The 2021 (and only 2021) Tampa Bay Rays

[Art Deco]

First off, here are the standings and leaders:



The Rays team stats:



Well we can't hit, pitch or field, so I'm kind of wondering how we've won just about half of our games. There's really nothing good to say about the offense with the bulk of the lineup seriously underachieving. At least we can hit homers and run the bases. The pitching numbers are pretty bad although we're #1 in WAR as they generally keep the ball in the park and we lead the league in Ks. The culprit for much of this is the fact we've become an absolutely horrible defensive team. Although nobody in the lineup is a truly bad fielder, they're all quite mediocre. Wander has a -4.4 ZR at SS, as 3B is probably his best position but Carter Kieboom is there. Taylor Walls is -1.1 in only 19 games there so I'm not sure he's the answer.

The individual hitting stats (and I use the term "hitting" loosely):



Ugh. This is beyond brutal when Austin Meadows, Heston Kjerstad, Carter Kieboom and Brandon Lowe have combined for -0.4 WAR during the first half of the year. These four combined for 14.3 WAR during the full 2024 season. And while Wander Franco has a respectable 2.0 WAR, he was a 5.6 WAR guy last year so he's underachieving as well. Meadows in particular has become an albatross on both the lineup and the team's finances with another year to go on a $19.8M contract after this one, assuming he exercises his player option which seems a fait accompli after a season like this. (thank God 2027 is a team option). Brandon Lowe has an $11.5M team option for next year which is probably not going to be picked up.

I'm expecting some positive regression in the 2nd half because they all can't be this bad, but I've been thinking that for most of these first 3 months too.

The pitching:



Joe Ryan is the only true bright spot on the staff this year and not coincidentally he gets the best D of anyone behind him with that .272 BABIP. Tyler Glasnow on the other hand has been victimized the most by our bad defense as it this point he probably figures he has strike the batter out to retire him. Devin Williams and Pete Fairbanks have been decent but they're both free agents at year's end so they'll be the first out the door if we tear it down, which could very well happen if things don't turn around substantially in the next couple of weeks.

[Art Deco]

Here was the biggest:



We needed to get out from under Meadows' contract and we did, although we're retaining 30%, assuming he doesn't exercise his player option next year which seems unlikely. It's kind of sad to trade a franchise icon, but he was killing us this year and we couldn't risk a further erosion in skills given our relatively limited budget. And we did pretty well in return getting Rasmussen (currently in 2021 a Ray IRL), who has pitched well and has 70 stuff as a starter (albeit with 45 movement and control). He'll slot into the 5th rotation spot which the Levis had been struggling in.



We also pulled the plug on Lewin Diaz, whom despite 70 contact and 60 power ratings never hit anywhere near someone with those ratings should during his three seasons with us. We threw in a couple of "C" prospects in the deal to come out with Baty, who hit 8 HR in 90 AB for Memphis and is a possible 1B of our near future (he's going to Durham for now).

Finally, a smaller deal:



Hoese is an intriguing RH bat who's a good defensive 1B and has fine gap power and moderate HR power and can also fake it at 3B (35 rating). Peacock meanwhile had become the forgotten man after his brilliant 2022 rookie season, pitching a little worse each year with relegation to the bullpen last season and relegation to Durham this year. Perhaps he'll get a fresh start with the Dodgers. Hoese also goes to Durham.

In other moves to accomodate these trades, we recalled Angelo DiSpigna to become our full-time 1B in place of Meadows, Whit Merrifield's contract was purchased from Durham to give us a RH bat, Levi Stoudt was sent to Durham and Guillermo Zuniga was brought up for a day and sent down to make room for Rasmussen. Also Griffin Canning was moved to the 60-day IL to make room on the 40-man for Merrifield.

There will likely be more deals, especially of those who aren't going to be a part of the 2026 team like Pete Fairbanks, Devin Williams, Canning (if we can get anything for him) and perhaps some others.

[Art Deco]

I said at the end of the previous series post that this was a must-win series for the Rays and well, they didn't, hence the trades you just read in the previous post. The Rays dropped the first two of the series to make it 5 straight losses before pulling out the finale, but this is probably going to be a lost season.

In the opener Tarik Skubal was great but Toronto's AJ Smith-Shawyer was even better as the Rays lost a tough 1-0 affair. Skubal went 5.1 4 1 1 4 3, allowing only a Bo Bichette homer in the 4th but that was enough for Toronto to take the win as the bats continued to slumber. In his final game as a Ray Austin Meadows was dropped to 7th in the lineup and still went 0-3 with 2 whiffs as they managed only 4 on the day and fell further out of playoff contention.

Joe Ryan pitched better than he fielded as his error in the 5th contributed to 3 unearned runs in a 5-3 loss to Toronto. Ryan finished 5 5 4 1 2 8 and JT Ginn's 3 perfect innings of relief was the staff highlight. We did get homers from Vidal Brujan (#2) and Andrew Greckel (#18, as part of a 3-hit day).

It was a bit of a new-look lineup in the finale and the frustrations of the last few weeks were taken out on Toronto in an 8-2 win. The re-recalled Angelo DiSpigna hit HR #10, Whit Merrifield was 2-4 with an RBI and a steal in his Rays debut and Heston Kjerstad went 3-4 with a double and 2 RBI to pace the offense. Tyler Glasnow pitched well (6 5 2 2 4 4) to improve to 7-9 and Luis Garcia went 3 1-hit innings for his 2nd save of the year.

Team record: 41-43. I'm not even going to talk about how far they're out in the division or the wild card until and unless they start winning some games. Next up: 3 games in Seattle with the opener featuring the debut of Drew Rasmussen.

[Art Deco]

The Rays took 2 out of 3 in Seattle with the bats coming to life in the first two games, but remain well out of the playoff picture at the moment.

Drew Rasmussen made his Rays debut (in this save at least) and was impressive in a 12-6 win that wasn't really even that close. Rasmussen went 5 6 1 1 1 5 and picked up the win while Tyler Rogers somehow recorded his first save after going the final 2 2/3 and allowing a grand slam in the 9th. The bats were the story with Adley Rutschman leading the way after going 3-4 with an RBI double and a 3-run HR (#12), Angelo DiSpigna 3-5 with a HR (#11) and 2 RBI, and Carter Kieboom adding his 10th dinger.

The Rays built leads of 7-0 and 8-2 before hanging on for an 8-7 win in Seattle. Dustin May was very good with a 6 3 0 0 1 7 outing and evened his record at 7-7, 4.10 but the bullpen was not with three relievers combining to allow 7 runs including Christian Chamberlain becoming the second Rays pitcher in as many days to allow a 9th-inning grand slam. That cut it to 8-7 with 2 out but he got Kyle Lewis on a comebacker to end the game. Vidal Brujan led the offense going driving in 3 with a single and a double, Taylor Walls was 3-4 with 2 RBI and Brandon Lowe hit HR #10 in the 5th.

Tarik Skubal was roasted for 7 runs in the 2nd inning in the finale, which the Rays dropped 8-2. The lefty can be homer-prone and that's what he was in that inning, taken deep three times. JT Ginn had an interesting long relief outing, fanning 9 in 3 1/3 scoreless innings but that was about the only highlight of the day for Tampa Bay.

Team record: 43-44. Next up: An off-day then 3 games at home against the White Sox.

[Art Deco]

The Rays took 2 of 3 from the White Sox to get back up to .500, with the finale one of the more bizarre games they've played.

Joe Ryan was dazzling once again in the opener as the Rays took a 6-2 win over Chicago at Tropicana Field. Ryan was 6 3 2 2 1 8 with no homers allowed as he improved to 12-4, 2.83 and has emerged as a dark horse Cy Young candidate. The Rays took over the game scoring 5 in the 3rd, with Jarren Duran's 2-run triple as part of a 3-hit game the big blow. Angelo DiSpigna added HR #12.

Before this year handing Tyler Glasnow a 4-1 lead in the 5th was a recipe for a win, but Glasnow is just not right this season and he allowed a pair of 3-run homers to Chicago in the 5th and 6th as the Rays finished on the wrong end of a 10-7 score. Andrew Vaughn's 3-run shot off Glasnow in the 5th tied it and rookie Josh Stowers' 3-run blast put the White Sox ahead to stay. Glasnow finished 5 9 7 7 2 4 and is now an ugly 7-10, 5.62. Not helping, Tyler Rogers gave up 3 more runs, all unearned due to his own error. Vidal Brujan (#3) and Adley Rutschman (#13) went deep for Tampa Bay while Carter Kieboom was 2-3 with a double and 2 RBI.

I am virtually certain that the Rays set a club record for runners left on base when they stranded 22 - count 'em, 22 - baserunners in a game they were trailing 4-0 in the 8th despite having 13 hits. Despite their profligacy with RISP, they did manage to score 3 times in the bottom of the 9th to send it to extras, and then continued to put men on base and not bring them home until White Sox reliever Matt Cronin did it for them, walking three straight batters in the bottom of the 15th to give the Rays a 5-4 win. The Rays had 33 baserunners on 20 hits, 10 walks, 2 hit batters and 1 reaching on an error but it took them until the 15th to get a 5th run. Individually Brandon Lowe left 10 on base, Heliot Ramos 8 and Jarren Duran 7 with Duran being the man at the plate who drew the walk-off walk. Heston Kjerstad had a big 2-run double in the 9th inning rally, and all the runners left on base overshadowed another fine outing from the newly-acquired Drew Rasmussen, who went 6 4 2 2 1 8 in his second Rays start. Pete Fairbanks picked up his first win of the season going the final 2 innings.

Team record: 45-45. Next up: 3 games in Oakland.

[Art Deco]

A quick look at our top picks:

Allen: A college lefty from Tulane who has average stuff but keeps the ball on the ground (potential 70 movement) whom the scouts tout as a potential #2 or #3 starter. Hopefully we'll have a better defense by the time he's ready.

DiCostanzo: A high-school catcher with some pop.

Mullen: A righty power pitcher from Cal-State Fullerton with back end of the rotation potential.

Villegas: Another groundballing college lefty (Oklahoma State) with potentially four plus pitches. OSA likes him near the top of the rotation while my guy Metzler sees him as a #4/5.

Bruni: The pitching picks continue with an Ohio State righty who seems like a back-end guy.

[Art Deco]

The headline's off, it was really Devin Williams and Pete Fairbanks as the key guys going to our favorite trading partners the Dodgers as we continue to clear the decks for the future. While both were great bullpen pieces, both were free agents at year's end. And we did very well in return, getting the #12 prospect in baseball according to BNN in Aguilar and a power arm who can immediately fill one of the holes created by the trade in Gutierrez.

A look at Aguilar:



Nothing not to like here, although these are OSA's projections while Metzler is a little less enthusiastic but still calling for 65 potential contact and power. There's no denying his speed or his ability to play an above-average LF either. Gutierrez meanwhile pairs 75 stuff with 60 control (and yes, 45 movement), making him a late inning guy.

Williams was our closer and right now I don't plan to have a set closer, playing matchups with Aaron Fletcher probably the highest-leverage guy. Gutierrez joins the roster and the human yo-yo, Guillermo Zuniga, is once again back with the big club, this time finally likely to stay.

[Art Deco]

The Rays took 2 of 3 in Oakland thanks to a dramatic 9th-inning rally in the finale and actually have played better of late, going 7-3 in their last 10. Still a long way to go though before thinking about playoff contention.

Dustin May was dealing and the Rays took the opener from Oakland 5-1. May has been on a roll of late, allowing 2 or fewer runs in 7 of his last 8 starts and today's 6 6 1 1 0 7 sees his ERA drop below 4 as he's 8-7, 3.96 and had a 5.09 ERA before that 8-start run began. Heliot Ramos tripled in a run and scored on a wild pitch in the 4th and Adley Rutschman had a 2-run blast (#14) in the 5th to provide the necessary scoring.

Tarik Skubal was rolling along until the wheels came off in the 5th and JT Ginn coughed up a 2-run homer in the 6th to send the Rays to a 5-4 defeat in the second game. The Rays got an RBI single from Carter Kieboom, an RBI double from Corey Collins and and RBI triple from Vidal Brujan to go up 3-0 in the 4th but Skubal got hit for 3 in the 5th to let the A's tie it up and finished 5 5 3 3 2 6. Ginn then served up a 2-run HR to Lazaro Armenteros to put Oakland ahead and despite Wander Franco's 3rd hit of the game bringing home a run in the 8th, they couldn't get the tying run across.

High drama in the finale as in the 9th Heston Kjerstad tripled in the tying run and after a walk Taylor Walls stepped and drilled a 3-run homer (#2) to give the Rays a comeback 5-2 win. It was looking like a tough-luck loss for 8 innings despite another fine game from Joe Ryan (7 4 2 2 0 7) before the late heroics. Guillermo Zuniga picked up his first win in relief and the first save opportunity of the post-Devin Williams/Fairbanks era went to Christian Chamberlain, who converted it without much difficulty.

Team record: 47-46, finally back over .500. Next up: It won't be easy to stay there as the 61-32 Angels visit the Trop for 3.

[Art Deco]

The Rays continued to play good baseball, taking 2 of 3 from the reigning AL champion Angels but is their renaissance too little, too late? There are still about 2 1/2 months left in the season and they did come back from a worse start in 2023 to eventually win the title, but their margin for error is very slim.

And losing games like the opener might mean the difference from ultimately contending or not. Tyler Glasnow struggled once again and the Rays found themselves down 9-2 but came back all the way to tie it at 9, only to lose 10-9 on a Jorge Soler homer in the 8th. Glasnow was lit up in a 7-run 4th, finished 3 6 7 6 5 4 and now inexplicably has an ERA of 6.00. The big comeback was buoyed by homers from Angelo DiSpigna, a 3-run shot (#13) in the 6th, and Heston Kjerstad, a 2-run blast (#11) in the 7th which tied it up. But Tyler Rogers, who now takes on a higher-leverage role with Fairbanks and Devin Williams traded, served up the Soler homer and the Rays fell short.

The tough loss of the night before did not carry over into the second game as the Rays rode a dominating pitching performance from Drew Rasmussen and beat the Angels 5-3. Rasmussen didn't allow a hit through the first 4 innings and finished 5 1 0 0 4 8 to go to 2-0, 1.69 in his third Rays start. Levi Kelly and Christian Chamberlain combined to allow 3 runs in the 8th to make the game a nailbiter, but last night's goat Tyler Rogers got the final 2 outs to record his 2nd save. Angelo DiSpigna was the hitting star as he continues to wield a hot bat, clubbing two more homers and driving in 3, giving him 15 on the season.

Vidal Brujan had a big game and the Rays took the series with an 8-6 with in the finale, another game in which the retooled bullpen was an adventure. Brujan hit a solo homer in the 2nd (#4) to put the Rays ahead to stay, added a 2-run triple in the 4th and then had a big insurance RBI single in the 8th after LA pulled within 7-6. Brandon Lowe added a 2-run single. Dustin May started and wasn't quite as sharp as he's been of late, but did well enough at 6 9 4 4 0 7 to improve to 9-7. JT Ginn and Aaron Fletcher yielded homers to allow the Angels to get close, but Christian Chamberlain took care of the 9th for his 2nd save.

Team record: 49-47. Next up: 3 games at home vs the Yankees, whom the Rays have to pulled within 5 games of, although the Jays have been hot as well and they're now tied with New York for the division lead, which means the Rays are 5 out of the second wild card as well.

[Art Deco]

The Raynaissance continues as Tampa Bay swept the Yankees at Tropicana Field to jump right back into the playoff race, now only 3 behind first-place Toronto in the AL East and 2 games back of the second wild card.

Tarik Skubal was excellent in the opener and the Rays broke a 2-2 tie in the 7th to beat the Yankees 5-2. Skubal was 6.2 3 2 2 2 6 (with both runs of course coming on solo homers) with Guillermo Zuniga picking up his 2nd win in relief and Tyler Rogers fanning a pair in the 9th for save #3. Angelo DiSpigna, who had earlier hit HR #16 in the 5th, delivered the tie-breaking RBI single. Heliot Ramos drilled HR #9 for the first Rays run.

Death, taxes and Joe Ryan. That's how consistent the righty has been all season and the second game was no exception as he turned in 7 shutout innings in a 7-2 win. Ryan went 7 5 0 0 2 5 and is now 13-4, 2.66 and a definite AL Cy Young frontrunner. The Rays scored twice in both the first and second innings with Brandon Lowe's 2-run single in the opening frame and Andrew Greckel's RBI single in the 2nd the key hits. Greckel later added an RBI double in the 4th and a solo homer (#19) in the 8th as he had a big day.

After being AWOL for much of this season, the good Tyler Glasnow showed up and was in dominant form in a 4-1 win to sweep the series from the Yankees. Glasnow went 6.1 4 1 1 1 10 as he improved his record to 8-10 and lowered his bloated ERA to 5.72. Tyler Rogers recorded the final out of the game for save #4. A 3-run first supplied all the offense they'd need today with Adley Rutschman's 2-run single the big hit.

Team record: 52-47. Next up: An off-day then the Rays will try to keep the good times rolling when they visit Boston for 3.

[Art Deco]

The Rays kept on keepin' on, taking 2 of 3 at Fenway and extending their win streak to 7 before dropping the finale. They actually lost ground to Toronto, which swept Oakland, so they're 4 back in the division but did pick up a game on the Yankees for the 2nd wild card, where they're now only one back.

Adley Rutschman had a huge game and Drew Rasmussen continued to get it done since joining the Rays as they took a 7-3 win in the opener. Rutschman was 4-5 with a 2-run double and a solo HR (#15) while Wander Franco added a 1st-inning 2-run shot (#12) to drive the offense. Rasmussen meanwhile settled in after some early hiccups to go 6 3 3 3 2 4 and improve to 3-0, 2.45 in 4 starts since being acquired from Milwaukee.

The Rays took the second game 6-3 behind another fine game from Adley Rutschman. The All-Star C made it 8 RBI in 3 games by driving in 3 more today with a 2-run double and RBI single, and Andrew Greckel hit his 20th HR and drove in a pair. Dustin May was tagged for a couple of homers but pitched alright, going 6 6 3 3 2 4 to improve to 10-7 with Tyler Rogers picking up his 5th save.

It looked like the Rays would complete the sweep as they went ahead 5-0 in the top of the 2nd inning on 2-run homers from Angelo DiSpigna (#17) and Heliot Ramos (#10). But the bottom fell out in the bottom of the inning when Boston scored 7 times and the Sox went on to beat the Rays 12-7. Terrible pitching from Tarik Skubal and terrible defense did them in as Skubal should have escaped the inning up 5-1 but Carter Kieboom threw away a grounder with two out, allowing a run to score, and then DiSpigna booted a ball at first giving the Red Sox a third run and a fifth out. And then Skubal served up a grand slam and that was that. He went a terrible 2.2 8 9 3 1 3, giving up 2 more in the 3rd and is now 7-7, 4.75. DiSpigna later added a second homer (#18) and Adley Rutschman stayed hot with a solo shot (#16) but it was too little, too late.

Team record: 54-48. Next up: Back home for 3 vs San Antonio.

We also made a trade to shore up the pen:



After dealing Pete Fairbanks and Devin Williams thinking we were out of it, we did gut the pen a bit so with fortunes having turned around we added Foster, who's been an excellent reliever for Chicago the last few years although he's been a bit down this year. He's a groundballer who keeps the ball in the park a la Tyler Rogers. We also had to do something with Shane McClanahan, whose rehab stint was up and was on the 60-day IL. Once a prized pitching prospect, Mac has never gotten all the way back from his arm troubles and is now just an average lefty reliever. Perhaps he'll find some success in Chicago. To make room for Foster on the active roster, we optioned Osvanni Gutierrez to Durham, and to make room on the 40-man we DFA's lefty reliever Andrew Perez, who has good stuff but has languished in the high minor the last few years. There's a chance he's claimed but if not we'll take him back.

[Art Deco]

The Rays swept their way past San Antonio, moving past the Yankees into sole possession of the second wild card and within two games of Toronto for the division lead. They've now won 10 of 11 and what looked like a slog to .500 a couple of weeks ago is now a potential playoff run.

Although he didn't end up with the win, Joe Ryan was great again for the Rays in a 3-1 win over San Antonio. The righty went 6 5 1 1 1 6 to lower his ERA to 2.60 while JT Ginn earned the win in relief with 2 scoreless innings and 3 Ks and Aaron Fletcher struck out the side in the 9th for his 2nd save. The bats were largely quiet until the 8th inning when Wander Franco broke a 1-1 tie with his 13th HR and Brandon Lowe went deep a few batters later with his 11th to provide the winning margin.

The Rays took a comfortable 6-1 win in the second game behind an effective if not efficient Tyler Glasnow. The righty turned in his second fine start after hitting rock bottom, going 5 3 1 1 3 8 to improve to 9-10 and lower the ERA to 5.55. The bullpen was dazzling as well with Guillermo Zuniga getting all 5 of his outs via the whiff and Matt Foster picking up a save in his Rays debut by going the final 2 innings scoreless with 4 Ks. Jarren Duran was 2-2 with an RBI before having to leave with a sore ankle, Vidal Brujan was 2-4 with a steal and an RBI, and Angelo DiSpigna delivered a 2-run double in the 8th to break the game open.

Tampa Bay crushed San Antonio 14-2 in the finale to complete the sweep with Heston Kjerstad and Wander Franco having monster games. Kjerstad, who's been a disappointment this year after hitting 25 HR last season, went 3-5 with a 2-run HR (#12) and a bases-clearing double while Franco was 3-4 with a 2-run triple and a 2-run homer (#14). Angelo DiSpigna continued to impress with an RBI double and a solo homer (#19) as he doesn't have to worry about being sent down again. Speaking of continuing to impress, Drew Rasmussen did it again going 5 4 1 1 1 6 to improve to 4-0, 2.33 as a Ray, and it's no coincidence that his acquisition has coincided with the team's resurgence.

Team record: 57-48. Next up: 3 games in Baltimore.

[Art Deco]

Ladies and gentlemen, your first place Tampa Bay Rays. It seemed far-fetched about two weeks ago but thanks to a sweep in Baltimore and the Yankees taking 2 of 3 from Toronto (it could have been a NY sweep but the Jays improbably scored 10 in the bottom of the 9th of their third game to take a 15-13 win on a Danny Jansen grand slam), the Rays are now tied with Toronto atop the AL East with the Yankees 2 back. And in recognition of our new-found status as contenders, we made a big trade but more on that in a bit.

The opener was a topsy-turvy affair with the Rays fighting back from a 3-0 deficit to tie, only to lose the lead again before hitting the Orioles with a 5-run 8th to take an 8-6 win. Vidal Brujan had a huge day, going 4-5 with an RBI triple in the 7th to tie it and a 2-run single in that 5-run 8th. Wander Franco's 2-run single broke a 5-5 tie in that 8th as part of a 3-RBI day for him and Andrew Greckel had a pair of RBI singles. Dustin May started and went 6.1 5 5 4 3 3 and Matt Foster picked up the win despite allowing a pair of RBI singles which allowed May's runners to score. Tyler Rogers got the final out for save #6. One bit of bad news, though: Heston Kjerstad strained his oblique and will be out 6-7 weeks.

Transaction: Heston Kjerstad goes on the 10-day IL with that oblique strain and Nick Schnell, who homered in his lone MLB game for us earlier this season, comes up from Durham.

The second game saw the Rays squander a 5-0 lead only to re-take it and win once again 8-6. A couple of 3-run homers figured heavily into the result with Brandon Lowe's blast in the 2nd (#12) contributing to the early lead and the second homer of the day for Heliot Ramos (#12) breaking a 5-5 tie in the 7th. Tarik Skubal struggled once again, going 3.2 8 4 4 0 2 as his ERA rose to 4.92, and although JT Ginn gave up the game-tying homer to Javy Baez in the 5th he went a solid 3 1/3 to pick up his 3rd win. Tyler Rogers once again got the save (#7) by retiring the final two men in the 9th.

Joe Ryan wasn't his best in the finale and the Rays trailed 3-1 early, but stormed back to take a 7-3 win to sweep the series. Ryan went 5 8 3 3 1 5, a down game by his standards but good enough to get the win and improve to 14-4, 2.71 as he's tied with Atlanta's Dennis Santana for the MLB wins lead. Nick Schnell, who homered in his first MLB game, accounted for the Rays' first 3 runs in his second game thanks to a pair of doubles. Brandon Lowe's 2-run single broke the 3-3 tie in the 5th. Luis Garcia went the final 3 innings with 5 whiffs for his 3rd save of the season.

Transaction: We placed P Levi Kelly on the 10-day IL with a mild shoulder strain and recalled RHP Neraldo Catalina from AAA Durham. Catalina's been in our system for quite awhile and has always put up decent numbers; he'll take on a long/mop-up role until Kelly returns which should be after his IL time is up.

Team record: 60-48, winners of 6 straight and 13 of their last 14. Next up: we'll see how "for real" this run is when they play their nemesis, the Twins, for 3 games at the Trop.

And now the big trade:



Chapman is a free agent at year's end, which is why the cost was just Bradley, who's got decent stuff but probably is better as a reliever long-term than a starter. Chapman gives us two things we need: right-handed pop and a Gold Glove. Our team defense has been shaky, and the incumbent Carter Kieboom is average at best at the position. Chapman was having a career year at the plate (287/341/539 with 23 HR). The power is real but he's more a .240-.250 hitter so hopefully the regression is not too severe. Kieboom, who has been miserable at 229/305/353 although he's hit a bit better of late, goes to the bench, something I'm sure he's not too thrilled about but the job is his again next season. We DFA'd Whit Merrifield to make room for Chapman on the roster.

MLB News: A couple of big trades around the league as the deadline approaches. The Giants sent their fine young catcher Patrick Bailey to Houston for veteran slugger Marcell Ozuna while the Mets shipped longtime bullpen mainstay Edwin Diaz to the Padres for 2B Eguy Rosario.

[Art Deco]

There's no greater buzzkill for the Rays than the Minnesota Twins and sure enough their visit to Tropicana Field arrested the Rays' recent great run. The Twins took the first two games of the season before Angelo DiSpigna came to the rescue in the finale to allow the Rays to salvage a game. Toronto took 2 of 3 from Boston so they're a game ahead of Tampa Bay now, and it's a good thing the Rays beat the Twins in the finale or Minnesota would be tied with them for the second wild card - instead, they're 2 up on Minnesota, Detroit and the Yankees.

The opener was a tough one as the Rays fell 2-1. Tyler Glasnow gave up a couple of solo homers and that was enough to lose as he ended up 6 6 2 2 3 5. Adley Rutschman supplied the only run on an RBI double, while Matt Chapman made his Rays debut and singled leading off the 9th but couldn't be brought home.

We had a couple of players of the month:



Unfortunately for July's AL pitcher of the month he had to face Minnesota and even Drew Rasmussen wasn't immune to the hex they have on Tampa Bay. They hit him up for 4 runs in the 3rd in a 5 6 4 4 1 3 outing as the Rays dropped this one 5-2. Angelo DiSpigna hit HR #20 and Vidal Brujan went 3-4 to gamely try and keep the Rays in it but it wasn't enough. Neraldo Catalina had an interesting MLB debut, fanning 4 in 1 1/3 IP (one on a dropped third strike) but he walked 2 and gave up a solo homer.

The Rays salvaged the finale thanks in large part to the AL Rookie of the Month as Angelo DiSpigna hit the game-tying homer in the 7th and then walloped a 3-run shot in the 8th to put the game away as they won 7-3. Andrew Greckel gave them an early lead with HR #21 but Dustin May allowed a couple of homers in a decent 7 6 3 3 0 9 outing to put Tampa Bay behind 3-2. Enter DiSpigna, and after he tied the game Adley Rutschman's sac fly brought home Jarren Duran who had singled and stole second to put them ahead for good, he homered for the third time in two days (#23) to nail it down. Matt Foster picked up his 2nd win as Ray in relief, giving him 2 wins and a save in 4 appearances since joining the club.

Team record: 61-50. Next up: It doesn't get easier as we have to travel to Kansas City for 3 to face the 66-45 Royals.

[Art Deco]

The Rays got back on track with an impressive sweep of a team they may very well face in the playoffs, the Kansas City Royals, at Kauffman Stadium. After the series the Royals sit 2 games ahead of the Rays in the first wild card spot, while the Rays are 3 up on the Yankees and Detroit in the second spot. And of course the Rays aren't looking to settle for a wild card; despite the sweep, though, the Jays took all 3 from San Antonio to stay a game ahead of Tampa Bay atop the AL East.

The opener was Nick Schnell's coming-out party as the rookie OF homered twice and drove in 5 runs in a 7-4 win. Schnell's first of the game was a 3-run shot in the 2nd to put them ahead for good and he added a 2-run blast in the 5th, both off Royals starter Jackson Kowar, to triple his season total. Matt Chapman provided the other two runs with his first Rays homer (and 24th overall) in the 6th. Tarik Skubal wasn't exactly convincing but did enough to win, going 5.1 6 3 2 3 2 to improve to 8-7. Tyler Rogers got a game-ending double play for his 8th save.

The Rays left it late in the second game but tied it at 2 in the 8th, scored 5 times in the 9th to go up 7-2, and then barely hung on for a 7-5 win. Angelo DiSpigna had a massive 4-hit game which included singling in the tying run in the 8th and then delivering a bases-clearing double in the 9th, runs they would end up needing. Wander Franco also rapped out 4 hits including the game-winner in the 9th to break the 2-2 tie while Nick Schnell came off the bench to also deliver an RBI single. Joe Ryan started and pitched very well (6.2 6 2 2 2 3) but had a no-decision as Aaron Fletcher picked up win #4 in relief by getting the final out in the 8th. Luis Garcia was brought in the 9th with a 5-run lead but put two men on and then gave up a 3-run homer, so Tyler Rogers was called on again. Rogers got one out but put the tying runs in scoring position before getting a grounder and a pop-up for save #9.

Tyler Glasnow seems to be rounding back into dominant form again and he pitched 6 strong innings as the Rays shut out Kansas City 3-0 and swept the series. Glasnow went 6 3 0 0 2 8 to improve to 10-11, 5.15 but has allowed only 4 runs over his last 4 starts covering 23 2/3 IP. JT Ginn went the final 1 2/3 to pick up his first MLB save. Wander Franco provided the big hit of the game, a 2-run homer (#15) in the first off Spencer Howard while Angelo DiSpigna stayed hot with a double and an RBI.

Team record: 64-50. Next up: Back home for 3 vs Houston, which has fallen off the pace in the wild card race, 6 games back.

[Art Deco]

The Rays took 2 of 3 at the Trop against Houston but Toronto swept the Orioles so the Rays drop to 2 back of the Jays for the division lead while they continue to hold a 3-game lead for the second wild card over Detroit.

Transaction: Whit Merrifield was released after he cleared waivers and refused a demotion to Durham.

The Rays were blanked by Francis Martes and the Astros in the opener 5-0, managing only 5 hits on the day. Drew Rasmussen gave up a couple of homers in a 7 6 5 4 2 3 outing and dropped to 4-2, 3.46 as a Ray.

Things started off slowly in the second game as the Rays found themselves down 2-1 in the 5th. But Andrew Greckel, who had homered in the 4th (#22) for their first run, drilled a 2-run double in the bottom of the inning to put them ahead to stay as they won 6-2. Wander Franco added a 3-run homer (#16) in the 7th to give them some essential breathing room. Dustin May started and went 6 4 2 2 3 7 to improve to 11-7, 4.10 and Guillermo Zuniga pitched 2 perfect innings for his 2nd save.

Transaction: Levi Kelly was activated off the 10-day IL and Neraldo Catalina was optioned to AAA Durham.

The Rays broke open a close game with a 5-run 5th, taking a 9-3 lead and in the end they needed every one of those runs as they hung on to win 9-8 over Houston. Wander Franco started his 3-hit day with another homer (#17) in the 1st and Andrew Greckel hit a 2-run triple in the 3rd to put them up 4-3 before the big 5th. That inning saw Adley Rutschman blast a 3-run shot (#17) and Angelo DiSpigna add a 2-run jack (#23) as it looked like a romp. Tarik Skubal started and did go to 9-7 after a 6 6 3 3 2 8 performance and then things got shaky. Levi Kelly, just off the IL, gave up 3 runs in the 8th including a Francisco Lindor homer while only getting one out to make it 9-6, and in the 9th Tyler Rogers coughed up a 2-run homer to Lindor to let Houston within one, but he recovered to record his 10th save.

Team record: 66-51. Next up: 3 games at home vs our closest pursuer for the second wild card, the Tigers, so it's a big series.

[Art Deco]

This series had a playoff atmosphere to it as Detroit came in 3 games behind the Rays for the second wild card in the AL. After the Tigers took the opener, the Rays came back to win the next two including the finale in dramatic fashion as they've now opened up a 4-game lead in the wild card race and trail the top wild card team, Kansas City, by only a game. Things are not going as well in the division race as the Blue Jays refuse to lose, sweeping Minnesota and extending their win streak to 10 which meant the Rays fell another game behind them, now 3 back.

Although the final score in the opener said Tigers 10, Rays 8, it was highly misleading as the Rays mounted a spirited but ultimately futile rally in the 9th which saw them score 6 times. Until then it was a good old-fashion butt-kicking and surprisingly it was Joe Ryan's butt which got kicked early as this year's ace had trouble finding the plate and went 3 6 5 5 5 4 and fell to 14-5, 2.96. Levi Kelly poured gasoline onto the fire, giving up 4 runs in 1 2/3 innings and you never want your ERA to look like a Boeing jet model as his is now 7.17. Andrew Greckel ended up with a big day on offense against his old org, tripling in a run in the 1st and then hitting a grand slam (#23) in that 6-run 9th. Wander Franco and Adley Rutschman were each 3-4 with an RBI as well.

The Rays' resurgence over the last month or so has not only coincided with the acquisition of Drew Rasmussen but with the turnaround of reigning AL Cy Young winner Tyler Glasnow, who at his lowest point saw his ERA balloon to 6. And Glasnow continued his return to form with a brilliant 7 5 0 0 1 6 outing in a 6-0 Rays win, finally both evening his record (11-11) and getting his ERA below 5 (4.87). Jarren Duran figured into the offense prominently, delivering a 2-run single in the 4th and then tripling and scoring on Taylor Walls' sac fly in the 7th.

The series and its pivotal third game hung in the balance as a 1-1 game into the 8th could have had the Tigers pull within 2 games or the Rays expand their lead to 4, and thanks to Heliot Ramos it was the former as his 3-run homer with 2 out in the 8th (#13) gave Tampa Bay a 4-1 win. Ramos was only in the lineup due to Andrew Greckel being fatigued, and after Angelo DiSpigna doubled and Matt Chapman singled, he became the hero with a massive 3-run moonshot to dead center which measured at 433 feet. Before that it was a pitcher's duel with Drew Rasmussen getting it done at 6 5 1 1 0 7 and JT Ginn providing 2 perfect innings of relief to notch his 4th win. Aaron Fletcher dispatched Detroit 1-2-3 in the 9th with a pair of Ks for his 3rd save.

Team record: 68-52. Next up: 3 games in Texas.

[Art Deco]

The Rays swept Texas to make it 24 wins in their last 29 games since sitting at 46-46 on July 15. Toronto finally had its win streak snapped at 11 but still took 2 of 3 from Kansas City as the Rays pull back within 2 games of the division lead. The wild card is looking much more secure as they're 5 games up on both the Yankees and Detroit, and the Yankees just lost Gerrit Cole for the season. But the news wasn't all good for the Rays as they suffered three injuries in the finale, one of which will be a severe blow.

Dustin May was dominant in the opener and the 2 runs the Rays scored in the 2nd stood up for a 2-0 win. May went 7.2 3 0 0 1 9 and improved to 12-7, 3.89, finally bringing his ERA below 4. Matt Foster picked up his 2nd Rays save despite allowing a couple of hits. Matt Chapman had an RBI fielder's choice and Vidal Brujan an RBI single for the two runs.

The Rays had a homer-fest in a 16-4 thrashing of Texas in the second game. In fact the offense was so widespread I'm going to my old standby, cutting and pasting the hitting section of the box score to save recapping. Here goes:



Poor Matt Chapman, the skunk at the party with 5 strikeouts in 5 times up. He's following a long tradition of star rentals in both this save and my 2020 Rays save who underachieved after being acquired. At least he's still playing his customary Gold Glove defense. On the pitching side Tarik Skubal got off to an awful start, allowing 3 runs on 9 hits in the first three innings. But once the Rays blew the game open he settled in, allowing only one hit over the next 4 and finishing 7 10 3 3 1 4 to go to 10-7, 4.78.

The Rays took a 5-4 win in the finale, but it was an extremely costly win. Three players had to leave the game and I'll give them in reverse order of severity. Matt Chapman had to leave the game with knee soreness, it's minimal and he's DtD for a week. Carter Kieboom will spell him for most of this stretch. Heliot Ramos, who had just taken the everyday RF job from Nick Schnell, and was 2-2 with an RBI before leaving, has chronic back soreness and will be out 3 weeks. And most cruelly of all, rookie star Andrew Greckel broke his kneecap while running the bases and is done for the year. Greckel ends his fine maiden season with 25 HR, 75 RBI and a 273/339/537 line and will not be easily replaced. As for the game Mrs. Lincoln, Adley Rutschman's 2-run double in the 7th broke a 3-3 tie and Joe Ryan, while not at his best, went 6.1 6 4 4 2 6 for the win and is now 15-5, 3.08. Aaron Fletcher got the final 4 outs with 3 strikeouts for save #4.

Team record: 71-52. Next up: A day off to lick our wounds then we host the AL's top team (tied with Atlanta for MLB's best) the 80-43 Cleveland Guardians for 3.

Transactions: Greckel was placed on the 60-day IL and Ramos on the 10-day, and we recalled Kody Hoese, a right-handed 1B/DH bat whom we acquired from the Dodgers earlier this year for Matt Peacock, and purchased the contract of OF Garrett Whitley, who finally makes the bigs after being our #1 pick in 2015 and spending 10 years in the minors. Whitley is also a RH bat as our roster was very lefty-heavy, and he's an elite defender in LF, has good power and a good eye. The reason why he's spent the last several years at Durham though is that he doesn't make good contact and his hit about .240 there, meaning he probably hits .220 here. Hoese meanwhile can hit, he's been a combined 316/402/450 in AAA with 8 HR and 46 RBI and mashes lefties. He'll see a lot of DH time with Vidal Brujan shifting to the outfield as well as spelling Angelo DiSpigna at 1B against tough lefties. Neither of these guys will really replace Greckel though.

[Art Deco]

The Rays were up against it at Tropicana Field with the league's top team Cleveland visiting and having to adjust to life without one of their top hitters, Andrew Greckel, for the rest of the season. Plus they were chasing a Toronto team which never seemed to lose. Well three days later they swept the Guardians in 3 tight, tense, playoff-like games while the Blue Jays were swept in Houston, and ladies and gentlemen, I give you the first-place Tampa Bay Rays. Unthinkable a month ago, they've gone 28-6 and lead the Jays by a game.

The opener saw the resurgent Tyler Glasnow going against Cleveland's Josh Wolf, and the two were locked in a scoreless battle until Guardian superstar Jose Ramirez took Glasnow deep in the top of the 6th, and Franmil Reyes did likewise leading off the 7th to put the Rays behind 2-0. But Tampa Bay responded immediately in the bottom of the frame with RBI hits from Angelo DiSpigna and Carter Kieboom, and then in the 8th Vidal Brujan doubled home Kody Hoese, who made his Rays debut going 1-3, to give them a 3-2 win. Glasnow went 6 3 2 2 2 10 in the no-decision, Aaron Fletcher picked up his 5th win in relief, and JT Ginn closed the door retiring the final 2 Guardians for his 2nd save as our bullpen-by-committee has been very effective during this run.

The second game was another pitchers' duel with Drew Rasmussen and Jackson Jobe trading zeroes until Rasmussen gave up a Will Benson homer in the top of the 5th. But like yesterday the Rays wasted no time responding and recent acquisitions Matt Chapman (#2 as a Ray, #25 overall) and Kody Hoese (his first) hit solo homers to make it 2-1 in the bottom of the inning and that score held up thanks to Rasmussen and the pen. Rasmussen finished 6 4 1 1 0 4 and improved to 5-2, 3.00 with the Rays, Alex Vesia somehow got 6 outs on only 10 pitches(!), and Tyler Rogers got the last two outs on three for save #11.

The Rays completed the sweep as for the third straight day they fell behind only to come back and win. Today they were down 2-0 in the 3rd before taking a 5-3 win. And once again Tampa Bay had an immediate answer as Adley Rutschman hit a 2-run double in the 3rd, Vidal Brujan delivered his second game-winner in three days with an RBI single in the 4th, and Kody Hoese came through once again with some insurance on a sac fly and RBI double. Dustin May got over his early hiccups to go 5.2 5 2 2 0 3 for the win to up his record to 13-7, 3.87, Christian Chamberlain had 2 scoreless innings, and Tyler Rogers recorded the final out for his 12th save.

Team record: 74-52. Next up: There's no resting on the slender division lead as we go head-to-head with the Blue Jays for 3 in Toronto.

[Art Deco]

As great as winning three tight games against Cleveland felt, it felt that much worse when the Rays were swept in Toronto in a series where all three games followed the same script: The Rays barely scored any runs, hung in there behind a quality start, and then saw the bullpen let Toronto expand their lead in the late innings. The games were so similar, I'm just going to list them rather than recap them:

Game 1: 4-1 loss. Tarik Skubal wasn't that great (4.2 9 2 2 1 0) but he pitched out of trouble and it was 2-1 Jays until Guillermo Zuniga allowed 2 runs in the 8th. The only bright spot was that Garrett Whitley doubled in his first MLB at-bat after 10 years in the minors.

Game 2: 4-2 loss. Joe Ryan went 6 6 2 2 2 4 but Matt Foster gave up 2 runs on 4 hits in the 7th. They did have a chance in the 9th loading the bases with nobody out, but the only run they managed was on a bases-loaded walk to Wander Franco.

Game 3: 5-1 loss. Tyler Glasnow continued his great run, going 6 6 2 2 1 6, but this time it was JT Ginn hit for 3 runs in relief. Brandon Lowe's solo homer (#14) in the 1st was one of only 3 hits on the day.

Team record: 74-55, now 2 behind the Jays but still in the first wild card spot, a game up on Kansas City and 5 games ahead of the Yankees, the first team out.