Are the Tampa Bay Rays simply content to start the playoffs as the AL wildcard team? They certainly aren’t playing with any sense of urgency. The Rays managed two hits last night. TWO, as the Rays once again managed to make an average pitcher look like a Cy Young contender. Veteran left hander Bruce Chen pitched a 7 strikeout 2 hit complete game and his first career shutout for the Kansas City Royals.

Last nights game should prove to Tampa that James Shields should play no role whatsoever in the playoff pitching rotation. Shields was rocked again last evening for 12 hits and 6 earned runs in just 5 innings pitched. Shields has only three wins in his last 10 starts and now has an ERA of 5.18. Shields ERA for the month of September is at 7.00.

The New York Yankees moved ahead of the Tampa Bay Rays bu a 1/2 a game by virtue of their game being postponed due to the remnants of Tropical Storm Nicole moving through the area. The Yankees and Red Sox will make their game up this afternoon in a doubleheader starting at 4pm EST.

The Rays have now lost 5 of their last 6 games and their feast or famine offense continues plodding along. With last nights 2 hitter, Tampa Bay has now been held to 6 hits or less 56 times in 2010, the most in the majors. That really is an odd statistic for the team which held the best record in baseball for a long while this season.

Tampa has two games remaining on the regular season schedule. The Rays are starting Andy Sonnanstine in tonight’s game but will find a way to get David Price into the game for 30-40 pitches in a final tuneup before the playoffs start. The appearance by Price might allow him an opportunity to reach 20 wins this season depending on how the game unfolds.

With last night’s loss to the Royals the Tampa Bay Rays failed to post a winning record against all of their AL opponents for the season. This is not the way I would like the Rays to be heading for the post season, hopefully in these final two games, the Rays can generate some offense and record  two wins.

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Rays P James Shields continues to perplex. Shields lasted 5 innings and two batters into the 6th in a 100 pitch effort but managed not to surrender a home run. However, Shields did give up 10 hits and 4 earned runs and now has an ERA of 4.98. Perhaps the largest problem facing the Rays right now is the lack of run production. For over a month, I’ve written in this space about the lack of production from the Rays hitting with RISP. Last evening, the Rays were 0-7 and in the past week are 9-56 batting with RISP. That translates to a .160 average. Horrible. This team is perplexing in so many ways. There is talent across the board, and when the pitching gets good, the hitting  falls off and vise versa.

As fans, we are all hoping that the team comes together down the stretch and plays as they did to start the season.

Saturday’s game will see the Rays face Orioles P Brian Matusz (4-11 5.08) and the Rays will have Andy Sonnanstine ( 2-1 3.98) make his second consecutive start as Jeff Niemann is recovering on the disabled list.

The Tampa Bay Rays finally got one in the win column after beating the Detroit Tigers Monday night 6-3. The Rays must have gotten their bats returned to them by the Canadian customs authorities, because they managed 11 hits. Despite struggling and lasting only 5 complete innings, David Price collected his 15th win of the season, setting a single season win record for the Rays.Soriano closed it out in the 9th on 12 pitches, 10 for strikes to record his 32nd save of the year.

Tampa did collect 11 hits in 33 at bats but in what has really become the theme for the Rays in the last several weeks, those hits did not come at the most opportune times. Tampa was 2-10 with RISP. In order to jump start an anemic offense, manager Joe Maddon tweaked the top end of the line up by inserting C John Jaso in the leadoff position, Zobrist hit second and Crawford and Longoria both moved down a noth to hit third and fourth respectively. The results? the top four spots were a combined 7-18 4RBI’s and 3 runs scored.

In a move which was not unexpected, the Rays have placed pitchers Wade Davis and Jeff Niemann on the 15 day disabled list with their shoulder ailments. The Rays recalled Jeremy Hellickson for tonight’s start. Saturday’s scheduled start for Jeff Niemann will most likely be filled by Andy Sonnanstine. Detroit is starting pitcher Max Scherzer (7-8 4.19) His record might be hovering around the .500 level, but Scherzer is 5-2 2.23ERA in his last 10 starts.

The Blue Jays had Brandon Morrow on the mound today who came into the game with an 8-6 record and in usual fashion, the Rays made him look brilliant. Morrow’s slider was wicked this afternoon as he struck out 17 Rays batters, one away from tying the Blue Jays all time strike out record set by Rogers Clemens.

I had predicted a Blue Jays sweep here yesterday but not because I thought Brandon Morrow was going to resemble a Cy Young pitcher today, but because the Rays were forced to send up Andy Sonnanstine because of an injury to Jeff Niemann. Sonnanstine was not the problem however, he pitched well in 5.1 innings giving up three hits and one earned run. Wow, what a difference a day makes, as the Rays would have loved those kinds of numbers from James Shields yesterday.

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Joining Niemann on the trip back to Florida to visit Dr. Koco Eaton, is SP Wade Davis. On stand-by as I type is SP Jeremy Hellickson, who could be called back for Tuesday nights start against Detroit. Tampa now departs Toronto for a three game set with the Tigers and needs to sweep the Tigers to avoid a losing road record. That is a feat which I don’t think is possible with the way the Rays are currently playing in the midst of a five game losing streak. Thursday will be the first day off for the Rays in a while as they wrap up a 20 game in 20 day portion of their schedule.

It has just been announced that Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Jeff Niemann will not start on Sunday and the Rays will be starting Andy Sonnanstine in his place. Dale Thayer, who was recalled from AAA Durham and posted an ERA of 27.00 this afternoon will be sent back tonight, replaced by Sonnanstine.

A start tomorrow by Andy Sorrystine will be the formula for a complete sweep by the red hot hitting Toronto Blue Jays. All this work to climb back into first place and it just drifts away. Meanwhile, the Red Sox continue to lose major player after major player and are still in the hunt. Insanity.

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Here’s a quick photo of Burnett waving to the adoring New York fans as he was pulled from the game after serving up virtual batting practice.

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Evan Longoria had a hot bat tonight for the good guys, going 3-4 with 2 RBI’s.  C John Jaso really got back on track with a 3-4 performance and he added a walk, 2 RBI’s and 2 runs scored. Tampa was sluggish last week with the bats, but some Yankee pitching was all it took to get the bats catching fire. Tonight, the Rays had 15 hits and 5 walks. Just for good measure, Tampa added 6 stolen bases.

Rays starter Wade Davis was tough as well. While he did only record 5.2 innings, he had 7 strikeouts and 60% of his pitches went for strikes. Davis did give up 7 hits and 2 earned runs, but the Yankees came into the game leading in many offensive categories.

In a nutshell, Tampa had their way with New York tonight. I watched the game on the Florida Sunshine network, I couldn’t stomach the ESPN crew making excuses for their beloved Yankees. Joe Morgan was likely drinking by the 6th inning. It will be a rough day on Thursday at the ESPN studios in Bristol, CT. At least their beloved Red Sox eked out a 3-2 win tonight, but black arm bands and a somber mood will be the work format tomorrow.

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James Shields takes on Andy “Goat Eyes” Pettitte tonight, can New York withstand yet another smackdown? Who cares if they can withstand it, come on Tampa, administer it!

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James Shields (6′ 4″ 220- right hander)

Shields was 11-12  4.14 last year, but logged nearly 220 innings. He is a workhorse and rest assured that when he starts, you will get the innings from him. He was 2nd last year in innings pitched in the AL, in fact has been second 2 of the last three years. Shields has already been named the opening day starter.

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Matt Garza (6′ 4″ 215 right hander)

Garza joined the Rays organization via trade from the Minnesota Twins on November 27, 2007. In his first season with Tampa, he posted a 11-9 3.70 record and went on to win the MVP trophy in the ALCS. At the start of last season, great things were expected from Garza but his game regressed, as he recorded a sub .500 season. (8-12 3.95) Though, much like Shields, Garza had little run support last season. For the Rays to return to the post season in 2010, a strong year from Garza is a requirement.

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Jeff Niemann (6′ 9″ 260 right hander)

Niemann’s physical presence on the mound draw comparisons to Randy Johnson, but the comparisons stop when the pitching starts. Jeff lead the 2009 Rays in wins, recording a 13-6 3.94 season. A repeat of his 2009 season will be a great addition from the #3 spot in the rotation this year.

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David Price (6′ 6″ 225 left hander)

Price was the 1st overall selection in the 2007 MLB draft. While he did struggle with command of his pitches when he finally joined the roster, he does possess a fastball which has been recorded at 97 mph at times, a slider and a changeup. Price was 10-7 4.42 last year, but I believe he’s on the cusp on a 15+ win season.

The fifth starter in the rotation is up for grabs this spring. The Rays actually face a problem many teams in MLB don’t have, too much depth at the starting pitching position. Heading into Spring Training, it was widely believe that Wade Davis (6′ 5″ 220) who joined the squad late in the year from AAA Durham, would be the odds on favorite. He made an impressive debut with the Rays tossing a shutout and striking out 10 in his first career win against Baltimore. The first MLB pitcher to achieve such a feat since 1992.

Also in the mix is Andy Sonnanstine (6′ 3″ 190) and Jeremy Hellickson who was 9-2 with a sub 2.50ERA in combined minor league games last season. Hellickson appears ready for the big show, but will most likely start the season back at AAA Durham.

So, if the starting rotation is Shields, Garza, Niemann, Price and Davis, the combined height of the pitching staff will be 32 feet 4 inches. Perhaps the largest starting rotation in MLB today.