October 19, 2052: NLCS Game 6
 

So it will be the Brewers and Astros in the Fall Classic:

https://i.imgur.com/uNpsq9o.png

The 2052 World Series
 

At least we lost to the eventual champion:

https://i.imgur.com/0KX90Ma.png
https://i.imgur.com/TIj2KeR.png

2052-53 Offseason: State of the Team
 

The natives are getting restless as we've gone three years without a title since winning 8 times in 9 years. For 2053 we've been given a payroll of $150M. Here are our salary obligations:

https://i.imgur.com/zi03lih.png

This clocks in at $104M but before you say "whoa, you've got like $45M to spend" notice that there's no Luis Barela in this list as he opted out of the final year of his contract. I have a 3/90 offer into the ageless one whom I'm not ready to let go of so assuming he accepts it we'll really have about $15M to spend. Of the group above Ismael Morales seems the most expendable especially with Jose Machado ready to take over at 2B and I'm a bit iffy on Chris Hetzel at $2.8M. Assuming Barela re-signs we'll be losing the following free agents of significance: Steve Morris, Ruben Ramirez, Alan Rutherford and Chris O'Brien. I'd like to bring Morris back but he wants starter money, and Ramirez's place will likely be taken by Joe Koutnik. Rutherford was always hurt, and O'Brien had a nice year but is replaceable. Also late season pickups Marco Cano and Andy Steele are gone but neither was that important.

The position-by-position outlook:

C: David Morales remains one of the best and Cesar Scroggins is a useful backup. We also have top prospect David Gonzalez.

1B: Nesty de la Rosa had a great rookie season but could use some help against lefties. Depending on how the roster shakes out, Takayuki Tsujimara could be the RH bat to complement Nesty.

2B: Jose Machado hit 323/388/516 at Durham last year, good for 5.1 WAR and he'll get his shot even though he's an iffy defender (when has that ever stopped us before?).

SS: Dantel Chinchilla is back after a fine year.

3B: I'm assuming Luis Barela re-signs, if not we'll have $30M to find another third-sacker.

IF: Juan de Oca has a great glove but can't hit but given Machado's defensive limitations de Oca will likely be our middle infield backup. Cameron Holly is due back from injury but is kind of a bat-first guy and the bat is nice but nothing special.

LF/CF/RF: The Avalos/Avalos/Morales OF returns intact.

OF: Who will be the backup(s)? Jon Lozada will be back from another injury-halved season and as a righty bat will fill in some for the lefty-hitting Avaloses. Jon McGovern underwhelmed after a decent rookie season and the usual suspects like David Alba and Chris Kidd are still around. Kidd at least can play a decent CF. Might look for some help here.

DH: Koutnik has the inside track here, along with rookie Sung-Min Yang, whom we signed from Korea last winter. Yang was an impressive 319/392/544 with 23 HR and 89 RBI at Durham. He's a lefty, Koutnik a righty, so a platoon is possible here.

SP: The rotation returns intact with Rose/T.Johnson/M.Lopez/McInerney/Mastropietro.

RP: The back end of the pen returns with Talbott, Berumen, Navarro and Roberts. The oft-injured Kevin Leonard is our only other lefty with Rutherford, O'Brien and Morris free agents so we'll need one or two more to go with Roberts. Lefties Eddie Lilly and Jon Ward are at Durham but they were there for a reason. If Hetzel is dealt or non-tendered we'll need another middle-innings righty.

Other than Machado and Yang I don't see any immediate help from the farm.

So goals for the offseason:

1) Re-sign Luis Barela (the offer is in)
2) Beef up the middle-innings pen, especially lefty-wise
3) See about a righty-hitting backup outfielder

2052-53 Offseason, Part 1
 

Started the offseason with a trade:

November 1: Traded 28-year old 2B Ismael Morales to the New York Mets, getting 23-year old minor league CF Angel Vigil in return.

As mentioned previously Morales was on the block to save about $4M in salary and we shipped him for an intriguing CF prospect in Vigil:

https://i.imgur.com/iTIrQMs.png

Plenty of speed, defense, gap power and moderate HR power and it culminated in a 7.5 WAR season in A ball as you can see. The only knock is that Vigil was a bit old for the level at 23.

Also, this:

November 5: Signed 3B Luis Barela to a 3-year contract extension worth a total of $90,000,000.

One more go-round with our Hall of Framer and franchise icon. He'll be 38 in March and did show some slight signs of slippage last year with a .251 BA but still had 39 HR and 112 RBI and earned 4.7 WAR. We'll probably regret this in 54 and most definitely 55, but we couldn't let him go.

So with these two moves we have $14M to spend and we're only looking for middle relief as a real need.

Awards season:

Gold Glove: David Morales won the AL catcher award for the second straight season.

Reliever of the Year: The Mariano Rivera of the 40s and 50s, LA's Jake Cid, won the AL award unanimously after a 43-save, 1.49 ERA, 3.3-WAR season. Steve Morris finished fourth. In the NL San Francisco's Bill Sutherland claimed 30 of 32 first-place votes and the trophy after a 44-save, 1.21 ERA, 4.5 WAR campaign. Finishing second in the NL was former Ray Chris Parham, who played CF for us before converting to relief full-time. Parham had 49 saves and a 2.11 ERA.

Silver Sluggers: Barela at 3B was our only winner, kind of a light showing for the Rays.

Rookie of the Year: Nesty!

https://i.imgur.com/k5d2mjY.png

In the NL the award went unanimously to Washington RF Elijah Ring, who hit .322-6-72 and earned 2.9 WAR.

Cy Young: LA's Marco Agria easily outdistanced our Dave Rose in the AL, claiming 31 first-place votes to Rose's one (guess who?). Agria was 15-6, 2.54 with an AL-best 242 Ks and 6.6 WAR. The NL winner was St. Louis' Lienhard Moser, who also had 31 first-place votes after a 17-6, 2.51 year with 225 Ks and 6.2 WAR.

MVP: Pat Patterson of Houston beat out the Yankees' Alex Barnes for AL MVP as the OF took 23 first-place votes and 403 points to Barnes' 9/332 on the heels of his .301-52-125, 7.6-WAR season. Ezequiel Avalos was the highest-finishing Ray in 5th. In the NL Dodger OF Jaden Warfield took 24 first-place votes to win after hitting .353-22-99 with 7.4 WAR.

December 5: There goes the first of our free agents as 1B Ruben Ramirez inks a 5/94 pact with Cincinnati.

December 10: Houston claimed the big prize among international free agents as they signed Japanese OF Mitsuhiko "The God of Batting" Nonaka to a 5/128 deal. Nonaka boasts 55 contact, 70 power and a 75 eye.

December 21: Added 2B Jose Machado, OF Sung-Min Yang and 1B Manny Mendoza to the 42-man roster.

Our Rule 5 protectees. Machado actually didn't need to go on the 42-man yet but he's penciled in as the starting 2B and we still have 4 spots open.

December 22: Lost 3B Kelvin Owens to Washington in the Rule 5 Draft.

We signed Owens a few years ago out of an indy league and while he's played OK at Durham there was nothing compelling us to call him up or protect him. Owens was the 2nd pick overall in an active draft which saw 27 players taken.

December 24: Another of free agents is gone as lefty Chris O'Brien signed a 3/11.5 contract with Minnesota.

2052-53 Offseason, Part 2
 

January 1: A pair of former Rays who were key parts of our championship teams in the 30s were elected to the Hall of Fame:

https://i.imgur.com/sdklVDo.png

Jenkins earned 45 of his 65 career WAR with the Rays from 2029-2036, hitting 329/384/508 in Tampa Bay and playing superior outfield defense. He won 5 titles in his time in Tampa Bay and was the AL MVP in 2032. And he'll be enshrined along with a teammate:

https://i.imgur.com/xC1TIK8.png

Dominguez' tenure with the Rays was shorter, from 2028 to 2032, although like Jenkins he earned more WAR with the Rays (27-25) than he did with the Cardinals where he spent most of the rest of his career. He won three titles with Tampa Bay from 2028-30.

Meanwhile it was agony for another great as Shohei Ohtani was so close in his final season on the ballot, getting 74.2% of the vote. The leading vote-getters:

CF Jasson Dominguez 86.4 (8th year) Inducted HOF
RF Dayle Jenkins 79.2 (4th year) Inducted HOF
SP Shohei Ohtani 74.2 (10th year) Dropped
CL Kikuo Kawase 57.5 (2nd year)
SS Bo Bichette 55.8 (6th year)
SP Andy Aparicio 47.5 (7th year)
CL Chris Martin 45.0 (1st year)
3B Bo Angeac 43.9 (3rd year)
LF Victor de Jesus 40.3 (1st year)

Four more Rays greats (Kawase, Aparicio, Angeac, de Jesus) had good showings although Aparicio needs to get moving with only three years left on the ballot.

January 8: Signed LHP Ben Hilton to a 1-year, $4.5M contract.

We get the lefty reliever we need as the veteran Hilton is rated 80/50/45. He can start as well but he's ticketed for the pen.

January 11: Another of free agents is gone as Steve Morris is a Twin thanks to a 3/49 deal.

January 26: 2049-51 Rays 1B Juan Viatoro, dealt to Columbus last year, signed a 4/65 contract with the Dodgers.

February 11: Preseason began and owner Jorge Rios has decided to inject another $14M in cash for the payroll, giving us $27M to spend. Also the Pittsburgh Longhorns, once the Pirates, will now be known as the Pittsburgh Isotopes.

Emboldened by the additional payroll, we made a trade:

https://i.imgur.com/ebg6hg6.png

Bourassa gives us another lefty in the pen, and a good one with 106 saves over the last five years with 65/50/50 ratings. Ortiz was a 5th-round pick a couple of years ago and has limited potential.

2053 Opening Day Roster and Preseason Predictions
 

We had two injuries of significance during Spring Training. Joe Koutnik, expected to be the full-time DH, came down with chronic back soreness and will be out until early May. Rookie LHB Sung-min Yang will platoon with Jose Lozada with Lozada playing LF and E.Avalos DHing against lefties. The other injury was projected 3rd starter Alec McInerney straining a hamstring and being out until mid-May. Lefty Ben Hilton, signed for the bullpen, will take his place in the rotation.

One free agent signing of note around MLB: Former Rays star Doug Johns inked a 1/7.7 pact with the Cubs.

So here's how the OD roster shakes out:

C-D.Morales, Scroggins
1B-N. de la Rosa
2B-J.Machado
SS-Chinchilla
3B-Barela
IF-de Oca, Kang-cheol Lee, Tsujimura
LF-E.Avalos
CF-J.Avalos
RF-J.Morales
DH-Yang
OF-Lozada, Whittaker

SP-Rose, T.Johnson, M.Lopez, Hilton*, Mastropietro*
LR-Giles
MR-Hetzel, Ward*, Bourassa*, Navarro
SU-Roberts*, Berumen
CL-Talbott
*lefties


We really don't need 15 position players and only 13 pitchers but with the McInerney injury we don't have too many decent options. Perhaps a waiver claim will be made or a deal.

The preseason predictions:

https://i.imgur.com/UwnNnBT.png

BNN not terribly impressed with us and only projects one our players (Dave Rose) to be among the league's top 10 hitters or pitchers.

We open the season North of the Border with 4 games against the Jays.

April 3-6, 2053: at Toronto (4)
 

The traditional Opening Day box:

https://i.imgur.com/o4L1du3.png

A tough loss on Opening Day for the Rays, coming through to tie it up in the top of the 9th on a clutch Ezequiel Avalos single only for Steve Talbott to cough up a 2-out homer in the bottom of the frame to let Toronto walk it off. Dave Rose turned in a fine outing but the bats were limp until the 9th.

Game 2: The bats came alive but the pitching was terrible today and the bullpen lost another lead late to doom the Rays to an 0-2 start after a 10-7 loss. A 4-run 6th highlighted by Jesus Avalos' second homer of the day, a 3-run shot, put the Rays up 7-5 while Jose Machado hit his first MLB dinger and David Morales added a rare solo shot. Melvin Lopez gave one back in the 6th and finished a terrible 5 8 6 6 1 2 with 3 homers allowed but they still held a lead into the 8th when Marco Berumen (0-1) blew up, allowing 4 runs on 5 hits including a home run to cost them the game.

April 5: Claimed P Steve Cleland on waivers from Austin, optioned 3B Kang-cheol Lee to AAA Durham.

We're back at a 14/14 balance on the roster with the pickup of Cleland, a veteran reliever with fine 60/70/55 ratings. The groundballer is capable of starting but with 40 stamina.

Game 3: The miserable start to 2053 continued as the Rays fought back from 3-0 to tie it, only to allow the go-ahead run and lose 4-3 to drop to 0-3. The Rays were blanked through 5 but broke through for 3 in the 6th on a Jon Morales RBI double and Luis Barela's first homer of the year, a 2-run shot and the 523rd of his illustrious career. But Tim Johnson (0-1) put a man on with one out in the 6th and former Jays closer Steve Bourassa gave up the hit that let Johnson's man score and that was that. Johnson finished 5.1 5 4 4 5 5 with 2 homers allowed.

Game 4: Hallelujah the Rays finally won a game as they routed the Jays 10-2 and actually ended up outscoring them 22-19 for the series despite losing 3 of 4. They broke out early, going up 7-0 by the 2nd including the first MLB homer from Sung-min Yang (who also had an RBI double), another homer from Jose Machado, and the first of the year from Ezequiel Avalos who drove in 3 on the day. Ben Hilton won his Rays debut in a decent 5.2 6 2 2 2 4 outing although he too allowed a pair of homers but limited the damage otherwise.

Team record: 1-3. Next up: We'll play our home opener to kick off a 3-game series with Texas.

April 7-9, 2053: vs Texas (3)
 

Game 1: The Rays comfortably won their opener 10-6 over the Rangers with the final score a bit misleading as it was 10-2 before they allowed 4 late runs. Jesus Avalos doubled twice and drove in a pair and Luis Barela knocked in two with a double as well. Randy Mastropietro was excellent in his first outing of the season at 6 4 2 1 2 5 but Chris Giles gave up 4 runs in the 8 to mar the final score.

Game 2: After scoring 10 runs in each of the last two games the worm suddenly turned on Tampa Bay as they were shut out 3-0 by Texas. Dave Rose (0-1) pitched decently at 6 7 3 3 1 8 but gave up a couple of homers. The bats did get 8 hits but a couple of double plays short-circuited rallies.

Game 3: Not sure this has happened in this save but the Rays were shut out in consecutive games as Texas won again 4-0. This time they only managed five hits and find themselves off to a dismal 2-5 start to the season. Melvin Lopez (0-1) went 4.2 3 2 2 4 3 in the loss.

Team record: 2-5. Next up: An off-day then Oakland visits for 3 games.

April 11-13, 2053: vs Oakland (3)
 

Game 1: The Rays got back in the win column in a big way in the opener at Publix Park, destroying Oakland 15-1. The Rays put an astounding 29 men on base and could have scored 20 had they not left 14 on. One particular offender was Jesus Avalos, who stranded 9 men but also had the game's biggest hit with a grand slam (#3) which broke open a 2-1 game in the 5th. David Morales had a big day, going 4-5 with 2 doubles and 3 RBI while Jon Morales hit his first homer of the year, a 2-run shot. Tim Johnson evened his record at 1-1 with a fine 6.1 4 1 1 1 7 outing.

Game 2: Runs were harder to come by today but that didn't faze the Rays, nor did their starter having to leave early as five Tampa Bay pitchers combined on a 3-hit shutout in a 3-0 win. Ben Hilton suffered an ab strain after going the first 3 1/3, Chris Giles (1-0) earned the win with 2 2/3 perfect innings, and Steve Talbott notched his first save of the season. Luis Barela's 3rd-inning RBI single was all they needed, and Jesus Avalos was 2-3 with an RBI double.

Game 3: Apparently Oakland was the cure for all that ailed the Rays in the early going of 2053 as they completed the sweep with a 7-0 win in the finale, outscoring the A's 25-1 over the 3 games. Randy Mastropietro (2-0) made it two fine starts to begin the year, going 5 3 0 0 2 4, while Ezequiel Avalos, Dante Chinchilla and Cesar Scroggins each drove in a pair, with Scroggins' RBIs coming on a 2-run homer (#1).

Team record: 5-5. Next up: Toronto, which beat us 3 out of 4 to open the year in Canada, visits for 3 games.

April 14-16, 2053: vs Toronto (3)
 

Game 1: A 3-3 game going into the 8th turned into a 6-4 Toronto win when Joe Roberts (0-1) coughed up 3 runs to lose it. Luis Barela's 2-run single was the big hit for the Rays today while Dave Rose was 6 4 3 3 4 8 in his start.

Game 2: The bullpen let another one get away after the Rays overcame an early 4-0 deficit to go ahead 5-4, only to lose 6-5 in the late innings as Tampa Bay seems to have a hard time beating anyone not named Oakland so far this season. Melvin Lopez was knocked around to the tune of 5 5 4 4 2 5 before a 3-run from Sung-min Yang (#2) and David Morales' 2-run single put them ahead. But Willie Navarro gave up the tying run in the 7th and Joe Roberts (0-2) faltered again, allowing the winner in the 8th.

April 15: Placed 2B Jose Machado on the 10-day IL with hamstring tendinitis, activated 2B Cameron Holly from his rehab assignment.

The rookie Machado will be out 3 weeks while Holly only got a couple of games with Durham in his first action of the year but will be pressed into helping the big club out now.

Game 3: The good news is that the bullpen didn't blow it this time but the bad news is that was because they were already down 4-1 before the pen blew up and Toronto swept the series with an 11-3 win, making it six wins in seven games against the Rays in this young season. Tim Johnson (1-2) had his struggles at 5.2 10 4 4 1 7 before Chris Hetzel and Steve Bourassa let it get completely out of hand by combining to allow 6 runs in the 7th. The only bright spot for Tampa Bay was rookie DH Sung-min Yang, who was 3-4 with another homer (#3) and 2 RBI.

Team record: 5-8. Next up: An off-day to lick our wounds then off to Cleveland for 3 games.

April 18-20, 2053: at Cleveland (3)
 

Game 1: The Rays scored twice in the 9th to take a 4-2 win over Cleveland in the opener at Progressive Field. David Morales' RBI single snapped the tie and Tampa Bay earlier got solo homers from Dantel Chinchilla (#1) and Ezequiel Avalos (#2). Randy Mastropietro turned in another solid start at 5.2 9 2 2 0 3, Willie Navarro (1-0) picked up the win and Steve Talbott earned his 2nd save.

April 19: Claimed P Devin Cefalo on waivers from the Dodgers, optioned P Chris Giles to AAA Durham.

We continue to add depth to our thin organizational pitching and the 31-year-old righty Cefalo is pretty decent, rated 65/55/50.

Game 2: Marathon time in Cleveland as the Rays outlasted the Guardians 7-3 in 17 innings. Sung-min Yang's RBI single in the 17th won it and Dantel Chinchilla followed with a 2-run single to provide a comfortable margin. We went to extras thanks to Luis Barela's game-tying solo homer (#2) in the 8th. Ben Hilton was decent at 6.1 6 3 3 3 8 in his start, Mario Berumen went 4 scoreless in relief and needed only 34 pitches to do so, and Steve Cleland earned his first Rays win with 2 shutout innings.

April 20: Placed 2B Cameron Holly on the 10-day IL with a strained back muscle, recalled IF Nelson Corona from AAA Durham.

We're running out of 2B as Holly, activated to replace the injured Jose Machado, got hurt himself just after coming back from a long-term injury. Corona can play the middle infield and is back up with the big club for the first time in three years when he hit .400 in 45 AB. He was hitting quite well at 342/377/481 with the Bulls but is a 50-contact guy so in both instances was hitting over his head. He'll fill in some but for the most part it'll be Dantel Chinchilla sliding over to 2B and great-glove, no-bat Juan de Oca will take over SS.

Game 3: The Rays were unable to complete the sweep as Cleveland took a 3-1 win in the finale. Dave Rose (0-2) wasn't his best at 5.2 8 3 3 3 6 but a very quiet offense meant that it didn't matter anyway.

Team record: 7-9. Next up: Back home for four against Boston.

April 21-24, 2053: vs Boston (4)
 

Game 1: The Rays pulled off a massive comeback - two of them to be precise - to pull out a 9-8, 10-inning win over Boston in the series opener at Publix Park. They trailed 7-1 going into the bottom of the 8th with Melvin Lopez turning in another poor start (4.2 6 6 6 3 4, 2 HR) before coming up with an improbable 6-run rally to tie it up. Luis Barela's 3-run homer (#3) was the big blow in the inning but the massive fightback looked like it'd be for naught when the Red Sox went ahead in the 10th off Joe Roberts (also having a poor start to the season). However the Rays put men on 2nd and 3rd with 2 out in the bottom of the 10th and instead of walking him with first base open and a lefty on the mound, Boston pitched to future Hall-of-Famer Barela and he delivered a 2-run single to walk it off, making a winner of Willie Navarro (2-0).

Game 2: With several regulars in need of rest the Rays fielded a makeshift lineup and it showed in a 5-2 loss to Boston. Tim Johnson fell to 1-3 despite pitching decently at 5 6 2 2 2 2 as it was new guy Devin Cefalo who let the game get away, allowing 3 runs in the 7th. One of the regulars that did play, Ezequiel Avalos, was 2-3 with his 3rd homer.

Game 3: The Rays bounced back from yesterday's loss by going up 5-0 by the 3rd and then hung on to take a 7-4 win over the Red Sox. The second batter of the game for Tampa Bay was Nesty de la Rosa and he made it 2-0 with his first homer of 2053, Luis Barela drove in a pair to stay hot, and Jon Morales (who is most definitely not hot) homered (#3) to get his average up to .155. Randy Mastropietro (3-0) cruised through the first 4 innings before running into some trouble and finished 5.1 4 3 3 2 5 with Steve Talbott earning save #3 despite allowing an unearned run in the 9th.

Game 4: Tampa Bay took the series from Boston with a 6-2 win in the finale and got back to .500 as a result. With his club trailing 2-1 in the 6th, Nesty de la Rosa came off the bench after sitting against a lefty starter and drilled a 3-run homer (#2) to put the Rays ahead to stay. Jose Lozada then capped a 3-hit day with a 2-run shot in the 7th (#2) to put the game out of reach. Ben Hilton (2-0) turned in a fine performance at 6.2 6 2 2 1 7 for the win.

Team record: 10-10. Next up: 3 games in Chicago against the insanely-hot White Sox who are off to a 16-4 start.

April 25-27, 2053: at Chicago White Sox (3)
 

Game 1: The Rays wasted a dominant Dave Rose outing and squandered a 2-0 lead in a 3-2 loss to the White Sox in 10 innings in Chicago. Rose took a shutout into the 7th but left after putting the leadoff man on. Willie Navarro then came in and allowed Rose's man along with one of his own to score as Chicago tied it and Rose finished 6 3 1 1 1 11. And in the 10th they scored off Steve Talbott (0-2) to take the win. Ezequiel Avalos was 2-3 with HR #4 in the 4th.

Game 2: Tampa Bay's offense wasn't exactly dynamic again in Chicago but combined with quality pitching it was enough to net them a 3-1 win. Melvin Lopez turned in his start of the young season by far, evening his record at 1-1 after going 6 4 0 0 3 5. The shutout was lost in the 9th when Steve Talbott gave up a solo homer but he still managed save #4. Dantel Chinchilla was the star on offense, going 2-4 with an RBI.

Game 3: There was no Game 3 as rain hit the Windy City and instead it will be made up as part of a doubleheader on July 21 at Publix Park.

Team record: 11-11. The mediocre start has put us in a 5-game hole in the division behind the Yankees, but we'll have a chance to do something about it as we head to New York for 3 games.

Shakeup Sunday
 

With the extra time afforded by Sunday's rainout we were busy manning the telephone lines and made a trio of major trades to shake up a team that frankly I didn't like very much, one of which saw one of our superstars sent packing.

Although we didn't have a crying need in the rotation that doesn't mean we couldn't improve it and we began with this deal:

https://i.imgur.com/QEHDJkY.jpg

Oakland put veteran starter Miranda on the block and they were willing to take a mid-level prospect in Soto for him. The two-time all-star righty is in the final year of his contract and has been good for 3 WAR or better each of the previous four seasons including a 5.2 WAR year in 2051 and was 3-0, 3.71 this year. He's rated 55/70/65 so he keeps the ball in the park and doesn't walk too many guys. He'll take Melvin Lopez's place in the rotation as Lopez moves to long relief.

The next deal, which was most definitely not a hit with the fans:

https://i.imgur.com/HZrChuz.jpg

Yes goodbye to Jon Morales, our home-grown superstar and winner of two MVPs in the last four seasons and who earned 7.7 WAR combined in his two "down" seasons. Why trade him? Aside from his brutal start to 2053 (167/237/274, -0.5 WAR), his salary was up to $20M, he was set to be a free agent next year, and his skills have been diminishing. He's down to 45 contact (40 against lefties) and 60 power after having been once rated 70/65 in those categories. His defense has also slightly declined this year. So he was a rapidly depreciating asset for us and I felt it was time to deal him while his trade value was still decent. In return we get Brown, who's 25 and very interesting:

https://i.imgur.com/Qvud09O.png

Brown is a very versatile offensive and defensive player, who already had a ZR of +2.1 at SS this year and can play all over the infield in an above-average manner, and also can play the OF. He's not going to be an elite hitter but he does have an elite eye and makes enough contact to be a plus offensive player. For now he'll slot in at SS with Dantel Chinchilla at 2B. When Jose Machado comes back we're going to have do some juggling at 2B/SS; perhaps Brown and Machado can platoon. We weren't looking for a MI but Brown was by far the best player offered for Morales. (Incidentally after having 3 Moraleses the last few years we're now down to only catcher David).

Of course trading Morales leaves a big hole in the middle of the lineup even if he was underachieving this year. So one more big deal to fill it:

https://i.imgur.com/bwdLJB9.png

Seattle had free-agent-to-be Vazquez on the block and the cost was only a mid-level prospect in Cavazos, our 2nd-round pick in 2048. He's merely hit 83 HR and 208 RBI combined over the past two seasons and earned 6.4 WAR in that span. He's a lousy outfielder but then so was Morales but I expect Vazquez to have the better offensive season going forward.

As a result of these trades we had to do a fair amount of roster shuffling to make room on the 28 and 42-man rosters. Recently claimed reliever Devin Cefalo was waived to open a spot on the staff for Miranda, and pitcher Eddie Lilly and OF Juan Rodriguez (both at Durham) were waived to clear 42-man spots.

Now on to Yankee Stadium to see how this all shakes out.

April 28-30, 2053: at NY Yankees (3)
 

Game 1: The first game after the big roster shakeup wasn't exactly a roaring success as the Rays fell 4-0 to the Yankees and managed only three hits. Two of those though came from debutant Tony Vazquez including a double. Tim Johnson (1-4) was mediocre at 5.2 5 3 3 5 4.

Game 2: The Rays bounced back in a big way in the second game, scoring 7 times in the first (3 on wild pitches) and 4 more in the second to go to a 13-4 laugher over New York. The first was capped by a 2-run triple from new boy Alex Brown, Jesus Avalos was 3-5 with HR #4, and rookie Sung-min Yang continued to rake with a 3-run blast, his 4th, and is now hitting 344/412/590. Randy Mastropietro remains a good-luck charm as he's now 4-0 after a solid, let 'em hit the ball outing of 6 6 2 2 1 1.

Game 3: From famine to feast and back to famine again as the Rays dropped the finale (and dropped 6 games back) to the Yankees 6-1. Ben Hilton had his first bad start as a Ray, giving up 3 in the first and 3 more in the fourth to finish 4 6 6 6 3 3 and drop to 2-1. Jesus Avalos was 2-4 with the lone Rays ribbie.

Team record: 12-13. Next up: An off-day then back home for 3 vs Minnesota.

May 2-4, 2053: vs Minnesota (3)
 

Game 1: Coming home failed to change the Rays' recent trajectory as they were waylaid by the Twins 11-1 despite it being ace Dave Rose's turn in the rotation. Rose (0-3) let the game get away with a 4-run 3rd that made it 5-0, giving up a pair of homers and ended up a horrible 4.1 9 7 7 2 4. The lone Rays highlight was Tony Vasquez's 1st homer in a Rays uniform, a solo shot in the 6th after the game was out of hand.

Game 2: Things aren't getting any better for the Rays after their big shakeup as they lost for the fourth time in fifth games since the deals and were non-competitive again today in a 7-1 loss to Minnesota. Vinny Miranda made his Tampa Bay debut and while he wasn't bad (3.2 4 2 0 3 3) his outing was cut short with back stiffness and the bullpen didn't cover itself with glory afterwards, nor did the bats which only managed four hits.

Game 3: The Rays got a fine outing from a starter and actually won one for a change, defeating the Twins 4-2. Tim Johnson went 5 4 2 2 2 7 but missed out on a decision when he left the game at 2-2. Luis Barela's RBI single in the 6th made a winner of Chris Hetzel (1-0) and Steve Talbott finished up for save #5. Tampa Bay's first two runs came on back-to-back solo shots from Alex Brown, his first as a Ray and fourth of the year, and #5 from Jesus Avalos.

Team record: 13-15. Next up: Off to Boston for 3.

May 5-7, 2053: at Boston (3)
 

Game 1: The Rays have had their share of problems this season but Randy Mastropietro hasn't been one of them and the rookie lefty went to 5-0 as Tampa Bay got by the Red Sox 3-1 at Fenway. Mastropietro was 5.1 3 1 1 3 5 and lowered his ERA to 2.43 while Steve Talbott closed it out for save #6. Luis Barela was 3-5 with an RBI and Nesty de la Rosa added a solo shot (#3).

Game 2: Could it be? A 3-game win streak? That was the case as the Rays routed the Red Sox 9-2 and could have gone easily into double digits had they not left 15 men on base as they clawed their way back to .500 on the season. Ezquiel Avalos was 3-6 with a double, HR #6 and 2 RBI, Sung-min Yang hit his 5th homer, and Tony Vasquez had a big early 2-run single. Ben Hilton (3-1) cruised through the game at 6 7 2 2 1 7.

Game 3: A sweep was too much to ask as the bats fell fairly silent and the Red Sox took the finale 6-1. Our ace Dave Rose fell to 0-4 although he didn't pitch that badly at 6.1 5 3 3 3 7 with Steve Bourassa, who has been terrible in his first season with Tampa Bay, allowing a Rose runner and three of his own to score to let the game get away in the 7th.

Team record: 15-16. Next up: An off-day then back to Publix Park for 3 against Oklahoma City.

May 9-11, 2053: vs Oklahoma City (3)
 

Game 1: The Rays returned home and took a tidy 5-1 win over the Sunbirds at Publix Park. Tim Johnson (2-4) pitched his best game of the year at 7 4 1 1 2 9, David Morales (#2) and Luis Barela (#4) launched solo homers, and Jesus Avalos had a 2-run single to break things open and lead Tampa Bay to victory.

Game 2: For the first this season the Rays have clawed their way above .500 after opening up a scoreless game in the middle innings and going on to rout Oklahoma City 8-1. Randy Mastropietro's brilliant rookie season continued apace as he went to 6-0, 2.01 with a marvelous 7 3 0 0 1 5 outing and he had plenty of support. Tony Vasquez had an RBI single and a solo homer (#2/9), Jesus Avalos tripled and homered (#6) among his 3 hits, and Sung Min-Yang and Dantel Chinchilla each had 3 hits and an RBI.

Game 3: The Rays completed their first series sweep of 2053 when Dantel Chinchilla singled home Ezequiel Avalos in the bottom of the 9th with the walk-off winner enabling the Rays to edge the Sunbirds 2-1. Ben Hilton capped off a weekend of great starting pitching after he went 7 5 1 1 2 6 and Mario Berumen (1-1) earned the win with a scoreless 9th. Luis Barela earlier homered for the first Rays run, his 5th.

Team record: 18-16. Next up: The Yankees invade Tampa for 4 games. The Rays are 6 behind the 22-10 New Yorkers and need to win this series to help make up for their slow start.

May 12-15, 2053: vs NY Yankees (4)
 

Game 1: The Rays broke open a 2-2 game with a 5-run 5th and went on to rout the Yankees 10-2 at Publix Park in the opener of a critical early-season 4-game series with the team leading the East. Cesar Scroggins' slam (#2) was the big blow, coming right after Sung-min Yang's RBI single broke the deadlock. Tony Vasquez homered twice among his three hits and drove in three to give him 4 as a Ray and 11 overall, Ezequiel Avalos added his 7th as part of a 3-hit day, while Yang and Scroggins also collected 3 knocks. Dave Rose (1-4) meanwhile finally got into the win column with a dominant outing going 8 5 2 2 2 13 on 102 pitches.

Game 2: New York answered back with a 4-1 win in the second game, getting the better of Vinny Miranda (0-2) in his second Tampa Bay start as the vet went 6 6 4 3 0 6. The bats banged out 10 hits but could only get one man home.

Game 3: Things looked hopeless when the Yankees ran out to a 7-1 lead in the 6th inning but an incredible Rays comeback got them an improbable 9-7 win. Tim Johnson had a rough day at 5 3 4 4 4 3 with a pair of homers allowed and Chris Hetzel made matters worse, giving up 3 more in the 6th on two homers as well. But two runs in the bottom of the 6th gave Tampa Bay hope, and then they exploded for five runs in the 7th capped by Luis Barela's 2-run single to give them the lead after Sung-min Yang started things off in the inning with a 2-run homer. Yang then homered again for insurance in the 8th, his 7th, as the rookie has been scorching hot and is now hitting 400/460/678 after his 4-4, 2-homer day. Tony Vasquez had homered earlier (#5/12). Steve Cleland (2-0) picked up the win in relief and Steve Tablott closed the door for save #7.

Game 4: While not quite as dramatic as yesterday the Rays got another late win over the Yankees 6-4 to take 3 of 4 in the series and move within 4 games of first-place New York. Nesty de la Rosa's 2-run double in the 8th broke a 4-4 tie for the win and capped a 3-hit day for him. Earlier Jesus Avalos hit a solo shot (#7) and Cesar Scroggins produced again when given a chance to play, hitting a key 2-run single. Randy Mastropietro had a rough beginning but settled in to finish 5 7 3 3 0 2, Joe Roberts (1-2) was credited with the win and Steve Talbott saved again with a 1-2-3 9th, his 8th.

Team record: 21-17. Next up: off to the Lone Star State to play 3 in Austin against the Dukes.

Rays news: Starter Alec McInerney, out since Spring Training with a strained hamstring, started a rehab assignment while Cameron Holly's was cut short when he re-injured himself at Durham.

May 16-18, 2053: at Austin (3)
 

Game 1: Ben Hilton was slammed for 5 runs in the 2nd and the Rays couldn't recover, dropping the opener in Austin to the Dukes 7-3. Hilton (3-2) did hang in there to go 6 6 6 6 1 8 with a couple of homers allowed to rest the bullpen and Nesty de la Rosa was 2-4 with an RBI triple on the hitting side.

Game 2: Dave Rose was excellent as he and a 2-man offense led the Rays to a 6-2 win in the second game. Rose (2-4) went the distance on 108 pitches, finishing 9 3 2 2 1 8 with the damage against a pair of solo homers. Speaking of pairs of homers, light-hitting SS Juan de Oca got a start and went deep twice, driving in 3 with his first two longballs of the season while rookie sensation Sung-min Yang drove in the other three with a double and a 2-run homer (#8).

Game 3: The Rays had to win the finale twice after Mario Berumen blew a 5-2 lead in the 8th but they did when Ezequiel Avalos came off the bench to deliver a clutch, 2-out RBI single in the 9th to give Tampa Bay a 6-5 triumph. Before Berumen's misfortunes it looked like Vinny Miranda would get his first Rays win after going 6 7 2 2 2 4 with Dantel Chinchilla's bases-clearing double in the 6th putting the Rays on top and Jesus Avalos contributing a solo shot (#5). But Berumen gave up 3 runs on 5 hits in the 8th and was pulled for Steve Talbott (1-2), who kept the game tied and closed out his own win thanks to Avalos' critical blow.

Team record: 23-18. Still 4 behind the Yankees for the division lead but we have moved into sole possession of the second wild card. Next up: Back home for 3 vs Detroit.