We awaited the triumphant return of Jeremy Hellickson from the DL with baited breath, only to be somewhat letdown by his first three starts — I say somewhat, because though he wasn’t terrible, Hellickson certainly wasn’t at the top of his game. The former Rookie of the Year pitcher turned the corner in his August 6 start against Oakland, yet a question still lingered — could he string together quality starts with consistency? If his start against the Texas Rangers Tuesday night was indicative of anything, it’s yes he can. Yet what started as a pitching duel between he and Nick Tepesch, turned into a 3-2 Rangers’ victory in 14 innings – one that sadly obscured Hellickson’s quality start.
Tag Archives: Jeremy Hellickson
Looking Backward While Moving Forward: Smyly, Rays Blank the Rangers, 7-0
In short, Tampa Bay was able to tag Colby Lewis and the Rangers for seven runs in the series opener, behind an excellent start by Drew Smyly.
The New What Next: A Rays and Rangers Series Preview of Sorts
Despite falling to the Cubs in extra innings Sunday afternoon, the Tampa Bay Rays will head to Arlington for a four game set against the Rangers with a series win under their belts. The Rangers, like the Cubs, are a team the Rays can — and should — beat. Suffice it to say, though still …
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Looking Backward While Moving Forward: Helly Strong, Rays Win 7-3
Had you told me, before the game, that Jeremy Hellickson would out pitch Sonny Gray, the Rays would tag Gray for six runs on 10 hits, and Jose Molina would go 2-3 with a walk, a sac-bunt, and an infield hit, I’d have laughed in your face. But low and behold, Tampa Bay salvaged the final game of their series with the Athletics by a score of 7-3, behind an outstanding vintage outing by Jeremy Hellickson, and an offensive onslaught against Sonny Gray. They were able to knock the A’s RHP out of the game after only 4-1/3 innings of work.
Looking Backward While Moving Forward: Misplays and an Unproductive Offense Spoil Smyly’s Start
In May I wrote about just wanting to see the Tampa Bay Rays play consistent baseball, back when it seemed like a postseason berth was both improbable and impossible. Yet toward the beginning of June, the Rays started playing uber consistent, .700 ball, and the impossible almost seemed within reach — the odds of Tampa Bay making the postseason jumped from a sub 1% chance to a 15% chance over the course of a month and a half. But after dropping four of their last five, including last night’s disappointing 3-o loss to the Athletics, the Rays have dropped back down to a 3.9% chance of making the playoffs (per Fan Graphs).