I am a man without a horse in the race. For the second straight year, my team ― the Tampa Bay Rays ― fell out of postseason contention about a week-and-a-half before the end of the season. Because of it, I’m approaching this postseason as I had the last, follow the teams that most closely resemble the Rays way of play ― quality pitching, solid defense, and timely hitting. There are two teams that parallel my beloved team in some way, shape, or form: the Houston Astros and the Kansas City Royals, and it just so happens that they are set to start the American League Division Series against one another on Thursday.
Tag Archives: Houston Astros
The New What Next: Rays vs. Astros, Part Two — A Series Preview
In July, the Tampa Bay Rays we in the throes of an extended 2-13 slump when the Houston Astros visited Tropicana Field for a three-game set. Although the odds were largely stacked against them, the Rays put together a morale building sweep, subsequently holding the home run mashing Astros to just four runs. Fast forward to the present, as the team readies itself for another series against Houston after dropping three consecutive games to that other team from Texas.
Looking Backward While Moving Forward: Rays Beat Astros 3-1
Erasmo Ramirez continued his string of terrific pitching on Friday, as the Tampa Bay Rays came from behind to beat the first place Houston Astros by a score of 3-1. The Rays ended the night one game under .500 and a half game behind the third place Blue Jays.
Looking Backward While Moving Forward: Price Notches Strikeout 1,000, Trade Rumors, Etc
It was another one of those nights we’ve, sadly, become accustomed to. Stop me if you think that you’ve heard this one before; a Rays pitcher notched a good outing, keeping the team in the game, yet the stagnant offense couldn’t come up with the key hits when it so desperately needed to. Yes, it happened again — though, at least it wasn’t a shutout.
Looking Backward While Moving Forward: Rays Put Up A Shutout of Their Own, 5-0
On the heels of their league leading 11th shutout of the season, and behind a few timely hits and an impressive start from Chris Archer, the Tampa Bay Rays found themselves on the winning track once more, taking down the Astros by a 5-0 margin.