After losing a third consecutive game on Monday, the Tampa Bay Rays look to bounce back with Shane McClanahan on the mound tonight, in Baltimore.
At 52-44 on the season, the Rays enter play eight games over .500 after peaking at 11 games over .500 on Friday.
Corey Kluber got the start against the Orioles and after hurling four innings of one-run ball, the right-hander imploded. Ryan McKenna led off the fifth with an 0-2 single to centerfield. After Jonathan Arauz struck out on three pitches, Cedric Mullins came up with a bunt hit, while Adley Rutschman was hit with a back-foot-breaking ball to load the bases. Ryan Mountcastle followed with a two-RBI single to center, while Anthony Santander proceeded to hit a sharply hit grounder to Ji Man Choi at first. Choi threw to second, in order to start a double play, yet his errant throw hit Mountcastle in the back and bounded away from Taylor Walls, allowing Rutschman to cross the plate. Then, with a pair of runners in scoring position, Austin Hays hit a sac-fly to left, capping the rally. All told, Kluber allowed five runs (four earned) on seven hits, a walk, and a hit batsman on 86 pitches (66 strikes, 77% strike rate) across five innings. He struck out two. Overall, Kluber maintains a 3.91 ERA and 3.44 FIP, with a 5.25 K/BB, and a 1.14 WHIP across 99.0 innings.
Meanwhile, the Rays couldn’t muster much to any offense aside from Brandon Lowe’s first long ball since returning from the Injured List — a game-tying solo shot to right in the third inning. Beyond that, Tampa Bay went an ice-cold 1-for-12 wRISP (.083 wRISP BA) and stranded 10 runners on the bags in spite of contributions from Luke Raley (2-for-3 with a pair of doubles), Yandy Díaz (1-for-4 with a single and a walk), and Francisco Mejía (2-for-4).
Another positive, Raley appears to be turning things around. Granted one week of play is a very small sample size, however, the outfielder has slashed .375 BA/.500 OBP/.625 SLG/1.125 OPS/.457 wOBA over the last seven days of play (12 plate appearances) with two RBI, two doubles, and three walks. The Rays clearly can use the production should he continue his tepid spate of play.
The New What Next
Shane McClanahan (10-3, 1.71 ERA) will get the start Tuesday night, pitching opposite Spenser Watkins (3-1, 3.93 ERA).
Shane McClanahan hurled 6.1 innings of one-run ball against the Red Sox before the break, allowing three hits and no walks while striking out six. McClanahan was quite efficient in the outing, throwing 57 of 85 pitches for strikes (67% strike rate). His only troublesome inning was the fifth when he allowed the first two batters to reach base via singles. However, McClanahan minimized the damage, coaxing a 5-4-3 twin killing out of Christian Vazquez, as Bogaerts scored to make it a two-run game. The latter single was the last base runner against McClanahan, as he retired the final six batters he faced. McClanahan lowered his season ERA to 1.71 (with a 2.40 FIP) with the dominant outing, and that mark now ranks first in the majors following a rare poor outing by the previous leader, Tony Gonsolin, on the same night. McClanahan also leads the league with a 0.80 WHIP and 147 strikeouts, with a 7.74 K/BB. He is 0-0 with a 0.00 ERA in one start (4.1 innings) against Baltimore this season.
Spenser Watkins allowed one run on four hits and two walks over five innings against the Cubs. He struck out five. Watkins allowed leadoff baserunners in the third and fourth innings but was able to escape both jams without giving up a run. However, he surrendered his first run of the game in the fifth inning following a triple from Christopher Morel and a sacrifice fly by Rafael Ortega. Over his last four starts, Watkins has given up just three earned runs across 22.2 innings while sporting a 3.4 K/BB over that stretch. He finished the first half of the 2022 campaign with a solid 3.93 ERA and a 4.49 FIP, a 1.37 WHIP, and a 1.55 K/BB over 52.2 innings. The last time he faced the Rays, Watkins exited the game after being struck by a line drive off the bat of Ji-Man Choi in the first inning. Key Matchups: Randy Arozarena (5-8, 2B, 2 RBI, BB), Ji-Man Choi (3-5, 3 RBI, BB), Brandon Lowe (3-10, 2 2B, RBI, BB), Francisco Mejía (2-3, 2B), Brett Phillips (1-4, 2B, RBI)
You can read about the series in our preview, while the starting lineup and Noteworthiness are below.
Rays 7/26/22 Starting Lineup
- Díaz 3B
- B. Lowe 2B
- Arozarena LF
- Choi 1B
- Paredes 2B
- Raley RF
- Bethancourt C
- Quinn CF
- Chang SS
Noteworthiness
— Rays injury report:
Right-handed reliever Nick Anderson threw a scoreless frame in a Florida Complex League contest, while right-hander JT Chargois gave up a run in his lone inning of work.