The 2021 (and only 2021) Tampa Bay Rays

[Art Deco]

In which our poor pitching and defense caught up with us as the Rays were lucky to win one of the three games in the series.

That win came in the opener when came back to tie in the 8th and got solo homers from Billy Carlow (#15) and Orlando Tosado (#9) in the 10th to take a 7-5 win. Arturo Gutierrez had an earlier 2-run homer (#9) and they won despite a lousy Joe Marlette start (4.2 7 4 4 4 3). Human good-luck charm Mike Moore went to 5-0 already with the win in relief and Josh Scanlon recorded his 8th save.

Pedro Avila's second Rays start wasn't much better than his first but it was a subdued performance from the bats which led to a 4-3 loss. Avila (0-2) was 5 5 4 4 3 5 but the offense scored fewer than four runs for only the second time this month.

Although Wes Mendes gave them another lousy start, the 7-6 loss to the Twins in the finale was on the bullpen as they blew a late 6-4 lead. First it was Mike Moore allowing a solo homer in the 8th to make it 6-5 and then in the 9th Josh Scanlon (2-2) suffered his 4th blown save already after giving up a 2-run homer to Rhys Hoskins to let Minnesota walk it off. Mendes was dreadful once again at 3.2 6 4 4 3 4 with a 7.39 ERA but that bats overcame it with Kelly Crumpton hitting a 3-run blast (#7), Orlando Tosado's solo shot (#10) and Arturo Gutierrez's 2-run homer (#10) which gave them the 6-4 lead.

Team record: 26-12. Next up: An off-day then interleague play begins with 3 at the Trop against Philly.

[Art Deco]

The Rays swept the Phillies at Tropicana Field and did so in a more pleasing way, winning a trio of fairly sedate games with good pitching for a change.

Chris Ferguson continues to cement his status as our #2 starter after another excellent outing in a 3-1 win over Philadelphia in the opener. The righty improved to 4-0, 3.08 after a 6 4 1 1 4 5 outing and Josh Scanlon preserved the win for save #9. William Contreras' 4th-inning 2-run homer (#3) provided the winning margin.

The Rays took a 9-2 win in the second game behind a rare decent start from Shane Panzini. It looked like more of the same when the beleaguered righty coughed up a 2-run homer in the first, his 8th, but he settled in and earned a win (3-2) by going 5 4 2 2 2 5. He was afforded plenty of support with Cristian Hernandez and William Contreras leading a team effort by each going 2-4 with 2 RBI as they scored 9 runs despite managing only one XBH, a double.

Tampa Bay completed the sweep with a 4-2 win over the Phillies. Joe Marlette was in last year's Cy Young form, improving to 5-0 after a 6 3 1 0 1 8 dominant outing. The pen was solid with Josh Scanlon notching save #10. Arturo Gutierrez led the offense, going 3-5 with HR #11 and 2 RBI.

Team record: 29-12. Next up: More interleague action at the Trop with a harder opponent this time in the always-tough (and heavy-hitting) Nationals who sit atop the NL East at 25-17.

[Art Deco]

The Rays faced a tough opponent in Washington and had a tough series, winning the finale to avert a sweep.

Pedro Avila had his best start since joining the Rays but it didn't matter as the bats went silent in a 3-0 Washington win. Avila (0-3) matched Nats starter Jairo Solis zero-for-zero until the 6th when he put the first two on and left, and Mason Feole let them score along with one of his own. Avila finished a respectable 5 4 2 2 4 7 and probably shouldn't have come out for the 6th. But with the offense kept off the board and held to five hits it meant no difference.

The Rays took it on the chin from Washington again 9-3 and had to score in the 9th inning to avoid a second straight shutout. Wes Mendes (1-5) was kind of lousy again, going 5 7 6 2 2 4. Although a Cristian Hernandez error made 4 of the 6 runs Washington scored in the 2nd unearned, most of that was on Mendes including a 2-run homer he allowed.

Not sure where we'd be without Chris Ferguson this year, especially after Kevin DiCostanzo went down for the season, and the righty acquired from the Angels this offseason went to 5-0 in a 6-3 Rays win over Washington. Facing one of the toughest lineups in the league outside of ours, Ferguson went 5 4 2 2 3 6 and the bullpen held the fort the rest of the way with Josh Scanlon striking out the side in the 9th for save #11. A pair of big hits supplied most of the offense with Kelly Crumpton blasting a 2-run homer (#8) to put them ahead to stay and Joshua Baez clearing the bases with a 5th-inning double to open things up.

Team record: 30-14, 6 games up on Toronto. Next up: Off to Yankee Stadium for a quick 2-game series.

[Art Deco]

The Rays are finally getting some good pitching of late and parlayed that into a couple of comfortable wins at Yankee Stadium.

"Good pitching" and Shane Panzini haven't been used much in the same sentence this season but the righty was actually effective if not impressive tonight in a 6-2 win over the Yankees. Panzini (4-2) got out of a bases-loaded jam in the first and finished 5 3 1 1 4 3 for the win. Not a Picasso but a gem compared to most of his other 2033 outings. He was supported by two-run homers from his apparently-no-longer-feuding teammates Nate Strickland (#14) and Alex Calderon (#7) as well as a solo shot from Orlando Tosado (#11).

He got off to an inconsistent start to 2033 but Joe Marlette has been rounding back into his 2032 Cy Young form of late and today was his best start of the season as he took a no-hitter into the 7th as the Rays swept the two-game series from New York with a 6-0 win. Marlette had to sit through a 47-minute rain delay in the 4th which meant he probably wasn't going to finish a no-hitter but still improved to 6-0 with a brilliant 7 1 0 0 1 7 outing which lowered his ERA to 3.04. Kelly Crumpton's 1st-inning 2-run homer (#9) was all the support he'd need but Nate Strickland added a 2-run single for good measure.

Team record: 32-14. Next up: Another 2-game set, this time in Toronto. We lead the second-place Jays by 8 games and another sweep could see the division race potentially over by Memorial Day.

[Art Deco]

Rays got a split in Toronto, so the division lead stays at 8 games.

Arturo Gutierrez made history in the opener:



A 4-homer game. I'm hard-pressed to recall this happening with any of my players in any of my saves and Gutierrez has become the first Ray to homer 4 times in a game and only the 19th in MLB history. And I'm sure it's one of the few (if not the first) times they were all solo shots. Anyway his record game made a winner of Pedro Avila for the first time in a Rays uniform even though Avila was a bit spotty.

Wes Mendes got knocked around in the second game as the Rays fell 7-4. Vlad Guerrero Jr. had a huge game, going 4-5 with 3 RBI as Mendes (1-6) was 4.2 10 4 4 0 4. Tampa Bay did get solo homers from Jonathan Gutierrez (#3), Nate Strickland (#15) and Orlando Tosado (#12).

Team record: 33-15. Next up: Back home for 3 vs Baltimore.

[Art Deco]

The Orioles came into this series 13-35 and the Rays took full advantage in sending Baltimore to a 13-38 record afterwards.

Arturo Gutierrez, who hit 4 homers two days ago, made it 6 in 3 games by going yard his first two times up to lead the Rays to a 7-3 win over the Orioles in the opener at Tropicana Field. He led the game off with his first and then added a 2-run shot in the 3rd to give him the AL lead with 17. William Contreras was 2-4 with 2 RBI while Wander Franco had 4 hits but on the last of those, a double, he had to leave with knee tendinitis which will keep him out about a month. Meanwhile Chris Ferguson keeps truckin' along, improving to 6-0 after a 6.2 6 2 2 2 2 outing.

Transaction: Wander went on the IL and the slick-fielding SS Mu-Sang Park, who broke camp with us, is back up and will play every day at the position improving our defense at least.

The Rays had to work harder for a win in the second game, getting a William Contreras walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the 9th to take a 3-2 victory over Baltimore. Tampa Bay got an unusually good start from Shane Panzini at 6 6 2 2 0 3 and the win went to Josh Scanlon (3-2). Joshua Baez had HR #8 earlier as the game was 2-2 after 3 and stayed that way until the end.

Tampa Bay routed Baltimore 9-3 in the finale as Joe Marlette went to 7-0. The lefty did have to labor today, needing 110 pitches to go 5 6 1 1 4 6 but thanks to the ample support he was given a long leash to qualify for the win. Kelly Crumpton had a 2-run HR (#11) in the first, Orlando Tosado added a 3-run blast (#13) and Billy Carlow doubled and drove in a pair.

Team record: 36-15. Next up: Kansas City visits for 3 games.

[Art Deco]

Another good series for the Rays, taking 2 out of 3 and tied with Oakland for the best record in baseball.

The Rays got back-to-back-to-back homers in the 8th to break a 4-4 tie with Kansas City and needed every one of them as Josh Scanlon gave up 2 runs in the 9th and they held on for a 7-6 win. Kelly Crumpton (#12), Orlando Tosado (#14) and Nate Strickland (#16) had those consecutive homers to help bring the Rays all the way back from 4-0 down early. Mu-Sang Park had 2 RBI and Strickland drove in another as well. Pedro Avila had a lousy start (5 6 4 4 2 0) but the bullpen was great until Scanlon gave up 2 runs on 4 hits in the 9th yet still hung on for save #12. Human good-luck charm Mike Moore improved to 6-0 after pitching a scoreless 8th.

Wes Mendes pitched his best game of the season by far and the Rays took a 4-1 win over Kansas City in the second game. The lefty went to 2-6 after a 6 4 1 1 0 8 gem and Mike Moore handled the 9th for save #2. Joshua Baez was the star on offense, going 3-4 with a 2-run double in the 6th which broke a 1-1 tie. Orlando Tosado also had 3 hits, including a double which brought home Baez immediately after.

Chris Ferguson tasted defeat for the first time as a Ray and although he wasn't bad Tampa Bay fell 7-2 to the Royals in the finale. Ferguson (6-1) went 6 7 3 2 0 5 but left trailing 3-2 and then Ruben Abeyta let the game get away in the 9th by giving up a grand slam. The lineup featured several backups with numerous regulars fatigued. One of those backups, Diego Cartaya, was 2-4 with a double and RBI and is hitting .435 in occasional play and following up on last year's breakout season as a backup.

Team record: 38-16. Next up: A day off then the homestand continues with 3 against Boston.

[Art Deco]

Red Sox pitching held the high-powered Rays offense to only 9 runs total in the 3 games but Tampa Bay swept anyway thanks to some outstanding pitching of their own.

The opener saw the Rays take a 4-3 win over Boston as Alex Calderon's 2-run single in the 6th erased a 3-2 Sox lead. Billy Carlow wrapped one around the RF foul pole (#16) to give Tampa Bay an early 2-0 lead but Boston came back with a 3-run shot in the 5th off Shane Panzini, who pitched well otherwise at 5.2 4 3 3 2 8. After Calderon put them back in the lead the bullpen locked it down, allowing only one hit over the final 3 1/3 with Mason Feole (2-1) getting the win and former Red Sock Josh Scanlon the save (#13).

Joe Marlette was typically outstanding and the Rays broke a 1-1 tie late to take a 4-1 win over Boston in the second game. Marlette went 6 4 1 1 1 8 but left a 1-1 game with Orlando Tosado having supplied the only Rays run to that point on a solo homer (#15). But Tampa Bay scored twice in the 7th to go ahead as yesterday's hero Alex Calderon had the big hit again with an RBI triple and scored on William Contreras' double. Frankely Guzman (2-0) got the win in relief and Josh Scanlon saved for the second straight day, his 14th.

The Rays got their best start yet from Pedro Avila and Orlando Tosado's solo homer (#16) in the 4th stood up in a tight 1-0 win to sweep the Red Sox. Avila (2-3) went 5 4 0 0 2 7 and looked dominating at times. Speaking of dominating, the bullpen held Boston to 1 hit over the final 4 innings culminating in Mike Moore's 3rd save.

Team record: 41-16. Next up: Our lengthy 12-game homestand concludes with 3 vs Texas.

Forgot to include this in the previous post:

[Art Deco]

Another low-scoring series which saw the Rays take 2 of 3 as the pitching has turned around just in time with the offense cooling off some.

Runs were scarce in the opener as Tampa Bay edged Texas 2-1 at Tropicana Field. After a miserable April and May Wes Mendes turned in his second straight excellent start, going 6 3 1 1 2 4. He didn't get the win as it wasn't until the 7th when Mu-sang Park's sac fly broke a 1-1 tie. Frankely Guzman (3-0) instead got the win and Josh Scanlon struck out the side in the 9th for save #15. Kelly Crumpton had a solo homer (#13) for the first Rays run.

The second game was shaping up to be another low-scoring affair with Texas up 2-1 going into the bottom of the 7th before the Rays erupted for 8 runs to take a 9-3 win. Mu-sang Park tied it with an RBI single, Arturo Gutierrez singled in the go-ahead run, Billy Carlow hit a grand slam (#17) and Orlando Tosado capped the inning with a 2-run shot, his second of the game and team-high 18th of the season. Chris Ferguson (7-1) stuck around long enough for the win which he deserved after going 7 5 2 2 2 7.

The Rays nursed a 1-0 lead through 6 in the finale, made all the more difficult by Shane Panzini leaving in the 2nd inning with a mild abdominal strain, but the dam burst in the 7th when Texas scored 4 times to take a 4-1 win over Tampa Bay. Panzini had retired the first 5 hitters before giving way to Slade Cecconi (1-1), who pitched great until he gave up an RBI double to Yordan Alvarez in the 7th. Mason Feole then surrendered a 3-run homer to allow the Rangers the win. The bats were held to a mere four hits, although that was one more than Texas had.

Team record: 43-17. Next up: A day off then we hit the road starting with 3 in Houston against the 33-27 Astros.

[Art Deco]

The Rays rolled on taking 2 of 3 at Minute Maid Park, a tough place to win.

Tampa Bay took the opener 9-5 after leading 9-1 in the middle innings. Kelly Crumpton's 3-run homer (#14) broke it open and they also got longballs from Orlando Tosado (#19), Alex Calderon (#8) and Arturo Gutierrez (#18). Tosado had 3 hits and Cristian Hernandez was 4-5. Joe Marlette (8-0) pitched well although he was touched for a trio of solo homers, finishing 7 7 3 3 0 8.

Pedro Avila had his struggles and the Rays dropped the middle game to Houston 4-2. The righty fell to 2-4 and went 5 7 4 4 1 4. The Rays runs came on solo homers from Billy Carlow (#18) and Orlando Tosado again (#20).

The Rays took the rubber match of the series 5-3 in 11 innings when Orlando Tosado homered in his third straight game (#21), a 2-run shot to win it. Tosado's power spree has now seen him go deep 7 times over the last 9 games. Kelly Crumpton doubled, tripled, and drove in a run and Wes Mendes turned in a decent start at 5 5 3 3 1 7. The bullpen though really got it done with six scoreless innings. Frankely Guzman (4-0) earned the win and Josh Scanlon recorded save #16.

Team record: 45-18. Next up: A day off then 3 games in Atlanta, which has struggled this year at 25-38.

[Art Deco]

The Rays' fantastic 2033 continued with a sweep in Atlanta.

The bullpen nearly gave away the opener as a comfortable 5-1 lead turned into a 6-5 nail-biter win, but still a win. Chris Ferguson (8-1) isn't just a nice story anymore, he's a legit Cy Young contender as he went 7 4 0 0 1 6 to lower his ERA to 2.77 and take over the lead in AL pitcher WAR. And homers from Cristian Hernandez (#2) and Billy Carlow (#19) helped build a healthy lead before Jon Post gave up 3 runs and then after the Rays got an insurance in the 9th Josh Scanlon gave it right back in the 9th but still recorded save #17.

Shane Panzini's turnaround continued as the Rays took another one from Atlanta 5-2. The righty improved to 5-2 after going 6 5 2 2 0 6 and Tommy Burpee picked up his first save with a 1-2-3 9th. Nate Strickland (#17) and Billy Carlow (again, #20) homered in support.

The Rays lost a 4-1 lead but got it back with a 4-run 8th to take an 8-5 victory over Atlanta and a sweep of the series. Arturo Gutierrez had a huge game, doubling twice and hitting a 2-run homer (#19) and Cristian Hernandez capped a 3-RBI day against his old team with a 2-run double which broke a 4-4 tie in the 8th. Nate Strickland was also 3-5 with a double and an RBI. Joe Marlette started and contributed to the loss of the lead by giving up 2 in the 6th, finishing 6 6 3 3 2 3. Frankely Guzman (5-0) vultured the win by giving up the lead in the 7th and Josh Scanlon converted his 18th save.

Team record: 48-18. Next up: Interleague play continues with 3 games at CitiField against the Mets.

It's also long past time to give a shout to our AAA Durham Bulls, who are having an even more dominant season than the big club at 47-15. A look at their starters:



The lineup features our three top hitting prospects in Stack, Arroyave and Powell. In fact it's underselling them a bit to call them "prospects" as Stack current is rated 70 contact and 70 power on an MLB level, Arroyave is rated 60/65 and Powell 65/55. In other words, all 3 should be playing in the bigs but there's no room at the MLB level. While Stack and Arroyave can play 1B and 3B respectively, Powell is really a DH. Shimizu, a Japanese free agent who came over last winter, is also interesting with 65 power and good corner OF defense.

As for the rotation, Morales is our best pitching prospect and was up earlier, he still may yet take Pedro Avila's place although Mendes and Panzini have turned things around. The other four are grizzled veterans who are pitching well and can potentially help if we have injuries even though their best stuff is behind them.

[Art Deco]

The Rays lost a series for the first time in over a month (May 13-15 at Minnesota) as their offense was feast or famine, shut out twice and scoring 10 runs in their win.

Tampa Bay was held to two hits in a 3-0 loss in the opener and Emerson Hancock and the Mets shut them down. Pedro Avila (2-5) deserved a better fate after going 6 3 2 2 1 3.

It was a struggle to score runs again in the second game until suddenly it wasn't, and a slender 1-0 Tampa Bay lead after 6 turned into a 10-0 Rays rout by the time it was over. Kelly Crumpton's solo homer (#15) in the 4th was the lone run for the game's first two-thirds but Arturo Gutierrez, who would go on to have 4 hits and drive in 4, blasted a 3-run homer (#20) in the 7th to break it open and the floodgates opened from there. Billy Carlow added #21 and drove in a pair, and Caleb Hampton had a pinch-homer in the 9th, his first round-tripper of the year. Wes Mendes' renaissance continued as he turned his fourth straight fine start at 5.1 3 0 0 3 5 to improve to 3-6.

The finale was pretty much a replay of the opener as the Mets again shut the Rays out 3-0, although this time Tampa Bay had four hits instead of two. Caleb Ferguson (8-2) wasn't his best but limited the damage at 4.2 7 2 2 2 4, still he would have had to have been perfect to avoid taking the loss.

Team record: 49-20. Next up: Back to AL play as we return home for 3 against the Twins.

MLB News: Houston's Ozzie Albies hit career homer #300.

[Art Deco]

We parted ways with one of our regular starters of the past few seasons:



Hernandez, who had been a decent do-it-all 3B over the previous two seasons, has been flat-out terrible this year at 254/306/347 with only 2 homers through nearly half a season after averaging 24 HR and a little over 3 WAR in 2031/2032. He was also known for his above-average fielding but that too has gone in the toilet this year as he sports a -2.4 ZR. Add it all up and he was barely on pace for 1 WAR this year and is now making $8.8M. Needless to stay the market was extremely limited for him and it took 50% salary retention to even get Kasper, a decent-hitting but second-division starter-type 1B who's going to Durham. The return wasn't so much the issue as who it is we're bringing up to replace Hernandez, and that would be this guy:



Yes let the Danny Arroyave era begin in Tampa Bay. His ratings and stats speak for themselves and he's certainly ready to play in the big leagues. Defensively he's average at 3B and should at least be able to replicate Hernandez's performance there this year with a much better bat. It's not like we need the additional offense but Hernandez needed to make way for a potential star, if not superstar.

[Art Deco]

The Rays swept the reeling Twins, sending Minnesota to 7 straight defeats.

The opener marked the debut of elite prospect Danny Arroyave for the Rays. How did it go?



Yes, let the legend of Arroyave begin in Tampa Bay as the debutant drilled a 2-run homer to break a 4-4 tie in the 8th and win the game for the Rays 6-4. He grounded out in his first at-bat, struck out in his second and singled in his third before hitting the homer. Kelly Crumpton (#16) and Orlando Tosado (#23) also found the seats. The Rays overcame a rough Shane Panzini start (4.2 6 4 4 1 4) with Frankely Guzman (6-0) picking up the win and Josh Scanlon saving (#19) after putting the first two men on in the 9th.

The Rays routed Minnesota in the second game 10-2, launching 6 homers in total. Arturo Gutierrez led the charge, going 3-5 with 2 HR (#21 & 22) and 3 RBI, Nate Strickland had a 2-run shot in the 1st (#18) to get things going, and Joshua Baez (#9), Orlando Tosado (#23) and yes Danny Arroyave (#2) all went deep as well. Arroyave's shot was the 10th run of the game so not quite as dramatic as last night as the rookie went 2-4 again. Joe Marlette went to 9-0 going 5 7 2 2 1 6 and Slade Cecconi hurled four perfect innings for his 1st save.

Danny Arroyave didn't even enter the finale until the 7th inning but he was the hero again as his pinch-RBI single was the difference in a 2-1 Rays win over the Twins. The rookie showed as fatigued so he wasn't in the starting lineup in a game that was a pitchers' duel between AL WAR leader MacKenzie Gore and Pedro Avila. Avila went 5 4 0 0 1 3 and left with a 1-0 lead thanks to a Joshua Baez RBI triple but Mason Feole gave up a solo homer in the 6th. This brought us to the 7th when Arroyave came through in the clutch for the second time in his three-game MLB career and made a winner of Tommy Burpee (2-0). This time there was a little less drama with Josh Scanlon as he recorded save #20 with a 1-2-3 9th.

Team record: 52-20. Next up: An off-day then 3 games in Oakland.

Roster note: We really didn't miss him while he was out (we've gone 18-5 in his absence so far) but it will still be good to get Wander Franco back after he plays a couple of rehab games. Mu-Sang Park has done a good job filling in, hitting .274 and playing quality defense at SS. Unfortunately for him he'll head back to Durham when Wander returns as he has options left.

[Art Deco]

An eventful three days in Oakland as the Rays swept while losing one key player to injury, welcoming another back, and making a big trade. It was a particularly impressive sweep for Tampa Bay as Oakland came in as nearly our equal with a 48-23 record.

We'll start off boring with another routine Tampa Bay win as the Rays handled Oakland 7-2 in the opener. Nate Strickland hit a pair of solo homers including one in the 1st to get things going as he reached the 20-dinger mark, Arturo Gutierrez drove in 3 with a 2-run single and solo homer (#23) and Joshua Baez was 3-4 with HR #10 and 2 RBI. The Wes Mendes renaissance continued as he went to 4-6 after an excellent 6 4 0 0 0 4 outing.

Chris Ferguson wasn't quite as sharp as normal but he still went to 9-2 as the offense picked him up in a 10-6 win. The stealth Cy Young candidate coughed up a couple of homers in a 6 6 4 4 1 4 performance and Mike Moore went the final 1 2/3 for his 4th save. Joshua Baez continued red-hot after his return to the lineup with a 2-run homer and a 3-run homer to give him 12, and Kelly Crumpton (#17) and Orlando Tosado (#24) also went deep with a man on. It wasn't all fun and games though as Billy Carlow suffered a herniated disc and will be out for 5 weeks.

Partially to keep Mu-Sang Park on the roster to give us a legitimate backup MI with Wander Franco ready to be activated from the IL and partially to finally give us a legitimate CF as the likes of Carlow and Tosado have been playing out of position there, we swung this trade with our new trading pals Baltimore:



Jonathan Gutierrez had been kind of the forgotten man on the roster, only DHing against lefties, and keeping him around limited our defensive flexibility since he was only able to play (a poor) 1B. He's still a good hitter (60 contact/power) making the minimum and therefore had some decent trade value. And that trade value brought us more than expected in Westfall, a legit CF who earned 5.5 WAR in his AL RotY season two years ago before tailing off to 1.8 WAR last year. But he was having a bounceback season this year, already at 2.3 WAR, hitting 305/341/473. Still the Orioles made him available to us and all it took was a throw-in to complete the deal. So Westfall will take Carlow's place in the lineup for now and probably stay there the rest of the year. Wander was activated to take Gutierrez's spot.

And it didn't take long for Jake Westfall to make an impact for us as he hit a tiebreaking homer in the 7th inning and tripled in an insurance run in the 9th to lead the Rays to a 4-2 win in the finale. The homer was his 8th altogether this year and was an impressive oppo shot to RF. Kelly Crumpton had homered earlier (#18) and Shane Panzini turned in a solid start at 5.2 7 2 1 0 4. Ruben Abeyta (2-0) got the win in relief and Josh Scanlon recorded save #21.

Team record: 55-20. Next up: Back home for a quick 2-game series with Toronto.

[Art Deco]

Two more days at the office for the Rays, who swept Toronto and extended their winning streak to 8.

Joe Marlette was handed a 2-0 lead in the 5th inning of the opener by Nate Strickland, who blasted a 2-run homer (#21), but shockingly he gave it back and then some as Toronto scored 5 times in the top of the 6th. Have no fear though as the Rays offense came back with 4 runs in the bottom of the frame, highlighted by William Contreras' bases-clearing double and the Rays went on to win 7-5. Marlette finished 5.1 5 4 4 1 9 as he just ran out of gas in the 6th with the win going to Slade Cecconi (2-1) and Josh Scanlon picking up save #22 despite giving up a couple of hits.

Things were more straightforward in the second game as the Rays handled the Jays 5-1 behind a solid if not a bit wild start from Pedro Avila. The righty improved to 3-5 after going 5 1 0 0 4 4 and the pen held from there. Orlando Tosado (#25) and William Contreras (#4) had solo homers while Kelly Crumpton hit a 2-run double.

Team record: 57-20. Next up: Another 2-game series at the Trop, this time with the Yankees.

[Art Deco]

The Rays' win streak came to an end as they split the pair with New York.

And that loss came in the first game as the bullpen couldn't hold a 4-2 lead after 6 innings and the Yankees beat the Rays 8-5. Wes Mendes was excellent (6 2 2 2 1 4) and Danny Arroyave had given them lead with a bases-clearing double, but Frankely Guzman (6-1) had a rare bad outing in which he couldn't get anyone out, allowing 4 runs without retiring a batter and Tommy Burpee gave up 2 more afterward.

Order was restored in the second game as Chris Ferguson and two relievers combined on a 5-0 shutout of New York. The righty improved to 10-2 after a 6.1 5 0 0 1 6 outing, receiving support including solo homers from Orlando Tosado (#26) and Jake Westfall (#2/9) along with a 2-run Joshua Baez triple.

Team record: 58-21. Next up: A 3-game series in Cleveland which will bring us just past the midway point of the season.

MLB News: San Francisco's Bo Bichette recorded his 2000th career hit.

[Art Deco]

The Rays reached the halfway mark of the season while taking 2 out of 3 in Cleveland and seeing one of their stars reach a career milestone.

They did drop the opener 4-2 to the Guardians as the offense was kept largely under wraps. Shane Panzini (5-3) was perfect through 4 before giving up a 2-run homer in the 5th and then left the game with a dead arm after going 5 2 2 2 0 2. He'll be out through the All-Star break. Danny Arroyave's 2-run homer in the 8th (#3) pulled them within 3-2 but that was as good as it got on the night.

Transaction: Panzini goes on the 15-day IL and rookie starter Danny Morales is back up to take his place in the rotation after going 4-1, 2.20 in 12 starts at Durham.

The Rays built a 6-2 lead in the second game and then had to hold on to a 6-5 win thanks to some bullpen follies. Jake Westfall drove in 3 including a solo homer (#3/10) and Joshua Baez was 3-4 with a solo shot of his own (#13) to build that lead as Joe Marlette (10-0) wasn't his best but still went 5.2 7 2 2 2 3. Frankely Guzman and Mike Moore combined to allow 3 runs however before Josh Scanlon settled things down in the 9th for save #23.

Tampa Bay rolled to a 10-2 rout of Cleveland in the finale in a game that saw superstar SS Wander Franco reach the 2000-hit mark with a 2-run single in the 8th inning. Jake Westfall tripled, homered (#4/11) and drove in 3 for the second straight day, Nate Strickland had a 2-run shot (#22) and Alex Calderon found the seats (#9). That was more than enough for one of the Rays' hottest pitchers of late Pedro Avila (4-5), who went 6 5 2 2 1 7 for the win.

Team record: 60-22. Next up: We celebrate our nation's Independence Day on foreign soil as July 4 starts a 4-game series in Toronto.

[Art Deco]

An incredible first half for the Rays who are on pace for 118 wins. The big question mark early in the season was the starting pitching especially after Kevin DiCostanzo went down for the season with bone chips in his elbow, and after a shaky beginning to the year the rotation has really gelled and the offense is a machine. A look at how far ahead we are:



Team stats:



Brilliance all around, except of course for the team defense which is pretty lousy but not exactly holding us back. The only other thing is that this is a hacking team that doesn't like to walk, but again it doesn't matter. I'd still feel a little more comfortable with one more reliable starter but Mendes, Panzini and Avila have pitched pretty well of late.



Plenty to like here with 4 guys projected to hit 40+ homers and 5 projected for more than 4 WAR. Danny Arroyave already has earned as much WAR in 13 games than Cristian Hernandez did in 58 so that move is looking justified (although Arroyave has yet to draw a walk). Alex Calderon has been a big disappointment and once again Joshua Baez has fought off the competition to regain an everyday job. I'm shopping Calderon now as I have numerous OFs in the minors who are capable to producing better than he has so far.



Chris Ferguson has been a staff-saver of sorts as he's moved into the DiCostanzo role as twin ace with Joe Marlette. Maybe my gut need for another starter can be filled internally as Slade Cecconi has been great in long relief whenever called upon and Danny Morales has been dazzling at Durham and is back up to make a few starts in Panzini's stead.

And the top prospects of a strong farm system:



Arroyave and Morales are already up, and Stack is more than ready for the bigs but is blocked. Berumen is a two-way guy who's going to at least have a special bat.

Not listed here because he's considered too old to be a prospect is 32-year-old Japanese import Masaharu Shimizu, who's hitting 270/332/535 with 21 HR at Durham and possesses 65 MLB power. I'm looking to bring him up in place of Calderon once I find a way to move him.

[Art Deco]

Tampa Bay split its four games in the Great White North as we get closer to the All-Star Break.

A barrage of early homers made things comfortable for Wes Mendes (5-6) who turned in a fine 7 4 1 1 1 8 performance in an 8-3 Rays win over the Jays at Rogers Centre. Orlando Tosado (#27) and Jake Westfall (#5/12) each hit 2-run shots in the first, and Kelly Crumpton added a 3-run blast (#19) in the 3rd to decide this one early.

The Rays dropped the second game 6-3 to Toronto as Danny Morales (1-2) had some struggles (5 5 4 4 4 3). Wander Franco homered (#6) and drove in a pair in a losing cause.

The Jays got the better of the Rays again in walk-off fashion when Vlad Guerrero Jr. singled in the winning run in the bottom of the 9th to send Tampa Bay to a 4-3 loss. Chris Ferguson turned in a solid start at 5.2 8 2 2 2 7 and Tommy Burpee (2-1) was charged with the loss. Danny Arroyave had a good game with a double and 2-run homer (#4).

The Rays salvaged a split of the series with a 9-1 rout in the finale behind big games from Joe Marlette and Wander Franco. The reigning AL Cy Young winner went to 11-0 after an excellent 6.2 3 1 1 1 7 outing and Franco blasted a pair of homers, driving in 5 and giving him 8 on his injury-abbreviated year. The Rays also got homers from Nate Strickland (#23) and Joshua Baez (#14).

Also a trade:



As alluded to in the previous midseason review post I was looking to get rid of Calderon, who started his tenure by mixing it up with Nate Strickland and then went on to not produce. In return we re-acquire Brooks, whom we claimed on waivers a couple of years ago and then parlayed into Orlando Tosado (that was a steal of a deal). Brooks ended up with the Pale Hose and had a really good year last season (13-11, 3.86, 47 BB, 173 Ks, 3.7 WAR) but was scuffling at 5-6, 6.55 this year and saw his HRs allowed to skyrocket to 20 in 89 IP. His ratings came down to 60/50/50 but he still isn't a bad pitcher. He'll go to Durham as we don't have a rotation opening currently. The trade of Calderon allows up to recall 32-year-old Japanese import Masaharu Shimizu, who's hitting 270/332/535 with 21 HR at Durham.

Team record: 62-24. Next up: Off to Baltimore for 3 games before we hit the ASB.