[Art Deco]

The Rays took 2 of 3 in Houston, a good bit of work, as they try to get back to and above .500.

James Hays got the ball for the opener and continues to look a little more human than his 2027 form but still an excellent pitcher nonetheless. Today he went 7.2 5 2 2 1 9, surrendering a 2-run homer to Brandon Lowe (one of a slew of ex-Rays on this year's Astros) and went to 2-0. Yasunari Uehara got the final four outs for his first save of the season. Dominic Scavone had his best day as Ray with a solo shot for his 2nd homer and an RBI double in the 9th to provide some insurance, and Brayden Jobert kept his average at .500 with two more hits including a double.

While Joe Ryan still hasn't displayed his 2027 form yet, he was good enough today to get his first win in a 6-4 Rays triumph over Houston. Ryan was roughed up early for 3 runs in the first 4 innings but hung in there to go 6 7 3 3 3 5. Robinson Ortiz got 8 of the final 9 outs before giving up a homer to yet another former Ray in Jhon Diaz, and Kendall Williams retired Jeremiah Jackson to end the game and pick up his first Rays save. Heston Kjerstad was 2-4 with his 3rd homer, Brayden Jobert is still hitting .500 after going 2-4 with a 2-run double, and Wander Franco extended his hitting streak to 20 games with a pair of RBI doubles.

The Rays couldn't complete the sweep as JT Ginn was bombed for the third time in three starts in a 6-4 loss, having me wondering if he should go back to the pen where he was so dominant in 2025 and 2026. Ginn was 3.2 7 6 6 0 3 and gave up 3 more homers, making it 6 allowed in 10.1 innings over 3 starts with 24 hits and 4 walks allowed as well. Yikes! Two more former Rays took him deep with Lewin Diaz and Yoshi Tstusugo accounting for two of three Houston homers. The Rays tried to fight back on a 2-run Victor Robles double and a 2-run Kelly Crumpton bomb (#6) but it wasn't enough, and still another former Ray Aaron Fletcher got them 1-2-3 in the 9th for the save. For the stat-minded, Brayden Jobert went 2-4 once again to stay at .500 and Wander Franco upped his hitting streak to 21.

Team record: 6-7, still 3 games behind the Red Sox. Next up: Back home for 3 against the Yankees.

MLB News: Back when I was chronicling the offseason moves I questioned the Cubs spending so much money on a wrecked Yordan Alvarez. But NL pitchers have been the only ones wrecked so far as Alvarez has 10 HR and 21 RBI in 13 games to start the season. The Cubs are still only 7-6 to show for it and Alvarez is still going to get hurt sooner than later, but what a start to the season for him.