The 2021 (and only 2021) Tampa Bay Rays

[Art Deco]

The Rays were two outs away from another series sweep, but Texas had other ideas and they had to settle for 2 out of 3. Normally that would still be fine but the Rays have the misfortune of being in the same division with the team with the second-best record in MLB, and those Red Sox swept their series with Kansas City so the division lead is down to 2 games.

Game 1 was a wild slugfest that saw the Rays take a 9-2 lead into the 7th only for the Rangers to score 5 times and make it 9-7. That apparently angered the Rays, who tacked on 9 more runs in the 7th and 8th and came away with a 16-9 win. Wander Franco had the best game of his young career, going 4-4 with 2 doubles, a homer (#6), a walk and 4 RBI, Austin Meadows drove in 3 more including a 2-run double, Brandon Lowe drove in 4 with a 2-run single and a 2-run homer (#9) and Jarren Duran had a 2-run double. Tyler Glasnow started and had nothing to do with all the run scoring as he turned in another great start of 6.1 5 3 2 0 9 and improved to 6-1, 1.57. Alex Vesia gave up 4 runs but they were unearned due to a Lowe error.

The second game was a more conventional Rays win as they prevailed 5-2 behind a great outing from Dustin May. The righty is finally settling in with the club and went 6.2 3 1 1 1 7 to go to 6-3, 4.47. Aaron Fletcher allowed his first run of the year to get Texas within 3, setting up a save situation for Nick Anderson who converted #14. Meanwhile Austin Meadows continued his crazy start to the year by driving in 4 runs to give him an MLB-leading 50 thanks to a pair of 2-run homers (#11 and 12). Brandon Lowe went back-to-back with the first Meadows homer (#10) for the other run.

The finale was looking like another Rays win as they took a 2-1 lead into the 9th with the normally-reliable Nick Anderson on the mound. But with one out Anderson served up a game-tying homer to Preston Hartsell and then put two more men on. Shane McClanahan came in to face the lefty batter due but hit him to load the bases, then allowed a 2-run Leody Tavares single and Texas had a shock 4-2 win. The blown lead cost Tarik Skubal a deserved win as the lefty dominated to the tune of 6.1 4 1 1 0 8. Heston Kjerstad figured in both Rays runs, scoring one and singling in the other.

Team record: 34-14. Next up: An off-day, then 3 games in Seattle.

[Art Deco]

This wasn't a great trip to the Pacific Northwest for the Rays as they dropped 2 of 3 to the Mariners. Fortunately the Red Sox had similar difficulties in Chicago against the White Sox, so the lead remains at 2 games.

The offense was toothless in the opener as they lost 3-0 with Justus Sheffield shutting them out for 8 innings. They only had 6 hits in total with Austin Meadows getting half of them. Joe Ryan had a rough first inning, giving up all three runs, but finished with a quality start at 6 4 3 3 4 4.

The second game was looking to be more of the same with the Rays trailing 2-1 going into the 7th, but the bats came alive to tie it up and then score 4 in the 8th to take a 6-4 win. Their first four runs came via solo shots with Carter Kieboom (#4) getting the first one, Joey Bart (#3) tying it in the 7th, and Heston Kjerstad (#4) and Heliot Ramos (#2) breaking the tie in the 8th. Austin Meadows added a 2-run double and those runs proved huge when Devin Williams and Nick Anderson each gave up their own solo homers in the 8th and 9th. Griffin Canning turned in another solid start (5.1 6 2 2 3 6) and Shane McClanahan picked up win #4 with 1 2/3 scoreless while Anderson picked up save #15 despite the homer allowed.

The finale was there for the taking as it went 3-3 into the bottom of the 6th, but Justin Dunn gave up a pair of homers to his old teammates and Seattle went on to an 8-3 win. Tyler Glasnow had a nightmarish first inning which saw 3 runs score and 48 pitches thrown, prolonged some by a Brandon Lowe error. Glasnow recovered from there but had to leave after going 4 3 3 2 5 4 on 93 pitches. Lowe atoned for his error by slugging HR #11 and Hunter Bishop went deep for #7, but once the game got away, it got away.

Team record: 35-16. Next up: 3 games in Toronto. The Jays, fancied by some as the team to beat in the East (cough, preseason predictions, cough) are off to a disappointing 23-28 start.

[Art Deco]

Another series in which the Rays struggled, dropping 2 of 3 for the second straight time on this road trip. Coupled with Boston taking 2 of 3 from San Antonio, the Rays' division lead has been cut to one.

The opener got away from them in the middle innings after the teams exchanged early homers (Heliot Ramos had his 3rd for the Rays) when Shane McClanahan came on in the 6th down 2-1 and gave up an inside-the-park 2-run homer to Rowdy Tellez. Things snowballed from there and it ended up an 11-1 Blue Jays rout. Dustin May went 5 5 3 3 2 2 in the start.

The Rays took the middle game 5-3 thanks to three big homers and a solid start from Tarik Skubal. Hunter Bishop hit #8 to get the Rays going in the 2nd, Carter Kieboom made it 3-1 Rays in the 5th with #5, and Heston Kjerstad added a 2-run shot in the 6th (#5). Skubal went 6 4 2 2 2 5 to improve to 4-3 but things got hairy in the 9th when up 5-2, Nick Anderson had to leave after one out with what turned out to be a hamstring strain (he'll miss 3 weeks). Aaron Fletcher couldn't get anyone out and let in a run and put men on 2nd and 3rd, but Tyler Rogers got Bo Bichette to fly out for his first Rays save and they hung on.

Transaction: Anderson goes on the 10-day IL, Devin Williams will be the closer, and Guillermo Zuniga is up from Durham. Zuniga was acquired in the pre-season deal with the Dodgers where we sent Brett Honeywell and Drew Strotman to LA, and he was dominant at Durham with a 6/40 BB/K ratio in 22 innings. The righty has 80 stuff but 45 movement and 40 control.

The finale was a tough one to swallow as down 3-0 through 5, the Rays rallied for 4 in the 6th only for Justin Dunn to give the lead right back in bottom of the inning and they fell 6-5. Joe Ryan battled through it, going 5 8 3 3 1 4 and then the offense perked up with Carter Kieboom's 2-run double the big hit. But for the second straight outing, Dunn faltered badly and allowed 3 runs in the bottom of the frame. Guillermo Zuniga made his MLB debut getting Dunn out of further damage, and retired all 5 men he faced with 2 strikeouts. Lewin Diaz homered in the 8th (#5) to get the Rays back within 6-5, but they couldn't get over the hump.

Team record: 36-18. Next up: We're barely a third of the way through the season but Boston's visit to the Trop for the next 3 games looms large.

[Art Deco]

Rather than mention how the series went in the opening remarks, since this was a big one I'll let the suspense play out in the game recaps (of course you can always scroll to the bottom).

The opener saw the Rays clinging to a 1-game lead in the AL East and thanks to a brilliant Griffin Canning outing and a couple of timely homers, they doubled their division lead with a 4-2 win. Canning went 7 5 2 2 2 10 but lost a 2-1 lead when former Ray and returning Red Sock Christian Vasquez homered off him to tie it up. No problem though as in the bottom of the frame Lewin Diaz went deep with a man on (off a lefty no less), his 6th, to give the Rays the win. Brandon Lowe had a 2-run shot (#12) for the first 2 Tampa Bay runs. Canning got the win to go 5-2, 3.78 and Devin Williams nabbed save #3.

The middle game saw Tyler Glasnow dealing once again and taking a 2-0 lead into the 7th before leaving with a run in and a man on and Rafael Devers due. Shane McClanahan came in to face the lefty slugger and promptly gave up a 2-run homer to put Boston ahead 3-2. But Vidal Brujan answered in the bottom of the frame with a 3-run shot (#2) and the Rays took a 5-3 win to go 3 games up on Boston. McClanahan vultured the win, his 5th, and Devin Williams saved for the second straight day (#4). Glasnow finished a still-impressive 6.1 3 2 2 2 9. Joey Bart homered (#4) to give the Rays that 2-0 lead after Brujan brought home a run with a sac fly.

The Rays were gunning for the sweep and after Franchy Cordero took Dustin May deep in the top of the 2nd to make it 1-0 Sox, the Rays answered with 4 in the bottom of the inning on homers from Carter Kieboom (#6, solo) and a 3-run shot from Gary Sanchez (#2), and romped from there to win 11-3 and expand the division lead to 4. Austin Meadows added a 3-run shot (#13) later and Heston Kjerstad drove in a pair. Meanwhile May was brilliant and he went to 7-4, 4.28 after a 6 4 1 1 2 8 performance. Guillermo Zuniga impressed again in his second outing by going 2 perfect with 4 whiffs.

Team record: 39-18. Next up: 3 games in Anaheim against the always-tough Angels.

[Art Deco]

The Rays' road woes continued as they dropped their fourth straight away series, this time to the Angels. In each of these series they've dropped two of three although they were a bullpen meltdown away from winning two of three against LA. And with Boston sweeping Oakland at Fenway, the Red Sox have halved the division lead again, to 2.

The opener saw the Rays take a 2-0 lead on solo homers from Wander Franco (#7) and Joey Bart (#5) while Tarik Skubal no-hit the Angels through the first innings, but things fell apart in the 5th when Skubal allowed a pair of 2-run homers and the Angels went on to a 6-2 win.

The second game saw Joe Ryan and the bullpen dominate as the Rays bounced back with a 3-1 win. Ryan went 6 4 1 1 1 9 and is now 4-5, 4.54 while Guillermo Zuniga looks like a weapon after a 1-2-3 inning with 2 whiffs in his first high-leverage outing. After Peter Fairbanks struck out the side in the 8th, Devin Williams nailed down the 9th for save #5. The offense consisted of a 2-run Austin Meadows homer (#14) in the 1st, immediately followed by Brandon Lowe's 13th of the year, and thanks to the pitching those runs held up the whole way.

The finale was extremely disappointing as Hunter Bishop homered twice to help give the Rays a 6-2 lead in the 7th, but a complete and utter bullpen collapse allowed the Angels to come away with a 9-6 victory. Bishop had a solo shot and a 3-run blast to give him 10 for the year, and Heliot Ramos also went deep in a rare start (#4). Griffin Canning gutted out 5 innings on a season-high 110 pitches, going 5 4 2 2 6 8. Justin Dunn got through the 6th, but starting in the 7th he, Aaron Fletcher and Tyler Rogers combined to allow 7 runs on 9 hits over the 7th and 8th and a likely Rays win evaporated. The outing was the third in his last four in which Dunn allowed 3 runs.

Team record: 40-20. Next up: An off-day then Baltimore visits for 3.

[Art Deco]

The Rays returned the trop and returned to winning ways, taking 2 of 3 from Baltimore. Boston took 2 of 3 as well, so the lead stays at 2 games. We activated Adley Rustchman from his rehab assignment at Durham and DFA'd Gary Sanchez, whom we hope clears and can go back to the Bulls.

Once again it was the Tyler Glasnow show as the righty is on track for the Cy Young if he can stay healthy, as he was completely dominant in a 3-0 Rays win. He went 7.1 2 0 0 1 14 and improved to 7-1, 1.67 with 116 whiffs in 80.2 innings. Devin Williams completed the shutout for save #6. The offense came on an Adley Rutschman RBI single in his first at-bat since returning from the IL and solo homers by Wander Franco (#8) and Heliot Ramos (#5).

The less said about the second game the better as Dustin May was roasted and the Rays were crushed 11-3. May was lit up to the tune of 4 9 7 7 1 7 as he always seems to get his strikeouts but the question every time out is how hard he gets hit otherwise. Heliot Ramos did homer for the third straight game (#6).

The Rays got revenge for the game the day before by turning the tables on Baltimore with their biggest margin of victory this season (and perhaps in this save), annihilating the Orioles 15-0. It was 12-0 after 3 innings as the Rays blasted five homers. Brandon Lowe's 14th, a 2-run shot, kicked things off in the first, Heliot Ramos made it four straight with a homer (#7), Austin Meadows had a grand slam in the 3rd (#16) and Joey Bart went back-to-back with him for the first of his 2 homers on the day (#s 6 and 7). Meadows added a pair of sac flies for a 6-RBI day and now has 65 in 60 games, Vidal Brujan was 3-4 with a triple and 2 RBI, and Hunter Bishop was 4-5 with a ribbie. Tarik Skubal coasted with all this support and went 7 5 0 0 2 6 to go to 5-4, 4.11.

Team record: 42-21. Next up: 3 games in Kansas City.

[Art Deco]

A successful business trip for the Rays as they swept the Royals in Kansas City. With the Red Sox dropping 2 of 3 to the Yankees Tampa Bay saw its AL East lead double in size from 2 games to 4.

The opener was a taut 2-0 affair which saw Joe Ryan, Pete Fairbanks and Devin Williams combine on a shutout while Carter Kieboom supplied the offense with a 2-run homer (#7) in the 3rd inning. Ryan went 6 5 0 0 1 5 to improve to 5-5, 4.17 while Williams notched save #7.

The second game was a real challenge for the Rays as Griffin Canning had to leave having pitched only one inning after tweaking his back and with normal long man Matt Peacock unavailable it suddenly became a bullpen day. The relief corps acquitted themselves well for the most part and solo homers from Austin Meadows (#16) and Wander Franco (#9) gave the Rays a 3-1 lead into the 8th. But Aaron Fletcher put an man on in the bottom of the 8th and Devin Williams came in and yielded a 2-run homer to allow the Royals to tie. We went to extras and in the 11th the Royals bullpen loaded the bases with walks and Hunter Bishop delivered a sac fly. Alex Vesia was the last fresh arm in the pen and he threw 2 perfect innings to notch win #2.

With the bullpen worn down to a nub, the Rays needed their ace Tyler Glasnow to come through with a lengthy outing in the series finale. At the outset though it looked like one of those days for Glasnow, where he didn't have his command as the Royals got 3 runs off him in the first 2 innings and he threw 53 pitches. He settled in however and made it through the 6th, finishing 6 7 3 3 3 5 on 101 pitches. He still looked to leave a loser as the Rays could only manage a Heston Kjerstad solo shot in the 2nd (#6) but Tampa Bay rallied in the top of the 7th, first with another homer from the red-hot Heliot Ramos (#8, his 5th in 7 games) and then a 2-run shot from Wander Franco later in the inning (#10) put them ahead 4-3. Justin Dunn, who had really struggled of late, found himself in a setup role with the tired pen tonight and came through with 2 scoreless innings and Tyler Rogers closed it out in the 9th for his 2nd save to nail down the game and the sweep.

Team record: 45-21. Next up: 3 at home vs the White Sox.

[Art Deco]

What a series! The Rays managed not 1, not 2, but 3 walk-off wins to sweep the White Sox making it 7 straight victories, and two of them found the Rays trailing and down to their last out before tying the game up and winning in extras. Boston won 2 out of 3, but that wasn't enough to keep up and the Rays' division lead is now 5 games.

The opener could not have started off any worse as we got the bad Dustin May and the White Sox put 5 on the board in the top of 1st. May did settle down and that allowed the Rays to get 3 back on a Lewin Diaz homer (#7) but he allowed another in the 5th and finished 4.2 6 6 5 2 3 and saw his ERA rise to 5.19. A 2-run Heston Kjerstad shot (#7) made it 6-5 but Chicago scored twice off the pen. This brought us to the bottom of the 9th when the Rays put two on with two out for Adley Rutschman, and "Clutchman" came through with a 3-run blast (#8), his first since coming back from injury. This sent us to extras and the Rays took the 9-8 win in the 13th when Austin Meadows' sac fly scored Wander Franco who had led off the inning with a triple. Alex Vesia picked up his 3rd win with 2 perfect innings of relief.

Transaction: With the bullpen worn down from the last several games featuring extra innings and early-departing starters, Guillermo Zuniga was optioned back to Durham despite pitching very well (and finally giving up his first runs in the first game of this series) to get the fresh arm of Nick Sandlin, who spent the entire season with the big club last year. Zuniga will be back.

The middle game saw the Rays facing a 3-0 deficit in the 6th and a 5-3 hole in the 7th before tying it up in the bottom of the inning with Carter Kieboom's sac fly in the 9th giving the Rays a 6-5 win. Tarik Skubal had a mediocre start (5 3 3 3 4 3), but Kieboom's 2-run double in the 6th helped them back into the game while Adley Rutschman and Heston Kjerstad had RBI singles in the 7th to tie it up. Devin Williams pitched a perfect 9th for his first win this season.

The finale saw Joe Ryan pitch a great game to keep the Rays in it until they finally tied it in the bottom of the 9th at 3 when Wander Franco's infield single scored Vidal Brujan, who had doubled with 2 out and went to third on a wild pitch. Franco then came through with the game winner in the 11th on a grounder to short that saw Hunter Bishop beat the tag at home to give the Rays a 4-3 win. Ryan went 7 4 3 1 1 11 with his own error leading to a couple of unearned runs in the 3rd while Justin Dunn notched win #3 with 2 scoreless innings of relief.

Team record: 48-21. Next up: 3 games in San Antonio.

[Art Deco]

The winning ways continue for the Rays, taking 2 of 3 in San Antonio and it could have been a third straight series sweep and 10 straight wins had Devin Williams not melted down in the 9th in the middle game. And things got even better when Boston was swept at home by Minnesota as the division lead has now ballooned to 7 games.

The Rays flexed their muscles in the opener, hitting 4 homers in a 9-3 win. Griffin Canning showed no ill effects from tweaking his back and leaving after the 1st inning in his last start, going 6 3 2 2 2 6 to improve to 6-2, 3.66. Heston Kjerstad got the power party going with a 2-run shot in the 2nd (#8), Hunter Bishop smacked a pair of solo shots to give him 12, and Jarren Duran had a solo blast of his own (#8).

The middle game had all the hallmarks of a Rays victory: an excellent outing from Tyler Glasnow and enough offense to provide a comfortable lead. But someone forgot to give Devin Williams the script as the Rays closer coughed up a pair of two-run homers in the 9th to turn a 5-2 win into a 6-5 loss with the second coming from former Ray Yoshi Tsutsugo, snapping the Rays' 8-game win streak. Glasnow was a bit pitch-inefficient but still went a strong 5 4 2 1 2 6 on 95 pitches, keeping his ERA low at 1.87. Brandon Lowe had a 2-run double and Carter Kieboom supplied HR #8 but it was all for naught after the San Antonio 9th.

The Rays showed no hangover from the tough loss the night before in the finale by taking a solid 6-3 win which really wasn't that close as the Alamos scored twice with two out in the 9th. It was our turn for the good Dustin May to show up, and he delivered with a 7 4 1 1 0 6 outing to improve to 8-5, 4.87. Heliot Ramos had the game's big hit, a 2-run homer (#9) in the 4th as he continues to produce whenever he's inserted into the lineup, and Heston Kjerstad also hit his 9th dinger of the season.

Team record: 50-22. Next up: A day off then the road trip heads north to Detroit for 3.

[Art Deco]

For the second straight series the Rays cost themselves a sweep with some bad bullpenning, settling instead for 2 out of 3. The Red Sox swept their series at Fenway with Texas, so they shaved a game off the Rays' lead and have it down to 6.

The opener is where things went wrong as they squandered a 5-0 lead in the 6th and lost 6-5. Tarik Skubal was excellent back on his old mound against his old teammates, going 5.1 4 1 1 1 8 but after Pete Fairbanks got Skubal out of the 6th he ran into all kinds of trouble in the 7th. Fairbanks left with a run in and two on and then Tyler Rogers poured gasoline on the fire, allowing those runners to score and one of his own to allow Detroit to equalize. Then Aaron Fletcher gave up the go-ahead run in the 8th and that was the game. The offense did well but was still frustrated as they banged out 16 hits and left 13 on-base, with Adley Rutschman the biggest culprit leaving 8 men on. Austin Meadows had 4 hits and Jarren Duran 3.

No bullpen issues in the second game as the Rays romped 9-1 behind Joe Ryan and 3 homers. The righty improved to 6-5, 3.80 by going 5 4 1 1 2 8 and Nick Sandlin contributed 3 scoreless innings. Wander Franco (#11), Heston Kjerstad (#10) and Adley Rustchman (#9) all went deep and Austin Meadows drove in 3 with a 2-run double and groundout.

Despite the best (worst) efforts of the bullpen to blow the finale, the offense kept coming back and took a 7-6 win. It was (Griffin) Canning vs (Matt) Manning in the rhyming matchup but neither figured into the decision. The Rays took a 4-2 lead into the 6th, and Canning allowed a run to make it 4-3, finishing 5.1 4 3 3 2 4 and then Shane McClanahan blew the lead allowing a 2-run homer, the 4th he's allowed over his last 5 outings. The Rays tied it back up in the top of the 8th but Pete Fairbanks gave up a Spencer Torkelson homer to put Detroit ahead again in the bottom of the inning. Finally the Rays scored twice in the 9th to go back ahead, with Wander Franco delivering the game-winning RBI single and Devin Williams put an end to the nonsense with a 1-2-3 9th for save #8. Earlier the Rays got homers from Carter Kieboom (#9, solo), Brandon Lowe (#15, a 2-run shot) and Austin Meadows (#17, solo).

Team record: 52-23. Next up: The All-Star break. It always surprises me when it comes this early but it's a feature (really, bug) of the OOTP-generated schedule with the expansion teams added.

[Art Deco]

Since this All-Star break comes before the actual midpoint of the season, I'll dispense with the standings, which I'll be posting with the Rays' midseason review after they reach 81 games.

The All-Star Rosters:





The Home Run Derby:



The game itself:



The Rays showed well for themselves, with of course Adley Rutschman delivering the game's big blow, a 3-run homer with put the AL up 3-2 to stay. Tyler Glasnow started and had a 1-2-3 inning with 2 whiffs although Austin Meadows and Wander Franco went hitless.

[Art Deco]

Oakland came into the Trop with the AL's worst record at 27-48 and three days later left it with an even-worse 27-51 record as the Rays overcame a couple of shaky outings from starters and opened the post-ASB part of the season with a sweep. That combined with Boston dropping 2 of 3 in Seattle gives the Rays a commanding 8-game lead. I'm not ready to declare the division race over, but the fat lady is clearing her throat.

The opener saw the Rays take a 5-0 lead in the 1st with a 2-run Carter Kieboom double the big hit, but the bad Dustin May showed up and allowed Oakland all the way back to tie by the 4th. Wander Franco said "no problem", though, and belted a grand slam (#12) in the bottom of the 4th and the Rays went on to a 12-5 win. Heston Kjerstad homered (#11) and drove in 3 and Adley Rustchman knocked in a pair. May hung around through the 5th to get his 9th win despite an ugly 5 8 5 5 2 4 line.

The second game saw the Rays take a 7-3 decision behind a good start from Tarik Skubal, although he did put the Rays in a first-inning hole by allowing a 3-run Matt Olson homer. Tampa Bay answered back with 4 in the bottom of the frame, helped by a Daniel Johnson dropped fly ball. Brandon Lowe and Heston Kjerstad each knocked in a pair to lead the offense while Skubal went 6 4 3 3 2 11 after getting over the first inning homer. He's now 6-4, 4.07.

Tyler Glasnow got his first start since starting the All-Star Game in the finale and he was all over the place with a fully-stuffed 4 5 5 5 5 7 line, putting the Rays behind 5-2 in the 3rd. But the Rays kept chipping away at the lead, and in the 7th Wander Franco had another huge homer (#12) with a man on to make it 6-5 Rays in the 7th as they went on to win 10-5. Franco added a 2-run triple in the 8th to cap a series which saw him go 5-14 with 2 HR and 9 RBI while Austin Meadows knocked in a pair to give him 75 for the year. Heliot Ramos also continued productive when given the chance as he was 2-4 with HR #10 and 2 RBI. Matt Peacock threw 3 scoreless innings in relief of Glasnow to pick up the win, his 2nd.

Team record: 55-23. Next up: 3 games in Cleveland, which will conclude the first half of the season.

[Art Deco]

The Rays wrapped up the first half of the season by dropping 2 of 3 to the Guardians at Progressive Field. Coupled with Boston taking 2 of 3 from Toronto and the Red Sox have pulled to within 7 games of the division lead. Still pretty comfortable, but let's no do this every series.

The Rays took the opener 5-3 behind big games from Wander Franco and Austin Meadows. Franco kept his hot power bat going with HR #14 in the 1st to get the Rays on the board as part of a 3-hit day and Meadows tied the game at 3 in the 6th with a 2-run shot (#17) and singled in an insurance run in the 7th. Heston Kjerstad broke the tie in the 6th with an RBI double. Joe Ryan got the win after a 5 6 3 3 0 6 outing that saw him improve to 7-5, 3.89 and Devin Williams got save #9 with a 2-whiff 9th.

Cleveland roasted the Rays in the second game 10-5, breaking a 4-4 tie with a 6-run 8th inning which saw Aaron Fletcher and Justin Dunn implode and allow all of those runs. The Rays were down 3-0 early but fought back to equalize in the 7th on another Wander Franco homer (#15), a 2-run shot. Griffin Canning turned in a mediocre 5 5 3 3 3 2 start while Heliot Ramos hit a consolation homer (#11) in the 9th.

In the finale it was turn for the good Dustin May to show up but unfortunately he drew the usually-good Shane Bieber as an opponent and the Rays fell short 3-1. May went 7 5 2 2 0 7 and lost a game he deserved to win after winning one he deserved to lose in his last start and he's now 9-6, 4.92. Jarren Duran's RBI single accounted for the lone Rays run and briefly tied the game in the 5th. Shane McClanahan coughed up yet another homer in relief, the 6th he's allowed in his last 8 appearances.

Team record: 56-25. Next up: The second half of the season starts with the Yankees visiting the Trop for 3.

[Art Deco]

Here are the standings and leaders halfway through:



Not much suspense in the AL division races, while the NL is wide open with the 3rd-year Memphis Spirit in actual playoff contention thanks to a weak Central.

The Rays' team stats:



Solid if unspectacular offensively, but no real weaknesses. And our pitching is the league's best, although the defense is a mixed bag, doing well in efficiency but poorly in zone rating - it's definitely the weakest phase of the team.


Hitting stats:



Carter Kieboom has kind of gone under the radar, but he's been an on-base machine, leading the team in OBP and playing quality defense. And how about Heliot Ramos? All he does is produce when he gets a chance to play, and he's been getting more of one lately. Disappointments are Brandon Lowe, having a down year by his standards, and Hunter Bishop, who isn't hitting like he did when he became a regular in the 2nd half of last season. And the real enigma is Lewin Diaz, who's been flat-out terrible. Despite being rated 70 for contact and 65 for power (which is why I acquired him), in 1038 career at-bats he's hitting 224/277/430 and has -0.2 WAR. It just so happens we have Angelo DiSpigna at 1B in Durham, who's only slugging .712 with 27 HR in 260 AB and is getting on base at a .405 clip. Diaz has been playing sparingly lately, and I've mainly gone with Meadows there to open up an OF spot for Heston Kjerstad or Ramos, but DiSpigna is knocking on the door.

Pitching stats:



Nothing to complain about here, as WAR doesn't like some of our pitchers because they're homer-prone but they've been otherwise effective as the team stats show (and we've still allowed the fewest HRs as a staff). Nick Anderson's on rehab right now at Durham and will be up after another outing or two with Nick Sandlin likely returning there despite pitching decently after being recalled (as did Guillermo Zuniga).

[Art Deco]

The Rays dropped their second straight series, winning only one of three against the Yankees over the July 4 holiday, but Boston was swept at home by Detroit so the Rays actually increased the division lead back up to 8 games.

The opener looked like the type of game the Rays would win as they rallied in the bottom of the 9th to tie it up. But Justin Dunn gave up an RBI single to Luis Torrens, who had homered earlier, and the Yankees took a 5-4 win in 10 innings. While one run scored on Adley Rustchman's 1-out double in the 9th to tie it, Brandon Lowe held at 3rd, and the Rays couldn't get him home. Earlier the offense was led by Austin Meadows, 2-5 with an RBI, and Lewin Diaz, snapping out of his recent funk by going 3-5 with a ribbie. Tarik Skubal had trouble with his control and ended with a 4.2 4 3 3 5 6 line.

The Rays set off a full-blown fireworks show in the 1st inning of their July 4 game, bombarding Yankee ace Gerrit Cole for 7 runs in the first inning on their way to a 12-5 rout of New York. Joey Bart's 2-run single and Carter Kieboom's 2-run double were the big hits in the inning, and Lewin Diaz's 2-run homer (#8) capped it and chased Cole. Bart finished 3-5 with 3 RBI and Wander Franco was 2-5 with 2 RBI. Tyler Glasnow started and kind of pitched to the score, going 7 7 4 4 2 7 for the win to improve to 9-1 with his ERA ticking up to 2.45.

Transaction: Nick Anderson activated from his rehab assignment at AAA Durham, Nick Sandlin optioned there.

The Rays dropped the finale 10-4 although it was a tight 5-4 affair before the Yankees got 5 off a perhaps-not-ready-to-return Nick Anderson in the 9th. Joe Ryan had some troubles, going 5 6 5 5 0 5 and dropped to 7-6, 4.15. Austin Meadows led the offense as usual, going 2-4 with a double, homer (#19) and 3 RBI to give him 82 in 81 games this year.

Team record: 57-27. Next up: 3 games in Houston.

[Art Deco]

Another good result on the road as the Rays took 2 of 3 at Minute Maid Park while the Red Sox impressively did likewise in Anaheim. This keeps the lead at 8 games, but with 3 more days off the calendar.

The opener saw Griffin Canning, the Rays' most consistent pitcher this side of Tyler Glasnow, turn in another excellent performance in a 6-1 win. The righty has allowed 3 runs or fewer in 14 of his last 15 starts and today's 7 3 1 1 4 7 outing was one of his best as he improved to 7-2, 3.65. And despite the final score these were tough innings for Canning as it was 3-1 most of the way before the Rays scored 3 more in the 9th. Vidal Brujan's 2-run single was the big early hit while Jarren Duran capped a 3-hit day with an RBI single in that 3-run 9th.

The second game saw the Rays explode for 9 runs between the 5th and 7th innings to turn a 1-0 deficit into a 9-2 lead as they went on to win 9-4. Brandon Lowe broke the ice in the 5th with a solo homer (#16), and Heston Kjerstad's RBI double put the Rays ahead to stay. Adley Rustchman's solo homer (#10) and Heliot Ramos' 2-run shot (#12) keyed a 4-run 6th while Hunter Bishop was 2-4 with a double and 2 RBI as well. All of this supported Dustin May, who was sharp again today with a 7 4 2 2 1 8 performance that earned him his AL-leading 10th win.

The Rays fought valiantly to get a sweep, coming back from deficits of 3-0 and 5-3 to twice tie it up, but lost 6-5 when Kyle Tucker homered off Matt Peacock in the 7th to give Houston the win. Tarik Skubal got his strikeouts but otherwise struggled at 5.1 7 5 5 2 8 while Austin Meadows had the big hit of the game for Tampa Bay, a 2-run homer (#20) which briefly tied it in the top of the 7th.

Team record: 59-28. Next up: An off-day then we're back home for 3 against Minnesota, during which the amateur draft will take place.

[Art Deco]

The Rays took 2 of their 3 games against one of the AL's better teams in thrilling fashion while Boston swept Baltimore, so despite the successful series the Red Sox shaved a game off the division lead and now trail the Rays by 7.

The opener was a pitchers' duel between Tyler Glasnow and the Twins' Jameson Taillon, and after Glasnow gave up a 2-run homer to Byron Buxton in the 4th it looked like Taillon would get the better of it as Glasnow finished 5.1 4 2 2 3 8. But after Taillon shut out the Rays for 7 innings, Tampa Bay went to work on the Twins' pen in the 9th with Austin Meadows drilling a dramatic 2-run homer to tie it (#21) and extend his hitting streak to 19 games. Then Adley Rutschman drew a walk and pinch-runner Taylor Walls stole second, went to third on the bad throw, and scored the walk-off winner on Hunter Bishop's infield single. The 9th-inning rally made a winner of Justin Dunn for the 4th time this year.

The second game featured more walk-off drama for the Rays as they beat Minnesota 4-3 in 12 innings. Stealing the show was Wander Franco, who gave the Rays a 3-0 lead with a 2-run HR (#16) and an RBI single and then delivered the winning knock in the 12th after Jarren Duran singled and stole second, to cap a 4-RBI day. Joe Ryan started and was excellent, going 5.1 5 2 2 1 10, but Aaron Fletcher coughed up the tying run in the 8th and on to extras we went. For the second straight day the walk-off heroics made Justin Dunn a winner, #5 on the season.

The Twins got their revenge for two heartbreaking losses by blasting the Rays 7-0 in the finale. It was time for the bad Dustin May to show up, and show up he did going 5 7 5 4 3 3 to drop to 10-7. Minnesota's Jhoan Duran held the Rays to 4 hits over 7.1 innings as there was no late-game comeback today.

Team record: 61-29. Next up: 3 games at Texas.

[Art Deco]

It's that time of year again. I think we did decently considering how late in each round we drafted:



As one would expect, Harris is the most interesting. The high school 3B from Virginia rates at potential 55 contact, 65 gap power and 65 HR power and if he can live up to that potential and play a decent 3B that would make him a quite valuable player.

McNair is a bat-first middle infielder from the University of South Alabama who has 55 contact and 60 HR power potential with excellent speed. He's only rated 45 at 2B and 35 at SS, so as a college player he doesn't have great upside there. Still he could be a potential Brandon Lowe successor.

White is a slugging outfielder from Indiana University who could hit 25-30 HR/year if he were plopped into an MLB everyday lineup right now, although he'd hit about .220 doing so. He also has a good eye but is a mediocre defensive OF. Still a pretty good pick for the 3rd round.

Ellis is a high school CF from Ohio who may not hit that much but has speed to burn and could eventually become an above-average defensive outfielder.

Finally Corona is another bat-first college 3B/SS from Wake Forest who has 60 gap power and 50 HR power potential who seems he could be one of those guys who can back up on the infield and pop a few homers off the bench.

[Art Deco]

The Rays Meat Loafed the Rangers while Boston did the same to Kansas City so it's status quo at 7 games with 3 fewer left in the season.

The Rays got yet another great outing from their hottest pitcher these days, Griffin Canning, in a 6-2 win over the Rangers in the series opener. Canning was 6 4 1 1 3 8 to improve to 8-2, 3.52. Devin Williams picked up a 4-out save with all the outs via the K, his 10th. Brandon Lowe had a big day, going 3-4 with a 2-run HR (#17) while Wander Franco drove in a pair with a sac fly and his 17th homer.

Tampa Bay jumped on Texas's Kumar Rocker in the 4th for 6 runs on their way to a 10-2 rout of the Rangers at Globe Life Field in the second game. The much-maligned (and with good reason) Lewin Diaz broke out of his season-long funk with his biggest game of the year, 3-5 with a pair of RBI doubles and a 2-run homer (#9). Taylor Walls had a 2-run single and Heston Kjerstad added HR #12 to back Tarik Skubal, who was excellent at 7.1 5 2 2 1 5. He's now 7-4, 4.25.

The last thing the Rays expected in the finale when Tyler Glasnow took the mound was to lose 14-8, but that's what happened as their ace has hit a rough patch of late. But despite his poor 4.1 6 7 7 5 4 start it was the bullpen which let the game get away with a 6-run 6th after Adley Rutschman's 10th homer pulled the Rays to within 8-6. Justin Dunn took the brunt of the Rangers' abuse, allowing 6 runs (5 earned) in an inning of work including a 3-run jack from former Ray Nate Lowe, his 2nd of the game. Before the Rays allowed 11 runs in the 5th and 6th innings combined it was a back-and-forth affair which saw Jarren Duran go yard twice (#s 9 & 10) to drive in 4 while Brandon Lowe hit his 18th. Glasnow took only his 2nd loss of the season and has seen his ERA balloon from 1.87 to 2.96 over his last 4 starts (all since the ASB) with 18 ER allowed in his last 21.1 IP.

Team record: 63-30. Next up: Back home for 3 vs Seattle.

[Art Deco]

The Rays had to come back in the finale to take 2 of 3 from Seattle at the Trop, a good thing because Boston swept the White Sox and has cut the division lead to 6 games.

Joe Ryan was brilliant and Heston Kjerstad had a big 3-run homer in the opener as the Rays downed Seattle 4-2. Ryan went 6 3 1 1 1 10 to improve to 8-6, 3.97 and Devin Williams claimed save #11 by striking out the side in the 9th. Kjerstad's 3-run homer in the 5th (#13) turned a 1-0 Seattle lead into a 3-1 Rays advantage and Brandon Lowe came through with an RBI single in the 6th for some insurance.

Dustin May actually had a middle ground start for once, going 6 5 3 3 0 8 with all the damage coming on a 3-run homer, but the bullpen let things get away after that and the Rays dropped the second game 9-2. Heston Kjerstad's 2nd homer in as many days (#14) brought the Rays within 3-2 but Alex Vesia and Tyler Rogers were horrendous out of the pen, allowing 3 runs each.

Griffin Canning's run of quality starts came to an end in the finale as he yielded a pair of 2-run homers but the Rays overcame that 4-0 deficit to take a 6-4 win. Canning pitched well outside of the homers, finishing 6 4 4 4 1 6 and Carter Kieboom's bases-clearing triple and a Vidal Brujan sac fly in the 4th got him off the hook for a loss before Hunter Bishop won it for Tampa Bay with a 2-run shot (#13) in the 8th. Nick Anderson picked up his 2nd win in relief and Devin Williams notched save #12 with another perfect 9th, fanning a pair.

Team record: 65-31. Next up: The homestand continues with 3 at home vs Toronto.