The 2021 (and only 2021) Tampa Bay Rays

[Art Deco]

Three outstanding starting pitching performances only got us 2 out of 3 wins when the bullpen faltered in the middle game, but the Red Sox inexplicably were swept in San Antonio so the division lead has grown back to 8 games ahead of a 3-game series we're playing at Fenway. Boston pretty much needs to sweep it to get back into the race.

Tarik Skubal pitched the game of his professional life in the opener, a 3-hit complete-game shutout of Toronto as the Rays rolled 8-0. The lefty walked 3, fanned 12, and threw a career-high 120 pitches. He put two on with two out in the 9th and went 3-2 on Danny Jansen, but got him to fly to center in what was going to be his last hitter either way. A 3-run first inning featuring Austin Meadows' 22nd HR got the Rays going, Hunter Bishop homered (#14) and drove in 2 and Adley Rustchman plated a pair.

The second game was a battle of two of the league's top pitchers in Tyler Glasnow and Nate Pearson, and it didn't disappoint. Glasnow went 6.2 4 0 0 2 8 and left with a 1-0 lead thanks to a Brandon Lowe sac fly, but in the 8th Shane McClanahan walked the leadoff man and later in the inning Nick Anderson surrendered a 2-run homer to Rowdy Tellez and the Jays took a 2-1 win. Pearson and his pen mates held the Rays to only 5 hits in the game.

Joe Ryan continued his roll in the finale and the Rays took two out of three with a 5-2 win at Tropicana Field. Ryan held the Jays to 7.1 4 2 1 0 7 and improved to 9-6, 3.79 with Devin Williams fanning 2 in a perfect 9th for save #13. With the Rays up 1-0 in the 4th, Hunter Bishop's 2-run homer (#14) gave the Rays some breathing room and after the Jays clawed back within 3-2 in the top of the 8th, Heliot Ramos delivered a 2-out, 2-run single in the bottom of the inning to restore the cushion.

Team record: 67-32. Next up: An off-day then we visit Fenway Park with a chance to put the Red Sox away.

[Art Deco]

Not only are we rolling into Fenway with an 8-game division lead, we're now bringing a legitimate star along with us in Alex Bregman. Bregman is a free agent at year's end so was on the trade block, and as a rental we didn't give up a lot in quality although we did in quantity. Sandlin is an MLB-ready reliever of course, and could become their closer, while Orlando Martinez, acquired in the same deal with Sandlin two winters ago when we shipped the Angels Ken Giles, deserves a shot in the bigs where he can be a .280, 15-20 HR guy with 60 outfield defense but was buried on our depth chart. As for Armstrong, Peyton Smith and Alberto, they're a grab bag of mediocre SP prospects, with Armstrong and Alberto maybe 5th starters and Peyton Smith, our supplemental 1st-round pick in 2021, just trying to stay healthy.

So where does Bregman fit in since we already have Carter Kieboom at 3B and Wander Franco at SS? He's going to play some 3rd, some DH and also we're going to use him some at 1B where he can be adequate. Bregman was having a down year (.220 with 8 HR) but he's still only 30 and rated 65 contact, 65 gap power and 60 power so it seems a case of being unhappy toiling for a mediocre Astros team with no extension than an erosion of skills. He'll give us another quality RH bat as we were lefty-heavy with Duran, Meadows, Lowe and Bishop and should be an upgrade to an offense which has been very good but not great this year.

And not to be overlooked is that we also acquired a guy who will help us now in our pen and possibly next year in our rotation in Luis Garcia, who brings 70 stuff as a reliever and 60 stuff as a starter and who dominated this year in relief with 65 Ks and only 27 hits allowed in 44 IP, good for a 2.23 ERA.

To make room for Bregman and Garcia, we're optioning Lewin Diaz, whom despite a few false dawns was still hitting only 212/257/407, and Justin Dunn, who just couldn't achieve consistency out of the pen and might better be suited to starting, which he'll do the rest of the way at Durham.

[Art Deco]

I said before this series that Boston would have to sweep to get back into the division race, and sure enough that's what the Red Sox did as the Rays left their bats in St. Petersburg and scored a whopping total of 3 runs over the 3 games. New acquisition Alex Bregman was 0-10 with a walk in the series, not exactly providing the jump start to the offense we had hoped for. So now Boston is only 5 back and they too just made a big acquisition in advance of the trade deadline as they added SP Freddy Peralta, the 2021 NL Cy Young winner, from Milwaukee. Peralta was having a bit of a down year but his peripherals still looked good, and based on this series Boston already has the pitching.

The opener was the worst of the lot as Boston blew out the Rays 13-2 after the Rays took a 2-0 lead in the first, which meant they scored a grand total of one run over the final 26 innings of the series. Dustin May looked good through 4 but it all went to seed in a 6-run 5th, and the other new acquisition Luis Garcia did not distinguish himself in his debut, allowing doubles to the first two men he faced to allow a couple of runs to score. May finished 4.2 9 6 6 0 4 as he continues to have a great BB/K ratio but is giving up way too many hits and homers as reflected in his 5.11 ERA.

The second game was a 4-1 Boston victory which saw Griffin Canning hit hard to the tune of 4 9 4 4 2 3. Matt Peacock and Tyler Rogers kept it close with 2 scoreless innings each, and the Rays did load the bases in the 9th but couldn't get anyone home.

The Rays wasted a quality start from Tarik Skubal in the finale as they were 1-hit over the first 8 innings, mostly by Boston's rookie sensation starter Lane Flamm, and lost 2-0. They did get a couple hits in the 9th to threaten but like yesterday they failed to bring them home. Skubal finished 6 6 2 2 2 6 and deserved better.

Team record: 67-35. Next up: It doesn't get any easier as we host the first-place Angels for 3 games. Boston is out west in Oakland.

[Art Deco]

The Rays bounced back from being swept in Boston by returning home and sweeping the first-place team in the AL West, the Angels. Meanwhile the Sox did drop one of their games in Oakland so the division lead is back up to 6 games.

The opener saw Tyler Glasnow knocked around in the early innings for four runs and a pair of homers through 3, but he gave up nothing after that and the bats came to life in a 10-4 win over LA. Glasnow made it through 7 and finished 7 6 4 4 3 11 to improve to 10-2, 2.93 and he was picked up by a resurgent offense. Wander Franco blasted a pair of solo homers to give him a career-high 19, including one in a 3-run 4th which saw the Rays take the lead for good, while Jarren Duran led off the game with his 11th. Tampa Bay also took advantage of the wildness of Angels pitching, with 13 walks and one hit batter, which helped Heston Kjerstad drive in 3 and Austin Meadows 2 more.

The second game featured another dominant performance from the Rays' hottest pitcher, Joe Ryan, in a 2-1 win. Ryan went 7 4 1 1 0 12, moved to 10-6, 3.64 on the year, and is now 3rd in the AL in pitcher WAR at 3.4. Devin Williams had a dicey 9th which saw him load the bases with one out, but he got a groundball at the drawn-in infield to get an out at the plate, and then another groundball to finish it off for save #14. The offense came from Carter Kieboom, who hit HR #10 in the 4th, and Austin Meadows, who drove in the game-winner with a single in the 7th.

Tampa Bay completed the sweep with a 5-2 win in the finale, behind a strong Dustin May start and a couple of big homers. Gingergaard went 6.1 5 2 2 1 10 to win his team-high 11th game, and Nick Anderson picked up his first save in two months (#16) with a 2-whiff, 1-2-3 9th. Hunter Bishop's 16th homer gave the Rays a 2-0 lead in the 2nd, and after the Angels tied it off May in the 4th, Heston Kjerstad responded in the bottom of the inning with #15, a 3-run blast which held up for the rest of the game.

Team record: 70-35. Next up: 3 games at Baltimore to close out the month of July.

[Art Deco]

With the exception of the second game, it was a nightmarish series for the Rays' pitching staff as they dropped 2 of 3 to Baltimore and were hit hard. Luckily, Boston needed a 5-run rally in the 9th inning of their third game with Cleveland to salvage a game from their series, so the division race remains status quo with the Rays up by 6 games.

Griffin Canning, who had been on an excellent run before his last start, was blasted again for 6 runs in the 1st inning on a couple of homers and gave up a third as the Rays were downed 9-4 by Baltimore in he opener. Canning gave up one more longball in the 3rd and finished a brutal 2.1 9 7 7 1 4 as his ERA has jumped from 3.66 to 4.34 over his last two starts. Brandon Lowe hit HR #19 in the losing effort.

In a change from yesterday Tarik Skubal was brilliant and the Rays took care of the Orioles 6-1. The lefty gave up a first inning homer to Ryan Mountcastle and nothing thereafter, finishing 6 3 1 1 1 7 to improve to 9-5, 3.75. He was backed by Wander Franco's 1st-inning homer which put the young star in the 20-homer club for the first time, and later on in the 9th Heston Kjerstad (#16) and Vidal Brujan (#3) homered off former Rays prospect Nick Bitsko, who was traded to Baltimore in the deal which brought us Kjerstad and Adley Rustchman the season before.

When you send Tyler Glasnow to the mound, the last thing you expect is to give up 16 runs but that's what happened at Camden Yards as the Orioles crushed the Rays 16-7 in the series finale. The Rays' ace didn't have it tonight going 3 9 7 7 1 4 and then Shane McClanahan gave up 7 runs (6 earned) in 2 innings behind him. The offense at least showed up, with homers from Brandon Lowe (#20), Austin Meadows (#23) and Heston Kjerstad (#17, a 3-run shot after it was 16-3). Meanwhile, Alex Bregman was 0-4 and is now 2-29 since joining the Rays as somehow he's hit even worse than when he was with Houston.

Transaction: Griffin Canning had an off-field motorcycle accident and suffered a foot contusion which will sideline him for two weeks. Reggie Lawson, who's been up with us before and was having a fine year (12-4, 3.30 with 136 whiffs in 117 IP) was called up and will take his rotation spot.

Team record: 71-37. Next up: 3 games at home vs Kansas City.

[Art Deco]

The Rays keep chugging on, taking 2 of 3 from the Royals. Meanwhile Boston bested the Yankees 2 of 3 as well so three more days come off the schedule with the Rays maintaining a 6-game division lead.

There might not be a hotter pitcher in MLB right now than Joe Ryan, and the righty kept it going by taking a no-hitter into the 7th inning in a 5-2 Rays win. He went 6.1 2 2 2 3 7 after giving up a 2-run homer in the 7th, and has allowed only 7 runs over his last 5 starts covering 32 innings with a 5/46 BB/K ratio over that span, winning the last 4 and moving to 11-6, 3.60 for the season. Adley Rutschman had a 2-run double and Heliot Ramos launched a solo shot (#13) to pace the bat attack.

The second game saw an impressive late comeback by the Rays to take a walk-off 5-4 win at the Trop. Alex Bregman finally came to life in his best game as a Ray, supplying the early offense with a solo homer (#1 as a Ray, #9 overall), and then added an RBI double in the 6th. Still the Rays trailed 4-2 going into the bottom of the 8th before Wander Franco blasted an impressive 2-run HR (#21) with 2 out into the rays tank in RCF. And then with 2 out and nobody on in the 9th, Rays hitters drew a couple of walks to allow Heliot Ramos to deliver a single to left to provide the game-winner. Dustin May started and was mediocre, going 6.2 6 4 4 2 6 while Luis Garcia notched his first Rays win with 1 2/3 scoreless as the big pre-deadline trade finally paid dividends.

Reggie Lawson got his first start of the year with the big club with Griffin Canning out, and things did not go very well for him. He helped put the Rays in a 5-1 hole going 3.2 7 4 4 1 5 and although it looked like they might come back like the night before the Royals held on to beat them 6-5. A trio of homers kept the Rays in it: Vidal Brujan's 3rd, Joey Bart's 9th with a man on, and a Heston Kjerstad solo shot (#18) in the 8th to pull the Rays within one.

Team record: 73-38. Next up: 3 games in Chicago against the White Sox, who are 5 games up on the competition for the second wild card spot behind Boston.

[Art Deco]

The Rays were a bullpen mini-meltdown away from a sweep and had to settle for 2 of 3 while Boston was losing 2 of 3 to Houston (no thanks to recently-traded Ray Nick Sandlin who gave up 2 homers in relief for Boston's only win), so the division lead is back up to 7 games.

The opener did not look like it would end up in the Rays' column for most of the way, especially after Tarik Skubal was hit for 4 runs in the first inning. But a 9-run 8th inning turned a Rays defeat into a 14-5 rout of the White Sox as they made it 7 of 7 this year against the Southsiders. Austin Meadows swung the biggest bat, hitting 2-run homers in the 4th and in that 9-run 8th to give him 25 HR and 98 RBI on the season. Alex Bregman came through with his biggest Rays hit, an RBI single which put them ahead to stay, and Wander Franco was 3-5 with 2 RBI. Skubal settled down after his rough first and hung around long enough for the win, going 7 7 5 5 2 8 to improve to 10-5.

Transaction: Hunter Bishop strained an oblique and will be out 5 weeks, so Lewin Diaz was called back up from Durham where he was hitting for average if not much power.

The Rays won another blowout in the second game although they were in control the whole way this time as they prevailed 9-2. Austin Meadows homered twice for the second straight game, a solo shot in the 5th and then a 3-run blast in the 9th to break open a 5-2 game. The 4 RBI made him the first in MLB this year to reach the 100-RBI mark as he sits at 102 with 27 homers. Brandon Lowe hit #21 and Carter Kieboom had a big 2-run double in the 4th. Tyler Glasnow returned to form even if he wasn't as dominating as usual, going 6 3 2 2 1 4 to go to 11-3, 3.33.

They were gunning for a sweep in the finale and led 3-1 in the 7th behind Joe Ryan, but Luis Garcia, Aaron Fletcher (mostly) and Pete Fairbanks conspired to allow Chicago to score three times and the Rays lost their first game to the White Sox this year 4-3. Ryan was excellent once again at 5 5 1 1 1 6 but ran a high pitch count. Garcia had an easy 6th but put two on with one out in the 6th, one of them a Wander Franco error which figured prominently. Fletcher let one in and loaded the bases before Fairbanks came in and gave up a 2-out, 2-run single to Luis Robert to give Chicago the win. Carter Kieboom had a 2-run double for the second straight day for the Rays' big hit early, but Alex Bregman reverted to his struggles since joining the team and was 0-4 with 6 men left on base as the Rays could have built a bigger lead.

Team record: 75-39. Next up: the San Antonio Alamos visit the Trop for 3.

[Art Deco]

The Rays swept the Alamos thanks to some brilliant pitching (3 runs allowed in the 3 games total) and needed to as the Red Sox impressively swept the AL Central-leading Twins at Fenway keeping the division lead at 7.

In the continuing travails of Dr. Dustin and Mr. May, it was the former who showed up at the Trop for the opener, pitching the Rays to a 6-2 win over San Antonio. May was dominating, going 7.2 5 1 1 0 12 which represented a season-high in whiffs as he improved to 12-9, 4.81. The Rays scored 4 times in the first 2 innings to set the tone, with Wander Franco driving in 3 in total on an RBI double and a pair of sac flies. Austin Meadows contributed an RBI triple.

The second game was Reggie Lawson's time to shine as the righty shook off his shaky season debut with 7 1/3 shutout innings in a 5-0 Rays win over the Alamos. Lawson was in control, going 7.1 3 0 0 1 8 to even his record at 1-1. Lewin Diaz found himself back in the lineup for the first time in about a month, and drilled a 2-run double for the game's big hit with Joey Bart driving in the other 3 with a 2-run single and a fielder's choice.

Tarik Skubal was outstanding as the Rays pulled out a slim 2-1 win over San Antonio to sweep the series. The lefty was 6.2 4 1 1 1 5 and picked up the win when Adley Rutschman hit HR #12 in the 6th to break a 1-1 tie. Skubal is now 11-5, 3.78 and Devin Williams recorded save #17 by striking out the final two batters of the game.

Team record: 78-39. Next up: The Tigers roll into town for 3.

[Art Deco]

This might have been the 3 days which saw the Rays effectively wrap up the division as they swept Detroit by a combined score of 26-8 at the Trop while Boston dropped 2 of 3 in Texas. With 42 games left, the division lead is now 9 games so it's going to take an epic reversal of fortune for these teams to change things.

Tyler Glasnow returned to dominant form as the Rays routed the Tigers 7-0 in the opening game of the series. The righty went 7 4 0 0 2 7 and upped his record to 12-3, 3.17 as he bids to become the Rays' first Cy Young winner since Blake Snell in 2018. Jarren Duran had what was perhaps a career game in support of Glasnow: 4-4 with 2 homers (#s 12 and 13) and 4 RBI, including a shot to lead off the game. Brandon Lowe (#22) and Heston Kjerstad (#19) also found the seats.

Joe Ryan got off to a sluggish start and the Rays trailed Detroit 3-1 going into the bottom of the 5th, but 3 outs later it was 8-3 Rays as they took an 11-4 win. Tonight the Rays' hitter having a career night was Joey Bart, who like Jarren Duran the night before went 4-4 with 2 homers but Bart's other 2 hits were doubles and he drove in 6 on the night. His first homer tied the game at 3 in the 5th and Wander Franco came through with a 2-run single to break the tie and Austin Meadows capped the inning with a 2-run double. Ryan hung in there and finished 6 7 3 3 2 4 for the win, going to 12-6, 3.58.

The Rays completed the sweep with an 8-4 win which saw Alex Bregman have his best day as a Ray, going 3-4 with a walk, triple and RBI. Heston Kjerstad was 2-4 with his 20th homer and 3 RBI and Heliot Ramos had a key RBI triple in a 3-run 3rd which got things going for Tampa Bay. Dustin May turned in a fine start, except for a sequence in the 4th in which Detroit strung some hits together around a Taylor Walls error and they scored 3 unearned runs. May went 6 6 3 0 0 7 and is now 13-9, 4.61.

Team record: 81-39. Next up: We head out west for 3 games in Oakland.

[Art Deco]

Not the best series for the Rays as they dropped 2 of 3 in Oakland while Boston took 2 of 3 at Fenway from Seattle, so the lead dips to 8 games.

The Rays were dominated in the first game by JoJo Romero, who came in with a 5.64 ERA but who was coming off a very good start, and he and his pen were the key to a 3-1 A's win. Romero was locked in a duel with Reggie Lawson, making his last start before Griffin Canning comes off the IL and Lawson was good if wild, going 5 3 0 0 4 5. Shane McClanahan gave up yet another homer (his 9th in 44 IP) to Matt Olson to allow Oakland to go up 1-0 in the 6th but Adley Rutschman countered with his 13th to tie it in the top of the 7th. However this only led to further disappointment when Pete Fairbanks coughed up a 2-run homer in the bottom of the inning to give Oakland the win.

Tampa Bay took out its frustration from the night before with an 8-3 win over Oakland, but it started out rough. Tarik Skubal was hit for 3 runs in the first inning and had to throw 36 pitches, but his mates picked him up with a 4-run 2nd including solo homers from Brandon Lowe (#23) and Adley Rutschman (#14). They kept tacking on runs and Vidal Brujan, who had an RBI single earlier, hit a solo shot for #5 as part of a 3-hit day while Jarren Duran and Wander Franco each knocked in a pair. Skubal settled in and got the win after going 5 7 3 3 4 7 as he's now 12-5, 3.84.

Tyler Glasnow appeared to be over his mid-season slump of late, but was hit hard by Oakland in the finale which the A's took 9-4. He allowed 2 solo homers in the 1st and a 3-run shot in the 2nd to put the Rays in a 5-0 hole, although they crept back within 5-3 after Carter Kieboom hit the first of his two homers, a 2-run blast in the 6th (he later hit a solo shot for #12). But Glasnow gave up another run in the 7th and then the bullpen was terrible after that, allowing 3 more to score, with Tyler Rogers the worst offender. Glasnow ended up 6.1 8 6 6 1 9 and dropped to 12-4, 3.40.

Team record: 82-41. Next up: An off-day then Cleveland visits the Trop for 3.

[Art Deco]

The Rays returned home where they're an MLB-best 49-14, and made it 52-14 at the Trop after sweeping the Guardians. Boston couldn't keep pace, dropping their series finale in Toronto so the Rays are back to 9 games up and it's time to starting talking magic number, which is 28.

Jarren Duran had a big game in the opener as the Rays shook off an early deficit and took a 7-4 win. Duran had 4 hits, including a big triple in the 6th, and then after Cleveland pulled within 5-4 in the 8th he blasted a 2-run homer (#14) in the bottom of the inning to make things comfortable again. Also having big nights at the plate were Brandon Lowe (4-4 with a triple and RBI), Heston Kjerstad (3-5 with a double + RBI), and Wander Franco (2-5 with an RBI). In fact those 4 combined for 13 of the team's 14 hits. Joe Ryan fell behind 2-0 early but settled in and went 6 7 2 2 0 6 to improve to 13-6, 3.55 and Nick Anderson got the final 5 outs for save #17.

Dustin May was brilliant again and Wander Franco had a monster game as the Rays won the second game 7-2. May is on a roll now (only 7 runs allowed over his last 5 starts covering 33 innings with a 6/44 BB/K ratio) after going 6.1 2 0 0 3 9 to improve to 14-9, 4.42. Franco meanwhile was 4-5 with a double, homer (#22) and 3 RBI to lead the offense. Carter Kieboom had a 2-run double in the 4th to get Tampa Bay on the board, and Adley Rutschman homered (#15) and drove in a pair.

Griffin Canning made his first start in 3 weeks and went toe-to-toe with Cleveland ace Shane Bieber in the finale although neither was around when Joey Bart homered (#11) for the game's only run in the 7th in a 1-0 Rays win. Bart, who was named last week's AL Player of the Week despite playing in only 2 games after going 6-8 with 2 HR & 6 RBI, took a Carlos Vargas pitch inside the RF foul pole and made a winner of Alex Vesia, brilliant in relief of Canning (who went 5 1/3 scoreless) by whiffing all 5 men he faced and earning his 4th win. Devin Williams locked down the 9th for save #17.

Team record: 85-41. Next up: 3 games at Yankee Stadium.

[Art Deco]

The Rays swept the Yankees rather easily while Boston dropped 2 of 3 to Detroit, so the race is really over at this point with an 11-game lead and a magic number of 23.

The Rays had to come back in the opener, trailing 5-4 through 5 before pulling away for an 8-5 win. Tarik Skubal wasn't his best, going 4 6 5 5 0 6 but Matt Peacock came to the rescue with 3 scoreless innings for his 3rd win while Devin Williams fanned a pair in a perfect 9th for save #18. Austin Meadows' 2-run homer (#28) in the 6th put the Rays ahead for good and Carter Kieboom capped a 4-RBI day with a 2-run shot in the 7th (#13) for some breathing room. Adley Rutschman was 3-5 with a 2-run homer in the 1st (#16) to round out the scoring.

The second game featured a premier pitching matchup between Gerrit Cole and Tyler Glasnow but the Rays got to Cole while Glasnow only lasted 5 in a 7-2 win. Glasnow was effective (5 4 2 2 3 9) but it took him 105 pitches to qualify for his 13th win. Carter Kieboom got the ball rolling with a 3-run HR (#14) off Cole in the 2nd and Brandon Lowe added a solo shot (#24) in the 4th as part of a 3-day hit for him. Wander Franco went deep (#23) off the Yankee pen later. One bit of bad news though as Austin Meadows had to leave after beating out an infield single and was diagnosed with knee tendinitis. He could play through if he needed to as it's "minimal" but it's a 3-week injury and with the big division lead there's no need to risk him.

Transaction: Placed Austin Meadows on the 10-day IL with knee tendinitis and purchased the contract of OF Billy Hamilton from AAA Durham. To make room on the 40-man, C Chris Betts was DFA'd. We didn't have any more OFs on the 40-man so we had to go the purchase route and Hamilton can barely hit but he's extremely fast and a 60 CF so he'll be used mostly as a defensive replacement.

Carter Kieboom had the series of his life as he drove in 5 more runs in a 15-5 Rays rout of the Yankees to give him 12 in the 3-game series. He homered for the third straight game (#15) with two men on in the 2nd and the Rays were up 8-0 after 2. Lewin Diaz was 4-5 with 2 doubles and 2 RBI, Taylor Walls was 3-5 with 2 RBI and Heliot Ramos came off the bench late and blasted a 2-run homer (#14). Joe Ryan had the big lead but didn't pitch that well, surrendering 3 homers but still getting the win after going 5 6 4 4 3 7. He's now 14-6, 3.68.

Team record: 88-41. Next up: 3 at home vs Houston, a team we may see in the ALDS as they've been red-hot of late and pushing the White Sox for the 2nd wild card.

[Art Deco]

The beat (or beatings) go on for the Rays as they swept their third straight series with three dramatic wins over Houston to make it 9 straight. Boston has fallen on bad times, losing starting OFs Jim Porcelli (a rookie sensation with 26 homers) for the year and Alex Verdugo for a month, and they were swept at Fenway by the Angels, meaning the Rays' magic number is down to 17.

Joey Bart's 8th-inning grand slam (#12) off former Rays farmhand Jose De Leon erased a 4-2 Houston lead and gave the Rays a 6-4 win in the series opener. Wander Franco had given the Rays a 1st-inning lead with a 2-run homer (#24) and Dustin May was dominating (5.1 6 2 2 2 10) but Alex Vesia helped cough up the lead in the 6th and he allowed another run in the 7th. Pete Fairbanks ended up with win #3 and Devin Williams recorded save #19 with 3 whiffs in the 9th.

When Houston opened up a 5-0 lead in the 7th in the second game of the series and Jacob deGrom had held the Rays to 2 hits through 6 it appeared Tampa Bay's win streak was coming to a sudden halt. But the Rays put 5 on the board in the bottom of the 7th off deGrom and Jack Leiter and then added 3 more in the 8th to take an 8-5 win. Griffin Canning got the start and pitched well (6 3 2 2 1 6) but Luis Garcia was roughed up by his old teammates for 3 runs in the 7th. Heston Kjerstad started the comeback with a 2-run homer off deGrom (#21) and they kept the rally going with an RBI single from Vidal Brujan and a 2-run Jarren Duran knock to tie it up. The Rays continued to put men on against Leiter in the 8th and Alex Bregman came through against his old teammates with an RBI single for the game-winner before Duran added his second 2-run single in as many innings. Aaron Fletcher picked up his 3rd win in relief and Nick Anderson notched save #18.

There was no late-inning comeback from the Rays in the finale, but they managed a very late-inning win by downing the Astros 4-3 in 16 innings. Wander Franco's RBI single scored Heliot Ramos, who led off the 16th with a single, to win it in walk-off fashion. Earlier Joey Bart had given the Rays a 3-2 lead in the 6th with a 2-run homer (#13), his third homer in his last four starts. Bart has been insanely productive as the #2 catcher, hitting 297/347/554 with 2.3 WAR in only 195 AB. He's probably too expensive to keep as a backup next year but we'll enjoy it for now. Tarik Skubal pitched well (6 5 2 2 2 4) and was headed for a win but Pete Fairbanks blew the lead in the 7th, and on (and on) to extras we went. Matt Peacock fanned 6 in 3 2/3 scoreless innings and Alex Vesia got win #5 with 2 1/3 perfect innings, whiffing 3.

Team record: 91-41. Next up: 3 games in Minnesota, our least favorite venue.

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[Art Deco]

The Rays' win streak reached 11 after taking the first two in Minnesota before the streak was cut short in the final game which itself was cut short by rain. Boston dropped 2 of 3 in the meantime which reduces the magic number to 13.

After the marathon the day before against Houston the Rays bullpen was depleted so Tyler Glasnow was pushed a little longer than he would otherwise and that contributed to the Rays blowing a 5-0 lead. But despite not being thrilled about another extra-inning affair Tampa Bay made the best of it by scoring 3 times in the 11th to take an 8-5 win. First-inning homers from Brandon Lowe (#25, a 2-run shot) and Alex Bregman (#2/#10, solo) made it 3-0 early and they extended it 5-0 behind Glasnow, who was great through 6. But he put the first three on in the 7th, with one in, and then Aaron Fletcher was downright horrible, allowing the two inherited runners and two of his own to score. But in the 11th RBI singles from Vidal Brujan and Billy Hamilton (who had 3 hits) broke the tie. Luis Garcia notched the win in relief, his 2nd.

Transaction: Tyler Rogers suffered some mild shoulder inflammation and had to leave the game, so he's gone on the IL with Guillermo Zuniga, who wowed in his first stint with the big club, coming up from Durham. Zuniga was just as dominating at Durham with 109 whiffs in 66.2 IP and a 2.02 ERA and will likely stay up the rest of the way with September roster expansion imminent.

The second game also saw a healthy Rays advantage wither away but this time they hung on in regulation to take a 5-3 win. Joe Ryan was excellent at 6.1 6 2 2 2 4 to improve to 15-6, 3.64 and Devin Williams picked up his 20th save. Joey Bart drove in a pair with a single and HR #14, Jarren Duran was 3-5 with an RBI and Vidal Brujan was 2-4 with a ribbie as well.

The finale was cut short due to rain in the 6th which was probably a mercy for the Rays as they were down 6-0 and getting dominated by Minnesota's Alejandro Rosario (9 whiffs in 5 1/3). After being gone for several starts the bad Dustin May resurfaced, allowing 4 runs on 38 pitches in the 1st but at least the fatigued bullpen got the night off as May went the distance at 5 7 6 4 1 1, dropping to 14-10, 4.47.

Team record: 93-42. Next up: A much-needed off-day then Texas visits for 3.

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It was pretty much all or nothing for the Rays offense, playing 2 low-scoring games and setting a team single-game runs record in the other as they won 2 of the 3. The magic number is now down to 11.

The opening game featured a tense pitching duel between Texas's Jon Gray and Griffin Canning, with the Rangers holding a 1-0 lead into the bottom of the 6th. But Wander Franco singled for one of his 3 hits on the day and Heston Kjerstad launched a Gray fastball into the RF seats for HR #22 and it held up for a 2-1 Rays win. Canning was excellent at 6 5 1 1 2 6 going to 9-4, 3.97 and 4 relievers handled the final 3 innings with Devin Williams recording save #21.

The Rays were up 9-2 after 4 in the second game and kept hitting from there, scoring a team-record 20 runs in a 20-3 demolition of the Rangers. Heston Kjerstad led the hit parade with a 7-RBI day, driving in 3 before his 8th-inning grand slam (#22) set the club single-game runs record. Brandon Lowe was 3-3 with HR #26 and 4 RBI and Alex Bregman was 2-5 with his 3rd Rays homer and 3 RBI. Tarik Skubal was able to sit back and go 6 6 2 2 1 6 with all the run support to improve to 13-5, 3.96 and Matt Peacock picked up the cheapest of 3-inning saves, his 2nd.

Transaction: It's September 1, time for roster expansion. The callups were Reggie Lawson on the pitching side, he'll get a couple of starts to give the rotation regulars some rest as we tune up for the playoffs, and cue the Obi-Wan Kenobi meme "now that's a name I haven't heard in a long, long time" as Mike Brosseau is back up with the big club after spending the entire year in Durham. He's up by default as the only non-catcher position player on the 40-man still at Durham and will go back down when the likes of Austin Meadows and Hunter Bishop come off the IL.

Also, some hardware from the league:



Feast turned to famine in the finale as the Rays only managed 2 runs and lost this time 3-2 in 11 innings to Texas. Brandon Lowe hit #27 in the first and Heston Kjerstad dramatically tied it up in the 9th with his 3rd homer in as many games (#23) but Pete Fairbanks surrendered a Pat Valaika homer in the 11th to give the Rangers the win. Tyler Glasnow was in fine form, going 6 6 1 1 2 6 and lowering his ERA to 3.38.

Team record: 95-43. Next up: 3 games in Seattle against the Mariners who are suddenly part of a wide-open race for the 2nd AL wild card after Boston. Currently Seattle is tied for the second WC with the White Sox, Baltimore and Houston are both one game behind those two and Detroit is two behind.

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The beat goes on as the Rays took 2 of 3 from wild card contender Seattle, grinding out a pair of comeback wins before being blown out in the finale. The magic number for the division is down to 7, although they have clinched a playoff berth.

Joe Ryan didn't have any command today, walking 6 in 4 innings, giving up a homer and putting the Rays in a 4-0 hole. But it didn't matter as the Rays came back in the late innings to take a 5-4 win. Ryan was all over the place at 4 2 4 4 6 5 but Reggie Lawson came on and went 3 scoreless which bought them time to come back which they did with a pair of runs in both the 5th and the 6th. Heliot Ramos had an RBI double and Brandon Lowe's 2-run homer (#28) leveled things. This set up the 9th where the Rays took advantage of a Shed Long error and Vidal Brujan singled in the winner. Former Mariner Aaron Fletcher picked up win #4 with a scoreless 8th and Devin Williams recorded save #22.

Dustin May had some early-game struggles but in what was almost a carbon copy of yesterday's game the Rays erased a 3-0 deficit and took a 4-3 win. May went 5 10 3 3 0 4 and left down 3 as the Rays were completely shut down until the 7th when they tied it up on a 2-run double by Lewin Diaz, and in the 8th Adley Rutschman delivered a 2-out RBI single for the game-winner. Shane McClanahan got the final out of the 7th and was awarded his 6th win while Devin Williams got the save (#23) for the second straight night.

It was a forgettable finale though as the Rays were mauled by the Mariners 12-1. Griffin Canning was terrible (1.2 6 5 5 4 1) and dropped to 9-5, 4.26, while Matt Peacock was really bad as well (6 runs allowed in 3 2/3). Carter Kieboom accounted for the lone Rays run with a 2nd-inning solo shot, his 16th.

Team record: 97-44. Next up: 3 games in Toronto, another team in the wild card mix albeit on the periphery.

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The Rays took 2 of 3 once again while Boston swept their series so the magic number falls to 5.

The opener was one of the wildest games of the season which saw the Rays trail 4-0 after 6, tie it up with 4 in the 7th, give up 4 in the bottom of the 7th to see Toronto go up 8-4 but then score 3 in the 8th and 3 in the 9th to take a 10-8 win over the Jays at Rogers Centre. Tarik Skubal had a rough start, allowing 3 homers and going 6 6 4 4 2 5. Jarren Duran blasted a 3-run homer (#15) in the top of the 7th to tie it up, but Pete Fairbanks served up George Springer's 3rd homer of the game, a grand slam to put Toronto back ahead. Joey Bart's 2-run single in the top of the 8th cut the lead to 8-7, and in the 9th Alex Bregman singled to tie it up and Bart singled again to win it. Luis Garcia pitched the 8th and picked up his 3rd Rays win while Nick Anderson nailed down the 9th for save #19.

Transaction: Tyler Rogers came off the IL so Reggie Lawson was optioned to Durham where he can help the Bulls in the Triple-A East playoffs.

The second game was a thorough Rays rout as they went up 10-0 and went on to take a 15-6 win over Toronto in another scoring orgy. Wander Franco hit a pair of solo homers (#s 25 & 26), Brandon Lowe was 3-4 with a double, homer (#29) and 2 RBI, Heston Kjerstad had a 2-run homer (#25) and Carter Kieboom found the seats with 2 men on for #17. Vidal Brujan also drove in 3 runs with a pair of doubles. Believe it or not the game was touted as a premier pitching matchup with Tyler Glasnow facing Nate Pearson but Pearson was gone in the 2nd and Glasnow pitched to the score, giving up 3 homers in a 6 8 4 4 0 7 outing. He still improved to 14-4, 3.47.

The Rays dropped the finale 8-5 in a game that really wasn't that close as they scored a couple of consolation runs in the 9th. Joe Ryan has reverted to his classic homer-yielding self as he was hit for 3 longballs today in a 6 8 6 6 1 6 outing to drop to 15-7, 3.97 and has now allowed 7 homers in his last 4 starts. Heston Kjerstad was the only offensive contributor of note, going 2-3 with a triple and 2 RBI.

Team record: 99-45. Next up: 3 at home vs Boston, where a sweep would officially clinch the division for the Rays.

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What a difference 6 weeks or so makes. The Rays had traveled to Fenway and were swept, with the Red Sox getting back in the race by pulling within 5 games. Fast forward to now and the Rays were in position to clinch the division with a sweep. And that's just what they did, taking 3 hard-fought games from Boston to win their 5th straight AL East title.

Tampa Bay put up a 4-spot in the 2nd inning of the opener and held on to take it 5-3 for win #100 on the season. Heliot Ramos had a 2-run HR (#15) and Taylor Walls had a 2-run single as several regulars were in need of rest. Dustin May pitched a rare middle-of-the-road game going 7 7 3 3 0 5 and improved to 15-10, 4.47 with Devin Williams recording his 24th save.

High drama in the second game as the Rays trailed for much of it by 4-2 before Vidal Brujan delivered a 2-run single to tie it up in the bottom of the 7th. We went on to extras and Brandon Lowe delivered a walk-off homer in the 10th off Corey Knebel to give Tampa Bay a 5-4 win. Carter Kieboom had a 2-run homer in the 2nd (#18) to get the Rays on the board while Griffin Canning struggled early but hung in to go 6 7 4 4 2 6. Guillermo Zuniga picked up his first MLB win with a scoreless, 2-whiff top of the 10th.

As a result of the two wins, the Rays were in position to clinch and thanks to a great outing from Tarik Skubal in a 3-1 win the champagne was sprayed after the game. Skubal was a dominant 6 5 1 1 1 8 although he ended up with a no-decision as it was 1-1 after he left until Wander Franco blasted a 2-run homer in the bottom of the 7th, #27 on the year. Shane McClanahan, who's had his ups and downs in relief this year, got the win to go to 7-0, and Devin Williams whiffed a pair in a perfect 9th for his 25th save.

Team record: 102-45. Next up: A welcome day off after partying deep into the night, then a cross-country plane trip to LA to face the Angels for 3.

Minor League Playoff Update: AA Montgomery won their division but fell in 7 games to Biloxi in the opening round of the AA South playoffs. Heriberto Hernandez, acquired in early 2021 in the Nate Lowe deal with Texas, had an excellent .355-2-9 series. Meanwhile AAA Durham is headed to a deciding Game 5 in the AAA East playoffs in Buffalo after taking a 13-5 win in Game 4 to stay alive. Top prospect Andrew Greckel, who stands a good chance of patrolling the Tropicana Field outfield next season, is 6-13 with 3 homers in the 4 games after a 297/372/532 season with 23 HR and 91 RBI.

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We're playing out the string before the playoffs, and the big thing is not to get anyone else hurt. Speaking of injuries, both Austin Meadows and Hunter Bishop were sent to Durham on rehab assignments, although Durham's season ended in a Game 5 loss to Buffalo in the opening round of the AAA East playoffs. Meadows was 0-4 with 4 strikeouts. Although their season is over, my understanding of OOTP is that if I leave them down there for about a week it'll be as if they were playing. As for the series with the Angels, we took 2 of 3 in what could be a playoff preview.

The Rays broke open a close game in the middle innings and took an 8-3 win over LA in the opener. Tyler Glasnow was in dominant form, going 7 2 1 1 0 10 and only allowing a first-inning homer to Mike Trout. He's now 15-4, 3.38 and firmly in the Cy Young mix. Brandon Lowe stayed hot with a huge game, going 3-5 with 2 HR and 4 RBI to give him 32 on the year while Vidal Brujan was 3-5 with a steal, homer (#6) and 3 RBI.

Tampa Bay built a 5-1 lead in the 3rd and watched it disappear in a 6-5 loss. Brandon Lowe's 3-run shot (#33 and his 7th in 11 games) was immediately followed by Adley Rutschman's 17th and they had the big early lead. But Joe Ryan couldn't hold it there, giving up 2 more homers and going 5 7 4 4 1 7, Luis Garcia gave up the tying homer to Jo Adell in the 7th and Mike Trout took Nick Anderson deep in the bottom of the 9th to walk it off for the Angels.

The Rays got their revenge in the finale, coming back to beat the Angels in 11 innings by the same 6-5 score they lost by the day before. Carter Kieboom's homer (#19) won it, after his 2-run double brought the Rays back to go ahead 4-3 in the 7th. The Angels tied it off Guillermo Zuniga in the 7th and re-took the lead when Jorge Soler homered off the suddenly homer-prone Nick Anderson in the 8th, but with 2 out in the 9th pinch-hitter Wander Franco singled home Vidal Brujan who had singled and stolen second with 2 out off former Rays closer Ken Giles. Devin Williams ended up with his 2nd win and Shane McClanahan, the Rays' 8th pitcher of the day, got his first save with a 1-2-3 bottom of the 11th. Dustin May started and went 5 7 3 3 2 7, allowing 2 homers for the 4th straight start.

Team record: 104-46. Next up: Back home for 3 vs Baltimore, who has been hot in the second half and is in the thick of the AL Wild Card race. How thick? See for yourself:



The divisions are spoken for with the Rays, Twins and Angels having clinched or on the verge of clinching. Over in the NL it's a similar story with the Mets, Cubs and Dodgers all holding 5-game leads in their respective divisions with San Diego solidly in the first wild card. But the Phillies and Arizona are tied for the 2nd wild card with Atlanta one game back of them.

Other news: Brandon Lowe was named AL Player of the Week for his 9-23, 4 HR, 8 RBI performance, and former Ray Brendan McKay suffered a torn flexor tendon and won't be back until the 2nd half of next season. It was kind of a cursed trade as Justin Dunn, the guy we got back for him, did not pitch well at Durham after being sent down mid-season and was bombed in his Game 5 playoff start which Durham lost.

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In a series that meant more to Baltimore which was fighting for a wild card than it did to the already-clinched Rays, Tampa Bay still took 2 out of 3 with the two wins coming via shutout.

Griffin Canning was dealing in the opener and the Rays routed the Orioles 9-0 at Tropicana Field. The righty went 6 2 0 0 1 9 on 82 pitches and improved to 10-5, 4.15 with Alex Vesia and Tyler Rogers completing the shutout. Vidal Brujan had a career game on offense, hitting a grand slam (#7) to break the game open in the 5th and driving in 5 in total. Wander Franco also homered (#28) and drove in a pair.

Baltimore hit back in the second game, taking a 4-1 win which enabled them to hang onto the 2nd wild card spot for now. Tarik Skubal was great (7 5 2 2 0 11), dropping to 13-6 but lowering his ERA to 3.89. Taylor Walls supplied the lone Rays run with his 1st homer of year.

Tyler Glasnow took another huge stride toward winning the Cy Young with a dominant outing and the Rays once again took a 9-0 win over Baltimore. Glasnow improved to 16-4, 3.25 on the back of a 7 4 0 0 1 9 performance with Matt Peacock going the final 2 to finish the shutout. Heston Kjerstad had a 2-run double against his former team to start the scoring, Adley Rutschman also got some revenge with a grand slam (#18) in the 7th, while Wander Franco was 3-4 with a steal and 2 RBI and Brandon Lowe extended his hitting streak to 20 games.

Team record: 106-47. Next up: 3 games in Kansas City.

Playoff race update: Despite dropping 2 of 3 to the Rays, Baltimore remains in the 2nd AL WC slot, a game up on the White Sox and Houston and 2 up on Detroit, Toronto and Seattle. Over in the NL, Philly and Atlanta are tied for 2nd NL WC spot with Arizona a game behind them.