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Art Deco · 09-22-2022, 10:39 PM

Another rough series for the Rays and for the second straight time they only salvaged the finale thanks to a walk-off comeback. The Yankees also dropped 2 of 3 before winning on our Monday off-day so the division lead stands at 7 games.

Before the opener we made another significant trade:

Kuykendall has been one of the more consistent starters in the NL for El Paso (formerly the Pirates for those who forgot), earning between 3.4 and 5.1 WAR over four of the previous five seasons. He's only at 1.1 WAR this year and is 5-9, 3.65 as he's down about 1.0 K/9 from last year and his homers are up a bit but he's still a good 60/50/65-rated starter and will take the place of Robinson Ortiz in the rotation. I'm envisioning him as our #4 playoff starter after Hays/Marlette/Prosecky and ahead of Panzini. As for what we gave up, Pelzer should be a legit MLB starting pitcher but a 4th/5th guy. He's pitched decently at AA and was on our 40-man.

The Rays dropped the series opener at Tropicana Field to Toronto 4-3 as James Hays wasn't at his best and a comeback fell short. Hays (11-3) went 6 6 4 4 2 3 with a homer allowed and didn't have his best stuff. Dong-hwan Kim single-handedly willed the Rays back into the game with a 2-run double and solo homer (#16) but his teammates didn't follow suit.

Robinson Ortiz made what turned out to be his final appearance as a Ray (more on that in a bit) and did not go out on a good note as he was hit hard in a 7-5 loss to the Jays. Ortiz (who finished a deceiving 8-3) went 4.1 5 5 5 2 5 and took the loss, with Slade Cecconi not doing him any favors by letting his inherited runners score and a couple of his own. The offense did try to battle back, with Andrew Greckel (#17) and JT Realmuto (#15) homering in a doomed effort.

Transactions: After the game we dealt Ortiz back to the team from which we acquired him, the Dodgers, in exchange for reliever Bryan Sanchez. Ortiz is a free agent at year's end anyway and we needed room for Kuykendall on the active roster. Sanchez is a hard-thrower with 75 stuff but that comes with 35 control. He's actually capable of starting and split his 14 appearances with LA this year between the pen and the rotation, with a 3.78 ERA in 50 IP and an 18/57 K/BB ratio. He's going to Durham for now in what is his last option year.

Also we made another staff move as Slade Cecconi is going to Durham and the highly-anticipated relief prospect Mike Moore is coming up. Cecconi has been horrible throughout July, giving up runs the last five times he's been called on. Moore meanwhile has earned a whopping 2.8 WAR in relief this year with a 19/73 BB/K ratio in 52.1 IP and only one homer allowed (he has 55 movement so that's a bit fluky). He was our 5th-round pick in 2027 as a college closer and he's steadily worked his way up the system. He boasts 75 stuff and is potentially better than this year's rookie sensation Kevin DiCostanzo.

Moore was active for the finale, and got to pitch in a wild game that saw the Rays come back twice to win it 9-8 in 10 innings on a 3-run walkoff homer from Dong-hwan Kim (#17). The Rays were up 3-1 early on a 2-run Kelly Crumpton shot (#26) but Joe Marlette couldn't hold the lead and the Jays went ahead 4-3 in the 4th. Marlette settled down from there and finished 7 7 4 4 2 7 and the Rays went ahead in the 7th when Cristian Hernandez walked with the bases loaded. But Landon Knack couldn't hold the lead in the 8th, surrendering a 2-run homer to Patrick Bailey and the Jays were up 6-5. The Rays had another comeback in them though and after the first two were retired in the 9th, 2 hits and a walk loaded the bases for Andy Kelley, and he drew a walk to force in the tying run. Once again however the Rays pen came up small as Kevin DiCostanzo's recent struggles continued as he was hit for 2 runs on 4 hits in the 10th before giving way to Wennington Romero with 2 out. But Tampa Bay refused to lose and put two one with one out before Kim came through with his 3-run walk-off shot, giving Romero (6-1) the win.

Team record: 68-37. Next up: An off-day before another rematch of last year's World Series as we head up to Washington to play 3 against the Nationals.

09-22-2022, 10:39 PM	#841
Art Deco Hall Of Famer Join Date: May 2020 Posts: 7,775	July 26-28, 2030: vs Toronto (3) Another rough series for the Rays and for the second straight time they only salvaged the finale thanks to a walk-off comeback. The Yankees also dropped 2 of 3 before winning on our Monday off-day so the division lead stands at 7 games. Before the opener we made another significant trade: Kuykendall has been one of the more consistent starters in the NL for El Paso (formerly the Pirates for those who forgot), earning between 3.4 and 5.1 WAR over four of the previous five seasons. He's only at 1.1 WAR this year and is 5-9, 3.65 as he's down about 1.0 K/9 from last year and his homers are up a bit but he's still a good 60/50/65-rated starter and will take the place of Robinson Ortiz in the rotation. I'm envisioning him as our #4 playoff starter after Hays/Marlette/Prosecky and ahead of Panzini. As for what we gave up, Pelzer should be a legit MLB starting pitcher but a 4th/5th guy. He's pitched decently at AA and was on our 40-man. The Rays dropped the series opener at Tropicana Field to Toronto 4-3 as James Hays wasn't at his best and a comeback fell short. Hays (11-3) went 6 6 4 4 2 3 with a homer allowed and didn't have his best stuff. Dong-hwan Kim single-handedly willed the Rays back into the game with a 2-run double and solo homer (#16) but his teammates didn't follow suit. Robinson Ortiz made what turned out to be his final appearance as a Ray (more on that in a bit) and did not go out on a good note as he was hit hard in a 7-5 loss to the Jays. Ortiz (who finished a deceiving 8-3) went 4.1 5 5 5 2 5 and took the loss, with Slade Cecconi not doing him any favors by letting his inherited runners score and a couple of his own. The offense did try to battle back, with Andrew Greckel (#17) and JT Realmuto (#15) homering in a doomed effort. Transactions: After the game we dealt Ortiz back to the team from which we acquired him, the Dodgers, in exchange for reliever Bryan Sanchez. Ortiz is a free agent at year's end anyway and we needed room for Kuykendall on the active roster. Sanchez is a hard-thrower with 75 stuff but that comes with 35 control. He's actually capable of starting and split his 14 appearances with LA this year between the pen and the rotation, with a 3.78 ERA in 50 IP and an 18/57 K/BB ratio. He's going to Durham for now in what is his last option year. Also we made another staff move as Slade Cecconi is going to Durham and the highly-anticipated relief prospect Mike Moore is coming up. Cecconi has been horrible throughout July, giving up runs the last five times he's been called on. Moore meanwhile has earned a whopping 2.8 WAR in relief this year with a 19/73 BB/K ratio in 52.1 IP and only one homer allowed (he has 55 movement so that's a bit fluky). He was our 5th-round pick in 2027 as a college closer and he's steadily worked his way up the system. He boasts 75 stuff and is potentially better than this year's rookie sensation Kevin DiCostanzo. Moore was active for the finale, and got to pitch in a wild game that saw the Rays come back twice to win it 9-8 in 10 innings on a 3-run walkoff homer from Dong-hwan Kim (#17). The Rays were up 3-1 early on a 2-run Kelly Crumpton shot (#26) but Joe Marlette couldn't hold the lead and the Jays went ahead 4-3 in the 4th. Marlette settled down from there and finished 7 7 4 4 2 7 and the Rays went ahead in the 7th when Cristian Hernandez walked with the bases loaded. But Landon Knack couldn't hold the lead in the 8th, surrendering a 2-run homer to Patrick Bailey and the Jays were up 6-5. The Rays had another comeback in them though and after the first two were retired in the 9th, 2 hits and a walk loaded the bases for Andy Kelley, and he drew a walk to force in the tying run. Once again however the Rays pen came up small as Kevin DiCostanzo's recent struggles continued as he was hit for 2 runs on 4 hits in the 10th before giving way to Wennington Romero with 2 out. But Tampa Bay refused to lose and put two one with one out before Kim came through with his 3-run walk-off shot, giving Romero (6-1) the win. Team record: 68-37. Next up: An off-day before another rematch of last year's World Series as we head up to Washington to play 3 against the Nationals.