The 2021 (and only 2021) Tampa Bay Rays - Page 85

Art Deco · 07-01-2026, 05:26 PM

The Rays took the first two games of this series to extend their win streak to 11 games before dropping the finale.

Leo Gutierrez was dominant and Luis Solorzano had a big day at the plate to lead Tampa Bay to a 5-3 series-opening win over the Royals. Gutierrez (6-2) was in total control going 6 4 1 0 0 11 while Solorzano got the Rays on the board in the 5th with an RBI double and then drilled a 434-foot 2-run shot to center (#5) to pad the lead in the 6th. Jamie Arnold gave up a couple of runs in the 7th to let KC get close but they held on from there with Eric Lewis securing his 6th save.

The second game was worthy of reproducing the box:

Not only did D-Rod become the first Ray to hit for the cycle since Tony Fisher did it in the 2038 playoffs, he was the entire offense today driving in all five runs, four of which came on his slam. And it was another great outing from the pitching staff with Espinoza and two relievers scattering 10 hits in a shutout.

The bats completely disappeared in the finale and the Rays lost to the Royals 2-0 to see their 11-game win streak end. Sebastian Burns was excellent at 6 1 0 0 1 6 but Tiku Kadare's slump continued when he gave up a 2-run homer in the 7th to lose the game and his first 2041 decision. Kadare has now allowed two runs in three of his last four outings. Meanwhile the bats could only scratch out three singles on the day.

Team record: 30-9, 4 games up on Baltimore. Next up: Atlanta visits for 3 games.

Art Deco · 07-04-2026, 02:37 PM

The blazing start to 2041 continues apace as they swept Atlanta at The Trop. While they're not quite the 1984 Tigers a 33-9 start will play anywhere.

Danny Morales pitched his second career complete-game shutout, leading the Rays to a 4-0 win over Atlanta in the opener. He just missed a Maddux, going 9 5 0 0 1 7 on precisely 100 pitches and continued his personal hot start to the season by improving to 6-1, 1.39. Mario Osby supplied the necessary offense, going 3-4 with an RBI single to open the scoring and then launching a solo homer (#8) in the 3rd as part of a 3-hit day.

Ruben Cerrillo gave up a 3-run homer in the top of the 1st inning but it was all Tampa Bay after that as they handled Atlanta 8-3. Cerrillo (6-2) gave them nothing after that and finished 7 4 3 2 0 7 for the win while his teammates hit a trio of solo homers to tie it by the 2nd: Danny Rodriguez (#8), Mario Osby (#9) and Isaac Gardener (#5). Luis Solorzano's RBI single in the 4th put the Rays ahead to stay, and they broke it open with a 4-run 7th keyed by Osby's 2-run double. After a 3-hit game in the opener Osby was 4-4 with the double, homer and 3 RBI.

The Rays had to work a little harder in the finale to complete the sweep, doing so in dramatic fashion when Melvin Olvera belted a leadoff homer (#7) in the bottom of the 9th to walk-off a 4-3 win over Atlanta. Leo Gutierrez was cruising with a 2-0 lead and a no-hitter into the 5th before giving up a 2-run homer to tie it and then put two men on in the 7th, one of whom scored on a Jose Rodriguez wild pitch, to see Atlanta take a 3-2 lead. He finished 6.1 2 3 3 3 7 in the no-decision and was taken off the hook in the bottom of the inning when Helmuth Mitterwallner tied it up with his 2nd longball of the year, setting the stage for Olvera's dramatics. Eric Lewis (2-0) walked two in the 9th but got a double play to escape and ended up with the relief win.

Team record: 33-9. Baltimore won't go away as they swept as well to stay 4 behind at 26-12, a record that would normally get you first place. Next up: A day off then more interleague play when Washington visits for 3 games.

And we have a trade to report:

Was shopping a few of our surplus guys in the minors to see what I could get, and the Nats were willing to give us Twine for Green, who was our infield backup last season but was squeezed out this spring and was playing at Durham. He's a quality infielder but we're deep in them and Twine has a special arm, rated 80/60/50 as a reliever and is capable of starting with 70 stuff. Ironically Twine was in our system as an 11th round pick in 2032 but did little to distinguish himself, becoming a minor league FA in 2038 when his six years were up. He signed with Washington and his stuff suddenly jumped from 50 with 55 potential to its current 80. The reason he came relatively cheap is that he's injury prone and only has just come back from Tommy John surgery which we underwent early last year and only has 58 MLB innings to his name. He does have a 15/83 BB/K ratio in those innings though. The other catch with him is that he's a free agent at year's end, though he shouldn't cost much to extend. Right now he will likely take Chad Montgomery's spot as the last man in the pen although he could be sent to Durham.

Art Deco · Yesterday, 10:07 PM

The Rays lost only their second series of the season as the bats disappeared in the final two games of the series after they took the opener.

Sergio Espinoza was outstanding and Tampa Bay started the series with a 6-0 win over the Nationals. Espinoza (3-0) was an efficient 7 3 0 0 1 5 and Jerry Baylor went the final two innings to cap the shutout. Jeremy Begley led off the game with his 11th homer, Billy Doughty capped the scoring with his 5th, and in between Mario Osby had a 2-run double.

The Rays played perhaps their worst game of the season the next night as they were thumped 10-1 by Washington. Sebastian Burns (2-2) was downright awful, going 1.2 5 5 5 2 2 and putting them out of the game early while Brad Paquette did go 5 1/3 to save the staff but gave up another five runs of his own.

The finale was billed as a premium pitching matchup with Danny Morales (6-1, 1.39) facing off against Washington's Ricky Barcena (5-1, 1.93) and it did not disappoint, unless you were a Rays fan as the Nationals made a first inning run against Morales stand up for the duration and won 1-0. Morales dropped to 6-2 and deserved a better fate after going 6.2 4 1 1 1 5 but his teammates could only scratch out two hits, both off the bat of Isaac Gardener.

Team record: 34-11. Fortunately the Orioles also lost two of three to stay 4 games behind. Next up: Boston visits for a quickie 2-game series.

07-01-2026, 05:26 PM	#1681
Art Deco Hall Of Famer Join Date: May 2020 Posts: 8,078	May 10-12, 2041: vs Kansas City (3) The Rays took the first two games of this series to extend their win streak to 11 games before dropping the finale. Leo Gutierrez was dominant and Luis Solorzano had a big day at the plate to lead Tampa Bay to a 5-3 series-opening win over the Royals. Gutierrez (6-2) was in total control going 6 4 1 0 0 11 while Solorzano got the Rays on the board in the 5th with an RBI double and then drilled a 434-foot 2-run shot to center (#5) to pad the lead in the 6th. Jamie Arnold gave up a couple of runs in the 7th to let KC get close but they held on from there with Eric Lewis securing his 6th save. The second game was worthy of reproducing the box: Not only did D-Rod become the first Ray to hit for the cycle since Tony Fisher did it in the 2038 playoffs, he was the entire offense today driving in all five runs, four of which came on his slam. And it was another great outing from the pitching staff with Espinoza and two relievers scattering 10 hits in a shutout. The bats completely disappeared in the finale and the Rays lost to the Royals 2-0 to see their 11-game win streak end. Sebastian Burns was excellent at 6 1 0 0 1 6 but Tiku Kadare's slump continued when he gave up a 2-run homer in the 7th to lose the game and his first 2041 decision. Kadare has now allowed two runs in three of his last four outings. Meanwhile the bats could only scratch out three singles on the day. Team record: 30-9, 4 games up on Baltimore. Next up: Atlanta visits for 3 games.

07-04-2026, 02:37 PM	#1682
Art Deco Hall Of Famer Join Date: May 2020 Posts: 8,078	May 13-15, 2041: vs Atlanta (3) The blazing start to 2041 continues apace as they swept Atlanta at The Trop. While they're not quite the 1984 Tigers a 33-9 start will play anywhere. Danny Morales pitched his second career complete-game shutout, leading the Rays to a 4-0 win over Atlanta in the opener. He just missed a Maddux, going 9 5 0 0 1 7 on precisely 100 pitches and continued his personal hot start to the season by improving to 6-1, 1.39. Mario Osby supplied the necessary offense, going 3-4 with an RBI single to open the scoring and then launching a solo homer (#8) in the 3rd as part of a 3-hit day. Ruben Cerrillo gave up a 3-run homer in the top of the 1st inning but it was all Tampa Bay after that as they handled Atlanta 8-3. Cerrillo (6-2) gave them nothing after that and finished 7 4 3 2 0 7 for the win while his teammates hit a trio of solo homers to tie it by the 2nd: Danny Rodriguez (#8), Mario Osby (#9) and Isaac Gardener (#5). Luis Solorzano's RBI single in the 4th put the Rays ahead to stay, and they broke it open with a 4-run 7th keyed by Osby's 2-run double. After a 3-hit game in the opener Osby was 4-4 with the double, homer and 3 RBI. The Rays had to work a little harder in the finale to complete the sweep, doing so in dramatic fashion when Melvin Olvera belted a leadoff homer (#7) in the bottom of the 9th to walk-off a 4-3 win over Atlanta. Leo Gutierrez was cruising with a 2-0 lead and a no-hitter into the 5th before giving up a 2-run homer to tie it and then put two men on in the 7th, one of whom scored on a Jose Rodriguez wild pitch, to see Atlanta take a 3-2 lead. He finished 6.1 2 3 3 3 7 in the no-decision and was taken off the hook in the bottom of the inning when Helmuth Mitterwallner tied it up with his 2nd longball of the year, setting the stage for Olvera's dramatics. Eric Lewis (2-0) walked two in the 9th but got a double play to escape and ended up with the relief win. Team record: 33-9. Baltimore won't go away as they swept as well to stay 4 behind at 26-12, a record that would normally get you first place. Next up: A day off then more interleague play when Washington visits for 3 games. And we have a trade to report: Was shopping a few of our surplus guys in the minors to see what I could get, and the Nats were willing to give us Twine for Green, who was our infield backup last season but was squeezed out this spring and was playing at Durham. He's a quality infielder but we're deep in them and Twine has a special arm, rated 80/60/50 as a reliever and is capable of starting with 70 stuff. Ironically Twine was in our system as an 11th round pick in 2032 but did little to distinguish himself, becoming a minor league FA in 2038 when his six years were up. He signed with Washington and his stuff suddenly jumped from 50 with 55 potential to its current 80. The reason he came relatively cheap is that he's injury prone and only has just come back from Tommy John surgery which we underwent early last year and only has 58 MLB innings to his name. He does have a 15/83 BB/K ratio in those innings though. The other catch with him is that he's a free agent at year's end, though he shouldn't cost much to extend. Right now he will likely take Chad Montgomery's spot as the last man in the pen although he could be sent to Durham.

Yesterday, 10:07 PM	#1683
Art Deco Hall Of Famer Join Date: May 2020 Posts: 8,078	May 17-19, 2041: vs Washington (3) The Rays lost only their second series of the season as the bats disappeared in the final two games of the series after they took the opener. Sergio Espinoza was outstanding and Tampa Bay started the series with a 6-0 win over the Nationals. Espinoza (3-0) was an efficient 7 3 0 0 1 5 and Jerry Baylor went the final two innings to cap the shutout. Jeremy Begley led off the game with his 11th homer, Billy Doughty capped the scoring with his 5th, and in between Mario Osby had a 2-run double. The Rays played perhaps their worst game of the season the next night as they were thumped 10-1 by Washington. Sebastian Burns (2-2) was downright awful, going 1.2 5 5 5 2 2 and putting them out of the game early while Brad Paquette did go 5 1/3 to save the staff but gave up another five runs of his own. The finale was billed as a premium pitching matchup with Danny Morales (6-1, 1.39) facing off against Washington's Ricky Barcena (5-1, 1.93) and it did not disappoint, unless you were a Rays fan as the Nationals made a first inning run against Morales stand up for the duration and won 1-0. Morales dropped to 6-2 and deserved a better fate after going 6.2 4 1 1 1 5 but his teammates could only scratch out two hits, both off the bat of Isaac Gardener. Team record: 34-11. Fortunately the Orioles also lost two of three to stay 4 games behind. Next up: Boston visits for a quickie 2-game series.