Another wild one at the Trop last night, as the Tampa Bay Rays staved off the mighty New York Yankees in their 41st one-run game of the season.
Tag Archives: Wildcard race
Tampa Bay Rays 8/1/17 starting lineup and pregame notes
After a day off from action on Thursday, the Tampa Bay Rays look to enter September hot as they make one final postseason push.
Looking Backward While Moving Forward: Hellickson, Rays Fall to Angels 5-3
Friday marked the first game of the post David Price era, and boy was it a doozy! I’m obviously lying. In short Jeremy Hellickson gave up four early runs and couldn’t make it through the fifth inning for the third consecutive game, and Tampa Bay — despite scoring opportunities aplenty — couldn’t overcome a two run deficit. Joe Maddon called it a winnable game in his presser following the contest — and it was. But would have, could have, and should have beens don’t count for anything in baseball; The Rays dropped the first game of the series to the Angels by a 5-3 score. Come to think of it, it didn’t deviate much from a typical Rays’ loss even when Price was on the roster.
Looking Backward While Moving Forward: October Baseball Bound!
It’s been said that perception is everything. For example, take the Rays in the months of April, June, and August — months where Tampa Bay posted a sub .500, 36-44 record. On paper, it seemed unfathomable that the Rays would end the regular season with a 92-71 record, much less clinch a postseason berth. Yet here we sit on the cusp of the Rays fourth playoff appearance in six years, following a huge 5-2 win over the Texas Rangers, Monday night. How sweet it is.
Looking Backward While Moving Forward: It All Comes Down to This…
Some 730 days ago, the Rays found themselves in a do-or-die situation that came down to final game of the baseball season. In 2011, a Rays win would have given them at least an opportunity to face the Boston Red Sox in a one-game tie breaker. We’re all well versed in what happened on that glorious final day of baseball by now; The Rays came from behind, late in the game, to beat the New York Yankees, while the Red Sox fell to the Orioles, deleting all hopes of a postseason berth. So much has changed, it seems nothing ever changes.