David Price, Rays try to end skid against Detroit Tigers
The Tampa Bay Rays will try to stop a 5 game losing streak tonight against the Detroit Tigers in their first of a three game series. This will be the last time the Rays will see the Tigers this season. Tampa posted a 19-7 record in July which got them right back into the race for the AL East title.
David Price (14-5 2.82) takes the mound tonight for the Rays as Tampa tries to get back on track. In Prices’ last outing, he had a quality start, going 7 innings, striking out 7 and only allowing one run. Price got a no decision as the Rays went into extra innings and eventually lost the game 2-1. Hitting for the Rays has been abyssal for the Rays of late. In the last five games, Tampa is batting a team .149. Yesterday, the Rays barely managed to avoid getting no hit for the third time this season, managing a single with two outs in the ninth inning off Blue Jays P Brandon Morrow who threw 136 pitches.
The Sporting News Stan McNeal penned a column about three things David Price needs to do in order to take his game to the next level. McNeal says he needs more strikes, has to expand his arsenal and spend more time trying to learn hitters tendencies.
The Tigers will have Armando Galarraga (3-4 4.32) on the mound tonight. As if yesterday’s debacle in Toronto wasn’t enough here comes Galarraga. Though he has been struggling of late, Galarraga will forever be remembered for the “Non-Perfect” game he threw against the Cleveland Indians on June 2nd of this year. Galarraga is 1-0, 6.35ERA lifetime against the Rays. Price is 2-0 1.65 lifetime against Detroit.
Something has to give to the Rays right now and we have to hope that during their flight from Toronto to Detroit yesterday, the Rays found their bats, maybe they were lost in customs.
Tigers limp in,but Rays, don’t let your guard down
The Tampa Bay Rays tonight get their first look at the 2010 version of the Detroit Tigers. Tampa has been simply pedestrian for most of the regular season at home while having the league’s best record away from the Trop. Tampa has recorded a 6-1 record in the confines of the Trop since late June and tonight’s match-up bothers me. Detroit comes in on the downside, losing 9 of the last 12 games they have played and injuries abound.
Detroit comes to the Trop after losing 6 consecutive games on the road this season, and what frustrates me about the Rays, is just like the Buccaneers, they seem to play down to the level of their opponent.
Matt Garza (10-5 4.36) takes the mound tonight for the Rays, who has a 3-0 record at the Trop in his last four starts at home, however, Garza is 0-4 with a 5.85 ERA versus the Tigers in his career starts against the Tigers. The Tigers are running Max Scherzer to the mound in opposition tonight. Scherzer is 7-7 with a 4.43 ERA and I’m concerned that the Rays batting order always seems to make ordinary pitchers look like Cy Young candidates, tonight could be crucial. Crucial because tomorrow the Tigers are trotting out Jason Verlander against James Shields who has struggled mightily this season.
The Rays must capture a win tonight because I’m not so certain about tomorrow night’s game, and you don’t want to be two games down to Detroit at home. Especially with New York at Cleveland and Boston against the Angels.
Rays win Cleveland series but stupidity on the basepaths abounded
The Tampa Bay Rays not only finally snapped the 18 game losing streak in Cleveland this weekend, but they were able to win the series and finish with a winning record on the road, going 5-4. Yes, the Rays logged a win 4-2 over the Cleveland Indians, but anyone who watched the game was horrified with the base running blunders by the Rays.
3B Evan Longoria was thrown out in the top of the 8th inning with Carlos Pena up to bat. Pena just launched a homer in Cleveland on Saturday night. Carl Crawford was picked off 2nd base with no one out in the top of the eighth as well, fooled by a move by the Indians pitcher. Reid Brignac was also thrown out. And how about John Jaso standing on second after a double with no one out, going on contact with a shot hit into the shortstop position.What are the Rays doing here? Practicing the things a team ought not to do in the post-season? Let’s get the mistakes out of the way now.
Wade Davis did post another win, his third in the last four outings, and perhaps this afternoon’s game was another audition as trade bait. I’ve read a couple online rumors this afternoon that the Rays might be seriously interested in Indians outfielder Shin-Soo Choo. The Indians outfielder has just recently come off the DL, and this season is batting .292 with 13 home runs and driven in 45 runs. If the rumors are true, perhaps the Rays will leave Davis and bring Choo with them on the flight home. I would not be agreeable to such a trade though because I feel Davis has much more upside than Choo who has a history of injury.
This afternoon was a messy win. Davis allowed too many baserunners, Rays baserunners looked like they were in high school but once again, Benoit and Soriano bailed the club out. A win is a win, even if it is ugly, and today’s win takes the Rays record to 59-38, the first time this season the Rays have been 21 games over .500.
So now it’s back to the Trop for the longest homestand of the regular season. I’d like to see an 8-3 record after the homestand and a sweep of the Yankees. Hey, a guy can wish can’t he?
Streak continues for Tampa Bay Rays-losing 18
There are somethings in life that just don’t make sense. If 7-11 stores are open 24 hours a day, they why do they need locks on the doors? Why are there instructions in braille at the drive through window at the bank and why can’t the Tampa Bay Rays win in Cleveland? I guess there is something to be said for consistency and the Rays have now lost 18 in a row in Progressive Field. In fact, not only did they not win tonight, the Rays only managed one hit. One hit for a team which had been averaging 7 runs a game after the All-Star break.
Indians P Fausto Carmona recorded his 10th win of the season after allowing one hit and striking out 7 in a game which was suspended after 2 hours and 44 minutes of rain delay, the game was eventually called after the 7th inning.
Saturday night’s matchup features David Price (12-5 2.84) going up against Mitch Talbot (8-8 3.89) for the Indians. Price is coming off a horrible outing his last start, surrendering 7 earned runs in 5 innings against the Yankees. Talbot was strong his last start, getting a no decision but only gave up 1 earned run against a good Detroit team.
Maybe tonight’s rain shortened game will cause the Rays to do something different that will help break the streak. Take a different route back to the hotel, maybe they should go out for midnight bowling tonight, hit some strip clubs, go drinking until 5am, something different. Until then, this streak will simply remain a mystery.
Rays try to reverse luck in Cleveland
After squeaking by the Baltimore Orioles in the third game of the series, Tampa got a day off before heading to Cleveland for a three game series with the Indians. Tampa comes into Cleveland after losing 17 consecutive games at Progressive Field (If that trend doesn’t reverse itself soon, I might have to cancel my progressive insurance). Tampa has won 5 of 6 games versus the Indians this season, but all those games have been played in Tampa.
Tampa has not won a game in Cleveland since September 28th 2005 against the Indians. Tonight’s game will see two pitchers square off against one another who are both coming off a win in their last outting.
Jeff Niemann (8-2 2.92) takes the mound for the Rays against Fausto Carmona (9-7 3.65) for the Indians. Cleveland has been playing some good baseball after the All-Star break and are expected to get OF Shin-Soo Choo back in the lineup tonight. The Rays are hoping for a return of OF Carl Crawford who, uh, took one for the team on Tuesday night.
This series has all the makings of a trap series for the Rays. The Rays must win the series if not sweep the series against Cleveland with a very difficult 11 game homestand against three very good teams, Detroit, New York and Minnesota.
