Call me neurotic, but every time Tampa Bay loses a game I slip into worry mode, with my biggest fear being the Rays are going to regress back into the team with inconsistent performance on the field. And though that may not be the best way to enjoy the team I love, it’s been my uncomfortable approach to the Rays …
Continue reading “Looking Backward While Moving Forward: Odorizzi Leads the Rays to A 2-1 Victory”
Ian Malinowski of DRaysBay penned the piece below, and I felt that it was important enough to repost on X-Rays Spex. The Rays enter the week of the trading deadline with one of the more interesting decisions they’ve faced. They can either sell, David Price, Ben Zobrist, and/or Matt Joyce, all three of whom are desirable …
Despite the loss Sunday’s series finale, the Tampa Bay Rays are still in a favorable position — relatively speaking, of course — as they ready themselves for a three-game set against the visiting Milwaukee Brewers. As the trade deadline looms, this will be an important series, as it relates to the future of Ben Zobrist and David Price with the Rays this season.
The Tampa Bay Rays defeated the sinking Boston Red Sox 3-0 Saturday night at The Trop, behind an excellent effort from the bullpen. Grant Balfour, who pitched 1-2/3 shutout innings in relief, received credit for the win, while Red Sox starter John Lackey getting tagged with the loss. Simply put, the Rays are finding ways to win, and the Red Sox are finding ways to lose. Tampa Bay starts the day 3-1/2 out of the Wildcard, and 6-1/2 out of first in the East. They’re now winners of nine in a row — the longest winning streak of the Joe Maddon era.
Going into last night’s contest, I thought if the Rays were going to drop any game in the series, it would be the one with Jon Lester on the mound. After all — prior to the first pitch — Lester put up insanely good numbers, to the tune of 0.23 ERA over the last 30-days. He also hadn’t lost a game to Tampa Bay in his last three starts. “As long as the Rays could walk away with the series,” I thought to myself, “they will still be in good shape.” Much to my surprise — and Boston’s chagrin — Tampa Bay was able to tag Lester, Miller, and Tazawa for six runs en route to a big 6-4 win. The Rays start the day 7.5 games out of first in the East, 3.5 games behind the third place Blue Jays, and 4.5 out in the Wildcard race (just 1.0 behind the Indians). Per Fangraphs, they were also able to increase their playoff odds to 13.4%, decreasing Boston’s odds to 3.4% in the process. One game down, two more to go.
