Rays run roughshod over Rangers, 3 game sweep!
If this was supposed to be a preview of a possible first round matchup between these two teams in a playoff matchup, Rays fans have to be very pleased as to what they witnessed in the last three days.
Tampa outscored Texas 24-12 in the three game series, and once again logged 10 hits and drew 8 walks against Rangers pitching. James Shields was impressive for the Rays, only allowing 4 hits and 1 earned run in 7 innings, and registering 6 strikeouts. Relievers Joaquin Benoit and Rafael Soriano bookended reliever Lance Cormier, and Soriano recorded his 35th save of the season.
This was an impressive series for the Rays, they posted huge offensive numbers along with very quality starts for the pitching staff. The start of the month saw the Rays flounder a bit, losing 5 in a row between the 5th until the 9th of the month. Since that slump, Tampa is 7-2 . 10-7 for the month so far.
I wish I had more to add, but I was distracted by my other obligations, having to cover the Brett Favre news conference. Jesus, I hope this will be the end of the line for him.
Tampa now heads out west.
Rays bats on fire, 10-1 over Rangers
In case you missed the memo, the Tampa Bay Rays bats are on fire right now with a 10-1 rout over the Texas Rangers. Rays fans have got to love seeing this, if this is a possible preview of a playoff match-up. The Rays chased Rangers pitcher, Tommy Hunter after facing 1 batter in the forth. Hunter had been pitching well, winning 4 of his last 6 starts, but yielded 6 hits and 4 earned runs in his brief appearance Tuesday night.
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Rays pitcher Matt Garza had a fantastic outing. Garza had been pitching well in his last few starts but couldn’t seem to record a win. Tuesday night though, Garza was on fire, logging 7 innings, 5 hits and 10 K’s on 102 pitches. Garza struck out 5 of the first 8 batters.
The Rays at the plate were electric, collecting 15 hits and drawing 7 walks. Tampa had 4 batters with multi hit games and LF Carl Crawford and 3B Evan Longoria each driving in three runs. Crawford was simply a double away from hitting for the cycle. And B.J. Upton, who is quietly raising his batting average, had a pair of doubles as well.
James Shields will be on the mound tonight as the Rays look for a series sweep. To say that Shields (10-11 4.98) has been inconsistent, would be an understatement. On August 1st, Shields pitched the best game I’ve ever seen him pitch against the New York Yankees. Shields pitched into the 8th inning, 4 hits and 11 strikeouts. He has followed up that brilliant performance with a pair of really terrible outings. Rocked for 8 earned runs in just 4 innings against Toronto, then surrendering 4 runs against Baltimore last week. A start by Shields is a roll of the dice as of late.
The Rangers will be starting Derek Holland (2-1 4.19) The 23 year old left hander is being recalled from the Rangers AAA affiliate in Oklahoma City where he has been rehabbing a shoulder injury. Holland is 2-0 against the Rays lifetime, but has a 5.73 ERA versus Tampa.
After tonight’s game, Tampa will travel to the West coast for a 6 game trip taking on the Oakland A’s and Los Angeles Angels.
Rays Rally to defeat Lee, Rangers
The Tampa Bay Rays are now tied for first place in the AL East as they rallied late to beat Cliff Lee and the Texas Rangers. A game which featured two of the most dominant left handers in the AL, saw the pair combine for 18 strikeouts.
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Rays-Rangers series opens with marquee pitchers duel
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Tropicana Field will be buzzing tonight with the Tampa Bay Rays squaring off with the Texas Rangers and a marquee pitching matchup. David Price versus Cliff Lee, all the feeling of a playoff game. Texas enters the game with a comfortable 8.5 game lead in the AL West and appear to be cruising to a playoff berth. Tampa comes in to tonight’s game with the second best record in baseball at 71-46 and despite a rocky start in the month of August, have climbed back to only 1 game behind the New York Yankees.
The good guys will be wanting to see David Price (15-5 2.84) become the American League’s first pitcher to win 16 games this season. Tampa has been plagued with inconsistent offense in the past few weeks and facing the Rangers Cliff Lee (10-5 2.57) will be no easy task. While the Rays have already beaten Lee twice this year, he holds a 6-4 2.51 ERA lifetime against the Rays. Rays SP Price has never beaten the Rangers and holds a 0-2 9.45 ERA against Texas.
Price will need a better performance than his last outing against the Detroit Tigers. Price did record the win, but only managed to last 5 innings and was erratic at times. Texas starts out the three game series tonight, second in the majors with a team batting average of .276. Tampa will get to see former Rays prospect LF Josh Hamilton tonight. Hamilton has become the superstar that the Rays envisioned when they drafted him in the first round of 1999′s draft. Hamilton is batting .362 with 26 home runs and 80 runs driven in, that offensive production sure would look great in the Rays offense right now.
This will be the final series between the two clubs for the regular season, but there is a very good chance they could see one another in the post season. So, get you’re popcorn ready, this is going to be a great one tonight.
Rays rebound versus O’s
Though Tampa has only 3 wins out of 18 Friday’s this season, they stayed true to form tonight as they have a stellar record on the following Saturday’s after a loss. Rays P Andy Sonnanstine was a serviceable starter, allowing 3 earned runs in 5 innings and picked up the win.
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The hero of the night had to be, C Kelly Shoppach without a doubt. Coming into the game batting less than .200, Shoppach turned the game around in the 4th inning with a grand slam home run and then followed that up with a solo shot in the 8th. Shoppach drove in 5 runs, scored twice and raised his batting average over the .200 lin. Shoppach had only hit one home run in 38 games this season.
One player who should be given MVP consideration for the Rays after this season is the little noticed RP Joaquin Benoit. Benoit has been lights out all season long. He currently has a ERA of 1.27 and a WHIP of 0.61. Benoit came in for the 8th inning, he threw 13 pitches, 9 were strikes, he struck out 2 and recorded his 18th hold of the year. In 42.2 innings pitched this season, he has only allowed 6 earned runs while striking out 58 and only walking 7. Benoit has been money for the Rays this season.
In Sunday’s game, the Rays fans will get another look at rookie phenom Jeremy Hellickson. Hellickson (2-0 1.29) was lights out against Detroit last week using less than 90 pitches in 7 innings to record his second career win.
Baltimore will be starting Jake Arrieta (4-3 5.29) who was roughed up in his last outing against Cleveland giving up 5 earned runs in 6 innings. The New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox both collected wins last evening so the standings in the AL East won’t change.
