[jksander]

June 9, 2026: Zac Gallen (7-1, 3.24 ERA, 75.0 IP, 62 K’s, 1.09 WHIP) pitched against Tampa’s Yu Darvish (3-5, 4.35 ERA, 72.1 IP, 57 K’s, 1.15 WHIP) in game one against the Rays, and our bullpen is close to fully rested with the two days off we’ve had in the last five days coupled with our starter going deep in the last two games. Joshua Mears got us on the board with a solo homer in the top of the first, and Cody Bellinger hit one in the top of the fourth to make it a 2-0 lead! But the Rays got on the board in the bottom of the fifth with a solo homer on one out by Jonny DeLuca, so we knew it wasn’t going to be a cakewalk. Eduard Bazardo took over for Gallen in the bottom of the seventh as we clung to a 2-1 lead, but we took firm control in the top of the eighth thanks to four runs including a three-run homer by Mears, his second dinger of the night! Bazardo tried to stay out with his five-run lead, but he loaded the bases without an out in the bottom of the inning, so Helsley came out to put out the potential flames. He got a pop-out to short for out number one, but then a hard hit into right by Jonathan Aranda turned into a three-run double ... ouch! But we got out of the inning without further damage, and none of the runs were officially blamed on Hensley. Ben Joyce came out to close in the ninth with a two-run lead, ending this one as Seth Brown hit into a 4-6-3 double play as we beat the Rays 6-4. Gallen improved to 4-0 since the trade and lasted six innings with five hits, seven strikeouts and one earned run, while Joyce got his seventh save with a hit and a strikeout as his ERA improved to 5.40. We outhit them 10-9, led by Mears, who was 3-4 with two runs and four RBIs, his two homers giving him five on the season through his first 21 games as a major leaguer!
 
June 10, 2026: Sean Burke (4-2, 4.01 ERA, 51.2 IP, 53 K’s, 1.26 WHIP) took on Tobias Myers (1-5, 6.67 ERA, 56.2 IP, 44 K’s, 1.59 WHIP) in game two against the Rays, and this time Tampa got a quick two-run homer in the bottom of the second thanks to Junior Caminero, though we got on the board with a solo homer in the top of the fourth off Bellinger’s bat ... his 15th of the season! Too bad they got another longball, this time in the bottom of the fifth -- a two-run slam by Brandon Lowe that put them up 4-1. Julian Merryweather took over in the bottom of the sixth, still trailing by three, and Jonathan Cannon got us through the seventh and eighth, but our bats needed to do the rest. In the top of the ninth with one out, Ceddanne Rafaela hit a single through the gap, advancing when Tauchman was hit by a pitch. Miguel Vargas loaded the bases with a walk himself, but they got two quick outs to end our hopes of a comeback -- Tampa won this one 4-1 to even the series. Burke took the loss, falling to 4-3 with a 4.29 ERA, allowing six hits, two walks and four runs with eight strikeouts. We matched them on hits with six, Bellinger leading the way with two hits, a run and an RBI.

I got a phone call on the road from our new owner, Justin Ishbia this evening, and he’s told me in no uncertain terms our bullpen issues are going to need to be resolved ... he’s not happy at all that we’re paying Ryan Helsley $14.6 million and Jose Alvarado $11 million while our bullpen ERA ranks 13th in the league at 4.43 so far this year. He’s also unhappy with our shortstop situation, since Yordys Valdes is hitting just .205 through 190 at bats. I pointed out his +2.8 zone rating and 1.061 efficiency rating to go with just four errors all year, but he’s not having it. It’s been made clear to me that he’s going to expect me to be active to resolve these “situations” before the trade deadline or expect trouble in the offseason. But I have no intention of messing with a successful team just to appeal to the ego of a penny pincher who just wants to make a show of strength. He and I can fight it out in the offseason if necessary, but right now we’re packing the fans in and winning games ... and that’s what I’m being paid to make happen.

June 11, 2026: Drew Rasmussen (2-2, 2.75 ERA, 59.0 IP, 64 K’s, 1.14 WHIP) pitched in our final game in Tampa, facing Mason Englert (3-4, 2.16 ERA, 33.1 IP, 37 K’s, 1.08 WHIP). We finally broke through in the top of the fifth with an RBI single by Chase Meidroth, but a solo homer from Everson Pereira tied it up in the bottom of the inning, and the very next batter, Seth Brown, hit one as well to put them up 2-1, both homers coming with two outs. Aranda hit a solo blast for them in the sixth and just like that we were in a hole 3-1, killed by the longball yet again. Noah Syndergaard took over with two outs, getting us out of the inning with just the two-run deficit, and a Miguel Vargas homer got us back within a run heading into the stretch. Jose Alvarado took the ball in the bottom of the eighth, still down a run, getting us into the ninth with at least a chance, but our bats let us down again and we fell 3-2. Another day, another duel, this time with both teams hitting just five times. Rasmussen took the loss, falling to 2-3 with a 2.92 ERA despite 5.2 innings with four hits, a walk, five strikeouts and three earned runs. Yordys Valdez hit twice for a run, the best our offense could offer.

We’ll head back to Chicago to host the Angels, who are currently 28-34 and in last place in a relatively weak AL West. We remain two and a half games up on Minnesota and hold a 35-27 record despite the series loss on the road.