoria hit a two run blast to deep center, completely changing the narrative of the game. The Rays scored seven runs in one inning for the second night in a row, and were now down by only one. Tampa Bay tied things up on a Jose Lobaton sac fly to bring home Roberts in the sixth, and would take the lead for good in the top of the eighth after Carlos Pena two-run pinch hit bomb to right field.

The beauty lay in this being a true team effort. Sure, there were three Rays that had a multi-RBI game, but I’d be hesitant to call Ben Zobrist, Evan Longoria, or Carlos Pena the game hero. In the end, BJ Upton was the only player in the lineup that didn’t contribute to the cause.

Tampa Bay, who is now 8-1 against the Angels this season, will face Zach Greinke this afternoon, attempting to take their first four game sweep in some time. The Rays start the day just five games back of the Yankees in the AL East, and ahead of the A’s by a game in the wild-card race. Greinke was looked at as being the final puzzle piece on the Angels pitching staff when he was acquired from the Brewers at the trade deadline. He, however, has won one game for the Halos while posting a six plus ERA in four starts. ESPN, again, has the Rays favored as the underdog, (see below) and I’m okay with that. They’ve been regarded as the underdog for the vast majority of this road trip. Regardless of the John Kruk’s of the world, it cannot be denied that this road trip has been a massive success for Tampa Bay. The Rays are playing at a whole other level, and as my buddy Rickie put it, it just got real.

Hey ESPN, how’s about you acknowledging the hottest team in baseball?!
Rays 8/19/12 Starting Lineup

Jennings LF
Upton CF
Joyce RF
Longoria DH
Pena 1B
Roberts 2B
Rodriguez 3B
Molina C
Johnson SS
Moore LHP

Noteworthiness: Ben Zobrist will be getting a well needed rest today, finding Elliot Johnson at short and Ryan Roberts at second base. I’d imagine that Zo would be available off the bench. I’m thinking that CJ Wilson listened to Straight Edge Revenge on repeat last night. He had to Stuart Smalley himself somehow.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DnG8E3m-Zno]

Looking Backward While Moving Forward, the Dream Weaver Edition (Rays 8/18/12 starting lineup included)

Not even a Stuart Smalley daily affirmation can change Jared Weaver’s affect after last night’s 12-3 pummeling.

Oh how I wanted to say something witty about Jared Weaver, the Rays, and the song Dream Weaver. But let’s be honest, it’s 10 in the morning and after a long night of baseball watching and beer drinking, my brain isn’t firing on all cylinders. Any who, if you haven’t heard, the Rays bludgeoned the Angels last night by a score of 12-3, hitting a season high 17 hits and knocking one of the best pitchers in baseball out of the game in the fourth inning. Bulleted highlights after the scoring recap.

Scoring recap (courtesy of ESPN.com…you know, those jackasses that focused 90% of Sports Center on a pair of two run games by the Yankees and the Orioles)
  • Home runs galore! The Rays had another multi-homer game (god it feels good to type that) thanks to a first inning laser shot by BJ Upton (15), a second inning blast by Ben Zobrist (14) hit practically the same spot as his from the night before, and an eighth inning Jose Molina (5) tater.
  • Tampa Bay had four other extra base hits; three doubles by Desmond Jennings (16), BJ Upton (20), and Sean Rodriguez (13), and a triple off of Sam Fuld’s (1) bat.
  • Get ’em on, get ’em over, get ’em home. If the fourth inning didn’t exemplify that adage, I don’t know what does. Eight hitters reached base in the fourth before an out was recorded, and seven of those eight hitters would cross the plate.
  • Tampa Bay scored a season high seven runs in one inning.
  • The Rays 17 hits were a season high, while their 12 runs were one shy of the season record.
  • Talk about a monster night, Upton, Zobrist, Jennings, Rodriguez, and Molina teamed up to go a combined 13-23 with 10 RBI and eight runs.
  • Sammy saw all of two pitches last night, the second of which was laced to deep right center for a triple in the ninth.
  • The Rays may have given up 10 hits, but the D was able keep minimize any damage thanks to some solid glove work, including three double plays. Sean Rodriguez web gem of a DP can be seen below.
  • Shields may not have had the best outing, keeping the ball up in the zone…two of which were tagged for homers. But he still ended the night with a quality start, posting a 6 IP/3 ER/7 H/8 K line on 101 pitches (68 for strikes).
  • JP Howell set the team record for consecutive scoreless innings at 23-2/3. His reply, when asked about this accomplishment? “It’s cool.” The dude abides.
  • 5-12 wRISP, just under a 50% conversion rate? No gripes from me!

[mlbvideo id=”23983305″ width=”400″ height=”224″ /]

(Click above to see the best defensive play of the night)

The New What Next

Tonight Tampa Bay will go for the series win in game three of this four game set against the Halos. They again find themselves six games out of first in the AL East, and in a virtual tie for the wild-card spot with the Orioles and the Tigers. Cough, it bears mentioning that the Rays have a better record in both the win and loss columns than both of the aforementioned teams, cough.

On the mound for the Rays is Alex Cobb who’s looking to win his fourth game straight. Also toeing the rubber is CJ Wilson, who may just break the edge following nine consecutive games without a win. Cobber has given up one run in each of his last three starts, while lasting seven innings in each of his last four starts. He’s also lowered his ERA to 2.97 over his last seven starts. Wilson, on the other hand, is 0-5 with a 5.04 ERA in nine starts since defeating Baltimore on June 26. He’s also winless in his two previous starts against the Rays this season, and 1-3 since game one of last seasons ALDS.

I’d imagine that Carlos Pena might find himself on the bench again tonight. He’s put up some…uh…less than stellar numbers against Wilson over his career. I’d also imagine that Kepp could find himself at first, while SeanRod gets the start at third since Rodriguez has put up some good numbers against Wilson. ESPN has the Rays as the underdog again tonight, but what do they know? They were way off the mark last night! Then again, what do I know? I thought last night was going to be a low scoring affair!

Rays 8/18/12 Starting Lineup

Jennings LF
Upton CF
Zobrist SS
Longoria DH
Keppinger 1B
Rodriguez 3B
Roberts 2B
Lobaton C
Fuld RF
Cobb RHP

Noteworthiness: As expected, Carlos Pena has been pinched in lieu of Jeff Keppinger at first base, and Sean Rodriguez at third base. Surprisingly, Matt Joyce is getting the day off in lieu of Sam Fuld. As always, Let’s Go Rays!

Looking Backward While Moving Forward, the That Was Much Better Edition (Rays vs Angels 8/17/12 starting lineup included)

Tampa Bay Rays’ Ben Zobrist connects on a solo home run against the Los Angeles Angels in the second inning of a baseball game in Anaheim, Calif., Thursday, Aug. 16, 2012. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon)

What a difference a day makes. Following yet another embarrassing perfecto, Tampa Bay’s offense roared back to life last night, tagging the Angels for seven runs on eight hits and two walks, including three yard balls from Ben Zobrist, BJ Upton, and Evan Longoria. The Rays will need any (and all) momentum accrued after last night’s game going into tonight’s game against Jared Weaver. The Rays did three things well last night which felt like a breath of fresh air following an atrocious series against the Mariners.

First, David Price was the best person to put on the mound. Pricey was again great, going deep into the game the 11th consecutive time. As BA put it, Price has truly become a pitcher, not just a hurler with A+ stuff. Posting a 7 IP/3 H/2 BB/8 K line on 103 pitches (67 for strikes), price was able to induce 17 called strikes and 10 swinging strikes.

Completely cutting out the slider while keeping the use of his change-up (8%) to a minimum, Price focused mainly on his fastball (54%), cutter (24%), and curveball (13%) instead. If one thing holds true, it’s his ability to determine which of the secondary pitches may work best, leaning on them as the game wears on. Leaning on those secondary pitches, of course, comes after the establishment of his fastball…but that goes without saying. Price was able to get ahead of, or even up, the count with his fastball and cutter (81% for strikes), then induce weakly hit ground balls with his killer curve. This bleeds into the second key of success for the Rays last night: Price and Co. were able to suppress an Angels team that’s averaging more than four runs per game, while scoring more runs than they typically accrue. The Angels put the ball in play 18 times, yet the Rays were able to (more often than not) gobble up anything that came their way, while turning a fifth inning double play to suppress an up-rise of sorts. And that friends, leads to the third key to success.

The Rays lean and mean offense (ahem…of late) was able to rear its ugly head. Ben Zobrist (2-4, 2B, HR, 2 R, RBI) Evan Longoria (2-4, HR, 2 R, 2RBI), Jeff Keppinger (1-3, R, 2 RBI) and BJ Upton (1-3, HR, R, RBI) each had a great night at the plate, going a combined 6-14 with three homers, a double, six runs, and six RBI. I’ll concede, ‘Los did have an okay night at the plate, going 1-3 with a walk. Then again, he also struck out twice, and again attempted to bunt with two outs and no one on. ‘Los…buddy, you’re a power hitter. I understand your desire to be a productive team player. However, bunting isn’t going to pull you out of the funk you’ve been in for the majority of the season. With this week’s announcement that Luke Scott will be spending a little more time in his rehab stint working at first base, I can only imagine that Pena may see the writing on the wall: shape up, or be replaced…at least in situations where the splits favor Scott or Keppinger. Desmond Jennings had an off night, going 0-5 and striking out twice. Hopefully this isn’t a regression of sorts, because he and the rest of the Rays are going to need to be clicking on all cylinders tonight.

The New What Next

The Rays have had some success against Jared Weaver in the past. Tampa Bay has posted a combined .259 BA/.319 OBP/.494 SLG/.813 OPS line, with 12 extra base hits against Weaver. Then again, he’s pitching on a different level this year. With a 15-2 record and a 2.22 ERA, Weaver seems to be almost unstoppable. What’s more, he’s given up more than three earned runs in three of his 21 starts, while averaging 6-2/3 IP per start. Runs are going to be at a premium for the Rays tonight. Then again, if James Shields is on his game I’d imagine that the Angels are in for low scoring affair as well. We’ll post the starting lineup when it becomes available. As always, Let’s Go Rays!

Rays 8/17/12 Starting Lineup

Jennings LF
Upton CF
Joyce RF
Longoria DH
Zobrist SS
Keppinger 1B
Rodriguez 3B
Roberts 2B
Molina C
Shields RHP

Noteworthiness: Interesting move to keep the ever consistent Jeff Keppinger in the lineup, while getting SeanRod (who’s had success off of Weaver) in there as well. Rodriguez will take over the third base duties, with Keppinger getting the start at first base.

Looking Backward While Moving Forward; the I Don’t Wanna Talk About It Edition (including Rays vs Angels series preview)

SEATTLE, WA – AUGUST 15: A view of the hand-operated scoreboard after starting pitcher Felix Hernandez of the Seattle Mariners threw a perfect game to defeat the Tampa Bay Rays 1-0 at Safeco Field on August 15, 2012 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images)

Well, at least the Rays weren’t no-hit in perfect game fashion by Mark Buehrle or Dallas Braden this time around. And honestly, King Felix tossed a hell of a game. Talk about being dominant. The bulleted high and low-lights will be short this time around.

  • It’s a damn shame that Jeremy Hellickson’s outing will largely go unnoticed, because he was excellent in his own right. Helly posted a 7 IP/5 H/1 ER/1 BB/1 K line on 115 pitches (73 for strikes). Someone had to win, and well, Hernandez bested Hellickson and the Rays.
  • The Rays have now been no-hit four times in the last four years, with three of those no-no’s being perfect games. Ugh.
  • See, told you that part would be short.
Rays and Angels starting pitchers over the last 14 days.
Rays and Angels hitting at home and away, (respectively) and over the last 14 days.
  • Tampa Bay averaged 5.9 runs during their seven-game winning streak, though they averaged only three runs per game in their three game series against the Mariners.
  • The Rays are 2-2 in games immediately after being no-hit.
  • Price is 3-2 with a 3.48 ERA in seven starts against the Angels, including a five-hitter in a 5-0 home victory April 24. potential Cy Young candidate yielded two runs in seven innings of a 4-2 win at Minnesota on Saturday to improve to 7-0 with a 1.89 ERA in 10 starts since losing to the Mets In June. Price is also 6-0 with a 2.50 ERA in eight road starts since losing at Yankee Stadium in May. If anyone should be on the mound to Thursday right the ship, it’s he!
  • Evan Longoria is 1-5 against Haren. He, however, has batted .426 (20-47) with four homers and 13 RBIs in 13 games at Angel Stadium. Then again, Longoria is 1-14 with six strikeouts in his last four games overall. Ouch.
  • Key match-ups to look out for (by pitcher):
  1. Haren: Sam Fuld (3-6, 2 2B), Jeff Keppinger (7-14, 2 2B, HR, RBI, 2 BB), Jose Molina (2-8, HR), BJ Upton (9-29, 2B, 4 HR, 4 RBI)
  2. Weaver: Matt Joyce (2-7, 2B, BB, RBI), Evan Longoria (3-8, 3 2B, 3 RBI, BB), Jose Molina (3-8, 2B, HR, RBI), Sean Rodriguez (1-2, HR, RBI, BB), Ben Zobrist (3-14, 2B, 3B, 3 RBI)
  3. Wilson: Jeff Keppinger (5-19, 2B, 3 RBI, BB), Sean Rodriguez (4-13, HR, 2 RBI, 3 BB), Ben Zobrist (5-20, 2B, 2 HR, 3 RBI, 2 BB)
  4. Greinke: Desmond Jennings (1-4), Matt Joyce (5-13, 2B, HR, 2 RBI, BB), Jose Lobaton (1-3), Sean Rodriguez (2-6)
  • The Rays are 5-1 against the Angels this season, having averaged almost five (4.75) runs per game. Tampa Bay has also taken the two series they’ve played against the Angels this season.

I’ll post more shortly.