The 2020 (and beyond) Tampa Bay Rays

[Art Deco]

Game 1: It was a struggle but the Rays got back into the win column for the first time in five games with a 5-4 decision over Kansas City. Dayle Jenkins' sac fly after Will Quintana set things up with a double in the bottom of the 8th broke a 4-4 tie to give Tampa Bay the win. Josh Hanna started and wasn't his best, going 5 7 4 3 2 5 and surrendering a couple of homers to put the Rays in a 4-2 hole. But the bullpen was excellent from there with Eric Riley, Billy Hoyte and Tim Siqueiros (who got the win) getting it done through the 8th. Kikuo Kawase had a 1-2-3 9th for save #6. Chris Peters was 2-4 with an RBI and Jaiden Hardaway, off to a slow start at .216, had a big 2-run single in the 6th to tie it up.

Game 2: A 3-homer, 4-run 6th inning was the difference as the Rays broke a 3-3 tie and went on to wallop the Royals 11-3 at Publix Park. Danny Ayala led off the inning with #10 to break the tie, Jon Jimenez hit a 2-run shot (#9) and Jeff Baez followed with a solo jack (#4) to put the Tampa Bay ahead to stay, and they tacked on 4 more in the 8th on a Baez double, a 2-run Mike McKee double, and Dayle Jenkins' 2nd RBI double of the day. Earlier Victor de Jesus hit #5 with a man on in the 1st to give them an early lead. On the mound Nate Thompson had an up-and-down start, finishing 5.1 7 3 3 2 8 and allowing a pair of homers. He left with a man on, Danny Medina got an out and put two more on to load the bases and Billy Hoyte came through with the biggest out of the game in the top of the 6th by getting Jerry Bowman (who had homered off Thompson earlier) to hit into a fielder's choice to end the threat. Hoyte pitched the 7th and earned his 2nd win of the season while Willie Bertone went 2 clean innings with 4 whiffs.

Game 3: A rough conclusion to the series as Kansas City took a 5-3 win over the Rays who mounted a too-little, too-late comeback attempt. Ron Adams started and was pitching his best game of the year to date (4.2 3 1 1 1 6) before having to leave with a bone spur in his elbow which will sideline him for 3 weeks. Eric Riley took over and got through the 5th but in the 6th he put two men and young KC up-and-comer Jonathan Vaughn hit his 2nd HR of the game, a 3-run shot to break it open. A couple of errors led to another run in the inning as Riley went 2 1/3 with the 3 ER allowed and Bob Sirna went the final 2 scoreless with 4 Ks. The bats were silenced until the 8th when Omar Rodriguez led off with his 4th HR of the year and they loaded the bases for Jon Jimenez but his deep fly to left was caught short of the wall for a sac fly instead of a grand slam. Jaiden Hardaway tripled in a run in the 9th to make it interesting but Victor de Jesus whiffed to end the game.

Team record: 18-7, only 2 up on Boston which is off to a 16-9 start including the sweep of the Rays over the weekend. Next up: Two off days (???) followed by a pair of games in Boston.

[Art Deco]

April 28: Placed P Ron Adams on the 10-day IL with a bone spur in his elbow, recalled P Edgar Rios from AAA Durham.

As mentioned before Adams should miss 3 weeks. Eric Riley will take his rotation spot in 4 days, while Rios was only at Durham because our roster is insanely loaded.

Game 1: This was being billed as the Rays' biggest regular season game in recent memory since they've run off and hid from the rest of the division the last several years but only hold a 2 1/2-game lead on the Red Sox nearly a month into the season. Well make that 3 1/2 games as the Rays took a 5-1 win at Fenway Park. Nate Schultz started and was never really comfortable, putting numerous men on, but gutted it out to go 6 5 1 1 4 4 and improve to 3-0, 3.13. Billy Hoyte continues to be more consistent in Year 2 with the Rays and he threw a pair of scoreless innings while Willie Bertone pitched around a leadoff walk to finish the 9th. On offense the runs came early with 2 in the 3rd on an RBI single from Victor de Jesus and a bloop RBI double for Eric Titcombe. Then in the 4th Jaiden Hardaway hit #4 with 2 men on over The Monster to make it 5-0 Rays at that point. Chris Peters had an interesting game, he doubled and scored in his first at-bat then walked in his next 4 plate appearances.

Game 2: The Rays completed a mini-Boston Massacre with a 13-4 rout of the Red Sox as they reasserted AL East dominance. Scoring 7 times in the first 3 innings, Tampa Bay made sure Boston was never going to be in it, with the big blow a 3-run Danny Ayala homer (#11) in the 2nd. By the time we were done tallying the box score, Victor de Jesus was 3-5 with a HR (#6) and 3 RBI, Ayala had 3 hits and drove in 4, Jon Jimenez was 4-5 with 2 RBI, and Mike McKee, Dayle Jenkins and Robbie Salazar (seeing his first action since being recalled) each had 2 hits and a ribbie. All this support made it easy for Leo Ortega who went 6.1 7 2 2 2 4 to go to 3-2, 3.22. Bob Sirna coughed up Eric Knatz's 2nd homer of the day for a couple runs in the 8th in his 1 2/3 of work and Edgar Rios made his first Rays appearance of the year with a 1-2-3 9th.

Team record: 20-7. Next up: 4 games in Kansas City.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: Danny Ayala took some heat last postseason when he failed to hit a homer after blasting 42 during the regular season, and he's said that criticism has motivated him this year. And who are we to argue after nights like tonight? He hit his MLB-leading 12th longball of the season and drove in 5 runs to pace the Rays to an 11-2 rout of the Royals at Kauffman Stadium in the first of a 4-game series. His RBI single got the Rays on the board in the 1st, and he added a 2-run homer in the 5th and a 2-run double in the 9th. Jon Jimenez had a 2-run double in the 4th to make it 3-0 and Eric Titcombe hit HR #5 with a man on in the 9th. This was plenty for Josh Hanna, who didn't have a single clean inning tonight but pitched around his runners to the tune of 6 7 1 1 2 3 to go to 3-0, 3.00. Edgar Rios, Mike Wherry and Kevin Kerstetter each went one frame with Wherry allowing an unearned run.

Game 2: The Rays got an excellent emergency long relief outing from Danny Medina and just enough hitting to take a 4-1 win over Kansas City. After Nate Thompson had to leave after an inning with back stiffness (which he should be able to pitch through in his next start), Medina came on and went 5 5 1 1 0 2 to save the day and pick up his 3rd win. Willie Bertone, Tim Siqueiros and Kikuo Kawase combined for 5 walks in their 3 innings but didn't allow any hits or runs and Kawase notched save #7. Jaiden Hardaway (who had 3 hits) and Dayle Jenkins hit back-to-back doubles in the 3rd to get them on the board, and a Jon Jimenez RBI double and a Jeff Baez sac fly tripled the lead in the 4th. Omar Rodriguez added HR #6 leading off the 6th for their final run.

Game 3: The 5th starter slot has been a problem for the Rays this year. First Jon Soranno went down for the season, then Ron Adams had his struggles and got hurt and will be out a couple of more weeks. So it fell to Eric Riley today and it did not go well at all. He was hit for 5 runs in the first two innings, which took him 59 pitches, before settling down a little from there, going 3 more innings and only allowing a solo homer but his final line of 5 7 6 6 2 3 was awful as the Rays fell 6-2 to the Royals today. He'll get another start while we wait for Adams to come back but did this one didn't build up any goodwill. Kevin Kerstetter, who's probably thinking "what do I need to do to get a chance to start?", went 3 perfect innings in relief. Of course the bats weren't any help today and until Victor de Jesus led off the 7th with a double they didn't even manage a hit. Danny Ayala doubled home de Jesus and Mike McKee hit a solo homer (#2) but that was it for the offense.

Game 4: As poor a start as they got yesterday from Eric Riley they got a great one from Nate Schultz today in a 3-1 win to take the series by the same margin. Schultz gave up a single to the first man he faced and then didn't allow another hit until the 7th as he went 8 2 1 1 3 10 in a dominant performance. The righty is now 4-0, 2.78 after Kikuo Kawase had a 1-2-3 2K 9th for save #8. The bats banged out 12 hits but needed two solo homers to help score three runs today, with Dayle Jenkins (#2) going deep in the 1st and Jaiden Hardaway (#5) in the 7th. Three straight singles culminating in Omar Rodriguez's RBI knock brought home the other run as O-Rod had a 3-hit day along with Jenkins.

Team record: 23-8. Next up: We head to Baltimore for 2 and then have a rare Sunday off.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: It's been a few years, but the Rays used to be good for one old-fashioned bullpen meltdown a season at Camden Yards and today was a return to the bad old days as they squandered a 6-1 lead in the 7th and then had to slog through 16 innings, only to take a 7-6 lead and then lose 8-7 on a walk-off homer in the bottom of the inning. Will Quintana's first hit of the long night brought home Melvin Gutierrez and the Rays looked to be salvaging the victory they should have had in regulation after Billy Hoyte got the first two out in the bottom of the inning. But Kyren Paris singled and then the immortal Yeikel Blandin, 35-rated for power and who had 5 career HR in 475 AB, took Hoyte over the RCF wall for the walk-off winner. Homers by Eric Titcombe and Jaiden Hardaway (who had a 5-hit game in 9 AB), the 6th of the year for each, helped the Rays to a big early lead and with Leo Ortega on the mound, things looked good. But Ortega put a couple on with one out in the 7th and Willie Bertone was terrible, allowing those two to score and loading the bases with his own runners. Mike Wherry then came in and gave up a bases-clearing double and the game was tied for the next 8 innings. Wherry had a clean 8th, Tim Siqueiros went 2 innings, Edgar Rios was impressive in his 2 innings and Kikuo Kawase went 3 perfect innings with 4 whiffs and would have had the win if Hoyte hadn't blown it.

Game 2: No bullpen collapse tonight as the Rays took the lead, built on it, and didn't let Baltimore back into the game in an 8-1 win. It was only a 2-1 game after 6 but Tampa Bay broke it open with 6 runs over the final 3 innings. Josh Hanna started and was excellent, going 6.1 4 1 1 3 9 (I'd like to see him cut down the walks, but I'm not complaining about tonight) to improve to 4-0, 2.75 while Danny Medina was electric in retiring all 5 men he faced with 4 via the whiff and Bob Sirna struck out the side in the 9th. Dayle Jenkins and Chris Peters had RBI singles early before the late fireworks which saw Jaiden Hardaway hit #7 with a man on, Danny Ayala launch #13 and drive in 2, and Eric Titcombe deliver a 2-run double.

Team record: 24-9. Next up: A weird Sunday off-day, then the Diamondbacks come to Publix Park for a 3-game set and what I also believe is their first time visiting.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: The Diamondbacks came into Tampa for their first visit to Publix Park with a horrific 8-26 record, and now they're 8-27 after a predictable 16-5 rout by the Rays. Tampa Bay banged out 18 hits, with Jon Jimenez's 4 leading the way along with 2 RBI, Eric Titcombe was 3-5 with a HR (#7) and 3 RBI, Victor de Jesus went 3-4 with 4 runs scored and 2 RBI, and Jaiden Hardway was 2-3 with a walk and a big bases-clearing double that keyed a 9-run 2nd which put the Rays ahead for good. That was because Eric Riley was horrible once again, giving up runs in the first two innings to put them in a brief 2-0 hole, and after he found himself up 9-2 he gave up 3 more runs and couldn't finish the 4th, going 3.2 8 5 5 2 3. He's out of the rotation (and probably headed to Durham). Kevin Kerstetter, who will get the next start when we need him, went 2 1/3 with 5 whiffs for his first win of the year and Edgar Rios, who has been brilliant since being recalled, pitched 3 perfect innings with 4 strikeouts to get his first Rays save.

Game 2: Nate Schultz was brilliant and the Rays bided their time before striking late to take a 4-1 win over Arizona. Schultz went 8 3 1 1 0 11 in a near-duplicate of his previous start against Kansas City and is now 5-0, 2.53 and 47-7 as a Ray during the regular season over the last 2+ years. The gem only took him 95 pitches but he gave way to Kikuo Kawase in the 9th, who struck out a pair around a two-out walk for his 9th save. The game was 1-1 until the 7th when Eric Titcombe continued to shake off his slow start with his 8th homer of the year to break the deadlock, and they tacked on a pair of insurance runs in the 8th off a wild pitch and a Victor de Jesus RBI single.

Game 3: The Rays completed the series sweep against the hapless Diamondbacks with a 6-2 win at Publix Park behind Leo Ortega. The veteran righty was in control, going 6 5 0 0 0 5 to improve to 4-2, 2.96. The bullpen behind him was a mixed bag as Willie Bertone continues to struggle, walking the leadoff man in the 7th and giving up a 2-run homer, but Billy Hoyte and Tim Siqueiros turned in scoreless innings to close it out. The unlikely combo of Mike McKee and Robbie Salazar got the offense going in the 2nd with the former hitting a 2-run double and the latter bringing home another run with a sac fly to make it 3-0, and Jon Jimenez launched HR #10 with a man on to open things up. Jimenez later drove in another run with a fielder's choice.

Team record: 27-9. Next up: An off-day then the Yankees visit for 3 over the weekend.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: A back-and-forth game ended the Rays' way as they scored twice in the 8th to take a 6-4 win over the Yankees at Publix Park. Chris Peters was today's hero with an RBI double to break a 4-4 tie and he scored on Jaiden Hardaway's 4th hit of the game, an RBI single to give the Rays the advantage. Mike Wherry pitched a scoreless 8th for his 3rd relief win of the year and Kikuo Kawase had a 1-2-3 9th for save #10. Before that it was a game of homers as the Yankees hit 3 off Josh Hanna, including a 2-run Brayan Buelvas pinch-hit blast in the 7th to tie the game at 4. Hanna finished 6.1 6 4 4 1 7 as at least he kept the walks down for a change. The Rays built a 4-2 lead in the 6th on solo homers from Victor de Jesus (#7) and Eric Titcombe (#9) and had an earlier blast from Jon Jimenez (#11), who also doubled twice including one to get the 8th-inning rally going.

Game 2: The Rays rode a 6-run 4th inning to blow open their game against the Yankees and take a 13-2 win. The big news though was that they finally got a good start out of the 5th starter slot as Kevin Kerstetter joined the rotation (perhaps temporarily, perhaps not) and went 6 5 2 0 2 6 for the win. Eric Riley, whose spot Kerstetter took, went the final 3 innings for save #1 despite walking the bases loaded in the 8th before getting an Ivan Vega strikeout to escape. The hitting hero among several was Danny Ayala, 4-4 with a homer (#14) and 4 RBI, but also having big days were Victor de Jesus, 3-5 with a double and 3 RBI, and Dayle Jenkins, 3-5 with an RBI triple. Chris Peters added a 2-run blast (#2) while Jaiden Hardaway was on base his usual 3 times on two hits and a walk with 3 runs scored.

Game 3: Nate Schultz continued his roll and the offense did its thing in an 8-3 win over the Yankees to sweep the series and make it 7 straight wins. Schultz shut New York out through 7 but ran out of gas in the 8th having started the inning on 85 pitches, giving up two hits and a run. Willie Bertone then came in and crapped the bed again, allowing 2 more runs and putting all 3 batters he faced on base. So it was Billy Hoyte to the rescue, escaping the inning with a couple of whiffs and no further damage and pitching the 9th for his 2nd save while Schultz finished 7 5 2 2 1 3 to improve to 6-0, 2.54. Danny Ayala and Dayle Jenkins led the offensive charge, each going 3-5 with 2 RBI with Ayala hitting HR #15 and Jenkins a 2-run triple. Omar Rodriguez was also 3-5 with a pair of doubles and an RBI.

Team record: 30-9. Next up: An off-day, then 2 games in Columbus.

[Art Deco]

May 14: Optioned P Willie Bertone to AAA Durham, activated P Ron Adams from the 10-day IL.

Bertone has struggled big-time of late so he'll go to Durham to see if he can get straightened out. For now, Adams will pitch out of the bullpen as we have off-days galore and Kevin Kerstetter pitched so well in his opportunity to start.

Game 1: The venerable baseball cliche that good pitching stops good hitting was borne out tonight when reigning NL Cy Young winner Fabian Petrovich did a number on the Rays in a 4-1 Columbus win. The righty struck out 13 Rays in his 7 1/3 innings of work, allowing only a Dayle Jenkins RBI double. Outside of Jaiden Hardaway (who had 2 hits) and Omar Rodriguez (who had 3 including a triple and a double), the bats were shut down tonight. Leo Ortega started and gave up a homer on his first pitch of the game and he finished with a mediocre 5.1 8 4 4 0 4 outing which included another Lightning round-tripper. Ron Adams came in for his first action in several weeks and looked good, going 2 2/3 scoreless with a pair of whiffs.

Game 2: Nationwide Stadium has been more like Nightmare Stadium for the Rays over the years, with the possible exception of the 2030 World Series as they lose again to Columbus 8-2. Nate Thompson made his first start in two weeks as he'd been skipped over due to a sore back, and after today's outing he probably developed a sore neck as he had to constantly swivel his head with all the hard-hit balls from the Lightning. He gave up 4 in the first, including a 3-run homer, and finished a brutal 4.2 5 7 7 4 3 with the walks not good either. The last run against him scored when Eric Riley was greeted with a homer and Riley had to come out after 2 1/3 with a sore elbow. Not terribly serious (2 weeks DtD) but he'll go in the IL. Meanwhile the bats continued to have contact issues as Juan Rosales, the Lightning's prize young lefty, struck out 9 in his 6 innings. Jaiden Hardaway did get to him for HR #8 and Hardaway also scored after doubling in the first on a Dayle Jenkins single but the bottom four spots in the lineup were a combined 0-16.

Team record: 30-11. Next up: An off-day to lick our wounds, then we head to Yankee Stadium for a 3-game weekend set.

[Art Deco]

May 18: Placed P Eric Riley on the 10-day IL with a sore elbow, activated P Raymher Costa from his rehab assignment at AAA Durham.

Costa whiffed 16 in 11 1/3 innings over a pair of rehab starts, so I'm declaring him ready to pitch in long relief for us.

Game 1: The Rays got back into the win column thanks to an excellent outing from Josh Hanna and an offense that broke it open late as they beat the Yankees 5-0. Hanna was in command and went 6 5 0 0 2 6 to improve to 5-0, 2.77 as he's had no problem adjusting to his new team. Mike Wherry went two perfect innings with three Ks and Edgar Rios remained unscored upon in 8 1/3 innings since his recall with a 1-2-3 9th. They held a slender 1-0 lead through 6 on a double play grounder which brought Jaiden Hardaway home in the 1st but Jon Jimenez went to work, ripping an RBI double in the 7th and homering in the 8th (#12). Will Quintana and Hardaway added RBI singles in the 3-run 7th.

Game 2: Nate Schultz remained red-hot and the Rays eked out a 3-2 win over the Yankees. Like his last time out Schultz took a shutout into the 8th on 85 pitches, and also like last time he was nicked for a couple of runs, today on a single and a homer to start the inning before departing. Tim Siqueiros came on and emphatically crushed any Yankee comeback hopes in that inning by striking out the side, and Kikuo Kawase made it interesting in the 9th putting men on 1st and 3rd with one out before getting two whiffs to end it. Schultz is now 7-0, 2.54 while Kawase picks up save #11. Only five hits from the offense today but two of them were longballs: Danny Ayala's 16th in the 5th and Jaiden Hardaway's 9th in the 6th. A Jeff Baez sac fly in the 7th brought in the third run, which proved to be the difference.

May 20: Sent 3B Bo Angeac to AAA Durham for a rehab assignment.

As Bo's been out a month, I figured we'll give him a few at-bats over the next 4-5 days at Durham. It'll be great to have him back as Chris Peters is hitting .165 in his place. Peters has drawn a fair number of walks, but strikes out about every third at-bat.

Game 3: Kevin Kerstetter had another fine start and Jeff Baez smacked a pair of 2-run homers to lead the Rays to a 6-1 win over the Yankees and a sweep of the series. Kerstetter went 6.1 5 1 1 3 6 and left after walking a couple of men in the 7th. Danny Medina came in and got two big outs as the score was only 3-1 at that point and when the bats added 3 in the top of the 8th Medina stayed in and retired the next 6 Yankees to finish the game and nab his first save. Kerstetter is now 2-0 as a starter and 3-0, 1.42 overall. After the Yankees scratched out a run in the 2nd, the Rays tied it up in the 3rd on a Dayle Jenkins RBI single before Baez hit the first of his two homers with a man on in the 4th, a Yankee Stadium cheapie just over the short RF wall. They doubled their output in the 8th when Eric Titcombe hit his own cheapie (#10) and Baez hit one more emphatically to left for his 2nd 2-run homer of the game to give him 6 on the season.

Team record: 33-11. Next up: An off-day then it's a World Series rematch as the Dodgers come to Publix Park for a pair.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: The Dodgers came back to town for the first time since last year's World Series and it was a strange game which the Rays ended up taking 4-3. Strange in that it included an unusual start for Leo Ortega. Ortega's a 35 stamina guy who usually only goes 85-90 pitches but typically gets through 6 innings or so because of his pinpoint control and efficiency. Today was not one of those days. Ortega ended up throwing 102 pitches - and it only got him through 3 1/3 innings. His very un-Ortega line was 3.1 4 3 3 3 7 with the Dodgers taking an extremely patient approach, fouling off a lot of pitches and running 3-2 counts galore. A 3-run homer in the 3rd accounted for all the runs against, and Ron Adams took over in the 4th and was brilliant, going 3.2 1 0 0 0 4 and picking up his 2nd win. Tim Siqueiros had a 7-pitch 1-2-3 8th (he's yet to be scored on in 12 1/3 IP this season) and Kikuo Kawase had a 1-2-3 9th for save #12. The offense came via two big blows: a Victor de Jesus 3-run HR in the first (#8, a slow start for him) and Omar Rodriguez's tie-breaking shot (#7) in the 5th. Dayle Jenkins had 4 hits and should have had an RBI but his 7th-inning double bounced over the wall and Jaiden Hardaway had to hold at third.

Game 2: A crazy game at Publix Park saw the Rays come all the way back from a 7-0 deficit to tie it up, only to lose when the Dodgers scored three times in the 10th to take a 10-7 win. Nate Thompson was roughed up once again, going 2.2 7 6 5 0 4 to give him 13 runs allowed over his last two starts in 7.1 IP and he sports an ungodly 6.87 ERA for the season. Raymher Costa came on and immediately gave up a Joe Allen homer to score Thompson's last runner but he, Bob Sirna and Edgar Rios held the Dodgers there through the 8th, buying them enough time to come back. Chris Peters had a huge game for a change, going 4-5 with the game-tying homer (#3) in the 8th, Danny Ayala got them within one in the 7th with #17 to go with an earlier sac fly, and Mike McKee had a 2-run single. But after getting the Dodgers out in the 9th, I probably pushed Tim Siqueiros too far bringing him out for the 10th and although he got the first two outs, he gave up a Danny Ramos homer which was the first run against him this year. Mike Wherry then came in and had all kinds of trouble, including a hit batter, a passed ball and an error, and LA added two more runs to put it away.

Team record: 34-12. Next up: 4 games in Cleveland.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: The Rays were dominated by Cleveland lefty Danny Romero, one of the league's best, in a 2-0 loss at Progressive Field. Romero was 14-9, 2.74 last season and continues to back that up this year as he went 7 2 0 0 2 7 in shackling the Tampa Bay offense. Josh Hanna pitched pretty well (6 8 2 2 0 8) but gave up a 2-run double in the 3rd and that was it as he lost for the first time this season. Billy Hoyte relieved Hanna and after getting through the 7th loaded the bases with one out on an error and two walks, but Edgar Rios got 2 quick strikeouts and is now unscored upon in 10 innings this year with an 0/13 BB/K ratio.

May 25: Activated 3B Bo Angeac from his rehab assignment at AAA Durham, optioned 2B Robbie Salazar to AAA Durham.

Game 2: The Rays' offense returned tonight in a 12-6 win over Cleveland to snap a mini 2-game losing streak. Jon Jimenez led the way with a pair of homers, the first of which tied the game at 3 in the 4th and second (#14) put the Rays ahead to stay in the 6th. Jaiden Hardaway added a 2-run triple in that 5-run 6th which broke the game open and Dayle Jenkins homered (#3) to score Hardaway to cap the inning. Bo Angeac's return helped as well as he was on base 3 times in 5 trips including a double, a walk and a sac fly. Nate Schultz started and was victimized for a couple of early homers to fall behind 3-1 but settled in from there to finish 6.2 6 4 3 1 9 to improve to 8-0. Mike Wherry had a rough time, coughing up a pair of homers of his own, but Danny Medina finished things out by getting 5 outs on 9 pitches.

Game 3: Apparently Rays hitters took getting shut out in the series opener personally as they once again unloaded on Cleveland pitching, this time to the tune of a 17-2 win. The game was effectively over when the Rays put up a 5-spot in the top of the 1st on a 3-run Bo Angeac homer (#5, his first since returning from the IL) and a 2-run Eric Titcombe blast (#11). Mike McKee led off the 2nd with HR #3 and that was plenty for Kevin Kerstetter to roll, going 6 6 2 2 0 6 as he got to start against (and beat) a team other than the Yankees. KK is now 4-0, 1.72 overall, while Rayhmer Costa went two scoreless and Bob Sirna one to finish the game. But after they were up 6-2 the real fun began with an 8-run 6th inning which saw Danny Ayala homer twice. First he led off the inning with a round-tripper and then capped the inning with a 3-run shot. And for good measure Ayala added another 3-run homer in the 8th as his home run hat trick gave him 20 for the year and his 7 RBI upped his total to 54 in 45 games. Stars of the day:



Game 4: Well it was a feast or famine series for Rays hitters as after following up being shut out in Game 1 by scoring 29 runs in the next two games, Cleveland pitching held them in check again in a 3-2 loss. Today it was Emanuel Trejo who held them to 2 runs on 6 hits through 7 despite striking out only one. Eric Titcombe's pinch-hit sac fly in the 7th got the Rays on the board and Jaiden Hardaway launched #10 leading off the 8th, but that was it. A rally in the 9th was cut short when Omar Rodriguez, who reached on his 3rd hit of the game, was caught stealing. Leo Ortega started and was more efficient this time around but got tagged for a 2-run homer in the 3rd which made the difference as he finished 6 4 3 3 1 9 and fell to 4-4, 3.69. Billy Hoyte went two scoreless to keep it close.

Team record: 36-14. Next up: Back home for 3 against Toronto, starting with a Memorial Day tilt.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: The bats blasted out 10 runs on 18 hits to overcome another shaky Nate Thompson start in a 10-5 win over Toronto on a lovely Memorial Day afternoon at Publix Park. Thompson gave up hits to the first 4 Jays which brought in 3 runs, but in the bottom of the inning the Rays answered with back-to-back-to-back homers from Victor de Jesus (#9), Danny Ayala (#21) and Bo Angeac (#6) and kept tacking on runs. Blowing things open was Omar Rodriguez with a 2-run single in the 5th and a 3-run homer (#8) in the 7th. Thompson hung around long enough to go to 4-2 with a 5.1 10 4 4 2 4 outing, keeping his ERA up at an ugly 6.86. Bob Sirna got the final two outs of the 6th to get him out of a jam and Ron Adams went the final 3, allowing a run, to pick up his first MLB save.

Game 2: Another double-digit drubbing of Toronto as the Rays won 14-5 and were up 11-0 by the 2nd inning. It was 5-0 after the first on a 2-run Dayle Jenkins HR (#4) and a 3-run double from Jeff Baez, then in the 2nd Eric Titcombe launched a grand slam (#12). Bo Angeac (#7) and Danny Ayala (#22) added solo shots in the 4th. Josh Hanna was excellent with all the run support, going 6 2 2 0 2 7 to improve to 6-1, 2.53, while Raymher Costa couldn't get the 3-inning save after giving up a 3-run homer in the 7th and putting two on to lead off the 8th so Bob Sirna went the final 2 with 3 whiffs.

Game 3: Nate Schultz took a no-hitter into the 8th inning and the Rays completed the series sweep with a 4-2 win over Toronto. Schultz was unhittable until Gabriel Moreno singled to lead off the 8th, and the next two batters also singled to bring home a run. Tim Siqueiros came on and allowed another run to score but got 3 outs in the process and Kikuo Kawase pitched around a hit, a walk, and a 20-minute rain delay to get save #13. Schultz improves to 9-0, 2.67 with today's 7 3 2 2 2 8 gem. It wasn't the offensive orgy of the last two days but they did enough, paced by Omar Rodriguez going 3-4 with 2 doubles and 2 runs scored while Eric Titcombe and Bo Angeac were each 2-4 with a double and an RBI.

Team record: 39-14. Next up: 4 at home vs Minnesota.

[Art Deco]

May 31: Optioned P Raymher Costa to AAA Durham, activated P Eric Riley off the 10-day IL.

The revolving door that is our 14th pitcher spot continues to spin. I'm souring on Costa as the 65 stuff and 80 control can't offset the 25 movement in the big leagues, with 4 homers allowed in 14 1/3 innings. Riley wasn't any great shakes this year either, but he has more upside.

Game 1: Another Publix Park pummeling as the Rays crushed Minnesota 15-4. It was 12-1 by the 4th inning, so one of those days again. Today's hitting heavies were Victor de Jesus, 4-4 with a homer (#10), double and 4 RBI as he continues to rebound from a slow start by his standards, and Jon Jimenez 4-5 with a HR (#15), doubles in his first 3 plate appearances and 3 RBI. Jeff Baez was 2-4 with 3 RBI and Chris Peters gave Bo Angeac a rest by going 3-4 with 2 RBI. Kevin Kerstetter keeps impressing as a starter, going 6 7 2 1 2 7 and is 5-0, 1.69 while just-activated Eric Riley went the final 3, allowing one earned run but fanning 5 for his 2nd 3-inning save of the year.



I left star #3 up as it's our friend Luis Corpus, who got off to a very slow start with his new team but has picked it up as of late.

Also as we conclude the month of May, here's a look at the standings and leaderboards. Danny Ayala and Jon Jimenez, gettin' it done:



Ricky Widmar having a big year for the Cubs, and that includes a 10-day IL stint. Here's hoping for their sake there aren't any more in the offing, but I'm sure there will be. Those other two NL batting WAR leaders look kind of familiar as well.

Some monthly awards:





Folks, Ricky Loya can flat-out rake. What you're seeing here is what happens when a guy with 80-level contact (MLB-rated) plays in AAA. Loya could hit .320 in the majors and while he's not a slugger he has enough power to hit 40 doubles and 20 homers. What are we going to do with him? (insert shrug emoji here).

Game 2: The Rays kept on rolling as the pitching outshone the hitting tonight in a 5-0 win. Leo Ortega and Danny Medina combined on a 4-hit, 0-walk shutout of the Twins with Ortega going 7 3 0 0 0 6 to improve to 5-4, 3.33. All five runs came in the first three innings with Danny Ayala launching a 2-run shot (#23) in the first, Jeff Baez had a sac fly and Mike McKee doubled in a run in the 2nd, and Jon Jimenez hit a solo shot in the third (#16).

Game 3: Another day, another rout as the Rays trounced the Twins 13-0 and have outscored Minnesota 33-4 in the first 3 games of the series. Jon Jimenez was the hitting star today, blasting a grand slam in a 5-run 1st which saw the team bat around, and then he added a 2-run shot in the 5th to give him 18 on the season along with a 364/422/758 slash line which leads MLB. Later on they got homers from Eric Titcombe (#13), Danny Ayala (#24) and a slam from Victor de Jesus (#11). But maybe the big story of the day was Nate Thompson, finally pitching effectively with a 7 3 0 0 3 3 line and lowering his ERA to 5.88 to go with his 5-2 record. Edgar Rios struck out the side in the 8th (he now has an 11 4 0 0 0 16 line in total since coming up) and Mike Wherry walked a pair but whiffed a pair in his scoreless inning.

Game 4: The Rays completed the sweep of Minnesota and notched their third straight shutout in the process in a 3-0 win. Josh Hanna, Tim Siqueiros and Kikuo Kawase combined on a 1-hitter as Hanna went 7.1 1 0 0 2 9 in his best outing as a Ray to improve to 7-1, 2.29. Moussa Gilmore's 2-out double in the 5th was the only Minnesota hit today. Siqueiros got the final 2 outs of the 8th and after walking the first two men in the 9th, Kawase fanned the next three to get his 14th save. Minnesota's Jim Robinson was excellent today in a losing cause, holding the mighty Rays lineup to 7 5 2 2 1 9 but the "2" was courtesy of Omar Rodriguez's 9th HR of the year in the 5th. Jaiden Hardaway singled in an insurance run in the 8th.

Team record: 43-14. Next up: An off-day featuring the Amateur Draft, then 3 games in Detroit which is back upon their accustomed perch atop the AL Central.

[Art Deco]

Rivers: High-school SS from Michigan who looks to be an elite defender (70 IF range, 80 IF error), and pretty well-rounded at the bat with 50s and 60s for potential in most categories including batting eye.

Huthmacher: College junior from Wake Forest, a lefty with 4 pitches who has elite control to offset average stuff.

Gentile: High-school RF from Massachusetts who already has average MLB gap power, and should develop HR power. Not an elite defender or runner, though, so he may end up 1B/DH if the bat comes through.

Flores: High-school 1B from Tallahassee who has 75 power potential and anywhere from 50-65 contact potential depending on the scout.

Miranda: An Indiana high-school 3B who grades out in the 50-60 potential range for all the hitting tools.

Mora: A 6'6", 220-lb righty from South Alabama who has fringy stuff but potentially average-to-above average movement and control.

Schildmeyer: CF from Rutgers who seems like a "grinder" type, 10-12 HR/year power but could hit for average.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: The Rays' offense is just relentless, and the Tigers found that out tonight. Take a 6-2 lead in the middle innings and you should be in good shape, but not when you need to hold down Tampa Bay and that's what happened to Detroit. The Tigers got to Nate Schultz for 6 runs in 5 innings after he unusually walked 4 and gave up a 3-run homer to Pat Rose. But the Rays kept coming back as Omar Rodriguez hit a 2-run shot to make it 6-4 (#10) and then they put 4 on the board in the 7th with a Rodriguez single putting them ahead. Jaiden Hardaway earlier hit #11. Danny Medina got the win with 2 scoreless innings of relief and is now 4-0, 1.98 while Tim Siqueiros pitched the 8th and Kikuo Kawase the 9th for save #15.

Game 2: This was a close 3-2 game until it wasn't, and it wasn't after the Rays broke it open with 4 in the 7th on their way to a 9-2 drubbing of Detroit. Jeff Baez (#7) and Bo Angeac (#8) homered to give the Rays their modest lead going into the 7th, and Dayle Jenkins made it a laugher with his bases-clearing double in that inning, extending his hitting streak to 22 games. Danny Ayala tacked on a 2-run homer (#25) in the 8th for the final margin. Kevin Kerstetter turned in another fine start going 6 6 2 2 1 7 to go to 6-0, 1.87 overall, and Ron Adams was filthy in relief, striking out 7 Tigers in 3 shutout innings including 5 straight at one point to pick up his 2nd save.

Game 3: The Rays made it 10 straight wins with another 9-2 win over Detroit, but this one wasn't as close as yesterday's as they had scored 7 times by the 4th. Eric Titcombe had a 2-run single to open the scoring, Omar Rodriguez homered again in the 2nd (#11) and drove in another run, Jon Jimenez was 2-4 with an RBI, and Victor de Jesus homered as part of a 2-2, 3-run performance (#12). Leo Ortega got the start and went 5.2 5 2 2 1 7 and is now 6-4, 3.32. Edgar Rios continued his remarkable run by retiring all 4 batters he faced (2 on strikes), and Eric Riley went the final two innings without allowing a run.

Team record: 46-14. Next up: 4 in Boston including a Saturday doubleheader.

[Art Deco]

This should read 4 games above, as I forgot about Saturday's doubleheader.

Game 1: The win streak reached 11 with a comfortable 8-2 win over the Red Sox at Fenway Park. Nate Thompson pitched his best game of the year in what has been a season of struggle for him despite a 6-2 won-loss record. He was 7 7 2 2 0 11 tonight, getting the ERA down to 5.46. Bob Sirna went the final two innings and now has 39 whiffs in 22 innings as he's been one of the franchise's best-ever waiver claims after KC let him go in 2032. The offense put 4 on the board in the first highlighted by a 2-run Jon Jimenez single, and Omar Rodriguez hit a 3-run blast in the 4th (#12) to blow it open. In between Jaiden Hardaway also had a solo homer, his 12th as well.

Game 2: The Rays raced out to an 8-0 lead but had to hang on to take a 9-6 decision over the Red Sox in the first game of a doubleheader. Jeff Baez was 3-5 with HR #8, Bo Angeac drove in 3 on a pair of singles, Omar Rodriguez had a 2-run single and Jaiden Hardaway was 3-5 with a steal and 3 runs scored as Tampa Bay got to young Boston ace Sean Nelson. And Josh Hanna cruised, going 6 6 2 2 0 8 and allowing both runs against in his final inning. It was the first 0-walk game for Hanna who had struggled with his control early in the season and he improved to 8-1, 2.33. But the bullpen was an adventure. With the big lead Eric Riley came in and gave up a couple of runs in the 7th then Billy Hoyte walked the bases loaded in the 8th. Tim Siqueiros gave up a 2-run single to make it 8-6 but escaped without further damage and after Mike McKee's RBI single gave them a bit of insurance, Kikuo Kawase made it interesting in the 9th. He too loaded the bases on a walk, a clean single and an infield single, but Houdini'd out of it with a whiff and a groundout for save #16.

Game 3: After finishing the previous game, I had a brain fart and forgot there was a doubleheader so I auto-played all the rest of the games as I usually do and then noticed there was another game. The AI took over this one and it didn't backfire as the Rays made it 13 straight with a 5-1 win. However the AI did make the curious decision of starting Nate Schultz on 3 days' rest, which explains why he was pulled after 4 very good innings (4 2 0 0 2 6). It then used Mike Wherry as a long reliever, and that decision paid off as well as the lefty went 3.1 2 1 1 0 7 for his 4th win of the year with Bob Sirna going the final 1 2/3. On offense Danny Ayala broke up a scoreless game in the 4th with a 2-run HR (#26), while Jaiden Hardaway and Victor de Jesus each hit their 13th HR of the season with the bases empty.

Game 4: 14 straight as Tampa Bay takes a 6-3 win to sweep the 4-game series at Fenway. Danny Medina got the spot start as he was the most rested of the candidates (Adams, Riley) and acquitted himself well, going 5 6 1 1 1 1 to up his record to 5-0. Ron Adams took over in the 6th and whiffed 6 in his 3 innings of work, only allowing a solo homer, and Edgar Rios pitched the 9th and gave up a solo homer as well, the first run scored against him this season. Victor de Jesus paced the offense with a 481-ft 2-run homer in the 5th that disappeared over the CF stands and he walked with the bases loaded to give him a 3-RBI day. 6 walks augmented the 6 hits today as the Rays made the most of their limited opportunities.

Team record: 50-14. Next up: Back home for 3 vs Oakland.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: The Rays' 14-game win streak was snapped thanks to some uncharacteristically bad pitching as they fell 7-6 to Oakland at Publix Park. Kevin Kersetter, who had been lights-out in his previous starts, coughed up a 3-run homer in the 2nd, and after settling down, put a man on the 6th and Edgar Rios came on. Rios, who was finally scored upon his last outing, apparently lost his mojo as a result and gave up a hit to tie the game, put another man on and then gave up his own 3-run homer to put the Rays behind 7-4. Jon Jimenez hit #19 in the bottom of the 6th to make it 7-5, and Jeff Baez singled in a run to get them within one in the 8th, but they couldn't do anything in the 9th after Jaiden Hardaway led off with a single. Earlier Danny Ayala had a first-inning 3-run blast, his 27th. Kerstetter finished 5.1 4 4 4 2 6, Rios took the lose, and the lone mound bright spot was Eric Riley who pitched 3 hitless innings to close it out with 4 whiffs.

Game 2: The Rays got back in the win column thanks to a monster game from Omar Rodriguez in an 11-1 rout of the A's. The third-year outfielder was 4-4 with a pair of 3-run homers and drove in 8 runs total, giving him 14 HR and 50 RBI this year in only 48 games and a 363/418/668 slash line. Eric Titcombe chipped in a 2-run homer (#14) as well. It wasn't all sunshine and rainbows though as Leo Ortega had to leave in the 2nd inning with a back issue and it turns out he'll miss a month with a herniated disc. Bob Siran took over and went 3 innings, allowing one run and picking up his first win of the year and Mike Wherry made it through the final 4 1/3 on only 38 pitches, allowing just one hit and more than earning his first save of the season.

June 13: Placed P Leo Ortega on the 10-day IL with a herniated disc, recalled P Willie Bertone from AAA Durham.

For now I'm going to give Danny Medina another start and see how it goes. Bertone will take Medina's spot in the bullpen and pitched very well at Durham with a 5/17 BB/K ratio in 13 1/3 innings without allowing an earned run.

Game 3: It was another rout for the Rays as they dismantled Oakland 13-2, bashing 7 homers in the process. They came from 6 different hitters, with only Dayle Jenkins, Omar Rodriguez and Jeff Baez failing to go deep today. Those who did were Jon Jimenez (two solo shots, to give him 20), Jaiden Hardaway (a 3-run blast, #14), Danny Ayala (#28, now on pace for a nice 69 HR), Victor de Jesus (#15), Bo Angeac (#9) and Will Quintana (#3). Meanwhile, there was plenty of power on the mound as well as Nate Thompson pitched his second straight dominant game, going 7 3 1 1 1 12 after fanning 11 Red Sox his last time out. He's now 7-2 and the ERA is down to an even 5.00. Billy Hoyte gave up a run on four hits in his two innings of work but fanned four.

Team record: 52-15. Next up: The Angels visit Publix Park for 4 games.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: The Rays' bats were unusually quiet in a 3-2 loss to the Angels in the first game of the series. RJ Dabovich is not who comes to mind when thinking of shutdown pitchers, but he held the Rays to 1 run on 5 hits through his 5 innings and 3 relievers only allowed them 1 more over the final 4. Danny Ayala brought home both runs without a hit, one on a sac fly and the other by getting hit with the bases loaded. Jaiden Hardaway led off the 9th with a double, but was stranded there as the rally fizzled. As a result Nate Schultz went down to defeat for the first time this season (9-1) as it took him 110 pitches to get through 4 2/3, going 4.2 6 3 3 3 7. Ron Adams was brilliant in long relief, going 3.1 1 0 0 1 6 and Willie Bertone had a 1-2-3 9th in his return to the team as they kept it close to no avail.

Game 2: Go figure. After being shut down by RJ Dabovich & company yesterday, the Rays were up against their former longtime ace and still one of the better pitchers in baseball in Christian Little. So of course they bombed him for 7 runs, including 4 homers, in 1 2/3 innings as they topped the Angels 7-4. Jon Jimenez had a 3-run HR (#22) in the 1st (it could have been worse but Jaiden Hardaway was thrown out trying to stretch a single into a double), Jeff Baez (#9) and Mike McKee (#4) went back-to-back in the 2nd, and later in the inning Victor de Jesus hit #16. The offense dried up from there against the LA pen but they built a big enough lead to withstand Josh Hanna's troubles in the 5th when he gave up 3 runs to finish 5 5 4 4 3 6 but still got the win and improved to 9-1. Mike Wherry, Edgar Rios and Tim Siqueiros got them through the 8th with varying degrees of difficulty before Kikuo Kawase retired three straight Angels after hitting the leadoff man in the 9th for save #17.

Game 3: It was time to face another former Rays ace turned LA Angel in Jon Hayes and although the Rays hit 3 homers off him, they were all solo jobs and the extent of the offense in a 5-3 loss. Dayle Jenkins (#5), Victor de Jesus (#17) and Eric Titcombe (#15) all took Hayes deep but it wasn't enough to offset Danny Medina's rough outing. He was more like Danny Mediniocre today going 5.2 9 4 4 3 4 in suffering his first loss of the year. Eric Riley gave up a run in his 2 2/3 innings of work before Bob Sirna got a quick double play to end the 9th as the Rays have now dropped 2 of 3 in this series.

Game 4: The Rays salvaged a split of the 4-game series with the Angels thanks to an 8-2 win today at Publix Park. Jaiden Hardaway offset his two errors in the field by going 4-5 with the bat, driving in a run, Bo Angeac had a key 2-run single to put them ahead to stay, Eric Titcombe drove in a pair and Danny Ayala capped the day with a 2-run homer, his 29th. All of this enabled Kevin Kerstetter to go 7-0, although it was a struggle for him today as it was for all the Rays' starters in this series, as he went 5 6 2 2 3 6. Willie Bertone had a clean 6th and after Edgar Rios pitched the 7th and the Rays turned a 5-2 game into an 8-2 one, he ended up staying in for the duration and got the 3-inning save, his 2nd of the season with 3 scoreless innings.

Team record: 54-17. Next up: 3 games at Yankee Stadium.

Some recognition for Omar:

[Art Deco]

Game 1: Nate Thompson continued his in-season renaissance as the Rays edged the Yankees in New York, 3-2. Thompson went 6.1 7 1 1 1 7 for the win as he's held opponents to 4 runs in his last 27 1/3 innings over 4 starts and now improves to 8-2, 4.67. Mike Wherry got five outs in the 7th and 8th although he allowed a Mario Aguilar solo shot, and Kikuo Kawase fanned a pair around a walk in the 9th for his 18th save. Danny Ayala singled in a run in the 1st, Omar Rodriguez put the Rays ahead to stay in the 6th with his RBI single, and Jaiden Hardaway gave the Rays an insurance run they needed with HR #15 in the 7th as they got the better of Yankee ace Eric Peterson.

Game 2: The Rays rolled to a 9-2 win over the Yankees behind Nate Schultz and a balanced offensive attack today. Schultz retired the first 13 Yankees before running into a bit of trouble in the 5th when he allowed two runs, but that was all he gave up in a 7 3 2 2 2 6 performance to improve to 10-1, 3.10. Billy Hoyte went 6 up, 6 down to finish things out. On offense everyone had a hit except Bo Angeac, and everyone had an RBI except Jaiden Hardaway and Eric Titcombe, but they had 2 hits each with Hardaway contributing 3 stolen bases. The run-scoring was bookended by Jeff Baez's RBI triple in the 2nd which got things going, and Jon Jimenez's 2-run HR (#23) in the 9th to cap things off.

Game 3: Josh Hanna was excellent today as he and two relievers combined on a 3-hitter to take down the Yankees 2-1 and sweep the series. Hanna had his sinker working as the Yankees made 12 of their 21 outs against him on the ground, finishing 7 2 1 1 1 4 on 98 pitches to go to 10-1, 2.52. Tim Siqueiros (ERA of 0.47) and Kikuo Kawase (ERA of 0.89) finished off New York without incident with Kawase notching save #19. The bats put two on the board in the 1st and thanks to the pitching they stood up. Danny Ayala and Bo Angeac had RBI singles to account for the scoring as one-time Rays property Jimmy West held them in check through 6, but it was just enough.

Team record: 57-17. Next up: We hope a cross-country jet plane to Oakland for four games starting tomorrow.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: The Rays scored 7 times in the 6th through 8th to overcome another poor Danny Medina start and beat Oakland 10-5. Jon Jimenez erased a 5-3 deficit with a 2-run homer in the 6th, and Danny Ayala did likewise in the 7th for his 30th of the year to put them ahead to stay, and Jimenez then hit his 2nd of the game (#25) to make it 8-5. Earlier Dayle Jenkins launched #6 and Jaiden Hardaway #16 as Tampa Bay went deep five times. Medina went 4.2 5 5 5 3 2 in his second straight lousy start filling in for Leo Ortega but we'll probably stick with him. Eric Riley took over for an inning and Bob Sirna was brilliant again with 2 1/3 scoreless innings and five strikeouts to pick up his 2nd win. He now has an 11/51 BB/K ratio in 31 innings this year with a 1.48 ERA, and is no longer just a mop-up guy.

Game 2: A 5-run 9th broke open a close game and the Rays took a 9-2 win over Oakland to make it 6 straight victories. They jumped out to a 4-2 lead off Oakland ace Alex Santamaria thanks to a Victor de Jesus RBI double and sac fly and a Danny Ayala solo homer (#31), and then tacked on 5 more in the 9th featuring 2-run singles from Bo Angeac and Eric Titcombe. Kevin Kerstetter continues to thrive in the rotation (unlike his teammate Danny Medina), going 6.1 5 2 2 0 3 to improve to 8-0, 2.55, Willie Bertone got a couple of key outs in the 7th when it was close and Mike Wherry pitched 2 perfect innings with 3 whiffs to nab his 2nd save of the year.

Game 3: The Rays came up with another big win after a shaky start, taking their third straight from Oakland 10-3. Nate Thompson had a nightmarish first inning, walking four men and allowing 3 runs, but settled down after that and made it through 5 to pick up the win, finishing 5 4 3 3 5 6 to go to 9-2. Victor de Jesus was the hitting star today, 4-5 with a homer (#18) and 4 RBI while Dayle Jenkins and Bo Angeac each drove in a pair. Billy Hoyte had 2 innings with 5 whiffs in relief and Edgar Rios also had a pair of scoreless frames.

Game 4: Rinse and repeat: the Rays overcame yet another lousy start, the third in four games this series, to hang on and beat Oakland 9-7 to take a 4-game series sweep and make it 8 straight wins overall. They took leads of 6-0 and 8-4 but Nate Schultz didn't have it today, and 3 errors behind him didn't help either. I tried to get him the win but finally had to pull him with two out in the 5th when a Jhon Diaz double cut the lead to 8-7. Schultz finished 4.2 9 7 3 4 5 in a rough game for him before Bob Sirna came to the rescue again, going 2 1/3 perfect with three whiffs to earn his 3rd win of the year. Tim Siqueiros took care of the 8th and Kikuo Kawase the 9th for save #20. Jon Jimenez had a big day going 2-4 with a HR (#26) and 4 RBI, Victor de Jesus stayed scorching hot with a 3-5, 2 RBI day including HR #19, and Omar Rodriguez delivered 4 hits in 6 trips with one of them his 15th homer. Danny Ayala chipped in an RBI double as the bats continued to feast.

Team record: 61-17. Next up: Finally an off-day, then we make a 3-game stop in Minnesota.

MLB News: Houston's Ricardo Jackson, who pitched a great game against the Rays on Opening Day before missing time with an elbow strain suffered in his second start, is back in action and no-hit the Yankees today, walking 3, whiffing 6 and pitching a Maddux to boot with a count of 96 pitches. He's 4-1, 2.21 in 8 starts and Houston has a firm grip on the first wild card as they look to return to the playoffs for the first time since 2024.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: The Rays' recent run of poor starts continued as Josh Hanna was battered for 6 runs on 11 hits through 3 2/3 and this time the bats couldn't overcome it in a 7-3 loss at Target Field to the Twins. Hanna couldn't escape any of the first four innings without allowing a run although at least this time he didn't walk anyone. Eric Riley looked good over 3 1/3 innings of scoreless relief but Willie Bertone gave up a run in his lone inning. Offensively there were a few bright spots with Jon Jimenez going deep again (#27) with a man on, Omar Rodriguez hitting a double and a triple, and Will Quintana getting 3 hits including an RBI double.

Game 2: Tampa Bay finally got a decent start and it came from a surprise source in a 5-3 win over Minnesota which also saw the offense come from a surprise source. Ron Adams got the nod over Danny Medina and the 2nd-year man delivered a solid start, going 7 5 3 3 2 6 on 102 pitches for his 3rd win of the year. Tim Siqueiros was the cause of, and solution to, all of his problems in the 8th when he gave up a double and two walks to load the bases with nobody out and then got two whiffs and a fly ball to get out of it. Kikuo Kawase did likewise, giving up a pair of hits to put men on 1st and 3rd to start the 9th, but got two shallow fly balls and a strikeout to end the game for save #21. Meanwhile Will Quintana was the unlikely hero on offense, following up yesterday's 3-hit day with a 2-homer day today to give him 5. He had a 2-run shot in the 3rd and followed that up with an insurance homer in the 8th to make it 5-3. Jon Jimenez's RBI double and Jaiden Hardaway's sac fly put them ahead to stay in the 6th.

Game 3: Kevin Kerstetter was magnificent once again to lead the Rays to a 3-1 win over Minnesota in the rubber game of their series. The lefty has made himself a permanent fixture in the rotation with one fine start after another and today was no exception in a 6.2 3 0 0 1 8 performance which saw him improve to 9-0, 2.29. Over the past few years it was almost comical how many other pitchers got a chance to fill in as a starter while Kerstetter was passed over as he was so good in long relief, but his spot is safe as long as he stays healthy as Jon Sorrano is out for this year and Leo Ortega is a free agent at season's end. Danny Medina, back in the pen after struggling as a starter, retired all 4 men he faced in getting through the 8th, and Kikuo Kawase got save #22 despite being scored upon for only the second time this year (the first was 2 runs allowed on April 6) when he lost the shutout with 2 out in the 9th after allowing his third hit, although he did get 3 strikeouts. There wasn't a lot of offense but Dayle Jenkins figured in it all, with his 1st-inning double moving Jaiden Hardaway to 3rd where he scored on a Danny Ayala sac fly, and his 2-run homer in the 5th (#7) providing the difference.

Team record: 63-18. Next up: 3 games at home against the team closest to being their peer, the Rangers. Texas is off to its own blistering start at 56-25 and these teams could be destined for yet another ALCS meeting.

MLB News: A couple of days ago the Cubs pulled off a deal to acquire Cincinnati ace Zach Burgmeier, a guy I've eyed over the last couple of years as well. Today in his Chicago debut he got two out in the 1st before tearing his rotator cuff and is done for the season. Oof. Also in that game Atlanta's Jon Redondo, second in the NL in batting average, had a rare 6-hit day in a 9-inning game.