Results tagged ‘ Jason Bartlett ’
Speedy Post: Nice Win Gets Rays Closer to First
The Rays ended the month of June with a really nice win against a team they HAVE to beat if they want to be in the running for a playoff spot, the Boston Red Sox.
Their 9-4 thumping of the Sawx Wednesday night was pretty darn impressive, as the run output from Boston was augmented with some meaningless runs late in the game.
Matt Garza did just what the Rays needed him to do: shut down the opposition. He gave up only 6 hits in his 7 innings and looked in command throughout. He ran out of gas in the 8th inning, but it didn’t really matter at that point because the Rays had a commanding lead.
I had thought that the Rays would be able to beat down Daisuke Matsusaka, but it didn’t really go that way. He was far from impressive, but he was also far from dominated by the Rays offense. It was the Sox ‘pen that fall apart, namely Manny Delcarmen.
And, let’s face it, you can’t win if your bullpen stinks on any given night. Luckily, the Rays’ hitters were able to take advantage of Delcarmen’s lack of control.
What really helped to force the Sox pitchers hands was what has helped the Rays to beat Boston 5 out of 9 games thus far this season:
Stolen Bases!!!
The Rays were able to run on Sox catcher Jason Varitek fairly easily, stealing on 2 of 3 base attempts. That might not sound like alot, but when NONE of the stolen bases were taken by guys with last names of Upton, Crawford, or Bartlett, then you are talking about some really good base running. (Sean Rodriguez and Ben Zobrist were the thieves in the game)
If you are a Rays fan, you are not only happy with the result of the game but also with the fact that Tampa Bay sits just 1 game behind the Sox for second place in the AL East and only 2 games behind the Yanks for the division lead.
Unfortunately, if they aren’t careful during this tough 4-game series in Minnesota, they might give up all the ground they gained last night.
It will be up to Jeff Nieman and the Rays hitters to start July off the same way they finished June: with a win.
Speedy Post: Rays/Red Sox Game 2
So…last night stunk.
How else do you describe an 8-5 loss?
And it wasn’t that close.
The Rays find themselves 2 games behind the Red Sox for second place and 3 games out of first. Nobody said that the AL East was going to be easy, but the Rays as of late have made everything look more difficult than it needs to be.
The Rays send righty Matt Garza to the mound tonight with the hopes of earning a split in the truncated 2-game series. He has done well and done poorly in two starts against the Red Sox, but there is something tonight that Garza has going for him.
Nobody on the Red Sox team who might start tonight has faced the spitfire righty, emphasis on the SPIT.
In fact, only 6 guys on the Red Sox roster have any at bats against Garza and only Adrian Beltre is hitting over .261 against him.
In other words, Garza is due for a good start in a big game against a tough team tonight. As long as the youngster can keep his emotions in check, of course. That certainly seems to have been a challenge for the Rays as of late.
The Red Sox will send Daisuke Matsusaka to the mound. The Rays have had moderate success against the guy with the exaggerated windup, though Ben Zobrist (no hits), Jason Bartlett (.143), and BJ Upton (.077) have had significant struggles.
I would expect to see John Jaso behind the plate (he’s a lefty and has yet to see Matsusaka), Reid Brignac at SS (he has yet to face Matsusaka), and either Kelly Shoppach (.400) or Willy Aybar at DH (.333) tonight.
Will BJ start? Who knows? He didn’t start yesterday, but he did end up getting into the game late. Manager Joe Maddon said it was not a punishment, but, well, we can all read between the lines.
No matter who starts, the Rays will have to be patient. Matsusaka thrives when opposing batters jump on his early pitches. If the Rays hold back and wait for their pitch, work the count, draw some walks, I think we will see them even the series and get to within one game of second place yet again.
But if the Rays’ hitters are overly aggressive and Garza struggles with his emotions, we can expect another ugly game, for sure.
Prepping for the Draft, Rays Style
Major League Baseball will put on its draft tonight as every team around the league looks to improve its club
And if all goes well, these teams will see the fruits of their collective labor in, oh, say, about 3 or 4 years.
What!?
Yeah, come on, you know how it goes. This ain’t the NFL or NBA. These guys who hear their seemingly anonymous names called tonight won’t really find themselves on major league rosters for some time now.
Despite this, teams will be taking very seriously the goings-on that will occur at 7 pm Eastern Time.
A good draft tonight can turn a team like the 2007 Tampa Bay Devil Rays into, say, the 2008 Tampa Bay Rays.
That 2008 squad became potent with the development of one great draft pick, Evan Longoria, and the shining of another, BJ Upton. In fact, the Rays’ success can be attributed quite squarely on the fact that they have drafted well during the Stuart Sternberg era as 10 of the 25 guys on the roster are homegrown.
Manager Joe Maddon and General Manager Andrew Friedman have said this week that they will be looking at the middle of the field as the focus of their draft. We can take that to mean, I assume, catcher, second base, shortstop, and center field.
I am not an expert on amateur baseball players, so I won’t pretend to give a list of great college and high school players who can have an impact on the Rays in the near future. However, I will say that a guy like Zach Cox, a guy who can play 3B and 2B, would fit well with what Maddon and Friedman would like to see on the roster in the future.
The Rays have the 17th overall pick in the draft, and the rumor is that they have targeted a catcher who, at one time, was Stephen Strasburg‘s battery mate–just like every other team in the draft. So, we can’t expect Bryce Harper to don a Rays uni any time soon.
However, a move for a catcher such as this would make sense considering the fall of Dioner Navarro, the question marks surrounding Kelly Shoppach, and the high hopes–yet unrealized potential–that plague John Jaso.
You would think that the Rays would be pretty satiated at the middle infield positions. They have Jason Bartlett firmly ensconced at short. At second base they have multiple options: Ben Zobrist, Sean Rodriguez, and Reid Brignac. In the minors, the Rays have Eliot Johnson and Tim Beckham, though the latter 20-year-old seems to be a few years away as he is toiling at Single-A Charlotte.
Center field is a place that seems to be in question. BJ Upton mans the spot right now, but soon his arbitration clock will run out and he will become an unrestricted free agent. Then the Rays will have to decide whether or not to pay him what he thinks he is worth. Desmond Jennings has center field skills, but he might already be in left field after the Rays (potentially) lose Carl Crawford. Cuban defector Leslie Anderson was just promoted to AA Montgomery and could be with the big club in the next year or so if his fast rise continues.
Whichever way the Rays decide to go, I think we can rest assured that it will be the right way. They have not accrued what Baseball America has deemed the #1 ranked minor league system by accident. And with 6 picks in the first 98 of this year’s draft, the probability is high that the Rays will put together yet another successful group of recruits.
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Update: 8:24
The Rays are coming up at pick 17.
The rumor is that they might choose a P/OF Bryce Brentz. Who knows what position he might play as a pro. Bryce Harper was supposed to be a catcher, yet the Nats have already made it clear he will be an outfielder.
However, should the Rays find INF Zach Cox still available at 17 (he is a top 10 projection), I think they will go with him. This guy is a left-handed hitting power hitter who has the defensive ability and range to play at the hot corner or at 2B.
Cubs are up. Rays coming up…
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Update: 8:32
Cubbies took a pitcher. Rays have their pick (Brentz) and a top-tier infielder (Cox) available.
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Update: 8:37
Rays took neither Cox nor Brentz. Instead they took Josh Sale, a guy that the MLB Net guys seem excited about. He is a college guy (Gonzaga) who plays the outfield. Apparently he will play a corner outfield spot who will hit for some decent power and has little speed. He sounds like a nice future RF, but it would be pointless to pontificate on where he will play as his major league debut is still several years away. However, as a college player (as David Price was) his future might arrive a little sooner than many might think.
Should this guy progress faster than most, then we might see a near-future outfield that could have Desmond Jennings, Leslie Anderson, BJ Upton, Ben Zobrist, and this kid in the mix. Not too shabby.
However, it should be noted that the Rays went neither middle infield NOR best available with this pick. Peter Gammons has guessed that this pick might be more motivated by $$ than anything else, which makes sense. Remember, the Rays were unable to sign two of their first three picks in their draft last year.
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Update: 9:55
The Rays closed out their participation in the first round of the draft by taking a catcher with the 31st pick: Jason O’Conner. The experts said that this guy should be more versatile than a catcher has a right to be, which might mean that Maddon can see him playing middle infield or catcher. He is from the great state of Indiana, so he’s got that going for him.
So the Rays got (maybe) their catcher. That certainly was something that most Rays fans were looking for considering the current state, and franchise depth, of the position.
Rays and Red Sox Get Ready to Throwdown
VS 
You surely want to get excited about the series that starts tonight between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Boston Red Sox.
You want to get hyped and break out the good snacks before settling down on the couch for a series between rivals.
You want to go through the ritual of getting mentally prepared for yet another series of insanity between to top-notch teams in the AL East.
You want to, but…
Let’s face it, the Red Sox are a long long long way from contending for the division. Heck, they have to crawl out of 4th place before they can contend for anything.
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Sweeps Is Sweeps
You cannot forget the hard-to-watch destruction that was the 4-game series sweep the Rays handed to the Red Sox last month. On the one hand, you do not want to put too much emphasis on baseball in April, but you can’t discount it too much, either.
I mean, the Rays outscored the Rouge Sox in that series by a 24-9 score and dominated pretty much every facet of the game. They outhit the Sox, outpitched the Sox, and outstole the Sox.
Sadly, while that series was simply legendary, you can’t transfer those good times to this series.
Damn.
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Pitching In
The Sox are going to throw 2 of their best in this series (all due respect to Josh Beckett, he simply has not been himself lately).
Clay Buchholz (who is pitching RIGHT NOW!) and Jon Lester are having solid seasons. Their ERA’s are in the low-3′s and they are a combined 9-5 this year. They typically have good success against the Rays, which could bode ill for the good guys.
They Rays will throw Wade Davis (who deserves SERIOUS Rookie of the Year consideration) in Game 1, which is not an issue because he has pitched in many pressure-filled games this season. He will be followed by the stellar James Shields and Cy Young-esque Matt Garza.
The Sox pitching in this series might be good, but the Rays’ should be better.
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The Secret? Stealing
In their series in April, the Rays stole the Red Sox blind. They took base after base with little resistance.
Carl Crawford, Jason Bartlett, and BJ Upton could not be stopped. And that could be acceptable, if you are a Sox fan, if those were the only guys who were swiping bases. However, the Rays rubbed it in by having Evan Longoria, Ben Zobrist, and Carlos Pena take bases as well.
The way the Rays will win this series, and the Sox will lose it, is if the Rays’ stealing success continues. But if the Sox keep the Rays off of the bases and prevent them from turning singles into doubles we could see another sweep, but this time from the bad guys.
Yikes!
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Closing Thoughts
Funny, when I started this post I thought of this series as yet another ho-hum series in 2010 a la the Royals or Mariners.
But when you look at the pitching matchups, the battles between base runner, catcher, and pitcher, and the drama that is Rays/Red Sox, I find myself starting to get more and more amped up.
Game 1 might not be looking so good thus far, but jeez I am starting to feel those competitive juices flow.
The Sox may be 8 1/2 back right now, but I would love to see the Rays bury these guys by the end of the series.
Ok, I’m officially pumped.
Utter Domination
Rays 9, Yankees 3
And it wasn’t that close.
David Price, the Rays’ phenom 24-year-old lefty, led the team against the invaders from NYC and gave them more than they could handle.
The offense didn’t want to be outdone, so they put their best bat forward and put up 8 earned against the Yanks’ big offseason acquisition, Javier Vazquez.
In the end, there was not much to complain about.
If you are a Rays fan, of course.
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Price Was Scary Good
Price went out and simply gave the Rays his longest–and one of his more solid–performances of his young career.
7 2/3 IP 3 ER 7 H 3 BB 7 K
Through 6 innings, however, Price threw only 66 pitches. Aside from a double in the 2nd that brought home 2 runs by Alex Rodriguez, there was nothing scary.
When he reached the 8th inning, Price admitted he began to press a bit, which led to a bases-loaded jam and another run given up. But Lance Cormier came into the game and ended the frame with a strikeout.
It was an almost-effortless performance from a guy who is the Rays’ NUMBER 4 PITCHER!
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Big Inning: The 4th
The Rays almost batted around in the bottom of the 4th against Vazquez.
A few doubles, a few singles, a stolen base from BJ Upton, and a huge blast from Carlos Pena gave the Rays all the runs they would need for the rest of the game (5).
While the home run was fun, I was more excited about the double that just eluded left-fielder Marcus Thames’ glove from the bat of Jason Bartlett. It was one of those moments that you were hoping would happen (him missing the catch) and it led to two big runs. Whew!
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Sleeping Bats Awakened–Look Out!
Pena had been hitting terribly this season. And he had been suffering from a power outage, with no balls of his bat threatening to leave the yard. It was nice to see him take one out against a tough pitcher like Vazquez.
The other area the Rays are getting no production from is DH. I am going to lay off the Burrell Bashing–for now–and simply say that Willy Aybar’s big 2-run home run in the 6th was a respite from worrying about what to do with the DH position. After striking out horribly earlier in the game, it was great seeing him rip one down the line and out.
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Today’s Game
The Rays are going to have a tough one against the Yanks and CC Sabathia. Even though CC got knocked around pretty good by the Red Sox on Opening Day part 1, everybody knows he is a tough hombre.
The Rays are sending out youngster Wade Davis, who will make just his 7th start of his young career. He had to work hard to beat out Andy Sonnanstine for the 5th starter job, so it will be interesting to see how he fares against a tough Yankee club.
I’m excited. Can you tell?
1 and Oh MY!
To say that was a great game would be an injustice.
It was an AMAZING game!
All the drama that came with the fact that it was Opening Day was overshadowed by the drama that came at the end of the game.
Sure, the smoke from all the pyro hung in the air all game long, but it was easy to see that this was a game to remember.
The guys were ready to play after the intros, and they sure played their hearts out.
(Alas, I was able to get pictures from most of the game before my camera’s battery died! Dang it! And pardon the HIGH view, I decided to downgrade on tickets to upgrade the thickness of my wallet)
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The Pitching
You cannot complain about James Shields’ pitching performance. It was his first outing of 2010, he had a wife who was abou to give birth…yeah, I would say that what he did Tuesday night is just fine.
6 IP 3 R 9 H 2 BB
I know that the 1,83 WHIP and 4.50 ERA aren’t sexy, but he kept things from getting out of hand. He gave up 3 home runs–but they were all solo shots–the perfect type of home run to give up.
Kevin Millwood pitched well also, but he reached his 100-pitch limit much earlier than Shields did, going only 5 innings in his debut.
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The Big Inning
Every game has an inning that affects the outcome.
I felt that the 9th inning was the inning that changed the course of this game. But it was NOT the bottom of the frame, but the top.
Rafael Soriano’s laconic performance nearly cost the Rays the game. He entered with the Rays trailing by 1 with the objective of keeping the deficit just that small.
It seemed he did all he could to fail at that objective.
If it were not for several great plays in the inning, the Rays certainly would not have been mobbing CC at home plate at the end of the game.
Soriano gave up a double to Garrett Atkins, a single to Cesar Izturis (was supposed to be a sacrifice bunt) and had a botched double play put runners at the corners with 1 out.
If Atkins scores, the game is probably over.
Instead, Evan Longoria saved the game with a great play to get Atkins at the plate.
With two outs and runners in scoring position, Soriano got Miguel Tejada to scorch one right into Carl Crawford’s outstretched arm.
And we want to trade this guy? No CC means the Rays sit at 0-1 instead of 1-0.
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Longo Goes Long—OH!
(Ok, this pic is cool, isn’t it? It is like Longo is Lording over everybody at the Trop)
My goodness, did that ball land yet?
I’ll admit, from my perspective in the nosebleeds it was tough to get an idea of how far the ball was going. I knew it was gone, but how far it went was beyond me. I was too busy celebrating to watch the ball land, anyway.
Turns out, it was the third longest dinger in Tropicana Field history. It landed several rows up into the party deck!
Holee Cow!
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Carl’s Moment
I don’t want to belabor the amazing-ness that is Carl Crawford, but wow.
I thought it was incredible when he killed those Red Sox in 2003 with a line drive long ball in the bottom of the 9th to get an Opening Day win.
But this was just as great.
Following his great catch in the top half of the 9th and an almost-walk-off from Kelly Shoppach, Carl delivered a great line drive into right field that secured the game.
Pandemonium, folks.
I almost fell down the 596 stairs I had to climb to get to my seat.
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3 Keys to a W
1–Shields’ Composure. Check. He gave up 3 dingers, yet no more than that. Quality start.
2–Get the Long Ball Workin’. Check Longo took one out–WAY out–and Shoppach’s almost dinger helped make the difference.
3–The Rays Republic Must Represent. Nope Sorry Republic, I thought that the Trop was WAY too quiet all game long. Of course, I was sitting in the Swiss Alps, so I might have missed some of the cheering.
Gotta get at least 2 of the 3 Keys in order to get a W.
So…
2 Keys Checked = Rays Win!
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Final Thoughts
I’m looking forward to this season even more. The Rays were more than impressive Tuesday night, not only because of their offense and clutch hitting, but because of their resilience.
That resilient spirit was what helped the Rays take the AL East in 2008. Game after game was decided because the Rays refused to give up.
Can’t wait to see how Matty does tonight.
Co-Post 2: Judging the Rays’ Callups
We are now through the first week of Septemeber! The season is quickly approaching its final end.
It feels like a good time to get away from what the Rays might be doing on the field these days (especially since it could be better) and take a look at the guys who have been recently added to the expanded Rays roster.
Ginny at The Watercooler and Bob at More Cowbell are doing another co-post.
This time the duo will be analyzing the September callups of the Rays and deciding whether each player’s promotion to the big club should be designated a
GOOD CALL or a BAD CALL.
Remember, just because a guy is moved to the MLB roster does not always spell good things for the team. Or does it?
Let the debate begin!
After reading Bob’s analysis, click here to See what Ginny thinks!
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Reid Brignac
.282 AVE 24 2B 8 HR 44 RBI 5 SB
This is the third time Brignac has been moved from Durham to St. Pete. Over the course of the season it seems that the guy has logged more air miles than a pelican! He has had so much promise, yet has yet to break Spring Training with the club and become a regular starter. All that aside, Joe Maddon has said that having Brignac is a good thing because when starter Jason Bartlett needs a day off he can avoid putting Ben Zobrist in a position he has rarely played this year and simply plug in Brignac. I like that idea. It allows Zorilla to concentrate on 2B or RF and keep his bat steady.
GOOD CALL
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Wade Davis
10-9 3.40 ERA 1.25 WHIP 158 IP 140 K
I get chills when I think about what this guy can do on the mound.
This 24-year-old righty has been seen as the next big thing in the Rays system. How amazing is it that the Rays can continually put out the “next big thing” for their fans year after year? (see: Evan Longoria, Jeff Nieman, David Price, Wade Davis) He will make his first start Sunday for the Rays against the Detroit Tigers, and I think that the entire Republic will have its eyes glued on the screen (or in person, hopefully) to see just what the kid can do.
Having him on the roster now gets him a few major league starts before Spring Training next year. He just might have a shot at cracking the rotation next year, especially with the move of Scott Kazmir out west.
GOOD CALL
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Shawn Riggins
.200 AVE 2 2B 1 HR 5 RBI (11 Games)
The call on this move is kind of tricky. I think that the addition of Gregg Zaun was a godsend for a club whose catcher play was inconsistent offensively at best. Seeing Zaun from the left side and Dioner Navarro from the right side has really helped the offense click a little more from the backstop position and the results have been pretty solid (who can forget Zaun’s grand slam!?). Adding Riggs might be a mistake, though. He will not log much playing time with the big club because of the reasons mentioned above and whatever playing time he does get will take away–and disrupt–the smooth flow that has been established by the Zaun/Navi platoon. It can’t hurt having Riggs on the bench, but if he gets some playing time I think the results will be less than desirable.
BAD CALL
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Andy Sonnanstine
Last start: 4 IP 8 H 3 R 4 BB
Sonny is kind of a strange situation in that he was brought up September 1st because of the departure of one Scott Kazmir. His first start did not go much better than the previous 15 before it. This is a great chance for Sonny to earn a spot in next year’s rotation, but he did not impress in his first game back. He’ll be moved back one day to allow Davis to start at the Trop on Sunday and to get Sonny into the double header against the Yankees Monday. I am losing some faith in Sonnanstine’s ability to get batters out, and he may be ticketed for a long relief spot if he’s not careful.
NECESSARY CALL!
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Fernando Perez
.278 AVE 3 2B 0 HR 2 RBI 8 SB (13 games)
(This is Davey Lopes…but the ‘stache is the same–I can’t find a good pic of Perez’s stache!)
If the mustache doesn’t get you excited, then you must be dead!
This is one of my favorite players. The “Columbia Kid” was impressive in his stint with the Rays last season, culminating with a 2008 playoffs to remember. He is exciting on the basepaths and plays above average defense in center or right field. His bad is adequate, but he is also young (26) and will get better. His switch hitting ability is another plus.
He comes along at the right time, for BJ Upton’s ankle injury will sideline him for a few days. I think that this is a perfect chance for Perez to show the front office that he and BJ are the same age, possess the same skill set (minus the power for Fernando), but totally different salary situations. Hmmmmm….
GOOD CALL
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The September callups for the Rays used to mean that the year was over. That it was time to figure out what to do next year.
I don’t think that is the case just yet, though things don’t look so great.
The guys above are all guys who could/should break Spring Training on the Rays major league roster. They should all be contributers to next year’s team as well.
This opportunity, though, comes with alot riding on it. Not only do they get to audition for the team for next season, but they can help get the team to the playoffs if they do well.
I’m hoping for some great baseball from these guys over the next few weeks!
KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR OUR NEXT CO-POST, COMING SOON!
Go Rays!
So THAT’S What It’s Like….The Appetite for Winning Returns
VS 
It’s been awhile.
In fact, the Rays haven’t been able to call themselves winners in exactly a week, not since they beat Seattle 10-4.
Whew, glad that 5-game losing streak is over. It was starting to feel like the old days.
But with that great win comes great….hunger. I’m expecting the taste of winning has whetted our guys’ appetites so that the hits can keep on coming.
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The REAL Hitting Arrived
The Rays’ offense finally showed up to the ballpark Saturday night. It was as of our guys finally remembered the type of hitting that got them to the Series last year.
–They put together a clinic on patience, walking 5 times.
–They knocked 12 hits around the park.
–They scored 8 runs.
–They stole 2 bases.
–And they did it all WITHOUT A SINGLE HOME RUN!!!!
That is the hitting I’ve been waiting for. Our guys have relied too much on the long ball over the last month or so, and to see them getting 12 hits against Brian Tallet, a guy who has NEVER had any success against the Rays this year, makes you feel good.
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Magic 5′s
In order to end this 5-game losing streak the Rays relied heavily on their best hitters.
The top three in the order, Jason Bartlett, Carl Crawford, and Evan Longoria, did more than what a top three should be expected to do.
–They scored 5 runs between them.
–They knocked 5 hits.
–They drove in 5 RBIs.
It seems that lately one of our top three are hitting, while the other two wait their turn. It was nice to see all of those guys working together at the same time for once.
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The Pitching Worked
Scott Kazmir turned in a rare quality start, going 6 1/3 innings and giving up 3 runs on 5 hits while striking out 7.
It was a pitching performance that impressed everybody in the stadium. In fact, Cito Gaston, the Blue Jays’ manager, said that “He looked like his old self….He had good stuff.”
Not too bad, Scotty.
If Kaz can continue to pitch like this I can see the Rays starting to inch ever closer to that top wild card spot.
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What’s Happened During the Losing Streak
It’s tough to say that one losing streak, especially one as modest as a 5-gamer, could ruin a season, but this one is darn near of that magnitude.
During this last week the Rays have fallen to 11 1/2 behind the Yankees for the AL East lead. With only about 5 weeks or so remaining, that lead is pretty much insurmountable.
Then again, if a man can eat a 12-pound hamburger in a Boston deli (Man vs. Food on the Travel Channel, good show), then anything is possible, right?
Worse yet is the fact that our guys have fallen further behind the Red Sox in the wild card. While they did pick up a game last night to be just 4 behind, they were at one point only 1 1/2 games back. Ther is certainly a sense of urgency right now.
LET’S GET EATIN’ BOYS!!!!
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TODAY’S GAME
The Pitching Matchup
The Rays will hope that Matt Garza will be able to make a 1-game winning streak into a 2-game winning streak today against a team that he has dominated this year.
The guy’s got a 1.91 career ERA against the Jays and an 11-7 career record at the Trop, so things look good.
That’s one reason why I picked him up for a start on my fantasy team today–good numbers.
Toronto will throw that guy whose name nobody can pronounce, Mark Rzepczynski. Unfortunately, he dominated the Rays a few weeks ago too.
Who’ll blink first?
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Three Keys to the Game
1–Rays’ hitters have to get to this kid right away. Rzepczynski was really good against the Rays, but he only went 6 innings. If the Rays can heighten his pitch count then they might be able to get into that beleaguered Blue Jay bullpen early.
2–Run, run, run. With a kid on the mound, it is imperative the Rays’ base stealers (Bartlett, CC, BJ) get on and make him nervous.
3–Keep hitting. Let’s focus on singles and doubles. Homers are nice, but singles and doubles cause death by a thousand cuts. Let’s do that.
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The Rays will see the Blue Jays as soon as next week, so a strong showing here will go a long way towards building their confidence for that series. Plus, it sets them up nicely for a showdown with the Baltimore Orioles, a team that they should beat up on this week.
Wins are key.
We’ve got to get as many as we can now.
I would hate to forget what winning tastes like….again!
What a Loooooooong (ball) Night!
VS 
I’m not going to call this a “sweep.” To do so in a two-game series would be kind of cheap.
I AM going to call this a turning point, though.
This series against the wildcard-leading Red Sox was going to go a long way towards determining whether our Boys in Blue would sink or swim.
To lose both games would put the Rays 7 out of the wildcard and, essentially, end their season.
To split would be a wasted opportunity to gain some ground.
To take both games, well, that was just too much to hope for.
Yet, it was exactly what we got!
Rays 6, Red Sox 4.
The Rays now sit only 3 games behind Boston in the wildcard standings. They have a somewhat challenging schedule coming up, but this could be the Rays’ chance to do some serious moving.
But first, let’s talk about tonight’s game.
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Chicks Dig the Long Ball
The Rays and Red Sox combined to hit 6 long balls tonight. The Rays got more bang for their buck by scoring all 6 of their runs via the tater.
The Red Sox hit two solo shots and scored their other two runs a la the always exciting, um, groundout.
(FYI, groundouts are not exciting)
Advantage Rays.
Here’s how the night went:
In the second, Jason Bay went yard. Sox 1-0.
The Rays retaliated with their own longball, but Carlos Pena made his count for two. Rays 2-1.
Carl Crawford celebrated his 28th birthday by going opposite field for a 2-run dinger. Rays 4-1
The Red Sox were feeling left out, so “newbie” Victor Martinez took one over the fence. Rays 4-2.
Pat Burrell knocked a very business-like homer over the left field fence. Rays 5-2.
In the 7th, Jason Bartlett cemented his spot at the top of the order with a 2 out jack-son. Rays 6-3.
Sometimes I get a little worried when the Rays rely too heavily on home runs to score, but about this time last season they started to do this (score almost exclusively via the home run) and they rode it all the way to the Series.
So I’m going to shut up about it.
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The Pitching
The pitching was exactly what I expected: TIRED.
Both starters needed to give their respective teams 6+ innings and keep the score manageable. If they went out of the game too early, the fatigued bullpens were bound to be shellacked. If they stayed for their 6+ innings but gave up a ton of runs, the game would be difficult to win.
One starter kept his end of the deal. Luckily, he was ours.
David Price gave the Rays 6 strong innings giving up 2 runs on 6 hits, walking none, and striking out 5. It was exactly the type of start the Rays needed.
He didn’t look sharp all night long, giving up solo shots to Bay and Martinez, but what was impressive about the young hurler was that he kept his poise. That will be something to build on for his next start.
The Red Sox did not fare as well.
Brad Penny was rocked for 5 runs, 6 hits, and 2 walks in his 6 innings of work. You had to feel for Terry Francona (sort of) since he was pretty much locked in to allowing the right hander to work through the home runs. He could do nothing else after using every arm in his bullpen in the 13-inning marathon last night.
The Rays were fooled by nothing coming out of Penny’s hand, knocking him around in only his second 6-inning performance since July 4th.
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Three Keys to Tonight’s Game
1–BJ Upton needs to stop moping and start hitting. YEP. Upton went 1-3 tonight and stole a base, his 34th. His one hit was a rocket to left on a tough inside pitch. This is the BJ we need to see more often.
2–Price needs to stay on the mound. YEP. While his 6 innings were not earth shattering, they were yeoman-like. Price did the job and saved the bullpen from getting hammered tonight.
3–Rays hitters must chase Penny. SORT OF. The Rays knocked Penny around pretty good, but didn’t get him out of the game early. Who knew that would actually work in the Rays’ favor?
Result: 2 1/2 out of 3: WIN!!
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Looking Ahead
The Rays begin a 6-game West Coast road trip on Friday against the Mariners. They’ll then take on the Angels. The Rays are not very strong on the Left Coast, so these games might be a challenge.
The Red Sox face their nemesis in the Yankees for a 4-game set that could go a long way towards reshaping the AL East. It’ll be fun to watch.
Let’s hope they knock each other around while the Rays keep the winning streak going.
Now let’s get some sleep…
mlblogsraysfanboy
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