The 2020 (and beyond) Tampa Bay Rays

[Art Deco]

Game 1: The Rays had an 8-1 lead in the 4th and Nate Thompson on the mound but somehow they found a way to squander that lead and lose 9-8 in 10 innings to Houston. Jaiden Hardaway had a 3-run HR (#8), Dayle Jenkins homered again (#14) and Jeff Baez was 4-5 with an RBI to pace the early offensive onslaught. But Thompson couldn't handle success, coming unglued in the 4th and having to leave after 3 2/3 having thrown 96 pitches going 3.2 5 4 3 3 5. And the bullpen wasn't much better: Billy Hoyte gave up a pair of runs, Tim Siqueiros another, and it was 8-7 going to the bottom of the 9th when Kikuo Kawase gave up an RBI double with nobody out and the runner going to 3rd. He struck his way out of the jam but it took him 30 pitches, so Mike Wherry came on for the 10th, gave up a double with one out and then proceeded to walk the next 3 batters to force in the winner, the 12th walk of the night from Rays pitchers. And while there was plenty of blame to go around and it's hard to criticize an offense that put up 8 runs, it wouldn't have been nice if they could have scored even once over the final 6. The win was costly for Houston, though: Juan Soto suffered a severe hamstring strain and will be out 3 months.

Game 2: The Rays trailed 2-1 after 7 innings but scored 8 times in the final two innings to take a 9-3 win over Houston. Alfredo Vega started and after giving up 2 runs in the first, settled down to pitch a fine 6 4 2 2 2 7 game but received no support from the bats. Finally in the 8th they mounted a rally against former Rays Dusty Cross and Shane McClanahan, scoring 5 times (twice on wild pitches) with the key hit an Eric Titcombe pinch-RBI single to put them ahead to stay. And they tacked 3 more on in the 9th on a trio of solo homers from Jon Jimenez (#15), Titcombe (#9) and Jeremy Glasson (#1), seeing his first action since being recalled. Willie Bertone picked up win #2 in relief after coming on in the 7th. He gave up a run in the 8th but Jim Golunski got him out of a jam and stayed on through the 9th for his 2nd save.

Game 3: Danny Ayala homered twice and drove in 5 and Josh Carsello and Bob Sirna combined on a 3-hit shutout as the Rays routed the Astros 9-0 at Minute Maid Park. Ayala had a 3-run blast in the 1st to get the Rays on the board and added a 2-run HR (#18) in the 7th. Jim Gebers hit his 9th in the 2nd inning and Jeff Baez was 3-5 with an RBI to also pace the offense. Meanwhile Carsello shut down the 'Stros, going 6.1 3 0 0 3 7 to improve to 9-2, 3.93 and Sirna went the final 2 2/3 hitless with 4 whiffs as he gets back on track.

Team record: 58-13. Next up: Back home to play 3 against Baltimore.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: The Rays romped today 10-1 over Baltimore thanks to a 7-run 3rd, the hitting of Danny Ayala and the pitching of Jon Soranno. Ayala tied the team record by going 5-5 today and driving in 3, although uncharacteristically all 5 hits were singles and the Rays as a team only had two extra base hits which were doubles. Bo Angeac had one of them and was 3-5 with 2 RBI and Jeff Baez drove in a pair with the other. Soranno meanwhile took a shutout into the 8th and finished 7.1 3 1 1 0 10 to improve to 7-0, 3.18 with Willie Bertone pitching the final 1 2/3.

Game 2: The Rays left it late today but scored 4 times in the 8th inning to take a 7-3 win over Baltimore. Eric Titcombe led off the bottom of the 8th with his 10th homer of the year to break a 3-3 tie, and a few batters later Danny Ayala went deep for the second time in the game, his 20th of the year, to make it 6-3. Jeff Baez added an RBI double and Will Quintana drove in a pair with RBI singles. Josh Hanna started and continued his disturbing trend of giving up a lot of hits; today he was 5.1 9 2 2 0 7 and has allowed 29 hits over his last 3 starts covering 15.1 innings. Ron Adams gave up the tying run for Baltimore before Tim Siqueiros pitched a perfect 8th for his 3rd win with Mike Wherry getting through the 9th.

Game 3: It was Battle of the Nates: The Sequel today at Publix Park as Nate Schultz faced Nate Thompson in another matchup against his former team. Unlike last time, Schultz pitched very well but neither he nor Thompson were around for the decision when the Rays came back to win 3-2. Both of the Nates only made it through 5 innings thanks to high pitch counts but Schultz left the game up 2-1 after Thompson went 5 5 2 2 2 6 on 101 pitches. Daniel Vasquez's 13th HR of the year in the 4th was all the Rays got against Schultz. But Tampa Bay took the lead in the 7th when Dayle Jenkins blasted a 2-run shot (#15) as he continues to tap into his new-found power. Willie Bertone ended up with his 3rd win after a perfect 6th and 7th, Jim Golunski took care of the 8th, and Kikuo Kawase had a perfect 9th with two whiffs for save #21 to complete the series sweep.

Team record: 61-13. Next up: A return engagement with the Astros, whom we played in Houston last weekend, as they come to Publix Park for 4 games.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: The Rays rolled on to their 6th straight win 8-4 over Houston at Publix Park in the opener of a 4-game series. Alfredo Vega was excellent again, going to 4-0, 2.97 as a Ray with a 6 4 1 1 3 6 outing. The bats came up with 6 runs over the first 3 innings on homers from Jon Jimenez (#16), Daniel Vasquez (#14), Jon Hayes (#10) and Eric Titcombe (#11). Danny Ayala later added #21 as it was bombs away. Danny Medina gave up 3 runs in the 8th before Mike Wherry closed the door in the 9th.

Game 2: The Rays lost leads of 1-0, 5-3, and 7-5 before finally taking a 10-9 win over Houston in a wild one at Publix Park. Eric Titcombe's 3-run HR (#12) in the bottom of the 6th made it 10-7 Rays and they still had to hang on to the win. Josh Carsello had another rough game, going 5.1 5 6 6 4 7 and allowing a pair of homers to Houston's Hector Cortes for 5 of those runs. Billy Hoyte took over for him and was credited with win #3 despite giving up 2 runs and 4 hits in his 2/3 of an inning. Tim Siqueiros gave up another run in the 7th, Mike Wherry bridged the gap and Kikuo Kawase eventually had to come in for a 4-out save, his 22nd. Daniel Vasquez (#15) and Jim Gebers (#10) also homered for the Rays while Dayle Jenkins was 3-5 with 2 doubles, a triple and 2 RBI, and Titcombe also singled in a run earlier.

Game 3: The scoreboard at the end of the game said Rays 9, Houston 3, but it was a 3-2 game before Tampa Bay broke it open with a 6-run 8th to put away consecutive win #8. Jon Soranno started and wasn't his sharpest but he still was still effective in a 6 5 1 1 5 4 outing to improve to 8-0, 3.04. Ron Adams went the final 3 innings for his second save, allowing solo homers in the 8th and 9th. The first was more important as it made it a 1-run game before Jeff Baez had a 2-run double and Bo Angeac a 2-run single to highlight the big 6-run 8th. Jaiden Hardaway was 4-4 with 3 doubles, a walk and 2 RBI, Jon Jimenez was 3-5 with an RBI and Eric Titcombe drove in a pair.

Game 4: The Rays are almost never out of the game, and Houston learned that today as despite holding a 6-3 lead from the 4th until the 7th, the Rays exploded for 4 runs in the bottom of the 7th and went on to an 8-6 win, their 9th straight. The Rays banged out 17 hits in total but none of them left the yard, with Jaiden Hardaway's 2-run single making it 6-5 and Jon Jimenez's 2-run single giving them the lead. Mike McKee added an RBI single in the 8th for some insurance while both Dayle Jenkins and Bo Angeac went 4-for-4. Tampa Bay had to overcome another terrible start from Josh Hanna, who's really been on a bad run of late; today he went 3.1 7 6 6 3 3. But the bullpen was brilliant, starting with 2 2/3 scoreless from Willie Bertone. Bob Sirna got Houston in the 7th and wound up with his 3rd win while the back end of the pen did its thing with Jim Golunski hurling a quick 1-2-3 8th and Kikuo Kawase striking out 2 in a perfect 9th for save #23.

Team record: 65-13. Next up: The homestand continues with the Pittsburgh Pirates visiting for 3 games which will bring us to the halfway mark of the season.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: Pittsburgh visited Publix Park for the first time and the Rays gave them the traditional welcome reserved for their opponents, a 12-1 beating. Daniel Vasquez hit 2 more homers and drove in 5, giving him 17 for the season and 5 in his last 5 games. Dayle Jenkins also homered again, a 2-run shot (#16) and Jon Jimenez found the seats as well (#17) while Bo Angeac was on base all 4 times up on 2 hits and 2 walks with 3 runs scored. Nate Thompson went to 12-0, 3.15 with a 6 2 1 1 3 9 outing with Danny Medina throwing a couple of scoreless innings and Bob Sirna one.

Game 2: Same story, different day as the Rays pummeled the Pirates again 12-3. Tampa Bay batters clubbed 6 homers, led by a pair from Danny Ayala (#22 & 23). Interestingly, they were all solo shots as Jon Jimenez (#18) and Eric Titcombe (#13) went back-to-back-to-back with Ayala the first time in the 4th, while Mike McKee (#6) and Jeremy Glasson (#2, pinch-hitting) also went yard. Jimenez drove in 2 more with a single, as did Jim Gebers. Today's well-supported starter was Alfredo Vega, now 5-0, 2.78 as a Ray after going 5.1 4 1 1 2 5. Billy Hoyte went 2 2/3 scoreless while Ron Adams gave up 2 runs in his lone inning of work.

Game 3: Groundhog Day again as the Rays waltzed past the Pirates 8-2 and the win streak reaches 12. It was also Groundhog Day for Danny Ayala, who homered twice for the second straight game to give him 25 on the season and drove in 3 runs. Daniel Vasquez also drove in 3 with a double and a single and Jon Jimenez was 3-4 with an RBI as well. Josh Carsello had a good start, going 6.2 6 2 2 2 8 and is now 10-2, 4.19, Willie Bertone went 2 scoreless despite allowing 4 hits, and Mike Wherry got the final out of the game. One Pirate none of them could retire was Juan Quijano, who was 5-5 with a solo homer in a losing cause.

Team record: 68-13. Next up: An off-day then we begin the second half of the schedule with 3 in Baltimore.

[Art Deco]

First off, here are the MLB standings as we hit the halfway mark:



All the division races except the AL East of course are wide-open, with the possible exception of the AL West but I still think Texas will make a run at Houston.

The Rays team stats:



We really don't steal bases anymore, but our baserunning has been excellent. After a jump into respectability last year, the defense has regressed to its typical mediocrity, and our pitchers have really been wild this year (trading out Schultz and Ortega for Carsello has a lot to do with this). The starting pitching isn't as good but the bullpen remains excellent.

Batting stats:



Plenty to like here, especially with how productive the "lefty bashers" (Titcombe, Hayes, Gebers) have been, with the first two pushing a seasonal pace of 3 WAR despite playing part-time.

Pitching stats:



It says something that two of our top four pitchers in WAR are short relievers. What it says is both that the starters have been a bit inconsistent, and those two relievers (Kawase and Golunski) are just short of incredible. Another interesting tidbit is that Tim Siqueiros, a reliever who hasn't pitched that many innings, leads the team in losses (3).

[Art Deco]

Game 1: Even the OOTP recap bots are getting bored with the Rays win streak:



As today they routed Baltimore 10-2 at Camden Yards to make it 13 straight wins. A 6-run 3rd sent them on their way as Will Quintana hit a 2-run blast (#4) and later in the inning Danny Ayala stayed hot with a grand slam (#26), his fifth homer in three games. Jaiden Hardaway added a solo shot (#9) later. Jon Soranno went to 9-0 with a 6 4 2 2 3 3 performance, Tim Siqueiros got in an inning of work and Bob Sirna went the final two.

Game 2: Make it 14 straight for the Rays as they hit 4 solo homers in a 6-2 win over the Orioles. Josh Hanna arrested his recent trend of poor performances by going 6.2 5 2 2 2 5 to improve to 10-2, 4.56 while Tim Siqueiros went an inning and Danny Medina the final 1 1/3 for his 4th save. Jon Jimenez hit #19 in the 4th to tie the game at 1 before Eric Titcombe walked with the bases loaded later in the inning. Mike McKee (#7) and Jaiden Hardaway (#10) hit solos in the 7th to make it 4-1, and Titcombe slammed #14 in the 8th.

Game 3: The streak reaches 15 with an 8-0 romp in Baltimore behind a truly dominant performance from Nate Thompson. The righty went 7 4 0 0 2 13 to move to 13-0, 2.95 and is the clear front-runner for the AL Cy Young. Willie Bertone went the final 2 innings to lower his ERA to 0.94 in 38 1/3 innings. Homers were the big hits once again as Dayle Jenkins equaled his 2035 total of 17 with a 3-run shot in the 5th which made a 2-0 game a 5-0 game. Earlier Jeff Hayes hit #11 and later Danny Ayala blasted #27 to take over the MLB lead from former Ray Jasson Dominguez.

Team record: 71-13. Next victims: The Yankees, as we travel to the Bronx for 3.

No surprise here:

[Art Deco]

Game 1: It's now 16 straight wins for the Rays but unlike most of them it wasn't easy tonight as they edged the Yankees 4-3 at the Stadium. Jon Jimenez, who put the Rays on the board in the 5th with a 2-run single, broke a 2-2 tie in the 8th with his 20th homer of the year and his fourth in five games. Two batters later Bo Angeac hit #14 to make it 4-2 and that turned out to be important when Ivan Vega homered off Jim Golunski in the 8th. Speaking of Vegas, Alfredo started and went a solid 6 4 2 2 3 6 before giving way to Danny Medina, who picked up win #2 with a scoreless 7th. After Golunski gave up the homer in the 8th, Kikuo Kawase had a 1-2-3 9th for save #24 and consecutive win #16.



And a good month for our 2033 #1 pick who's had to battle injuries:



Game 2: The win streak has now reached 17 as the Rays handled the Yankees 8-4 in New York. Jeff Baez drove in 3 with a pair of singles, Eric Titcombe had a 2-run single, and Jeff Hayes hit HR #12 to lead the offense. Josh Carsello started and had the typical Josh Carsello game, 6 7 3 3 3 8 and he's now 11-2, 4.21. Ron Adams went the final 3, allowing a run and fanning 4 to get save #3.

Game 3: The Rays blew a 9-2 lead, but it didn't stop them from extending their winning streak to 18 thanks to a monster game from Danny Ayala as they prevailed 11-9 in 11 innings. The all-star LF drove in 8 runs on the day, first on a pair of 3-run homers in the 1st and 3rd off former teammate Tyler Jefferson, and then came through with a clutch 2-out, 2-run single in the 11th to rescue the game and the streak. Ayala now has 29 HR and 72 RBI on the year. Dayle Jenkins also contributed a 2-run HR (#18) as they built a huge lead that Jon Soranno had trouble holding onto. He limped through the 5th and finished 5 10 5 5 3 5 and it turned out his struggles were due to a sore elbow and he'll be out a couple of weeks. Willie Bertone had 2 scoreless innings to keep it at 9-5, but Mike Wherry gave up a run in the 8th and then Kikuo Kawase really struggled, walking the first two in the 9th and then allowing a 2-out, 2-run double which tied the game at 9. Jim Golunski got the final out of the 9th and then pitched the 10th and 11th, retiring all 7 men he faced, 5 on strikes, to pick up his 2nd win of the year.

Team record: 74-13. Next up: 4 games in Detroit.

[Art Deco]

July 3: Placed P Jon Soranno on the 10-day IL with a sore elbow, recalled P Eric Riley from AAA Durham.

Riley's been up before, of course, pitching in 23 games last year. He's been Durham's closer this year but he can also go multiple innings as he's taking over Ron Adams' long relief role with Adams sliding into the rotation in Soranno's place.

Game 1: It's 19 straight wins for the Rays after a 12-1 drubbing of Detroit at Comerica Park. Tonight's hero was Jon Jimenez, who tied the club record held by many with 3 homers, giving him 23 for the year. Jimenez drove in 5 and was aided by Dayle Jenkins, who can't stop homering as he hit #19 tonight and drove in 3, and Jaiden Hardaway was 3-5 with a double and 2 RBI. Josh Hanna was excellent for the second straight start, going 6 3 1 1 2 7 to go to 11-2, 4.38 and Bob Sirna went the final 3 hitless with 4 whiffs for his first save of the year.

Game 2: Nate Thompson was brilliant once again and the win streak reached 20 in a 5-0 blanking of Detroit tonight. The righty picked up where he left off in Baltimore by dominating Detroit to the tune of 8 3 0 0 2 12 on 111 pitches (as much as I wanted him to get the shutout I wasn't going to push him too far) to improve to 14-0, 2.75 and he's the runaway leader in pitcher WAR at 4.3 with 142 whiffs in 118 IP. Tim Siqueiros completed the shutout in the 9th. The offense took a while to get going with Bo Angeac breaking the ice with an RBI single in the 4th. He later hit a solo shot (#15), as did Eric Titcombe (#15) and Jeff Hayes (#13), while Dayle Jenkins was 2-5 with a steal and an RBI double.

Game 3: The Rays' winning streak is now old enough to drink as it reached 21 with a 9-3 win over Detroit. Alfredo Vega continues to shine since his acquisition from Seattle and he went 7 3 1 1 0 3 to improve to 6-0, 2.59 as a Ray in 8 starts. The bullpen was a bit shaky with Billy Hoyte giving up a run in the 8th, and Eric Riley giving up four hits and a run while only getting one out in the 9th before Mike Wherry had to come in and get a double play to end the game. Jon Jimenez was 4-5 with an RBI to lead the offense while Jim Gebers was 2-5 with a HR (#11) and 3 RBI and Danny Ayala's 2-run double in the 3rd started the scoring.

Game 4: The streak is over as the Rays' offense was shackled by Detroit knuckleballer Derek DeGolyer in a 4-1 loss at Comerica Park. Tampa Bay took an early lead on a Dayle Jenkins RBI single but that would be it for the day and Detroit scored twice off Josh Carsello in the 5th and didn't look back. The offense was held to 6 hits while Carsello went a decent 7 5 3 3 3 4 to fall to 11-3, 4.19 and Danny Medina gave up a rare homer in his lone inning of work.

Team record: 77-14. Next up: We'll try to get a new streak going as we return home to take on Kansas City for 3.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: Well we have a new streak going, but it's a losing streak now as the Royals hit 4 homers off Ron Adams to take a 7-3 win over the Rays at Publix Park. Adams had a bizarre game, going 4 8 7 6 1 10 so it was kind of a Three True Outcomes affair (more like two with just the one walk). His ERA rose to 4.28 and he's now allowed 15 HR in 75 IP this season. And unlike other times when a large deficit hasn't fazed the bats, tonight they only managed 5 hits and they came from two players: Danny Ayala doubled 3 times and drove in a run while Jim Gebers had 2 hits including his 12th homer.

Game 2: The losing streak has now reached 3 as Kikuo Kawase melted down in his second consecutive appearance and what looked to be a 3-1 Rays win became a 5-3 loss. Kawase was hit for 4 runs on 5 hits in the 9th on the heels of blowing a save in New York where he allowed 3 runs in 2/3 of an inning. These two outings have raised his ERA from 0.64 to 2.76, and he cost Josh Hanna a win after a 6 3 1 1 4 9 performance which lowered his ERA to 4.22. For the second straight night the bats were largely held in check although it looked like homers from Jim Gebers (#13) and Dayle Jenkins (#20) would be enough.

MLB News: Cristhian Rodriguez of the Columbus Lightning hit his 500th homer tonight.

Game 3: The Rays snapped a 3-game losing streak thanks to their ace - their stopper - Nate Thompson in a 4-1 win over Kansas City this afternoon at Publix Park. Thompson was brilliant yet again, going 8 3 1 1 0 9 and improving to 15-0, 2.64. Jim Golunski gave up a couple of hits in the 9th but got through it for save #3. Jon Jimenez broke a 1-1 tie in the 7th with an RBI double and David Vasquez followed with his 4th hit of the day to score a pair after having already knocked in the first run.

Team record: 78-16. Next up: An off-day then Toronto comes in for 3 before we hit the All-Star break.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: A fairly routine win over Toronto tonight at Publix Park by the score of 7-2, as a couple of unlikely heroes shine on offense. Jeremy Glasson, who gets to play every once in a while, made his case for more at-bats by hitting 4 doubles (tying the team record), scoring 3 times and driving in a run, while backup catcher Mike McKee was 3-4 with 2 RBI, knocking in Glasson both times. Daniel Vasquez also contributed HR #18. Meanwhile Alfredo Vega keeps on keepin' on, going 7 7 2 2 0 9 to improve to 7-0, 2.59 as a Ray in 9 starts. Willie Bertone went the final two scoreless and sports an 0.83 ERA in 43.1 innings.

Game 2: It has to be frustrating for an opposing team to hold the mighty Rays offense to 2 runs on 4 hits and still lose, and that's how Toronto had to feel after losing 2-0 to the Rays thanks to a dominant performance from Josh Carsello, his best as a Ray. Carsello retired the first 19 Jays hitters, 12 on strikes, and finished 7 1 0 0 1 13 to improve to 12-3, 3.93. Tim Siqueiros and Jim Golunski got through the 8th and Kikuo Kawase bounced back from two meltdowns to nail down the 9th for save #25. All of the offense came in the 1st inning on a 2-run homer by Dayle Jenkins (#20), who keeps hitting for power in this his contract year.

Game 3: The Rays head into the All-Star Break on a sweep of Toronto after an 8-5 win today. A 5-run first inning led the way for Tampa Bay, with Dayle Jenkins tying his career-high in the category with his 22nd, a 2-run shot, and Bo Angeac hit one as well (#16) as part of a 3-RBI day. Jim Gebers also hit a solo shot (#14), and Eric Titcombe was 3-4 with an RBI. Ron Adams got the start and had some issues again, but got through 7 and finished 7 7 4 4 1 5 and improved to 6-3, 4.35. Mike Wherry gave up a run in the 8th, and Kikuo Kawase picked up save #26 with a pair of whiffs in the 9th.

Team record: 81-16. Next up: The All-Star Break. The game of course will feature several Rays, and when we come back it'll be for 3 games in Minnesota.

[Art Deco]

The All-Star rosters:

AL:




NL:




10 Rays on the AL squad, along 4 former Rays properties (Baker, Guerrero, Centeno, Franco), while 5 former Rays are on the NL team (Aparicio, Givens, Rutschman, Domiginuez, Romo).

The HR Derby, featuring 3 Rays including sudden slugger Dayle Jenkins:



A lot of Rays vs Rays action, and a disappointment when Danny Ayala could only manage 9 in the final round after Johnathan Vaughn had a low total of 11.

And for the game itself:



A dull affair, with Dayle Jenkins voted MVP for simply going 2-for-2. Rays pitchers bookended the AL win with Nate Thompson providing a scoreless first and Kikuo Kawase getting the save in the 9th despite allowing a couple of runners. Daniel Vasquez and Alfredo Vega did not appear in the game.

[Art Deco]

July 18: Activated P Jon Soranno from the 10-day IL, optioned P Eric Riley to AAA Durham.

Soranno will go back into the rotation with Ron Adams moving to the bullpen.

Game 1: The Rays got off a winning post-ASB start with a 7-5 triumph over the Twins at Target Field. It was largely a 2-man offense, with Eric Titcombe blasting two homers (#16 and 17) which drove in 3 and an RBI double, while Jaiden Hardaway also went yard twice (#11 and 12) and drove in a pair as part of a 3-hit day. Josh Carsello got the win with a solid 6 6 3 2 3 9 outing; he's now 13-3, 3.89. The bullpen had some issues with Danny Medina and Jim Golunski each giving up a run, but Tim Siqueiros struck out the side around a walk in the 8th and Kikuo Kawase notched save #27 despite a couple of free passes.

Game 2: Josh Hanna had one of his best starts of the year and the longballs continued to be hit as the Rays routed Minnesota 8-2. Hanna went 7 3 2 2 2 12 to improve to 12-2, 4.12, with the 12 strikeouts a season-high, and Ron Adams went the final 2 scoreless. Eric Titcombe continued his post-ASB power surge by going deep again (#18) and Jon Jimenez had the game's biggest hit, a grand slam (#24) in the 4th while Daniel Vasquez hit #19 for good measure.

Game 3: The Rays' offense was held to 5 hits and they dropped a 2-1 decision to the Twins which saw Nate Thompson lose for the first time this year. Danny Ayala had an RBI single in the 1st and it looked like it would be business as usual but that turned out to be the extent of the Tampa Bay scoring. Thompson wasn't his sharpest today and surrendered a 2-run homer in the 2nd to Tanner Witt, the Rays' first-round pick all the way back in 2020. He was a bit wild, finishing 6 5 2 2 4 6 but with anything resembling the Rays' usual offensive output he'd have been 16-0 instead of 15-1. Danny Medina went the final two innings scoreless to keep it close.

Team record: 83-17. Next up: An off-day, then we head to St. Louis for a pair.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: Possible World Series preview? St. Louis came into this game 64-36, far and away the best record in the NL. And they improved on that record with a 6-4 win over the Rays at Busch Stadium as some former Rays had a say in the matter. Dane Ayers' RBI single in the 6th broke a 4-4 tie, Tyler Jefferson started and got the win despite allowing 4 runs in 6 1/3, and Jasson Dominguez had a 2nd-inning homer off Alfredo Vega, who took his first loss as a Ray. Vega had a 4-2 lead going into the bottom of the 6th, but lost the plot and gave up the 3 runs, including one scoring thanks to his own error, to finish 5.1 10 5 4 0 6. And a Bo Angeac miscue gave the Cards an unearned run in the 7th off Billy Hoyte. Jon Jimenez (#25) had a 2-run homer in the 1st and Danny Ayala had a solo shot (#30) to give them the early lead.

Game 2: These last two nights had a playoff-like atmosphere, and tonight's game was a nail-biter which saw the Rays hang on and win 4-3. Jon Soranno made his first start since returning from the IL and was excellent, going 6 2 1 1 3 5 and moved to 10-0, 3.26. But it wasn't easy, especially after Tim Siqueiros gave up 2 runs in the 8th to let the Cardinals within a run. Mike Wherry had to come on and bail him out by whiffing lefty slugger Eric Knatz to end the inning (Jim Golunski pitched the 7th) and Kikuo Kawase at least had a drama-free 9th by whiffing a pair in a 1-2-3 outing for save #28. Eric Titcombe got the offense going with an RBI double in the 1st, Bo Angeac hit HR #17, and Mike McKee had an RBI single for what proved to be the game-winner.

Team record: 84-18. Next up: Another off-day (we've had 2 in less than a week since the ASB), then we're back home for 3 against Boston.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: The Rays routed the Red Sox 13-2 at Publix Park today, although it was a 4-1 game into the 7th before they poured it on. Will Quintana was 3-4 with a big 2-run homer early (#5), while Jon Jimenez was 4-5 with 2 doubles and 2 RBI. Also having big days were Jaiden Hardaway, 3-5 with HR #13, Bo Angeac, 2-4 with a 2-run HR (#18) and Jeremy Glasson, a 3-run HR (#3). Mowing them down on the mound was Josh Carsello, who was excellent going 8 7 2 2 0 10 (the lack of walks particularly notable) and improving to 14-3, 3.79 with an AL-leading 168 strikeouts. Willie Bertone had a clean 9th.

Game 2: Jon Jimenez led the Rays to another decisive 8-2 win over the Red Sox today. The lefty-swinging 1B was 4-4 with 3 runs scored, a double, a homer (#26) and 4 RBI to power the offense while Jaiden Hardaway was on base all 5 times with 2 hits, 3 walks, 2 runs scored and a steal. Daniel Vasquez added a 2-run double against his former team. Nate Thompson got back on the winning track even if he wasn't his most dominant, going 6 7 2 2 1 3 to improve to 16-1, 2.67. Billy Hoyte went 2 scoreless and Bob Sirna struck out the side in the 9th.

July 27: Activated OF Omar Rodriguez from the 10-day IL, optioned OF Jeremy Glasson to AAA Durham.

Glasson did well in his limited playing time, and looks to be a future starter, perhaps in a platoon next year with Daniel Malone to take Dayle Jenkins' place when he goes free agent.

Game 3: It was another Boston massacre as the Rays coasted to a 7-0 win behind another strong turn from a resurgent Josh Hanna. The lefty went 7 4 0 0 1 7 to go to 13-2, 3.89 and it marked his fifth straight start with 2 or fewer earned runs allowed. Mike Wherry and Ron Adams each had a scoreless inning to complete the shutout. Offensively, Omar Rodriguez marked his return to the lineup with an RBI single in his first time up, and a 5-run 3rd saw Daniel Vasquez hit a 2-run HR (#20) and Bo Angeac contribute a 2-run double. Also Dayle Jenkins set a career high with his 23rd homer.

Team record: 87-18. Next up: Milwaukee visits for 3 games of interleague action.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: 8 was the number of the day as the Rays scored 8 times for win #88, taking advantage of 3 Brewer errors to score 6 unearned runs in an 8-2 win. Daniel Vasquez was the hitting hero, 3-5 with HR #21 and 3 RBI, Omar Rodriguez was 3-4 in his second game back, and Jon Jimenez and Jeff Baez each had 2 hits and a ribbie. Alfredo Vega did his usual thing, going 6 4 2 2 3 6 to go to 8-1 as a Ray with a 2.96 ERA, and Willie Bertone fired 3 innings of 1-hit relief for save #3.

Game 2: The Rays lost a squeaker at Publix Park today when Jim Golunski gave up a run in the 9th and Milwaukee took the game 5-4. Jon Soranno had a poor start, going 3.2 6 4 4 4 4 before the bullpen took over. Ron Adams went 2 1/3 with 5 whiffs, Tim Siqueiros a perfect 7th and Golunski got Danny Medina out of a jam in the 8th but created his own in the 9th. Omar Rodriguez continues like he never went away, 2-4 with HR #17 and 2 RBI, and Bo Angeac (#19) and Daniel Vasquez (#22) had back-to-back jacks in the 5th to tie the game at 4.

Game 3: Apparently losing a close game made the Rays mad, as they went out and mauled Milwaukee 13-0. Dayle Jenkins had a career game (I think), going 3-5 with 2 homers and 7 RBI with a 3-run shot in the 2nd and a grand slam in the 5th. Also homering were David Vasquez (for the 4th straight game, #23), who drove in four, and Jon Jimenez (#27). On the mound, Josh Carsello continued his hot streak with a 6 3 0 0 2 11 performance. He's won his last 4 starts and has 43 whiffs in 27 IP over that stretch with only 4 runs allowed, and is now 15-3, 3.62 for the season. Bob Sirna also has turned around his season, and he went the final 3 with 4 whiffs for his 2nd save and lowered his ERA to 3.15.

Team record: 89-19. Next up: An off-day before the Angels visit for a 3-game weekend series.

[Art Deco]

So many at different levels that they get their own post.



And we sweep both sides of the ball:



Durham continues to kick butt in the IL and is 66-37 in part due to this guy:



Stevenson you may recall was taken from us by Boston in the Rule 5 draft last winter, but was returned during Spring Training.



Miller has his professional career off to a great start. He was our 7th round pick this year so he just missed a mention in the draft post but does project to have above-average power, although the batting average you see is probably because he's a college guy in a rookie league as he's rated only 30 for contact with 40 potential. Probably not much of a prospect but we'll see.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: A routine 6-1 win over the Angels turned out to be anything but routine as the Rays lost their defensive wiz at SS, Jeff Baez, to a severe hip strain and he's done for the season. More on his possible replacement(s) later. As for the game Nate Thompson continued on his Cy Young roll, going 7 5 1 1 1 5 to improve to 17-1, 2.61 and is now up to 5.0 WAR, best of any pitcher in MLB. Danny Medina went 2 scoreless with 4 whiffs to finish the game. On offense it was mostly singles and walks with Eric Titcombe's double the only extra-base hit as he was 2-3 with an RBI, Dayle Jenkins had 3 more hits and a steal and Jaiden Hardaway had a 2-run single.

August 2: Placed SS Jeff Baez on the 60-day IL with a severe hip strain, recalled SS Andy Vasquez from AAA Durham.

Vasquez has earned his shot after an excellent season and a half at Durham which has seen him hit 35 doubles and 34 homers in those 188 games. He's a 65 defender at the position as well. Of course the Baez injury had to happen one day after the trade deadline so we're stuck with internal options and free agents. One free agent we'll try to sign is 33-year-old Dorian Gonzalez, a 6-time Gold Glove winner still rated as an 80 on defense although he can't hit much which is why he's sitting at home. 38-year-old Bo Bichette is out there, and while he's still a decent hitter, he's a 60 SS and we really don't need the offense.

Game 2: He's 39 now, but Eloy Jimenez still finds a way to kill us every year (even the year we had him when he went 0-for-the-ALDS we lost) and today his 3-run homer propelled the Angels to a 6-4 win over the Rays at Publix Park. The blast came in the 3rd inning to put the Angels up 4-1 and the Rays were never able to catch up, primarily due to leaving 12 runners on base. Bo Angeac was the only one really driving in runs, bringing home 3 of the 4 on a pair of singles and an RBI groundout. Josh Hanna served up the Eloy homer and finished 6 9 5 4 0 8 to fall to 13-3, 3.99, and Willie Bertone was even touched for a run in his 2 innings of work with Billy Hoyte turning in a 1-2-3 5-pitch 9th.

Game 3: The Rays treated their former ace rudely, batting around and scoring 5 times in the first against Christian Little on the way to a 9-3 win to take the series against the Angels. They blasted 3 homers off Little with Danny Ayala's 3-run shot (#31) the first before Omar Rodriguez (#18) and Daniel Vasquez (#24, his 5th in his last 6 games) went back-to-back. The other Vasquez, Andy, had a nice day in his 2nd start going 3-4 with a 2-run double and a steal, while Dayle Jenkins was 3-5 with 2 RBI himself. Alfredo Vega struggled in the 3rd, allowing 3 runs, but was lights-out the rest of the way going 7 4 3 3 3 5 to improve to 9-1 as a Ray, while Tim Siqueiros and Kikuo Kawase (who hadn't pitched in 11 days) got in scoreless innings of work.

Team record: 91-20. Next up: 3 games in Oakland.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: The Rays overcame deficits of 5-1 and 6-3 to take an 8-6 win in their series opener at Oakland tonight. Dayle Jenkins continued his MVP-caliber season by blasting a 2-run HR (#26) in the 8th to break a 6-6 tie, his 4th hit of the night, after tying the game in the 6th with an RBI single. Also homering were Omar Rodriguez (#19), Danny Ayala (#32), and yes, Daniel Vasquez (#25, his 6th in 7 games). Jon Soranno had another rough start, pulled in the 4th after going 3.2 9 5 5 1 2, but the bullpen did its job as usual with Mike Wherry, the 3rd of 5 relievers, getting win #5 and Kikuo Kawase notching save #29.

Game 2: For a change the Rays got a taste of what it's like to be on the wrong end of a blowout after dishing out so many over the years as Oakland trounced them 12-2. Josh Carsello and Ron Adams in relief each allowed 6 runs on 7 hits over 3 innings as the game was never close. Tampa Bay only managed 4 hits, although 2 of them were homers: Danny Ayala's 33rd and of course Daniel Vasquez's 26th, now giving him 7 longballs in 8 games.

Game 3: Tampa Bay bounced back from yesterday's drubbing with one of their own, a 7-1 win over the A's. Nate Thompson went to 18-1 with another excellent outing, 6 3 1 1 0 8, which lowered his ERA to 2.56. Thompson is now 57-9 over the last 3 seasons and has become the team's ace. Danny Medina pitched the 7th and Mike Wherry added 2 scoreless innings. On offense Jon Jimenez had a big game, going 3-5 with 2 RBI, Will Quintana was 2-3 with an RBI and Andy Vasquez was 2-4 with an RBI triple. David Vasquez didn't homer, and also saw his 11-game RBI streak come to an end.

Team record: 93-21. Next up: An off-day, followed a weekend set in historic Wrigley Field to battle the Cubs, who have the 2nd best record in the NL but trail the Cardinals by 4 games. We won't be seeing old friend Ricky Widmar, who counts his current plantar fascitis among numerous injuries which have limited him to 107 AB this year. Wrecked is wrecked.

MLB News: Minnesota's Tim Gates no-hit San Diego today, walking 1, striking out 6 and doing it on 82 pitches in a 1-0 game. Impressive.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: The Rays paid their first visit to the friendly confines of Wrigley Field in many years and came away 7-3 winners in 10 innings. Danny Ayala's 2-run double broke the deadlock in overtime and Omar Rodriguez, who had earlier hit #20 off reigning NL Cy Young winner Raul Robles, added a 2-run single to salt it away. Mike Wherry notched relief win #6 with 2 perfect innings. Earlier they had built a 3-1 lead against Robles on O-Rod's homer, one from Jon Jimenez (#28) and an Andy Vasquez RBI double. Josh Hanna gave one back and finished 6 7 2 2 1 6 and then Chicago tied it in the 7th during a rare inning of struggle from Jim Golunski.

Game 2: Deja vu all over again as for the second straight day the Rays blew a lead with Jim Golunski allowing the Cubs to tie, before coming back to have a big inning in their final at-bat as they scored 5 times in the 9th to beat Chicago 9-4. It was a strange day for the offense as former Ray Steve Givens no-hit them through 5, but Alfredo Vega kept the Cubs off the board. Finally in the 6th Mike McKee led off with a triple, scored on Andy Vasquez's single, Vasquez scored on Dayle Jenkins' RBI single and Bo Angeac hit #20 to make it 4-0. But Vega gave back a couple in the bottom of the frame, and left with a 5.1 4 2 2 2 8 line. After Tim Siqueiros got the Cubs in the 7th, Golunski struggled again, allowing 2 runs in the 8th to enable the Cubs to tie. But in the 9th the Rays loaded the bases with nobody out, Vasquez singled in a run as did Jaiden Hardaway, and then Jenkins cleared the bases with a double to give him a 4-RBI day. Danny Medina recorded the final 5 outs to pick up his 3rd win of the year.

Game 3: The Rays dropped the series finale to the Cubs 6-2 at Wrigley. It was a pitchers' duel between Jon Soranno and Chicago's Steve Fairweather (an NL Cy Young-frontrunner) with the score 1-0 Cubs into the bottom of the 6th. But Soranno loaded the bases with one out, and Willie Bertone came in, and he couldn't have been any worse, walking a man to force in a run and then allowing a grand slam to make it 6-0. As a result Soranno finished 5.1 5 4 4 3 8 and suffered his first loss of the season after going 10-0. They scratched out a couple of runs afterward but never seriously threatened a comeback.

Team record: 95-22. Next up: The road trip continues south with 4 games in Arlington against the Rangers.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: The Rays dropped their second straight game, falling 7-2 at Globe Life Field to Texas in a contest that was closer than the final score indicated. In fact the Rays took a 2-1 lead into the bottom of the 7th on solo homers from Danny Ayala (#34) and Bo Angeac (#21) behind Josh Carsello. But Carsello gave up an RBI triple to tie the game and the runner went on to score to make it 3-2 Rangers. And then Danny Medina melted down in the 8th, allowing 4 runs, and that was that. Carsello took the tough loss having gone 7 4 3 3 4 6 as he's 15-5, 3.93 now.

Game 2: The Rangers' Joel LeFevre retired the first 18 Rays over 6 innings, but Jon Jimenez took over the game and Nate Thompson got win #19 as the Rays came back to down Texas 4-2. Jaiden Hardaway led off the 7th with a single to break up the perfect game, Dayle Jenkins reached on an error and then Jimenez blasted HR #29 to suddenly put Tampa Bay ahead 3-2. And Jimenez provided insurance as well with an RBI double in the 8th. While LeFevre was doing his thing Thompson pitched well, finishing 6.1 4 2 1 0 4 and picked up the win to go to 19-1, 2.52. Tim Siqueiros went 1 2/3 scoreless and Kikuo Kawase struck out the side in the 9th for save #30.

Game 3: The Rays fell 6-3 to Texas today, their third loss in four games. They did grab a 3-0 lead on Jaiden Hardaway's 14th HR of the season in the 3rd and a 2-run Mike McKee blast (#8) in the 4th, but Josh Hanna gave it back and then some. Hanna was playing with fire in the early innings as Rangers were thrown out at the plate in consecutive innings, and the dam finally burst in the bottom of the 4th when he allowed 4 before finishing 5 7 4 4 3 3. The relief wasn't much relief as both Willie Bertone and Danny Medina allowed runs, and the bats stayed quiet after the 4th.

Game 4: The Rays salvaged a split of the 4-game series with Texas thanks to a come-from-behind 8-7 win. Daniel Vasquez's 3rd hit and 2nd RBI of the night brought home Danny Ayala with the tie-breaking run in the 9th to give them the win after they had fought back from 5-2 and 7-5 deficits. Those deficits were the result of Alfredo Vega's worst start as a Ray, one which saw him allow 4 Ranger homers and all 7 runs, going 4.2 9 7 7 1 2. But the bullpen bought them time to come back, as Ron Adams went 1 1/3, Tim Siqueiros went 2 (and picked up win #4) and Kikuo Kawase grabbed save #30 with a 1-2-3 9th. Aside from D.Vasquez, the offense was led by Will Quintana (3-4 with a 2-run double), Bo Angeac (3-4 with an RBI), and Jaiden Hardaway (2-5 with HR #15).

Team record: 97-24. Next up: Finally back home to play the Yankees for a 3-game weekend series.