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Art Deco · 04-30-2023, 08:28 PM

Despite nothing to play for the Rays still went out and swept the Red Sox at Fenway, officially eliminating Boston from playoff consideration.

Tampa Bay had its way in the opener, routing the Sox 8-4 with 3 of Boston's runs coming in the bottom of the 9th. Jake Baldino (6-2/14-9) was solid at 6 5 1 1 1 4 and he was backed by homers from CJ Abrams (#5/12) and Kelly Crumpton (#34) with Nate Strickland also knocking in a pair. In fact Strickland, who was famously accused of not hustling by former teammate Alex Calderon early this season, was quoted in the game recap as saying "Do people still doubt I give 100%?"

Transaction: Jeremy Brooks, whose ratings are still very good but who has been horrible this year leading to his waiver by the White Sox and subsequent pickup by us, was sent back to Durham after crapping the bed last night, allowing 3 runs and only getting one out in the 9th when brought in with an 8-1 lead. That's 3 homers in 9 2/3 innings allowed by Brooks since we called him up. Taking his place is feel-good story Reid Detmers as the 34-year-old hasn't pitched in the majors since 2031, instead toiling at Durham for the last two seasons and pitching very well, going 22-13 with a 3.60 ERA and 7 WAR. Detmers did pitch for the Rays in parts of the 2026 and 2027 seasons and he'll take Brooks' long relief/mop up role for the last couple of weeks.

With the division long wrapped up we've been doing a lot of rotating of players in the lineup and today the bench was emptied. And it was one of those benchwarmers who came through big as Caleb Hampton drove in 5 runs, including a tie-breaking grand slam in the 10th (#2), to give the Rays a 7-3 extra-inning win over Boston. Masaharu Shimuzu also got his chance today and went 4-4 with a double and Nate Strickland added a solo homer (#41). Pedro Avila was solid (5 6 2 2 0 6) and was in line for the win before Josh Scanlon blew his 6th save of the season in the 8th. Scanlon did stay on for a scoreless 9th to even his record at 4-4.

The Rays overcame an uncharacteristically shaky start from Chris Ferguson and a 4-1 deficit to come back and win 8-5 over Boston to sweep the series at Fenway. Ferguson was wild at 4.1 4 4 2 4 3 but was taken off the hook when the Rays erupted for 5 runs in the 6th to go ahead for good with the big hit coming on a CJ Abrams bases-clearing double. The rally made a winner of Reid Detmers in his return to the majors and to the Rays as the lefty went 2 2/3 scoreless. Eric Lewis saved with a 1-2-3 9th, his 12th as a Ray and 41st overall. Jake Westfall was also 4-5 with a homer (#16/23) and 3 RBI.

Team record: 106-42. Next up: 3 games in Detroit.

With two weeks left in the season here's a look at the standings and leaders:

The Yankees are in the third AL Wild Card spot, up 2 1/2 on Toronto and 3 on Minnesota while in the NL the Cards are in the third WC spot and a healthy 4 1/2 up on the Mets. The 3-way battle in the NL West will only yield one playoff team as they're collectively well back in the WC race.

04-30-2023, 08:28 PM	#1103
Art Deco Hall Of Famer Join Date: May 2020 Posts: 7,678	September 16-18, 2033: at Boston (3) Despite nothing to play for the Rays still went out and swept the Red Sox at Fenway, officially eliminating Boston from playoff consideration. Tampa Bay had its way in the opener, routing the Sox 8-4 with 3 of Boston's runs coming in the bottom of the 9th. Jake Baldino (6-2/14-9) was solid at 6 5 1 1 1 4 and he was backed by homers from CJ Abrams (#5/12) and Kelly Crumpton (#34) with Nate Strickland also knocking in a pair. In fact Strickland, who was famously accused of not hustling by former teammate Alex Calderon early this season, was quoted in the game recap as saying "Do people still doubt I give 100%?" Transaction: Jeremy Brooks, whose ratings are still very good but who has been horrible this year leading to his waiver by the White Sox and subsequent pickup by us, was sent back to Durham after crapping the bed last night, allowing 3 runs and only getting one out in the 9th when brought in with an 8-1 lead. That's 3 homers in 9 2/3 innings allowed by Brooks since we called him up. Taking his place is feel-good story Reid Detmers as the 34-year-old hasn't pitched in the majors since 2031, instead toiling at Durham for the last two seasons and pitching very well, going 22-13 with a 3.60 ERA and 7 WAR. Detmers did pitch for the Rays in parts of the 2026 and 2027 seasons and he'll take Brooks' long relief/mop up role for the last couple of weeks. With the division long wrapped up we've been doing a lot of rotating of players in the lineup and today the bench was emptied. And it was one of those benchwarmers who came through big as Caleb Hampton drove in 5 runs, including a tie-breaking grand slam in the 10th (#2), to give the Rays a 7-3 extra-inning win over Boston. Masaharu Shimuzu also got his chance today and went 4-4 with a double and Nate Strickland added a solo homer (#41). Pedro Avila was solid (5 6 2 2 0 6) and was in line for the win before Josh Scanlon blew his 6th save of the season in the 8th. Scanlon did stay on for a scoreless 9th to even his record at 4-4. The Rays overcame an uncharacteristically shaky start from Chris Ferguson and a 4-1 deficit to come back and win 8-5 over Boston to sweep the series at Fenway. Ferguson was wild at 4.1 4 4 2 4 3 but was taken off the hook when the Rays erupted for 5 runs in the 6th to go ahead for good with the big hit coming on a CJ Abrams bases-clearing double. The rally made a winner of Reid Detmers in his return to the majors and to the Rays as the lefty went 2 2/3 scoreless. Eric Lewis saved with a 1-2-3 9th, his 12th as a Ray and 41st overall. Jake Westfall was also 4-5 with a homer (#16/23) and 3 RBI. Team record: 106-42. Next up: 3 games in Detroit. With two weeks left in the season here's a look at the standings and leaders: The Yankees are in the third AL Wild Card spot, up 2 1/2 on Toronto and 3 on Minnesota while in the NL the Cards are in the third WC spot and a healthy 4 1/2 up on the Mets. The 3-way battle in the NL West will only yield one playoff team as they're collectively well back in the WC race.