Jake Odorizzi became the first Tampa Bay Rays hurler to work into the seventh inning on Saturday night. Thanks to an excellent start by the righty, and some timely hitting, the Rays snuck away with a 3-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Jake had just one perfect inning, and he inevitably had to pitch out of the stretch while keeping the running game in check throughout the course of his start. However, the righty was able to work out of the self incurred jams, inducing strikeouts when he needed them the most.
Leaning primarily on his fastball, as he thought it was his most effective pitch, Odorizzi used it to strikeout Andrew McCuttchen twice (both swinging) with runners in scoring position. And because the Rays battled the Pirates a-squad, Odorizzi was able to treate the game like a regular season contest.
I really thought I threw the ball well. … It was good to treat this like a regular game, and we just went with what was working, said Odorizzi in his post game presser.
Another positive of the night, Odorizzi was able to work through the heat and humidity, and pitch effectively into the seventh inning. Even though the temperature was only in the low 80s, the high Florida humidity made things incredibly sticky. Odorizzi said that being exposed to the weather would be good for road games.
In the first inning or two, I was trying to wipe off the sweat, just so I could get a better feel for the ball. It’s good for those July games ― for New York, Baltimore and Texas. You can’t really simulate them at the Trop.
The only real blemish against the righty came in the bottom of the sixth inning when he allowed a David Freese no-doubter to center. Odorizzi allowed that the homer came on a mistake pitch.
When (Kiermaier) didn’t see it, I just kind of assumed it was going to be a home run. Besides one pitch ― I didn’t really want to walk him, so I attacked him with the fastball like I was everybody else, and he got into it. It happens.
All told, Odorizzi threw 6-1/3 innings, allowing just a run on five hits, two walks and a hit batter while fanning six on 107 pitches (67 strikes). You can hear his presser, courtesy of Rays Radio, below.
Dana Eveland entered in relief of Odorizzi and retired all five batters he faced. Pitching prospect Ryan Garton followed with a 1-2-3 ninth for the save.
Offensively, Tampa Bay scored its first two runs in the second inning on a double to left by Steven Souza Jr., who won a 10-pitch at-bat against Pirates’ Opening Day starter Francisco Liriano.
Souza laced Liriano’s 90 mph fastball into the left-field corner. That at-bat, which manager Kevin Cash called the top moment of the night offensively, exemplifies the approach Souza needs to take at the plate after posting a 33.8% K% last season ― with a great number of those strikeouts being of the caught looking variety.
Cristian Toribio, who was up from minor league camp, hammered a solo shot to left-center in the fourth for the third run.
An uncomfortable moment in the game occurred when a fan got onto the field in the seventh inning and threw a beer can and water bottle into the Rays dugout. Third base coach Charlie Montoyo grabbed the man and put him in a bear hug until police came from the other side of the field.
I just saw him throwing stuff to the dugout and then I realized his age, so I was just holding him and I was telling him, I realized he speaks Spanish, telling him to relax. I didn’t hear what he was yelling, I just saw the two things and then I was holding him. He smelled like beer or rum or something. … To me it was an old person drunk, so I felt bad for him.
According to Marc Topkin (Tampa Bay Times) the man, who appeared to be in his 60s, hopped a low wall at the far end of the dugout during the seventh inning, ran in front of the dugout, yelled what police and players said were obscenities about the Castro regime and threw the beer into the dugout.
Topkin also noted that other officers said the same man was seen hollering at the Rays bus when it arrived.
The New What Next
The Rays will host the Blue Jays on Sunday. David Carpenter will start the bullpen by committee day for Tampa Bay, opposite of righty Drew Hutchison. Also scheduled for work today include Ryan Webb, Alex Colome, Xavier Cedeno, Danny Farquhar and Andrew Bellatti.
Rays 3/27/16 Starting Lineup
Forsythe 2B
Morrison 1B
Longoria 3B
Dickerson DH
Jennings LF
Miller SS
Souza RF
Kiermaier CF
Casali C
Carpenter RHP
Noteworthiness
― Matt Moore will work a minor-league intrasquad game as the team uses all relievers against the team they will face for real next Sunday. The lineup for the intrasquad contest follows:
Guyer RF
Beckham SS
Mahtook CF
Pearce 3B
Loney 1B
Rivera C
Motter 2B
Decker LF
Moore LHP
― Cash allowed that today’s lineup is “similar” to what they will use next Sunday, confirming Forsythe will be the leadoff hitter against right- and left-handed starters.
― Chris Archer is expected to pitch in a Triple-A game on Tuesday in Fort Myers rather than face Toronto, his opening day opponent.
― According to Topkin, Cash said with the need for only four starters in the first two weeks of play, the team is considering keeping three catchers on the 25-man roster, which doesn’t bode well for the potentially displaced 1B James Loney in staying around.