The 2024 (and beyond) Tampa Bay Rays

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April 28: at Chicago White Sox 5-2 W. WP-J.Lopez (1-0). S-Bautista (3). Starter-Bradley (6.1 6 2 1 3 6). HR-Caminero (4). Trailing 2-1 in the 8th the Rays rallied on a Paredes RBI single and Caminero's 3-run homer to win it.

April 29: at Chicago White Sox 6-3 W. WP-M.Rodriguez (1-0). Starter-Headrick (4.2 7 2 2 2 3). HR-DeLuca (1). DeLuca's first homer of the year was a grand slam in the 4th that was the game's big hit as the Rays beat Chicago again.

April 30: at Chicago White Sox 2-5 L. LP-Adam (1-1). Starter-McClanahan (6 4 1 1 1 2). HR-T.Hernandez (5). Teoscar's solo shot gave the Rays a 2-1 lead they took into the bottom of the 8th before Adam gave up a 2-run homer to Luis Robert and Maldonado came in and gave up another 2-run homer to Marcell Ozuna.

Transaction: We purchased the contract of Josh Hader from Durham to give us a second (and hopefully more reliable) lefty in the pen and to make room completed this trade:



After pitching quite well for us last season Bickford had been a disaster (11.70 ERA, 4 homers and 21 hits allowed in 10 IP) and would have been DFA'd but he had something of a trade market. As a result we added a power arm in Misiorowski, once a top prospect but being held back by control issues. He boasts 70 stuff (75 potential) but that 35 control is an issue. Still an intriguing arm and better than nothing.

May 1: at Chicago White Sox 7-3 W. WP-Pepiot (3-2, 6 5 3 2 5 7). HR-P.Meadows (2), Isaac (5), Westburg (2). Paredes' 2-run double in the 5th put the Rays ahead to stay and Westburg's 2-run homer iced it in the 9th to give the Rays a series win over Chicago.

May 2: vs Colorado 6-3 W. WP-Contreras (1-0). S-Bautista (4). Starter-Springs (5 6 3 3 1 6). HR-C.Williams (3). Yandy was 3-4 with 2 doubles and 2 RBI and Campusano was 2-4 with a big 2-run single that gave the Rays a lead in the 6th which they never relinquished after relinquishing it in the top of the inning.

May 3: vs Colorado 16-6 W. WP-Bradley (2-2, 5.1 6 4 4 1 3). HR-T.Hernandez (6), Caminero (5), Rutschman (9). A massive game from the offense with 16 runs on 18 hits. Rutschman drove in 5 including a slam, Caminero remained red-hot after his abysmal start to the season by going 3-5 with a homer and 3 RBI and J.Lowe was 4-5 with a ribbie and two steals among the highlights.

Transaction: Unfortunately in the wild win over Colorado Carson Williams suffered biceps tendinitis and will be out a couple of weeks. He goes on the IL and Nick Loftin is recalled from Durham where he was hitting a cool 408/478/643 with 4 HR and 20 RBI in 25 games and will get most of the reps at SS.

May 4: vs Colorado 7-6 W. WP-Maldonado (1-0). S-Bautista (5). Starter-Headrick (5 6 5 5 3 3). HR-J.Lowe (1). The Rays closed out a week in which they won 6 of 7 and moved a season-high 3 games over .500 thanks to a sizable comeback from 5-0 down to win. Headrick's hold on the 5th starter job is officially shaky after putting the Rays in a 5-0 hole before the resurgent offense did its thing. J.Lowe capped a big weekend by going 2-3 with his first homer of the year, another steal, and an RBI single that put the Rays up for good in a 3-run 7th. Yandy was 3-4 with an RBI double and Rutschman continued the blistering start to his Rays career by going 3-5 with 2 RBI.

Team record: 16-13, only a single game back of Baltimore. For once they're looking like the 106-win team they were predicted to be. Next week: A return date with the White Sox who visit for 3 and after an off-day 3 games in Philadelphia.

Players of the Week:

AL: Rafael Devers (BOS), 13-30, 2 HR, 8 RBI
NL: Jordan Walker (STL), 10-24, 5 HR, 7 RBI

Players of the Month (April):

AL Batter: Gunnar Henderson (BAL), .326-6-22
NL Batter: Graham Pauley (SD), .440-4-15
AL Pitcher: Jacob deGrom (TEX), 4-0, 2.38, 35K in 34IP
NL Pitcher: Yu-min Lin (ARI), 4-0, 1.88, 30K in 28.2IP
AL Rookie: Victorio Pineda (BOS), 4-0, 3.03, 33K in 35.2IP
NL Rookie: Yanquiel Fernandez (COL), .375-5-16

Also earning monthly honors in our farm system were pitchers Nic Enright (IL, 7 saves, 0.82 ERA) and Patrick Wicklander (SL, 3-0, 3.45).

MLB News: A couple of big injuries as the Mets lose Orelvis Martinez for the season with a torn ACL and the Reds will be without Kyle Schwarber for 4 months with a torn back muscle.

The MLB standings as of May 4:

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May 5: vs Chicago White Sox 1-4 L. LP-McClanahan (2-4, 5.2 5 2 2 2 7). The bats were held to a mere 4 hits with Yandy's RBI triple their only offense of note, wasting a fine outing from Mac.

May 6: vs Chicago White Sox 1-5 L. LP-Pepiot (3-3, 6.1 7 3 3 0 5). Same story, different day.

May 7: vs Chicago White Sox 1-3 L. LP-Robertson (0-1). Starter-Springs (6 3 0 0 1 2). The team's sudden inability to score has them back at .500 after seemingly putting it in the rearview mirror. They wasted Springs' best start of the year and were 0-0 going into the 8th before Robertson, who had been lights-out, gave up 2 runs.

May 8: Off-Day.

May 9: at Philadelphia 4-6 L. LP-Bautista (3-1). Starter-Bradley (6 6 3 3 0 4). HR-Rutschman (10). Things were looking good for a while as they were up 4-1 in the middle innings before the walls closed on them. Bradley let Philly back within 4-3, Hader gave up the tying run in the 7th and Bautista faltered, giving up a 2-run walk-off homer to a guy rated 35 for power, Josh Rojas, as they dropped their fourth straight and fell below .500.

May 10: at Philadelphia 5-9 L. LP-Headrick (1-2, 1.1 7 6 6 1 2). HR-Isaac (6). And th-th-th-that's all folks for Headrick as the 5th starter as he was handed a 4-0 lead in the top of the 1st and gave it right back in the bottom of the frame plus two more in the 6th. He and his 8.90 ERA are Durham-bound and when we eventually need a 5th starter (next week has two off-days), we'll give Joe Rock a shot. Paredes was 3-4 with an RBI but the offense dried up after the 1st until Isaac hit a consolation homer in the 9th with the game already decided.

Transaction: Headrick is down and Nic Enright is up to give us an extra arm in the pen until we need the 5th starter.

May 11: at Philadelphia 7-1 W. WP-McClanahan (3-4, 7 2 1 1 2 6). HR-Yandy Diaz (3), T.Hernandez (7), DeLuca (2), Paredes (6), Isaac (7). Mac was brilliant and was amply supported with 5 homers as the Rays kept from going winless for the week.

Team record: 17-18. They're now 4 1/2 back of Baltimore and out of the wild card spots as the momentum they had last week completely disappeared and then some. Next week: 2 games in Atlanta against the top team in MLB with off-days before and after before returning home for 3 against Kansas City.

Players of the Week:

AL: Colson Montgomery (CHI), 9-22, 6 HR, 8 RBI (he always seems to win this when he plays against the Rays)
NL: Yohandy Morales (WAS), 13-23, 3 HR, 7 RBI

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May 12: Off-Day.

May 13: at Atlanta 10-8 W. WP-M.Rodriguez (2-0). S-Bautista (6). Starter-Springs (3.1 6 6 4 2 2, 3 HR). HR-T.Hernandez 2 (9), Caminero (6), Yandy Diaz (4), Isaac (8). A wild win over the team with the best record in MLB as they overcame deficits of 5-0 and 7-2, scoring 4 in the top of the 9th to win it with Caminero's third hit of the game, a 2-run double, the decisive blow.

May 14: at Atlanta 5-2 W. WP-Robertson (1-1). S-Bautista (7). Starter-Pepiot (5.2 4 1 0 2 7). HR-Isaac (9). Once again the Rays won it in the 9th, scoring 3 times to break a 2-2 tie after Robertson blew a 2-1 lead in the 8th on Yandy's RBI single and Paredes' 2-run double and completing a 2-game sweep of mighty Atlanta.

May 15: Off-Day.

May 16: vs Kansas City 4-1 W. WP-Bradley (3-2, 6.2 4 1 1 2 8). S-Bautista (8). HR-Mead 2 (4), Yandy Diaz (5). All 4 runs came on homers with Mead knocking in 3 and Taj was terrific.

May 17: vs Kansas City 1-3 L. LP-McClanahan (3-5, 5.1 2 2 2 5 9). How does a team bang out 10 hits and draw 8 walks in a game and only score one run? The Rays found out today as they left 15(!) runners on base in an extremely frustrating loss. Isaac was the primary individual culprit, leaving on 8 including two bases-loaded situations, and Campusano stranded 7.

May 18: vs Kansas City 8-6 W. WP-Enright (1-0). S-Bautista (9). Starter-Springs (5.1 4 4 4 1 5, 3 HR). HR-T.Hernandez 2 (11). The Rays got the men home today and they had to, since Springs gave up 3 more homers, having now allowed an absurd 16 in 46.1 innings this year. Teoscar had his second 2-homer game of the week to lead the way, driving in 3, and J.Lowe's RBI single in the 7th was the difference.

Team record: 21-19. 5 1/2 behind Baltimore but now in the third wild card spot on percentage points. Next week: All AL East action as we go to Yankee Stadium for three and after an off day return home to play 3 against the Orioles.

Players of the Week:

AL: Our own Yandy Diaz, 9-21, 3 HR, 7 RBI
NL: Shohei Ohtani (LA), 11-23, 5 HR, 17(!) RBI and he also went 5 3 0 0 4 5 in beating the Cardinals

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May 19: at NY Yankees 3-4 L (10). LP-Bautista (3-2). Starter-Pepiot (5.2 4 1 1 2 6). This game went 1-1 to extras and it looked like the Rays had it won in the top of the 10th when they went up 3-1 as Nick Loftin came through with a big RBI double. But Bautista, after getting through the 9th, walked the first guy to put two on and then immediately gave up a 3-run walk-off homer to Mike Yastrzemski to lose it.

May 20: at NY Yankees 4-2 W. WP-Bradley (4-2, 5 5 1 1 0 4). S-Robertson (3). HR-Caminero (7), J.Lowe (2). J.Lowe's 2-run homer in the 3rd was the difference as Taj and the pen got the job done.

Transaction: We finally needed a fifth starter so Joe Rock was recalled from Durham and Nic Enright returned there.

May 21: at NY Yankees 15-5 W. WP-Contreras (2-0). Starter-Rock (3.1 8 5 5 2 2). HR-Paredes (7), T.Hernandez (12), Caminero (8), J.Lowe (3). Rays scored a touchdown and kicked the extra point in the top of the first and never looked back, although Joe Rock was unable to stand prosperity and was hit hard in the 4th. By then the Rays were up 12-2 so it didn't matter as they 19 hits to go with their 15 runs. Teoscar knocked in 4 and 5 other players plated a pair in the rout.

May 22: Off-Day.

Transaction: Carson Williams came off the IL and Nick Loftin was sent back to Durham.

May 23: vs Baltimore 11-7 W. WP-Lopez (2-0). Starter-McClanahan (4.2 8 5 5 2 9). HR-Caminero (9), P.Meadows (3). Another big early outburst from the Rays (up 6-0 in the 2nd against former mate Drew Rasmussen) and another starter who couldn't stick around long enough for the win as Mac let Baltimore back within 6-5. The bats kept coming up with answers though with Caminero homering for the third straight game as part of a 3-5, 2 RBI day and Parker Meadows had his best day as a Ray, going 3-4 with a double, homer and 4 RBI as the Rays slashed a game off Baltimore's division lead.

May 24: vs Baltimore 5-1 W. WP-Springs (1-4, 5.2 3 0 0 0 12). HR-P.Meadows (4), Isaac (10). The Rays beat Baltimore again and Springs finally got his first win of the year thanks to an utterly dominant performance (and he kept the ball in the park for once!). Isaac's 2-run homer in the 7th broke open a game that saw Tampa Bay clinging to a 1-0 lead.

May 25: vs Baltimore 5-0 W. WP-Bradley (5-2, 6 2 0 0 6 7). HR-Isaac (11), T.Hernandez (13), C.Williams (4). Taj had a strange game, walking 6 and dealing with constant traffic during his 110-pitch outing, but kept Baltimore off the board and he and two relievers combined on a 2-hit shutout to give the Rays their first sweep of the Orioles since 2021 (when they famously won 18 of 19 over Baltimore) and cut the division deficit to a mere 2 games (1 in the loss column). Isaac once again had a big homer, expanding a 1-0 lead to 3-0 with a blast off former Ray Shane Baz.

Team record: 26-20, finally looking like the 106-win team they were forecast to be (they're never living that down). Next week: 3 at home against Detroit followed by 4 in Cleveland.

Players of the Week:

AL: Evan Carter (TEX), 12-25, 4 HR, 12 RBI (now you know why Caminero didn't win)
NL: Matt McLain (CIN), 12-21, 5 HR, 9 RBI

MLB News: A couple of superstars hit the IL as the Yankees' Aaron Judge (off to a miserable start to the year at 200/350/296 with only 3 HR) will be out 6 weeks with elbow inflammation and oft-injured Texas ace Jacob deGrom is shelved 5 weeks with an oblique strain.

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May 26: vs Detroit 17-6 W. WP-M.Rodriguez (3-0). Starter-Pepiot (4.1 2 6 6 3 7). HR-P.Meadows (5), Paredes (8), J.Lowe (4). Another game where the Rays got off to a ridiculous offensive start (up 10-0 after 2) but the starter couldn't take advantage to pick up the win as Pepiot lost the plot in the 4th and 5th, letting Detroit within 10-6 before the Rays added another 7 runs. Parker Meadows had his best game as a Ray against his old team, going 4-5 with the homer, 4 RBI and a steal while Isaac was 3-5 with 4 RBI himself as the team had 18 hits in another offensive orgy.

May 27: vs Detroit 6-3 W. WP-Rock (1-0, 7 3 2 2 2 2). The Rays made it 7 straight wins as Joe Rock was excellent in his 2nd start after getting hit hard in his first, which is how his 2-start callup at the end of last September played out as well. Yandy was 2-4 with 3 RBI including a big 2-run double to lead the offense.

May 28: vs Detroit 4-2 W. WP-McClanahan (4-5, 7 4 2 2 0 8). S-Bautista (10). HR-Mead (5), C.Williams (5). Mac was sharp in leading the Rays to a sweep of the Tigers and their 8th straight win. Mead was 2-4 with a solo homer and Westburg was 2-4 with 2 RBI.

May 29: at Cleveland 6-5 W. WP-Springs (2-4, 7.1 3 2 2 1 8). S-Bautista (11). HR-Yandy Diaz (6), Mead (6), Paredes (9). Yandy led off the game with a homer against his old team and the Rays were up 5-0 after 3 but had to hold on in a white-knuckler when Bautista gave up a 2-run homer to George Springer in the 9th and Cleveland nearly came all the way back. Still they made 9 wins in a row with Mead having a massive game, 4-5 with 4 RBI including a 3-run homer.

May 30: at Cleveland 3-4 L. LP-Robertson (1-2). Starter-Bradley (6 7 1 1 1 2). HR-Rutschman (11). The Rays looked like they would extend their win streak to double digits as they took a 3-1 lead into the bottom of the 9th in Cleveland, but with regular closer Bautista unavailable after being used the last two nights things went awry. First Robertson loaded the bases with nobody out and then Jason Adam came in and walked a man, hit another, and walked to third to force in three runs in a epic meltdown. Rutschman's 3-4 day with a homer and 2 RBI was wasted as was Taj's excellent start.

May 31: at Cleveland 4-7 L. LP-Pepiot (3-4, 4.2 6 6 6 4 3). HR-Paredes (10), T.Hernandez (14). Paredes' 3-run homer in the 1st got the Rays off to a flying start but Pepiot turned in his second stinker of the week, giving up 4 runs in the 3rd and Cleveland never looked back.

June 1: at Cleveland 4-2 W (10). WP-Bautista (4-2). Starter-Rock (5.2 7 2 2 2 0). HR-T.Hernandez (15). The Rays survived an incredible number of men left on base, 13 in total with most of them coming in the first 5 innings. But Teoscar came to the rescue with a 2-run homer in the 6th and he then singled in the winning run in the 10th as the Rays avoided a series loss to the Guardians. Rock was solid again and Bautista saved his own win after pitching the 9th. The win was costly though as Xavier Isaac tore a hamstring on a double and will miss 6-7 weeks.

Team record: 31-22. We trail Baltimore by 1 1/2 games as they had a good week two. Next week: We see the Tigers again, this time for 3 in Detroit and after a travel day return home for 3 against the Cubs.

Players of the Week:

AL: Bobby Witt Jr. (KC), 10-21, 3 HR, 7 RBI
NL: Jesus Sanchez (PHI), 9-24, 4 HR, 10 RBI

Players of the Month (May):

AL Batter: Tyler O'Neill (BOS), .294-12-26
NL Batter: Shohei Ohtani (LA), .367-10-31 (he was also 3-1, 3.76 as a starting pitcher)
AL Pitcher: Colton Gordon (HOU), 4-0, 1.24, 38K in 36.1 IP
NL Pitcher: Woo-Suk Go (SD), 5-0, 1.76, 5 SV
AL Rookie: Victorio Pineda (BOS), 3-1, 3.68, 31K in 29.1 IP
NL Rookie: JR Ritchie (ATL), 3-0, 3.72, 25K in 29 IP

A look at the standings and leaders at the end of May:

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Transactions: So Isaac (Xavier that is, not Paredes) is off to the IL for 6-7 weeks with his torn hamstring and Heston Kjerstad, hitting 360/429/640 with 13 homers at Durham, is recalled. Also lefty reliever Richard Lovelady comes off his rehab assignment and Luis Contreras is sent to the Bulls. To make room for Lovelady on the 40-man, C Rene Pinto is DFA'd.

June 2: at Detroit 0-2 L. LP-McClanahan (5-6, 5 6 2 2 2 4). Once again Mac doesn't get the support his rotation mates do as the bats only squeaked out three hits against Sawyer Gipson-Long and company.

June 3: at Detroit 8-6 W (10). WP-Bautista (5-2). Starter-Springs (6 6 1 1 2 5). HR-Yandy Diaz (7). What a strange game. The Rays trailed 1-0 going into the 7th as it was looking a lot like last night's affair, before they erupted for 6 runs capped by a Yandy grand slam. Up 6-1 going into the bottom of the 8th, Lovelady made a mess and Robertson made it worse, giving up a game-tying grand slam. But Teoscar's sac fly in the 10th and another run after that meant they ended up winning anyway.

June 4: at Detroit 8-3 W. WP-Bradley (6-2, 6.1 7 2 2 0 6). Taj was in good form and Carson Williams doubled, tripled and knocked in 4 to lead the way. Paredes also had a pair of RBI doubles.

June 5: Off-Day.

June 6: vs Chicago Cubs 5-3 W. WP-Robertson (2-2). S-Bautista (12). Starter-Pepiot (4.2 4 3 3 5 7). HR-Mead (7), Rutschman (12), Paredes (11). Mead's solo homer in the 7th tied it a 3 and Paredes broke that tie with a solo shot of his own in the 8th.

June 7: vs Chicago Cubs 4-3 W. WP-Hader (1-0). S-Bautista (13). Starter-Rock (4 3 3 3 5 4). HR-Caminero (10). Rays overcame another mediocre start to come back and beat the Cubs for the second straight night on Parker Meadows' sac fly in the 7th.

June 8: vs Chicago Cubs 1-2 L. LP-Adam (1-2). Starter-McClanahan (5 3 0 0 0 7). It took Mac 91 pitches to get through 5 and the bullpen let him down with Maldonado giving up a tying homer and Adam the winning dinger in the 8th. A frustrating day at the plate as they left 8 men on and hit into three double plays, the toughest of which saw them lose a bases-loaded, no-out opportunity on a 6-2-3 twin killing.

Team record: 35-24. Despite a good week Baltimore had an even better one and upped their division lead to 2 1/2 games. The Rays are now in the first wild card spot, 2 games ahead of Minnesota. Next week: The Yankees visit for 4 games then we head to Houston for 3.

Players of the Week:

AL: Wyatt Langford (TEX), 10-30, 4 HR, 11 RBI
NL: Pete Alonso (NY), 11-28, 4 HR, 9 RBI

MLB News: A couple of notable injuries. First off we won't be seeing Yordan Alvarez when we travel to Houston next week as he's out 7 weeks with a strained MCL. And in even worse injury news Seattle's Bryan Woo is lost for the year with a torn labrum.

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June 9: vs NY Yankees 1-2 L. LP-Springs (2-5, 7 5 2 2 1 8). All the scoring came in the first inning in a tough loss for the Rays which saw the bats go limp.

June 10: vs NY Yankees 4-3 W. WP-Bradley (7-2, 5.1 6 3 1 1 3). S-Bautista (14). HR-Rutschman (13). The Rays bounced back with Rutschman's 2-run homer in the 5th breaking a 2-2 tie.

June 11: vs NY Yankees 4-2 W. WP-Pepiot (4-4, 7 2 1 1 0 9). S-Robertson (4). Pepiot came into this one with a snowflake next to his name after allowing 15 runs in his previous 3 starts but was brilliant today, pitching the Rays to a win. Meadows' 2-run triple in the 7th snapped a 1-1 deadlock and Yandy was 3-4 with an RBI double.

June 12: vs NY Yankees 5-3 W. WP-Maldonado (2-0). S-Bautista (15). Starter-Rock (6.2 6 3 3 1 5). HR-DeLuca (3). Trailing 3-1 in the 7th the Rays got 2-run singles from C.Williams and Rutschman to pull out the win and take the series from New York.

June 13: at Houston 2-3 L. LP-Hader (1-1). Starter-McClanahan (5.1 3 2 2 6 6). HR-Rutschman (14). Hader gave up the winning run in the 8th to his former team as the Rays continued to struggle to score.

June 14: at Houston 2-1 W. WP-Springs (3-5, 6 3 1 1 0 9). S-Bautista (15). RBI singles from Westburg and Teoscar in the 6th drew first blood and were enough to beat Houston thanks to another great outing from Springs, who has allowed only 6 runs over his last 5 starts covering 32 innings, and more importantly the solo homer he allowed today was the only one over that stretch after he had allowed 16 in the 46 innings before.

June 15: at Houston 2-3 L. LP-Bradley (7-3, 5.1 6 3 3 1 6). HR-P.Meadows (6), Yandy Diaz (8). You allow only 7 runs over 3 games, you expect to sweep or at least win 2 of 3 but instead the Rays had to settle for one win after the offense was largely AWOL again. No blame for Yandy though as he was 2-3 with a homer and leads the AL in batting average at .350.

Team record: 39-27. While not terrible, a 4-3 week isn't going to cut it against Baltimore which has now won 9 straight games and has surged 4 1/2 ahead of the Rays in the AL East. Next week: 3 games in Cincinnati and after a day off 3 at home against Minnesota.

Players of the Week:

AL: Shea Langeliers (OAK), 8-19, 6 HR, 11 RBI
NL: Shohei Ohtani (LA), 10-24, 4 HR, 9 RBI (he did struggle in his lone start, allowing 4 runs in 4 1/3 IP)

MLB News: On the injury front San Diego lost P Yu Darvish for the year and the White Sox will be without Luis Robert for 6-7 weeks with shoulder tendinitis.

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Transaction: Heston Kjerstad struggled big-time as our Xavier Isaac replacement (2-19, no XBH) so it's time to give Brock Jones a shot. The 2022 2nd-round pick from Stanford you may remember is coming off a season in which he hit 56 homers between A+ and AA last year including the playoffs and had 16 more with a .936 OPS at Durham this year. Plus he plays 65 defense in LF and 60 in CF. The lefty-swinging Jones will play against most RHP.

June 16: at Cincinnati 8-1 W. WP-Pepiot (5-4, 5 3 0 0 3 4). HR-Rutschman 2 (16), Paredes (12), Caminero (11). The Rays blitzed the Reds, scoring in 6 of the 9 innings with Rutschman leading the way with 3 hits including a pair of solo homers. Brock Jones was 1-4 in his MLB debut.

June 17: at Cincinnati 9-7 W. WP-J.Lopez (3-0). S-Bautista (17). Starter-Rock (4.2 5 5 5 4 5, 3 HR). HR-C.Williams (6), Mead (8), T.Hernandez (16). This was one of those games where the Rays kept taking decent-sized leads (4-0, 6-2, 9-5) and Cincinnati kept coming back. Williams and Teoscar each had 3-run homers, with the latter's the difference.

June 18: at Cincinnati 3-4 L. LP-McClanahan (4-7, 4.2 4 4 3 3 7). Rays could have used some of the offense of the previous two nights while Mac was off his game today.

June 19: Off-Day.

June 20: vs Minnesota 4-0 W. I'll let the box score tell the big story:



One of the rare Rays no-hitters in all my saves and of course the first one in this one. Springs had really been pitching well of late and today he put it all together. Josh Lowe preserved the no-no with a sliding catch in right in the 9th after he entered as a defensive replacement. Springs' gem overshadowed a big night for Brock Jones, who hit his first MLB homer as part of a 2-3 day at the plate.

June 21: vs Minnesota 3-2 W. WP-Adam (2-2). S-Bautista (18). Starter-Bradley (6 5 1 1 2 10). HR-Yandy Diaz (9), Paredes (13). Taj was dominant but the Rays didn't break through against Jordan Montgomery until after Bradley was out of the game with Paredes' solo shot breaking a 1-1 tie in the 7th.

June 22: vs Minnesota 5-2 W. WP-Pepiot (6-4, 7 2 1 1 1 11). S-Bautista (19). HR-Caminero (13). Pepiot pitched probably his best game as a Ray and Caminero's 3-run homer in a 4-run 3rd was the big blow.

Team record: 44-28. The Rays are now playing .611 ball, went 5-1 for the week and sport the 2nd best record in MLB. Of course all that gets them is second place in the AL East but at least they shaved a game and a half off Baltimore's lead and trail the birds by 3 games. Next week: Toronto visits for 3 games and after an off-day we have a return date for 3 with the Twins, this time in Minnesota.

Players of the Week:

AL: Jackson Holliday (BAL), 13-24, 3 HR, 7 RBI
NL: Yoan Moncada (PHI), 15-29, 2 HR, 6 RBI

MLB News: Angels 3B Anthony Rendon, whose career has been plagued by injuries since landing in Anaheim, announced his retirement effective at the end of the season. Also former Ray and current Pirate Aaron Civale tore his labrum and is done for the season.

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June 23: vs Toronto 4-2 W. WP-Rock (2-0, 6 4 2 2 1 4). S-Robertson (5). HR-C.Williams (7). Rock was rocking, Carson had a 2-run homer and Campusano was 4-4 with an RBI double as the Rays got by the Jays.

June 24: vs Toronto 7-2 W. WP-McClanahan (5-7, 7 5 1 1 2 6). Mead and Rutschman led the offense as each went 2-4 with Mead driving in 4 and Adley the other 3 on a pair of doubles. Mac was solid once again and finally got a win to show for it.

Transaction: Parker Meadows strained a hamstring and will be out a couple of weeks so we purchased the contract of another 2022 2nd-round pick Ryan Cermak, who has played his way into being the #81 overall prospect in baseball thanks to 40 homers last season and 24 more this year, including 10 at Durham where he's torn the cover off the ball at 310/369/669 in 142 AB. He profiles very similarly to the other 2022 2nd-rounder we brought up, Brock Jones, except Cermak is a RH batter.

June 25: vs Toronto 3-5 L. LP-Springs (4-6, 5.1 5 5 5 3 6). Springs followed up his no-hitter with a bit of a stinker, although the last couple of runs off him came after he left.

June 26: Off-Day.

June 27: at Minnesota 5-3 W. WP-J.Lopez (4-0). S-Bautista (20). Starter-Bradley (6 5 3 3 0 6). HR-C.Williams 2 (9). Biggest game of Carson's 1.5-year MLB career as he homered twice, including a 2-run shot to break a 3-3 tie in the 8th and give Tampa Bay the win. Cermak made his MLB debut and was 0-2.

June 28: at Minnesota 1-3 L. LP-Pepiot (6-5, 4.1 3 3 3 3 4). HR-Caminero (14). Pepiot wasn't great but the bullpen was, keeping them in the game to no avail as the offense was non-existent outside of Junior's solo homer in the 7th.

June 29: at Minnesota 1-2 L. LP-Rock (2-1, 6 2 2 2 0 7). The offense took a holiday once again, wasting a great effort from Rock in which he made one bad pitch, a 2-run homer to Emmanuel Rodriguez.

Team record: 47-31. The 3-3 week cost us a game in the standings to Baltimore and we now trail them by 4, although we're still securely in the 1st wild card with the 2nd-best record in MLB.

Players of the Week:

AL: Tyler O'Neill (BOS), 9-20, 3 HR, 12 RBI
NL: Jordan Walker (STL), 10-24, 4 HR, 8 RBI

MLB News: OOTP has killed off White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf and the oft-injured Padre Robbie Ray is done for the year and much of 2027 with a torn flexor tendon.

Since we're roughly at the halfway mark of the season, it's time for a stats/standings review.



Shaping up like a repeat of last year, with the Rays chasing the Orioles and in position to play the Red Sox in the Wild Card round. Hopefully they don't at least blow home field like they did last season.



After a clunky start to the season the Rays have played great baseball over the last two months and just need the Orioles to slow down. Statistically they're good in just about everything except drawing walks, so the numbers back up the record.



Rutschman has been everything we could have hoped for and more, and Yandy has rebounded to his 2023 form. We could be getting better production from corner outfielders Teoscar (who has really cooled off after a hot start) and JLowe, as well as the DH-types in Isaac (hurt) and Mead. Outside of Campusano the bench hasn't been much help either.



The flipside of the Rutschman trade is the loss of depth in the rotation with Rasmussen and Baz sent to Baltimore (and both having great years as well), leaving us with some lousy pitching out of the 5th starter who was Headrick at the outset (god awful) and Rock afterwards (who after some um, rocky starts, has pitched well the last few times out). Otherwise the big 4 in the rotation have been good especially after Springs got over his homeritis that plagued him for the first 6 weeks. And the other guy we got in the Baltimore deal, Bautista, has been the lockdown closer Fairbanks wasn't last year. Also Adam's renaissance has been something to behold and Manny Rodriguez has also been a pleasant surprise.



Winter amateur signee Moreno has emerged as one of the game's elite prospects and the 17-year-old has been raking in the DSL so far. Smith still has a shot to be our 5th starter but he's been uneven and kind of homer-prone at Durham so he needs a little more seasoning while Cermak was just called up. Taylor is finally showing the pedigree of being a 2023 first-rounder and could be in next year's picture.

[Art Deco]

June 30: at Toronto 0-4 L. LP-McClanahan (5-8, 6 2 1 0 0 9). The offensive woes continued as the Rays followed up two games of only one run with zero today, wasting a brilliant outing from Mac.

July 1: at Toronto 1-2 L. LP-Robertson (2-3). Starter-Springs (6 3 0 0 5 10). HR-Westburg (3). Can't anyone score a damn run around here? For the second straight night the Rays got only four hits and now have scored three runs in their last four games and lost them all despite only allowing 11 themselves. Springs did leave with a 1-0 lead but Adam and Robertson gave up solo homers in the 7th and 8th to lose it.

July 2: at Toronto 5-0 W. WP-Bradley (8-3, 5.2 2 0 0 2 11). HR-C.Williams (10). Taj was about as dominant as they come and the team finally scored some runs with Williams leading the way going 3-4 with a double, homer and 2 RBI.

July 3: vs Boston 11-4 W. WP-Pepiot (7-5, 5 9 4 4 1 2). HR-Caminero (15), B.Jones (2). After they couldn't rub two sticks (or bats) together earlier in the week suddenly the Rays are scoring runs like crazy as they blew out Boston today. Paredes and Mead each had bases-clearing doubles while rookie Brock Jones was 2-4 with a 2-run homer and all 9 Rays recorded at least one safety.

July 4: vs Boston 4-6 (10). LP-Bautista (5-3). Starter-Rock (5 9 3 3 1 5). HR-B.Jones (3), Rutschman (17). Rays fought back from 3-1 down to tie it on Adley's solo homer in the 6th but lost it in the 10th when Rafael Devers hit a 3-run homer off Bautista, ending the closer's brilliant run of late.

July 5: vs Boston 2-0 W. WP-McClanahan (6-8, 5 5 0 0 2 6). S-Hader (1). HR-Caminero (16). Once again Mac was poorly supported but two runs were enough for him and the Rays to win with Hader picking up his first save in a Rays uniform.

July 6: vs Boston 5-3 W. WP-Springs (5-6, 7 6 2 2 0 11). S-Bautista (21). HR-B.Jones (4). Springs is on quite the dominant run and he pitched the Rays to a series win over Boston helped by a 2-run Yandy double and the rookie Jones' third homer in the four games against Boston.

Team record: 51-34. Despite the up-and-down week the Rays did gain 1/2 game on Baltimore and trail the Orioles by 3 1/2 in the division. Next week: Texas comes in for four games to conclude the homestand and we then head off for 3 in Oakland. Also during the Oakland series we'll have the amateur draft.

Players of the Month (June):

AL Batter: Jackson Holliday (BAL),.320-10-27
NL Batter: Shohei Ohtani (LA), .333-11-22 (making up for a brutal 1-5, 7.33 month on the mound)
AL Pitcher: Felix Bautista (TB), 9 SV, 0.00 ERA, a combined 13 4 0 0 4 21 line
NL Pitcher: Woo-suk Go (SD), 3-0, 7 SV, 1.98 ERA, 12 K in 13.2 IP
AL Rookie: Andrew Walters (TEX), 9 SV, 1.64 ERA, 18 K in 11 IP
NL Rookie: Dylan Lesko (SD), 3-1, 3.11, 27K in 37.2 IP

Players of the Week:

AL: Gunnar Henderson (BAL), 12-26, 5 HR, 9 RBI
NL: Owen Caissie (CHI), 8-19, 5 HR, 6 RBI

MLB News: Future Hall of Famer Mike Trout hit career homer #400.

[Art Deco]

July 7: vs Texas 9-8 W (10). WP-Adam (3-2). Starter-Bradley (5 7 4 4 2 6, 3 HR). HR-J.Lowe (5), Rutschman (18). A really wild one at the Trop with the Rays battling back from deficits of 3-0 and 6-3 to go up 7-6 in the 7th before Bautista blew the save in the 9th and they fell behind in the top of the 10th. No worries though as Rutschman's RBI double followed by Teoscar's RBI single won it. Adley was 3-5 with a homer and 3 RBI on the day.

July 8: vs Texas 3-7 L. LP-Pepiot (7-6, 5 3 3 3 4 3). HR-T.Hernandez (18), DeLuca (4). Rays were never really in this one.

July 9: vs Texas 5-4 W. WP-Rock (3-1, 7 5 4 4 0 7). S-Hader (2). HR-Westburg (4), T.Hernandez (19). This looked like a possible replay of the first game as it was 5-4 after only 4, but that's where the scoring stopped. Westburg and Teoscar had 2-run homers in the first to lead the offense while Hader went two innings for the save.

July 10: vs Texas 3-4 L. LP-Adam (3-3). Starter-McClanahan (6 4 3 3 4 6). Despite rallying with 3 in the 6th to tie the game Adam gave up a homer to Anthony Santander in the 7th to lose it and Tampa Bay had to settle for a split of the 4-game series.

July 11: at Oakland 3-2 W. WP-Robertson (3-3). S-Bautista (22). Starter-Springs (6.2 2 2 1 0 11). HR-J.Lowe (6). A dominant outing from Springs almost went for naught before the Rays eked out a pair of runs in the 8th to pull out the win. Oakland pitchers loaded the bases with walks after 2 out and nobody on in the 8th and Teoscar obliged with a 2-run single to provide the winning margin.

July 12: at Oakland 4-7 L. LP-Bradley (8-4, 5 9 6 5 1 6). HR-Cermak (1), B.Jones (5). Another rough outing for Taj and this one wasn't as close as the final score might indicate. Lone bright spot was the first major league homer for rookie Cermak.

July 13: at Oakland 4-1 W. WP-Pepiot (8-6, 5 4 1 1 3 4). S-Bautista (23). HR-B.Jones (6), Paredes (14). Pepiot and the pen got the job done and Jones had a big 2-run homer in the 2nd which put the Rays ahead to stay. Paredes grounded into double plays his first three times up but then provided an insurance homer in the 8th.

Team record: 55-37. The mediocre week saw us fall 5 behind the Orioles in the division chase but still with a strong hold on the first wild card. Next week: a day off before 3 in San Diego and 3 in LA against the Dodgers as we close out the west coast trip ahead of the All-Star break.

Players of the Week:

AL: Riley Greene (DET), 12-23, 2 HR, 10 RBI
NL: Noelvi Marte (CIN), 10-27, 2 HR, 4 RBI

MLB News: Mets slugger Pete Alonso hit career homer #300.

We also had the amateur draft during the Oakland series, and the next post will look at our top picks.

[Art Deco]

Johnson: A 2-way star out of Duke who projects as a starting pitcher as well as a pretty good outfielder. He has 55/55/50 potential in the rotation and 50 contact and 55 power along with 65 defense in the corner OF. We're starting him at low-A Charleston and BNN has him the #50 prospect in baseball.

Watson: An Oklahoma high-school righty with 70/55/55 potential and is rated #89 overall by BNN.

Ramirez: My scout wanted us to take this guy in the 1st round but I waited and still snagged him in the 3rd. Potential 60 contact, eye and power from this Seattle HS 2B who might be stretched in the field.

Parker: A lefty HS reliever out of California with potential 80 stuff and 50 control whom we can dream on as a dominant bullpen option.

Hopwood: A Texas HS lefty starter with 60/55/55 potential, as we went heavy on arms in the early rounds.

After the draft BNN ranks us as the #5 system in MLB.

[Art Deco]

July 14: Off-Day.

July 15: at San Diego 4-3 W. WP-M.Rodriguez (4-0). S-Bautista (24). Starter-Rock (4.2 3 2 2 3 3). HR-T.Hernandez (20), C.Williams (11). Carson's 2-run homer in the 7th broke a 2-2 tie in the Rays' favor as they made it 3 wins in 4 to start the road trip.

July 16: at San Diego 3-4 L. LP-J.Lopez (4-1). Starter-McClanahan (5.2 4 3 3 4 5). HR-J.Lowe (7). Lowe's 2-run homer tied it up at 3 in the 7th but Lopez gave it back in the bottom of the inning and the Rays lost by the same score they won by the day before.

July 17: at San Diego 1-3 L. LP-Springs (5-7, 5.2 6 3 3 3 5). Rays struggled to get any offense going, shut down by San Diego's Dylan Lesko (a current Rays farmhand IRL).

July 18: at LA Dodgers 1-3 L. LP-Bradley (8-5, 5 1 2 2 2 2 8). HR-T.Hernandez (21). Another night of struggles at the plate as they were held to only two hits by Dustin May and company. Taj pitched very well with his only mistake a 2-run Chas McCormick homer.

July 19: at LA Dodgers 10-11 L. LP-Pepiot (8-7, 3 6 5 5 5 2, 3 HR). HR-C.Williams 2 (13), J.Lowe (8), B.Jones (7), T.Hernandez (22). The good news: they finally scored some runs! 10 of em, in fact. The bad news of course is that the pitching gave up 11 and forced them to come back from 11-4 down. The cycle is kind of a freak stat and you can have much better games than that as Carson Williams tonight as he doubled, tripled and instead of singling homered twice to give him a 4-4, 4-RBI night. Sadly it was for naught.

July 20: at LA Dodgers 2-4 L. LP-Rock (3-2, 4.2 7 3 3 3 2). HR-Paredes (15). Nobody is happier to see the All-Star break come than the Rays, who ended a road trip that began 3-1 with five straight losses. Today it was the paltry offense serving as the main culprit again.

Team record: 56-42. The losing skein now sees them 7 behind the Orioles in the division and their grip on the first wild card spot slipping. After the break they'll be back home for 3 against Cleveland.

Players of the Week:

AL: Masataka Yoshida (BOS), 10-21, 3 HR, 6 RBI
NL: Mookie Betts (LA), 10-21, 4 HR, 13 RBI (a good chunk of that against us)

[Art Deco]

The teams:

Representing the American League:

SP Matt Brash (SEA) - 4-5, 3.36 ERA, 99.0 IP, 1.25 WHIP, 11.8 K/9, 1.7 WAR
SP Trace Bright (BAL)* - 8-1, 2.37 ERA, 76.0 IP, 1.18 WHIP, 9.6 K/9, 1.3 WAR
SP Joey Cantillo (CLE) - 6-7, 2.84 ERA, 111.0 IP, 1.18 WHIP, 9.9 K/9, 2.2 WAR
SP Robert Colina (OAK) - 7-6, 3.90 ERA, 101.2 IP, 1.21 WHIP, 8.7 K/9, 2.7 WAR
SP Daniel Espino (CLE) - 4-0, 2.14 ERA, 63.0 IP, 0.98 WHIP, 11.0 K/9, 2.2 WAR (Injured)
SP Shane McClanahan (TB) - 6-8, 3.06 ERA, 114.2 IP, 1.13 WHIP, 10.4 K/9, 2.8 WAR
SP Troy Melton (DET) - 8-7, 3.72 ERA, 109.0 IP, 1.12 WHIP, 9.3 K/9, 2.4 WAR
SP Drew Rasmussen (BAL) - 11-4, 2.79 ERA, 122.2 IP, 1.07 WHIP, 9.1 K/9, 3.2 WAR
SP Eduardo Rodriguez (TEX)* - 10-5, 2.15 ERA, 125.2 IP, 1.13 WHIP, 7.7 K/9, 2.9 WAR
RP Nathan Lavender (TOR) - 4-6, 1.78 ERA, 55.2 IP, 0.90 WHIP, 12.0 K/9, 1.3 WAR
RP Cionel Perez (BAL) - 2-1, 2.09 ERA, 43.0 IP, 1.16 WHIP, 8.2 K/9, 0.7 WAR
CL Jason Adam (TB) - 3-3, 2.02 ERA, 40.0 IP, 0.88 WHIP, 10.8 K/9, 0.4 WAR
CL Jhoan Duran (MIN) - 3-4, 26 SV, 3.26 ERA, 38.2 IP, 0.88 WHIP, 12.3 K/9, 1.3 WAR
CL Colin Poche (HOU) - 3-0, 29 SV, 2.38 ERA, 41.2 IP, 0.86 WHIP, 12.5 K/9, 1.3 WAR
C Shea Langeliers (OAK) - .287/.337/.567, 240 AB, 18 HR, 3 SB, 146 wRC+, 2.9 WAR
C Logan O'Hoppe (LAA) - .238/.339/.472, 265 AB, 18 HR, 3 SB, 122 wRC+, 2.0 WAR
C Adley Rutschman (TB)* - .296/.361/.542, 297 AB, 18 HR, 149 wRC+, 4.2 WAR
1B Rafael Devers (BOS) - .294/.354/.562, 354 AB, 21 HR, 3 SB, 144 wRC+, 2.3 WAR
1B Gunnar Henderson (BAL)* - .308/.403/.609, 338 AB, 25 HR, 21 SB, 170 wRC+, 4.6 WAR
2B Jackson Holliday (BAL)* - .308/.372/.597, 360 AB, 27 HR, 22 SB, 161 wRC+, 5.8 WAR
2B Davis Schneider (TOR) - .259/.366/.486, 255 AB, 12 HR, 18 SB, 134 wRC+, 2.4 WAR
2B Anthony Volpe (NYY) - .261/.339/.460, 322 AB, 14 HR, 14 SB, 121 wRC+, 2.4 WAR
3B Coby Mayo (BAL) - .254/.355/.484, 335 AB, 18 HR, 129 wRC+, 3.1 WAR
3B Colson Montgomery (CWS)* - .300/.388/.603, 237 AB, 17 HR, 1 SB, 168 wRC+, 3.2 WAR
SS Willy Adames (SEA) - .258/.328/.474, 325 AB, 16 HR, 5 SB, 119 wRC+, 3.3 WAR
SS Bobby Witt Jr. (KC)* - .299/.341/.513, 341 AB, 15 HR, 15 SB, 130 wRC+, 3.9 WAR
LF Colton Cowser (BAL) - .303/.397/.473, 357 AB, 12 HR, 19 SB, 142 wRC+, 3.6 WAR
LF Riley Greene (DET) - .306/.391/.555, 301 AB, 17 HR, 13 SB, 161 wRC+, 3.7 WAR
LF Wyatt Langford (TEX) - .292/.345/.554, 336 AB, 19 HR, 14 SB, 142 wRC+, 3.2 WAR
LF Tyler O'Neill (BOS)* - .277/.330/.613, 357 AB, 32 HR, 4 SB, 147 wRC+, 3.5 WAR
LF Marcell Ozuna (CWS)* - .287/.350/.554, 303 AB, 23 HR, 146 wRC+, 2.0 WAR
LF Kyle Tucker (HOU) - .270/.359/.523, 348 AB, 18 HR, 17 SB, 137 wRC+, 3.7 WAR
CF Byron Buxton (MIN) - .252/.316/.517, 325 AB, 22 HR, 7 SB, 124 wRC+, 3.5 WAR
CF Ceddanne Rafaela (BOS)* - .308/.343/.542, 367 AB, 14 HR, 7 SB, 135 wRC+, 3.6 WAR
RF Evan Carter (TEX)* - .306/.403/.575, 327 AB, 19 HR, 9 SB, 167 wRC+, 5.0 WAR

Participating for the National League:

SP Max Fried (CIN) - 9-6, 3.17 ERA, 127.2 IP, 1.20 WHIP, 8.6 K/9, 2.9 WAR
SP Andrew Painter (PHI) - 8-4, 2.32 ERA, 108.2 IP, 0.98 WHIP, 9.9 K/9, 3.9 WAR
SP Eury Perez (MIA) - 7-5, 3.05 ERA, 127.0 IP, 1.16 WHIP, 11.1 K/9, 4.5 WAR
SP Paul Skenes (PIT) - 10-8, 2.99 ERA, 120.1 IP, 1.07 WHIP, 7.8 K/9, 1.9 WAR
SP Justin Steele (CHC)* - 8-4, 2.71 ERA, 126.1 IP, 1.11 WHIP, 8.1 K/9, 3.3 WAR
SP Spencer Strider (ATL) - 8-4, 3.20 ERA, 118.0 IP, 0.98 WHIP, 12.5 K/9, 3.2 WAR
SP Brandon Woodruff (LAD) - 9-5, 4.11 ERA, 103.0 IP, 1.29 WHIP, 8.7 K/9, 2.2 WAR
RP Thomas Pannone (CHC) - 6-0, 2.18 ERA, 57.2 IP, 0.88 WHIP, 6.9 K/9, 0.4 WAR
RP Angel Perdomo (ATL) - 6-3, 4.47 ERA, 48.1 IP, 1.28 WHIP, 14.5 K/9, -0.2 WAR
CL Taylor Clarke (SF) - 2-1, 10 SV, 3.12 ERA, 34.2 IP, 1.41 WHIP, 10.4 K/9, 0.4 WAR
CL Woo-suk Go (SD) - 8-2, 17 SV, 2.27 ERA, 39.2 IP, 1.08 WHIP, 7.7 K/9, -0.0 WAR
CL Brusdar Graterol (LAD)* - 2-3, 14 SV, 1.11 ERA, 32.1 IP, 0.99 WHIP, 7.8 K/9, 0.7 WAR
CL Liam Hendriks (AZ) - 3-5, 25 SV, 6.11 ERA, 35.1 IP, 1.64 WHIP, 13.0 K/9, 0.5 WAR
C Henry Davis (SD) - .290/.390/.477, 214 AB, 8 HR, 10 SB, 145 wRC+, 2.6 WAR
C Gabriel Moreno (AZ)* - .360/.412/.559, 297 AB, 10 HR, 11 SB, 166 wRC+, 4.6 WAR
C Will Smith (LAD) - .300/.368/.537, 283 AB, 15 HR, 147 wRC+, 3.2 WAR
1B Bryce Harper (PHI) - .277/.349/.542, 347 AB, 24 HR, 2 SB, 134 wRC+, 1.7 WAR
1B Matt McLain (CIN)* - .318/.406/.586, 302 AB, 17 HR, 12 SB, 168 wRC+, 3.6 WAR
1B Matt Olson (ATL) - .271/.370/.529, 350 AB, 23 HR, 145 wRC+, 2.7 WAR
1B Austin Riley (ATL)* - .253/.328/.515, 340 AB, 22 HR, 127 wRC+, 1.9 WAR
2B Nolan Gorman (STL) - .266/.361/.468, 327 AB, 17 HR, 11 SB, 128 wRC+, 2.3 WAR
2B Noelvi Marte (CIN) - .309/.376/.523, 346 AB, 17 HR, 13 SB, 144 wRC+, 3.5 WAR
2B Ezequiel Tovar (COL)* - .297/.339/.538, 381 AB, 15 HR, 6 SB, 131 wRC+, 4.1 WAR (Injured)
2B Trea Turner (PHI)* - .364/.404/.526, 346 AB, 8 HR, 24 SB, 154 wRC+, 4.2 WAR
3B Nolan Jones (COL) - .289/.364/.487, 318 AB, 13 HR, 7 SB, 127 wRC+, 3.0 WAR
3B Yohandy Morales (WSH) - .310/.351/.530, 355 AB, 15 HR, 137 wRC+, 2.7 WAR
SS Francisco Lindor (NYM) - .227/.323/.450, 300 AB, 18 HR, 9 SB, 115 wRC+, 2.7 WAR
LF Michael Harris II (ATL)* - .339/.359/.552, 366 AB, 18 HR, 6 SB, 147 wRC+, 3.8 WAR
LF Brandon Nimmo (NYM) - .300/.387/.506, 267 AB, 13 HR, 5 SB, 150 wRC+, 2.5 WAR
CF Jackson Chourio (MIL)* - .316/.377/.568, 345 AB, 19 HR, 20 SB, 154 wRC+, 4.7 WAR
CF Jackson Merrill (SD) - .284/.337/.490, 349 AB, 14 HR, 11 SB, 124 wRC+, 3.2 WAR
CF James Outman (LAD) - .253/.354/.510, 312 AB, 19 HR, 10 SB, 135 wRC+, 3.6 WAR
RF Mookie Betts (LAD)* - .339/.410/.626, 342 AB, 26 HR, 10 SB, 182 wRC+, 5.1 WAR
RF Jordan Walker (STL) - .316/.365/.676, 358 AB, 35 HR, 7 SB, 178 wRC+, 4.6 WAR
DH Shohei Ohtani (LAD)* - .292/.350/.651, 367 AB, 33 HR, 10 SB, 166 wRC+, 4.0 WAR

A little surprised Bautista didn't get the call over Adam, who joins McClanahan and Rutschman (starter) as the Rays' representatives in the game. It's the first appearance for Adam, the 4th for Mac (who started for the AL in 2022) and the 4th for Rutschman (and first as a Ray of course).

The Derby (no Rays selected):



The grizzled vet Harper taking home the honors.

The game:



A mixed bag for the Rays as Rutschman was 1-2 and Adam pitched a perfect 8th for a hold, but McClanahan was touched for a Mookie Betts homer in his lone inning of work.

[Art Deco]

July 21-24: All-Star Break.

Transaction: Xavier Isaac returns from the IL and Jonny DeLuca is optioned to Durham. Decided to spare Brock Jones since he's played well (890 OPS) even though we're now very lefty-heavy in the OF.

July 25: vs Cleveland 0-4 L. LP-Springs (5-8, 6 7 2 2 1 11). The Rays picked up where they left off before the break, losing and not scoring in the process as today's outing made it six straight defeats. Gavin Williams and three relievers held them to three hits.

July 26: vs Cleveland 10-5 W. WP-J.Lopez (5-1). Starter-Bradley (4.2 7 5 4 3 8). HR-J.Lowe (9), Caminero (17), T.Hernandez (23), C.Williams (14). Welcome back, offense. It was 5-5 in the 5th when Teoscar belted a 3-run homer and Carson followed with a 2-run jack. Williams, Lowe and Caminero each had 3 hits including a homer.

July 27: vs Cleveland 10-3 W. WP-Pepiot (9-7, 7 5 2 2 1 6). HR-Caminero (18), T.Hernandez (24), Paredes (16). From famine to feast as the Rays once again put double digits on the board with some of the same guys having big games. J.Lowe was 3-4 with a double, steal, RBI and 4 runs scored, Rutschman was 2-3 with a double and 3 RBI and Caminero knocked in 3 including a 2-run homer.

Team record: 58-43. We're 5 1/2 behind Baltimore and remain in the first wild card. Next week: An off-day followed by a big 3-game series at home against the Orioles before the Angels come to town for 3 more.

The trading deadline beckons, although I'm not sure about making any significant moves given our minor league depth (If I want more power, Hunter Owen is at Durham where he already has 44 HR and 105 RBI (!) and Hagen Smith is always a 5th starter option although Joe Rock has been adequate in that role.)

Players of the (abbreviated) Week:

AL: Tyler O'Neill (BOS) 7-15, 2 HR, 5 RBI
NL: Matt Chapman (ARI), 5-9, 2 HR, 6 RBI

MLB News: There has been a flurry of mostly minor deals around MLB in advance of the deadline but there was one sizable and interesting one - The Phillies sent 3B Bo Bichette and OF prospect (#70 overall and last year's #8 overall pick) Jace LaViolette to the Dodgers for star C Will Smith as LA finally deals from its catcher surplus.

[Art Deco]

July 28: Off-Day.

July 29: vs Baltimore 0-7 L. LP-McClanahan (6-9, 4 6 5 5 3 4). Just an ugly night all around as the O's exploded for 4 in the 4th off Mac and the bats had no answer.

July 30: vs Baltimore 4-1 W. WP-Springs (6-8, 5 4 1 1 3 5). S-Bautista (25). The Rays jumped on former teammate Drew Rasmussen (leading the AL in pitcher WAR) early, scoring 4 runs on 9 hits off him and Springs and the pen were excellent in a big bounce-back win.

July 31: vs Baltimore 7-6 W. WP-Robertson (4-3). Starter-Rock (5 5 2 2 4 3). HR-Caminero (19), Paredes (17), Campusano (1). One of the most agonizing losses of the season turned into one of the most thrilling wins as the Rays blew a 5-2 in the late innings only to be rescued with two out in the 9th when Luis Campusano stepped up as a pinch-hitter on the end of the bench and picked a great time to hit his first homer of the year, a 2-run shot to walk it off. Like yesterday the Rays teed off on a former teammate as they scored 5 off Shane Baz including a 2-run Caminero shot as part of a 3-RBI day. But Hader couldn't retire anyone in the 8th and was charged with 3 runs to put them behind before Campusano got him off the hook.

We made a trade at the deadline, but not to boost the sluggish offense:



Instead we got us a 5th starter who's an upgrade on Joe Rock, who wasn't that bad for us but wasn't great either. Senga was 6-4, 4.76 for San Diego but his peripherals were better and he was on track for a 3-WAR season. He's arb-eligible and will make a lot next year so this is a likely rental and we'll see what we can get for him in the offseason. The cost wasn't too high as Loftin was raking at Durham and should hit in a utility role as he's done for us at the MLB level, and while Simpson has freakish speed and can hit for average, he has 0 power and isn't a particularly good defensive player. Rock was optioned to Durham and Luis Contreras recalled to give us an extra bullpen arm until Senga's turn comes up.

August 1: vs LA Angels 5-2 W. WP-Bradley (9-5, 5.2 7 2 2 2 7). S-Adam (2). HR-J.Lowe 2 (11). A big day for J-Lowe who homered twice and drove in 3, backing a well-pitched game from Taj and the pen.

August 2: vs LA Angels 0-4 L. LP-Pepiot (9-8, 5.1 4 2 2 2 5). The bats didn't have it, eking out only four hits and a good Pepiot start was wasted.

August 3: vs LA Angels 4-6 L. LP-McClanahan (6-10, 5 8 6 3 2 7, 3 HR). Mac was sneak-attacked for 6 runs in the first on 3 homers with a Paredes error opening the door for 3 of them score unearned. The offense chipped away and brought the tying run to the plate in the 9th, but it wasn't enough. J.Lowe had a 2-run single for the highlight.

Team record: 61-46. Thanks to some Oriole stumbles and beating them 2 out of 3 the Rays have crept to within 4 1/2 in the division and remain 3 ahead of Boston and 4 ahead of the pack in the first wild card spot, although it seems they've been spinning their wheels of late.

Players of the Week:

AL: Loidel Chapelli (CHI), 10-21, 1 HR, 8 RBI
NL: Jackson Merrill (SD), 13-26, 3 HR, 8 RBI

Players of the Month (July):

AL Batter: Riley Greene (DET), .358-6-20
NL Batter: Jackson Merrill (SD), .385-7-26
AL Pitcher: Blake Snell (BOS), 4-0, 2.70, 33K in 26.2 IP
NL Pitcher: Robert Stephenson (STL), 1-0, 1.69, 10 SV, 13K in 10.2 IP
AL Rookie: Ben Kudrna (KC), 2-1, 0.64, 30K in 28 IP
NL Rookie: Yoshinori Yamamoto (ATL), 1-0, 0.00, 5 SV

[Art Deco]

August 4: at NY Yankees 5-7 L. LP-Robertson (4-4). Starter-Senga (6.1 6 2 2 1 6). HR-Paredes (18). A brutal loss. Rays were up 5-2 going to the bottom of the 8th when Maldonado got in trouble and allowed two runs. Bautista came in to get out of that jam but put a man on in the 9th and was fatigued with two outs, so Robertson came in and gave up a 3-run homer to Spencer Jones to end it.

Transaction: The time has come to call up DH Hunter Owen from Durham, as all he's done with the Bulls is hit 290/379/692 with 47 HR and 111 RBI. He boasts 70 MLB power and we'll need him to run into a few for us. Going the other way is Xavier Isaac, who just hasn't hit at all since coming back from injury.

August 5: at NY Yankees 2-4 L. LP-Springs (6-9, 6 6 4 3 1 2). A weak night for the offense as they only manage 4 hits. Owen in his Rays debut was 0-3 with a HBP but up against a tough customer in Gerrit Cole.

August 6: at NY Yankees 4-3 W (10). WP-Bautista (6-3). S-Maldonado (1). Starter-Bradley (6 6 2 2 0 8). HR-Owen (1), B.Jones (8). Rays came back to go up 3-2 in the 8th only for Robertson to give up another back-breaking homer to let the Yanks tie. Fortunately C.Williams came through in the 10th with an RBI single to win it.

August 7: Off-Day.

August 8: at Boston 12-6 W. WP-Pepiot (10-8, 7 5 2 2 2 6). HR-C.Williams (15), Caminero (20), J.Lowe (12), B.Jones (9). The bats unloaded on Boston with JLowe and Jones each hitting 3-run homers and Rutschman knocking in 3 with a pair of doubles.

August 9: at Boston 6-2 W. WP-Lovelady (1-0). Starter-McClanahan (5.2 5 2 2 0 10). HR-C.Williams (16). Williams' 2-run homer in the 7th broke a 2-2 tie and Owen's 2-run single in the 8th provided insurance.

August 10: at Boston 6-5 W. WP-Senga (1-0, 5 4 1 1 3 9). S-Bautista (26). HR-Campusano (2), B.Jones (10), Y.Diaz (10). Campusano's 2nd-inning slam helped them to a 6-1 lead that the shaky-of-late pen nearly frittered away before Bautista slammed the door in the 9th to preserve Senga's first Rays win and complete the Fenway sweep.

Team record: 65-48. Treading water as we remain 5 behind Baltimore in the division but also remain semi-secure in the first wild card spot. Next week: A day off then 3 at the Trop against the Yankees followed by a visit from Houston for 3 more.

Players of the Week:

AL: Gunnar Henderson (BAL), 6-17, 5 HR, 7 RBI
NL: Mookie Betts (LA), 9-22, 3 HR, 10 RBI

[Art Deco]

August 11: Off-Day.

August 12: at NY Yankees 5-6 L (10). LP-Bautista (6-4). Starter-Springs (5 5 3 3 2 7). HR-Rutschman (19), Yandy Diaz (11). The Rays were dead and buried in this one, trailing 5-0 going into the bottom of the 9th before Rutschman led off with a homer and they eventually loaded the bases to set up a dramatic 2-out grand slam from Yandy. Alas, Bautista gave up a single to allow the ghost runner to score in the 10th and the Yanks won anyway.

August 13: at NY Yankees 5-1 W. WP-Bradley (10-5, 7 5 1 1 1 10). HR-J.Lowe (13). Taj was dominant as you can see from his line and Rutschman had 3 more hits including the go-ahead single in the 7th with J.Lowe's 2-run shot putting the game away.

August 14: at NY Yankees 7-0 W. WP-M.Rodriguez (5-0). Starter-Pepiot (5 3 0 0 3 5). HR-Rutschman (20). Despite the decisive final score this was a scoreless battle until the 6th when Clutchman came through again with a solo homer to break the deadlock, and a 4-run 7th broke it open. Carson Williams was 3-3 with 3 doubles and 2 RBI as his offensive breakout has been something to behold of late.

August 15: vs Houston 2-0 W. WP-McClanahan (7-10, 6.1 4 0 0 1 5). S-Bautista (27). Mac got his usual scant run support but two was enough tonight to get him the win. Both Tampa Bay tallies came on sacrifice flies.

August 16: vs Houston 10-0 W. WP-Senga (2-0, 7 4 0 0 3 6). HR-P.Meadows (7), Paredes (19), Campusano (3). The Rays staff hurled their third straight shutout and made it 32 consecutive scoreless innings behind Senga tonight. And like the game a couple of nights ago in New York the final score was a bit misleading as it was only 2-0 after 6 before the Rays put up 4-spots in the 7th and 8th innings. Paredes had a massive game, going 3-4 with a double, homer and 5 RBI while Campusano gave Rutschman a night off and then hit like him, going 3-5 with a homer and 2 RBI.

August 17: vs Houston 4-1 W. WP-Springs (7-9, 6.1 3 0 0 3 11). HR-B.Jones (11), C.Williams (17). The Rays swept Houston, made it 5 straight wins and 9 of their last 10 and nearly had a fourth straight shutout before Bautista wild-pitched a run home in the 9th, ending the staff's scoreless streak at a club-record 40 innings. Williams had the big bat again, going 2-3 with a steal and a 2-run homer.

Team record: 70-49. It's great to have the second-best record in baseball, but not so great to be in a division with the team that has the best one as despite a 5-1 week the Rays find themselves in the same place they were when it started: 5 back of Baltimore. They have put quite the stranglehold on the #1 wild card however. Next week: On the road for 3 in Seattle, and a day off before playing 3 in Milwaukee.

Players of the Week:

AL: Marcell Ozuna (CHI), 15-26, 2 HR, 10 RBI
NL: Nolan Gorman (STL), 11-24, 5 HR, 10 RBI

On the farm: Yanier Diaz has no business being in AAA but with the Rustchman acquisition and the fact that Campusano has a better glove to serve as the backup, Durham is where he is and to his credit he's certainly not pouting. This week he went 15-25 with a homer and 7 RBI and is hitting an absurd 364/404/743 with 33 HR and 93 RBI in 86 games for the Bulls. He'll likely get rewarded with a callup in a couple of weeks when the rosters expand.

[Art Deco]

Transaction: Decided to give Yainer Diaz a shot at the DH role given how much he was raking at Durham. He'll replace the last guy raking at Durham who wasn't hitting at the MLB level, Hunter Owen (4 for 34 with 1 HR).

August 18: at Seattle 3-4 L. LP-Bradley (10-6, 5 3 3 2 3 5). HR-Paredes (20). Rays fell just short in this one, nearly coming all the way back from 3-0 down.

August 19: at Seattle 2-8 L. LP-Pepiot (10-9, 5 8 4 4 2 3). HR-C.Williams (18). This one was close until Seattle scored 4 in the 8th but yet another loss on the road.

August 20: at Seattle 0-3 L. LP-McClanahan (7-11, 6.2 7 3 2 1 6). A typical McClanahan start with no run support. Somehow the bats couldn't get anything going off Luis Castillo who came into the game with a 6.34 ERA, going 7 1 0 0 3 7 against him and managing only 3 hits in total.

August 21: Off-Day.

August 22: at Milwaukee 4-7 L. LP-Senga (2-1, 4.2 9 7 7 3 3). HR-J.Lowe (14), B.Jones (12). After 3 excellent starts since coming over from San Diego, Senga put up a stinker.

August 23: at Milwaukee 0-3 L. LP-Springs (7-10, 5.1 4 3 3 3 7). And the Rays remain roadkill, now 28-36 away from home as opposed to 42-18 at the friendly confines of the Trop. Today Springs gave up a 3-run homer in the first and that was all the scoring for the day with the bats only picking up 3 hits and failing to score for the second time in three games.

August 24: at Milwaukee 1-0 W. WP-Robertson (5-4). S-Bautista (28). Starter-Bradley (7 2 0 0 1 7). HR-Paredes (21). A road win! The terrible offense remained terrible but Paredes' homer in the 9th won it and salvaged the series and a great game from Taj.

Team record: 71-54. Still safely in a wild card but the grip on the first one is loosening as Minnesota has pulled within 2 games. Given their glaring home/road disparity, holding on to the #1 wild card is of paramount importance. Next week: Thankfully back home for 3 vs St. Louis and 4 against Seattle.

[Art Deco]

August 25: vs St. Louis 7-5 W. WP-McClanahan (8-1, 5.1 2 4 4 5 7). S-Bautista (29). HR-B.Jones (13). Rays built a 6-0 lead and almost saw it completely disappear before holding on. Yandy was 3-4 with 2 RBI and P.Meadows was 2-4 with 2 doubles and 2 RBI.

August 26: vs St. Louis 14-5 W. WP-Pepiot (11-9, 6.1 4 4 4 3 5). HR-Rutschman 2 (22), Yanier Diaz (1), Westburg (5). A massive game for Adley (3-5, 2 HR, 6 RBI) as well as a big one for Yandy (3-4, 3 RBI) as the Rays demolished the Cards.

August 27: vs St. Louis 4-2 W. WP-Senga (3-1, 5 7 2 2 1 9). S-Bautista (30). HR-T.Hernandez (25). A more sedate affair at the Trop tonight but the result remained the same, another Rays win. Rutschman was big again with a 2-run double in the first and Teoscar went deep.

August 28: vs Seattle 7-6 W. WP-Bautista (7-4). Starter-Springs (4.1 7 4 4 1 7). A wild one that the Rays trailed at one point 4-1 before going up 5-4 in the 8th on a 2-run Paredes single. Bautista then blew the save in the 9th giving up a 2-run homer to former Ray Willy Adames, but the Rays tied it on a Yandy HBP with the bases loaded and then won it on a wild pitch to cap the high drama and make it five straight wins.

August 29: vs Seattle 18-1 W. WP-Bradley (11-6, 6 4 1 0 2 6). Rather than try to recap the offensive highlights here's the applicable section of the box:



Teoscar with one of those "better than the cycle" games - instead of hitting a triple, he hit a second homer.

August 30: vs Seattle 6-5 W. WP-Robertson (6-4). Starter-McClanahan (3.1 7 5 3 2 4). HR-Rutschman (23). Just another one of those "refuse to lose" games for Tampa Bay of late as they were down 5-1 at one point tonight. J.Lowe, who had 3 hits, tied with an RBI single in the 6th and Paredes' sac fly in the 9th brought home the winner.

August 31: vs Seattle 6-3 W. WP-Pepiot (12-9, 5.1 5 3 3 3 7). S-Bautista (31). HR-T.Hernandez (28). A sweep of the series, the homestand and the week for the Rays and 8 wins on the trot as the English say. Teoscar's 2-run homer was big, as was a 2-run triple from Mead.

Team record: 78-54. We have crept to within 4 of Baltimore with a month to go, so who knows? Otherwise we're 3 1/2 ahead of Minnesota in the first wild card and 10 1/2 up on the fourth-place team in that race for a playoff spot. Next week: Time to hit the road starting with 4 in Toronto and then 3 in Kansas City as we go another week without an off-day.

Players of the Week:

AL: Wyatt Langford (TEX), 10-21, 7 HR(!), 12 RBI
NL: Michael Harris II (ATL), 10-27, 4 HR, 12 RBI

Players of the Month (August):

AL Batter: Wyatt Langford (TEX), .374-13-31
NL Batter: Nolan Gorman (STL), .343-11-23
AL Pitcher: Jhoan Duran (MIN), 12 SV, 2.02 ERA, 18K in 13IP
NL Pitcher: former Ray Brendan McKay (PHI), 4-0, 1.78, 35K in 30.1IP
AL Rookie: Tyler Thornton (CLE), 2-1, 2.02 ERA, 42K in 26.2IP
NL Rookie: Dylan Lesko (SD), 4-1, 3.46 ERA, 41K in 39IP