The 2020 (and beyond) Tampa Bay Rays

[Art Deco]

4-timers!



The Rays have won it again, becoming only the third team in MLB history (and the first not named the Yankees) to win four consecutive World Series titles after beating the Reds 7-4 to take the 2044 World Series in 6 games, their 13th in 22 seasons. It was another comeback win, and although not as shocking or dramatic as Game 5's, it was impressive nonetheless. Ahead 4-1 going into the bottom of the 6th, the Reds pulled 40-stamina starter Alec McInerney, who had kept Tampa Bay in check, in favor of Victor Robles with his 80 stuff and 45 control. After a strikeout he gave up a double and then walked the next three men to force in a run to cut it to 4-2, and then Dave Frick cleared the bases with a double to provide the Series-winning hit. Josh Alexander tacked on a 2-run homer, Satoshi Sato got Jim Brophy out of a 7th-inning jam, and Sean Forbes closed it out. Doug Johns was named series MVP after going 10-25 (with a hit in each game) with 3 HR and 9 RBI including the dramatic grand slam in Game 5. The goal now is consecutive title #5 next season to tie the 1949-53 Yankees for the all-time record.

(sorry no screen capture of the celebration this year as it went right to the box score after the final out as it seemed I hit the wrong button trying to do a ctrl+print screen).

[Art Deco]

Time to head into another offseason. This one will probably be dragged out longer than the usual day or two as I'm waiting for OOTP23 to come out Tuesday with its enhanced "shop a player" features. But first a look at the newest trophy:



Some significant news:

* Owner Jorge Rios has given me a payroll of $190M. I never spend to the limits but we're going to need most of it with several key players due for substantial raises in arbitration.

* Brad Jackson has opted out of the final two years of his contract and will be a free agent. Along with Johnny Soland leaving, this will give us two rotation slots to fill. One will go to Joel Gird but unless we re-sign Jackson we'll need another starter. Of course we can always move Jose Mendoza or Jon Harbour to the rotation.

* MLB has increased the size of the secondary (40-man) roster to 42, which will help with flexibility although it seems the last couple of years we haven't maxed it out nor lost anyone significant in Rule 5, so it may not be a big deal.

* We're doing this:



Those numbers above reflect his time with the Rays; he retired with 447 HR in total. He's our all-time leader in HR, RBI and SLG and 4th in total WAR.

Other notable retirements include a long-time OF mainstay and teammate of Ayala's with the Rays, Dayle Jenkins; Josh Hanna, who went 36-10 in 2035-36 in our rotation; former Rangers ace and 2030 Cy Young winner Victor Presas; and former Rays relievers Steve Abeles and Pat Dorminy.

* We have a new scouting director. The only one we've ever known all these years, Rob Metzler, has retired. We hired Paul Taboni who's rated as "good" but of course is no Metzler.

Roster thoughts for the offseason by position:

C: Tony Cordova was excellent last year and will remain the #1 catcher. Jeff Baer was good as well but Nelson Bocardo really deserves to be on the big club so I will be shopping Baer.

1B: Seth Williams was productive even if he isn't the classic slugger-type at the position. It seems as though he's settled in to being a good 3-4 WAR player rather than the superstar he looked he was going to be after his first couple of years.

2B: Josh Beckett is getting expensive, and while .340 career hitters don't grow on trees he's been more of a .310 guy the last couple of years so he's a possible trade candidate, especially with Tomas Laboy capable of playing the position.

SS: Dave Frick is great and going nowhere.

3B: Luis Barela. Looking at a 3rd straight MVP. He settled with us before arbitration on a $25M contract for next season but obviously more than worth it.

LF: Mike Willis. Willis will be traded, he's angry about his role on the team even though he's got 4 rings and plays on the long side of the platoon. We have Mario Saro more than ready to step in to an OF role and trading him will free up LF for Jose Mendez every day who put up 5.2 WAR in 3/4 of a full season's at-bats and is a better defender.

CF: Dan Gregory is set there, another fine season behind him and will probably reclaim his Gold Glove this year. He's a still a bit fragile but that's why we have Chris Parham.

RF: Doug Johns is set, his lack of homers was a bit disappointing but I'm chalking it up as aberration especially after he clubbed 3 in the Series.

DH: Josh Alexander. He could be the surprise guy I deal, again he's gotten expensive ($22M) and is under team control for only one more year after this. Not sure what his trade market is though.

Bench: If we trade Beckett we'll get another MI to go with Laboy, Mario Saro should claim an OF spot, and Chris Parham will understudy Gregory.

SP: As mentioned above in the Brad Jackson news, right now we've got Ager-Brophy-Bookhart-Gird, and then the 5th starter could be someone we already have (Harbour, Mendoza) or we could acquire one in trade.

RP: Chris Martin is a free agent, he's 36, and our newest scouting report showed he's lost a tick or two of velocity so I doubt we bring him back. We either trade for a big-time reliever or we close with Sato and Forbes. Despite some playoff hiccups, Ed Pretty has re-established himself as a quality setup option, and my new scout likes Doug Combs, who struggled with control during the first half but pitched better in the 2nd. Dan Anderson is dependable in middle relief, and I still hope Ismael Vargas can harness his stuff. At most I see bringing in one guy from outside.

[Art Deco]

As alluded to in the previous post, some big potential trades could be in the works and sure enough they happened. Let's start with the first:



Farewell Josh Beckett. While I'm not thrilled to have to pitch to him 18-19 times a season on a division rival, the return the Jays offered brings us a younger and cheaper version of Beckett. Chris Fox can hit, and he's a better defensive 2B than Beckett with the added bonus of being able to play short, giving us a better option than sliding Luis Barela over there. Here are Fox's particulars, including hitting .335 with the Jays after a mid-late season callup:



That will work. Plus having played his college ball at Florida State he's a local favorite. Right now Tomas Laboy will have the inside track on starting but since he's a 45 defender he'll share time with Fox and also be replaced defensively late in the games when nursing a lead. We had to thrown in Caseras in, a live arm with good stuff but iffy movement and control whom the scouts give the ceiling of a fifth starter. The fan interest "almost crashed" and just wait until the next couple of deals go down.



I said I was going to trade Willis, and trade him I did (forgot to screenshot the trade page but my assistant GM loved the deal). Jose Castillo can rake. Really rake:



Castillo didn't become a regular until about June and look at the numbers he put up to go with those ratings. He may be NL Rookie of the Year, we'll find out in a few days. McKinney could be a player, he was our 3rd-round draft pick last year and looked decent in his pro debut, but Castillo is part of our future now and for awhile as he'll be on the minimum for a couple of more years.

Notice something on the right side with Castillo? Yeah, that's a 20 rating for LF. The man has no defensive value and he's a born DH. But wait, don't we already have a DH who's a former MVP and pillar of the lineup?

Well not anymore:



Aloha Josh Alexander as he goes back to the team which drafted him, the Mariners, and then traded him to us in December 2036 for Ricky Loya. In return for him, and a couple of pretty good players in Jeff Baer (surplus to requirements with Nelson Bocardo around) and Jeff Googins (a useful utility guy but Chris Fox helps there), we get an All-Star starting pitcher to take Brad Jackson's place in Robinson. The particulars on him:



He'll do. He's extremely impressive at keeping the ball in the park (0.3-0.7 HR/9 the last three years) and while not overpowering he's extremely effective. And as we've improved out defense of late I'm not as concerned about pitchers who pitch to a little more contact.

So in sum three fixtures of our lineup the last 4-5 seasons (Beckett, Willis and Alexander) are out the door on the same day (sentimental Rays fans might consider this "Black Thursday") but we've gotten younger (all 3 were 30+), less expensive and I'd say better.

[Art Deco]

Awards time:

First the Gold Gloves were handed out, and one Ray did win. But it wasn't Dan Gregory, whom I expected to reclaim his, but Gordie Ager who won it at pitcher. Gregory was beaten out by Chicago's Chris Luster.

Next up was Reliever of the Year and we had a worthy winner:



Forbes was lights-out this year, clocking in with 2.9 WAR. Satoshi Sato took third and might have been the front-runner if not for a dip in form in September.

The Silver Sluggers were next, with the Rays taking 5 of the 9 positional awards. Josh Beckett (2B), Luis Barela (3B), Dave Frick (SS), Jose Mendez (LF) and Josh Alexander (DH) came away with hardware.

The Cy Youngs were handed out and Gordie Ager did not win as I had hoped, losing out to Chicago's Omar Guerrero. Guerrero was 11-5 and his 2.12 ERA got him over the top. Ager finished second, with 9 first place votes (including mine) to Guerrero's 18. The Yankees' Andy Presley (15-9, 2.98) picked up the other 3. Over in the NL, Aden Ramirez of the Cardinals took the honors with 23 first-place votes after a 20-6, 2.54 season.

Finally it was MVP time. Jon Lozada was rightly a unanimous winner in the NL after a .371-15-62 season in which he earned a whopping 10.6 WAR. Over in the AL it was much closer. Much, much closer:



It was the first tie at the top in the MVP voting since 1979 with Willie Stargell and Keith Hernandez finishing with an identical number of points and being named co-MVPs of the NL. Although the story above only mentions Barela, a look at Taylor's page shows him with the award as well so we did in fact have co-MVPs again. Co-winner or not, the award is Barela's third straight, the last two with the Rays and the first one with the Phillies.

November 24: Brad Jackson turned down the $17M qualifying offer while I didn't make one to either Chris Martin or Johnny Soland, so they all became free agents.

We also signed 1B Alex Maas to a 2-year, $1.7M deal after claiming him on waivers from Pittsburgh at season's end. Not sure why the Pirates waived him as he's ranked the #54 prospect in baseball. He had toiled in the Pirates system since 2037, signed a minor league extension with them but for whatever reason they didn't want to re-sign him. He has option years left and he's going to Durham (where he'll replace Joe Flores who became a free agent). I think Maas is overrated at #54 but has 50 current/65 potential power and has a current eye of 65. His minor league numbers were 264/381/394 at AA last year so he looks better on paper but he was a free pickup and didn't cost much to keep around for 2 years.

And we swung another trade:



The price was a little steep with Freddy Virgil, a top-100 overall prospect, but Moses can pitch while Virgil is probably 4-5 years away and can only hope to pitch as well as Moses:



Those are his ratings as a reliever, the stuff only drops to 70 as a starter. The former Yankee pitched in a swing role with the Dodgers last season and was outstanding, especially in relief where he was 5-2 with 13 saves in 25 appearances, sporting a 6/45 BB/K ratio in 27.2 IP. I will use him as a multi-inning setup reliever in front of Sato and Forbes but if we need a starter he should be a much better option that turning to Mendoza or Harbour.

The Moses acquisition and other three big trades pretty much settle the projected 2045 roster here in late November, although we have one pitcher too many for now, and there will be a couple of guys out of options whom we'll have to deal or waive like Jon Callahan and Charles Thornton but we'll let Spring Training take care of that.

December 11: Chris Martin signed with Milwaukee on a 2/15.6 deal. The veteran closer pitched well for us but got hurt during the playoffs, is now 37, and lost a mile or two off his fastball so I wish the Brewers luck.

December 14: Brad Jackson signed a 5/98 deal with Washington. He was a nice 77-28 for us over 4 1/2 seasons and won the 2041 Cy Young. He settled into the role of a good #3 starter after that and the first couple years of this deal should be OK for the Nats but after that I'm not so sure. We receive a compensatory 1st rounder as a result.

December 22: Added P Mike Treddinick and OF Jared Richardson to the 40-man roster.

It's Rule 5 time again, and although it wouldn't break my heart to lose either of these guys, we did have 4 spots on open on the 42-man roster.

December 22: The biggest free agent to sign yet is Nelson Gamez, who hit 295 homers for the Reds over his first 7 years and now will be patrolling CF at Yankee Stadium on a 4/96.8 deal.

December 23: We had a pretty lively Rule 5 draft for a change with 12 players taken including 4(!) by the Dodgers and 3 by Kansas City. None of our players were taken.

December 24: Jimmy Leonard got a massive Christmas Eve present when the former Ray inked a 7/256.5 deal with the St. Louis Cardinals. He was coming off an MVP-caliber season with Oakland (.289-33-121, 5.6 WAR)

December 26: Former Rays reliever Chris Toombs, who had closed for Cincinnati last season, joins former teammate Jimmy Leonard in St. Louis on a 2/9.5 deal.

December 28: The last of our big-name free agents signed elsewhere as Johnny Soland went to Boston on a 1-year deal which will pay him $9.2 million.

[Art Deco]

Housekeeping note: I am currently a day before the preseason starts, and wanted to use that as a cutoff to import the game to OOTP23 when I get it tomorrow (the 19th).

In the meantime we did have Hall of Fame results, and congrats to Rays legend Wander Franco!



The holdovers once again were hurt by the new boys as Rafael Devers has ping-ponged between 47 and 68% the last four years and Wil Diaz dropped from 70% to 60%. Shohei Ohtani held steady at 62% in his second year while Tyler Glasnow sadly dropped off the ballot. I never voted for him as his peak was short and his career numbers weren't there; he was effectively finished after 2027, accumulating only 2.1 WAR over his final 3 injury-riddled seasons.

More on Wander:



We had already retired his #6.

And there was this:



and this:



C'mon guys, hire a personal chef - you can afford one.

February 1: Former Ray Tony Rey signed a 1/3.8 deal with the Cardinals, who look to be re-assembling the 2037 Rays.

This brings us to the preseason, and OOTP23.

[Art Deco]

Finally back on this save as I wanted to move it to OOTP23. It was a pretty uneventful spring training, both MLB news-wise and Rays-wise, with no significant injuries. Rookie Mario Saro, who will make the team as a backup OF, had a huge spring with 6 homers and is more than ready to be an MLB starter although he'll be coming off our bench.

Due to some players being out of options and a need to get down to 27, we made a few moves:

March 31: Designated IF Jon Callahan for assignment and placed him on waivers.

Callahan is a useful player whom I'd like to keep in the system but Chris Fox already has the utility infield job and there was no room for him. If he clears, I'm not entirely sure whether he has the option to refuse a demotion to Durham, we'll see.

April 1: Traded Ps Aidan Williams and Doug Combs to the Colorado Rockies for C Kurt Ferguson.

Williams was also out of options and I opted to keep Leo Bernal over Combs as the final pitcher so both needed to go. In return we pick up Ferguson, a fine catching prospect:



We were thin at catcher system-wise with Nelson Bocardo now in the bigs, and we've had a thing going where our future starter starts as the backup before the next guy comes along, as we've done with Will Quintana, Mike McKee, Kevin Morley, and now Tony Cordova with Bocardo next in line once Cordova becomes too expensive or a free agent and now Ferguson is ready to join the pipeline.

So here's the Opening Day roster:

C-Tony Cordova, Nelson Bocardo
1B-Seth Williams
2B-Tomas Laboy
SS-Dave Frick"
3B-Luis Barela
IF-Chris Fox
OF-Jose Mendez, Dan Gregory, Doug Johns, Chris Parham(*), Mario Saro
DH-Jose Castillo

SP-Gordie Ager, Jim Brophy, Dan Robinson, Greg Bookhart, Joel Gird
LR-Jon Harbour
MR-Leo Bernal, Ismael Vargas, Jose Mendoza, Dan Anderson
SU-Ed Pretty, Sean Forbes, Ben Moses
CL-Satoshi Sato

*Parham will also serve as a middle reliever

Sato isn't the exclusive closer, depending on whether righties or lefties are due up, Forbes will close some as well.

Here's what BNN thinks will happen this season:



Seems like a lot of parity around MLB with few truly dominant teams and few truly bad ones. Surely somebody in the NL is going to win 90 games.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: Opening Day of the 2045 season at Publix Park, and here's the box:



It was a tight affair but the Rays prevailed 6-4 after Luis Barela and Doug Johns came through with RBI singles in the bottom of the 8th to break a 4-4 tie. Johns, who inexplicably only had 15 HR last season, found his power stroke right away with a 2-run homer and Jose Mendez, finally given a full-time job, homered as well. Gordie Ager was up and down during his start but Jose Mendoza was dominant in his stint and Sean Forbes cleaned up with the save.

Game 2: The ball was flying out of Publix Park today, mostly off the bats of Rays hitters as they clubbed 5 round-trippers to rout the Yankees 11-3. Doug Johns, who homered on Opening Day, is determined to make up for his lack of 2044 longballs as he blasted two more and drove in 5 in total. Jose Mendez also went deep for the second straight day and joining them as first-time 2045 HR hitters were Seth Williams and Tomas Laboy. All of this support made a winner of Jim Brophy, who gave up a pair to Rays-killer Elias Aragune but both were solo shots as he went 6 6 3 3 2 8. Mario Saro came on late and delivered an RBI single in his first MLB at-bat as he has a bright future ahead. Also we had this amusing storyline from the game:



Game 3: The Rays completed the opening-series sweep of the Yankees with another 10-3 rout. Dan Gregory had 3 doubles and 3 RBI, Jose Castillo was 3-4 with a double, walk and RBI, Doug Johns went deep again for the 4th time in 3 games with a late 2-run blast, and Nelson Bocardo hit a solo homer in his first at-bat of the season. Dan Robinson had a successful Rays debut, going a solid 6 6 1 1 2 4 for the win.

Team record: 3-0. Next up: The homestand continues with 4 games against Toronto. Josh Beckett will return to town in enemy colors and will be given his 2044 World Series ring. No word on whether the cat will make an appearance.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: Greg Bookhart had a fine 2045 debut and Dave Frick delivered at the plate to give the Rays a 6-1 win over Toronto at Publix Park and improve to 4-0 to start the new season. The lefty went 5 3 1 1 2 6 on 89 pitches while Frick was 3-4 with 3 RBI to lead the offense and Seth Williams drove in a pair.

Game 2: The Rays tasted defeat for the first time in 2045 as Joel Gird and the bullpen were hit hard in a 12-2 loss to the Jays. Gird was 3.2 8 4 4 1 1 and the Rays were down 5-2 after 7 before Leo Bernal (5) and Chris Parham (2) combined to allow 7 more Toronto runs. The only bright spot was rookie Mario Saro, who was 2-4 with a pair of doubles and an RBI.

April 8: Placed C Tony Cordova on the 10-day IL with a strained oblique, purchased the contract of C Israyber Sampson from AAA Durham. Signed IF/OF Jose Gonzales and OF Pat Moyer to minor league contracts and assigned them to AAA Durham.

Cordova suffered the injury in last night's game and is only expected to be hurt for 4-5 days but we couldn't chance only one healthy catcher. Sampson is our 2nd round pick from back in 2038 who isn't a great receiver (25 rating) but can hit a little. Meanwhile we bring in a couple of blasts from the past. Gonzales really is from the past as he was our July 2 signing as a 16-year-old in 2023(!). He was the cornerstone of the package we sent in 2028 to the Giants for Rays legend Jaiden Hardaway and was always a good defensive player with some pop but never could hit consistently. His best year came at 33 in 2040 with the Angels when he had 28 HR, 93 RBI and 42 SB and won a Gold Glove at 3B, good for 3.9 WAR despite hitting .226. He was injured much of the last two seasons and now is "wrecked" but we signed him as we need a SS at Durham. Moyer meanwhile should be familiar as he spent 2039-2041 with the Rays and hit 52 HR as our 4th outfielder those 3 seasons. He's coming off a rough season hitting .218 with only 18 HR and 0.0 WAR with those same Angels and is now 34.

Game 3: Tampa Bay fell once again to Toronto 7-4 at Publix Park. Gordie Ager (0-1) took the loss after going 6 5 4 4 2 4 and Dan Anderson was hit for 3 runs in the 8th to allow the Jays to break it open. They did get a solo homer from Seth Williams (#2) and a 2-run blast from Tomas Laboy (#2) in the 9th to make the score more respectable.

Game 4: The Rays were staring down the barrel of a third straight loss before Nelson Bocardo came up with a 2-run homer (#2) in the 7th to turn a 3-2 deficit into a 4-3 win and salvage a split of the 4-game series with Toronto. Jim Brophy was OK at 6 8 3 3 1 4 with Ben Moses picking up his first Rays win with a scoreless 7th and Steve Forbes nailing down save #2. Bocardo had earlier singled in a run in what was his best day as a big leaguer.

Team record: 5-2. Next up: 3 games at Yankee Stadium over 4 days as New York has its home opener.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: The Rays took the home opener for New York at Yankee Stadium with a middle-inning explosion, winning 8-5. Seth Williams had a big day, drilling a 2-run homer in the 4th (#3) and a 2-run double in the 5th as part of a 3-hit day, Tomas Laboy had a 2-run shot (#3) in the 6th and Jose Mendez was 4-5 with a double and RBI. Dan Robinson was effective again to make it 2 wins in 2 starts, going 6 5 3 3 4 4 and after Dan Anderson made a mess, Steve Forbes cleaned it up for his 3rd save.

Game 2: Greg Bookhart had to leave in the 2nd inning with a strained forearm and the bullpen did not cover itself in glory in a 10-3 Yankee blowout of the Rays. Bookhart should be able to return after his 10-day IL stint is up, but Jon Harbour, Leo Bernal and Ismael Vargas were each hit for 3 runs with Bernal off to a particularly rough start giving up 8 runs in 3 1/3 so far this year. Jose Castillo's first Rays homer, a 3-run shot in the 8th, was it for the offense. New Yankee free agent signing slugger Nelson Gamez had 3 homers for New York, including his 300th career round-tripper.

April 13: Placed P Greg Bookhart on the 10-day IL with a strained forearm, recalled P Jonathan Melendez from AAA Durham.

I've come to realize our pitching depth is not that great, and I might need to make a deal or two. Melendez will take Bookhart's spot in the rotation

Game 3: Another rough day on the mound for Rays pitchers saw the Yankees take the series with a 6-2 win. Joel Gird turned in his second poor start to begin the year, getting hit for 4.1 8 5 5 3 4 with a pair of homers allowed including another to Rays-killer Elias Aragune, a 3-run shot in the 3rd which broke the game open. For the second straight day Jose Castillo was the Rays offense, today hitting a 2-run triple in the 6th.

Team record: 6-4. Next up: 4 games in Boston including the traditional morning Patriots Day affair on Monday.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: The Rays' losing streak reached 3 games after a tough 3-2 loss at Fenway to the Red Sox in the series opener. Particularly galling was that they loaded the bases in the 9th with nobody out, only for Nelson Bocardo and Jose Mendez to strike out and Seth Williams to fly out. Gordie Ager was OK at 5.2 3 3 3 2 2 and fell to 0-2.

Game 2: Tampa Bay broke its 3-game losing streak and its scoring slump (only 7 runs total in those 3 games) by walloping the Sox 10-3. Luis Barela, who had gotten off to a very quiet start, broke out today going 4-4 with his first homer of the year and 2 RBI, Jose Castillo hit a 3-run jack just inside the Pesky Pole (#2), Dave Frick was 3-5 with his first homer, and Tomas Laboy launched his 4th. Jim Brophy went to 2-0 with a 6 7 1 1 2 3 outing.

Game 3: The bats came out to play again today and the Rays hit double digits again in a 12-4 rout. Dave Frick stayed hot with a double, homer #2 and an RBI, Jose Castillo had a bases-clearing triple, and Jose Mendez and Doug Johns each drove in a pair. Israyber Sampson made his MLB debut behind the plate today and chipped in a couple of doubles. All the support meant Dan Robinson went to 3-0 off a fine 6 4 1 1 1 3 performance.

Game 4: The Rays took the Patriots Day matinee and the series by getting past the Red Sox 4-1, and moved into first place for the first time this year since starting 4-0. The big story was Jonathan Melendez, making his first MLB start after a handful of relief appearances last year. The former 1st-round pick looked the part in a tough park to pitch in, going 5 4 1 1 1 5 and getting the win. Satoshi Sato recorded his first save as he and Steve Forbes flip-flopped the 8th and 9th today with lefties due up later. Tomas Laboy led the offense with an RBI double and another homer, a solo shot for #5.

Team record: 9-5. Next up: Back home for 3 vs Detroit.

[Art Deco]

April 18: Activated C Tony Cordova from the 10-day IL, optioned C Israyber Sampson to AAA Durham.

Game 1: Joel Gird bounced back from two lousy starts to begin the season by pitching a gem as the Rays got by Detroit 3-1 in the series opener at Publix Park. Gird (1-2) was in command the whole time, going 7 2 1 0 0 7 on 90 pitches and Satoshi Sato fanned a pair in the 9th for his 2nd save. A 3-run 7th which saw Seth Williams drill a 2-run HR (#4) and Luis Barela follow with his 2nd provided all the offense needed.

Game 2: Gordie Ager's rough start to the season continued as he and the bullpen were hit hard in a 13-4 drubbing by Detroit. Ager was 4.2 9 7 7 0 3 and has begun the year 0-3, 7.06. Leo Bernal gave up his 4th homer in 5 1/3 innings this season and Chris Parham was hit for 4 runs in the 9th. Jose Castillo had a solo shot (#3) for the offensive highlight.

Game 3: It was a thrilling walk-off win for the Rays as they beat Detroit 8-6 but the thrill was greatly tempered by an injury to star reliever Satoshi Sato, who tore his rotator cuff and will out until mid-September. The Japanese lefty, one of the game's premier relievers, will be sorely missed and we're going to have trade for a replacement as the lefties in our pen right now are inconsistent at best. It looked like it would be a straightforward Rays win as they led 5-1 after 6, but starter Jim Brophy put a couple on, and Ben Moses had his first rough outing as a Ray, allowing those two to score and one of his own to cut it to 5-4. Brophy finished 6 8 3 3 2 5. And 5-4 is where it went to the 9th when Sato had to leave after retiring the first batter. With Sean Forbes having pitched the 8th and lefties due the call went to Jose Mendoza, and he promptly put a man on and gave up a 2-run homer to allow the Tigers to take a 6-5 lead. In the bottom of the 9th Dan Gregory led off with a single and stole second but was stuck there with 2 out until Jose Mendez got his 4th hit and 3rd RBI of the day to tie it, and Luis Barela followed with a mammoth 475-foot blast to left center (#3) to walk it off. Mendoza (2-0) got the undeserved win while Doug Johns was 2-4 with a double and 3 RBI.

Team record: 11-6. Next up: 3 games at home vs Houston.

[Art Deco]

As mentioned we badly needed a late-inning lefty to replace the injured Satoshi Sato so we acquired a pretty good one I had my eye on last season, Minnesota's Mike Robichaux who's coming off a 2.9 WAR season:



We even got Minnesota to pick up most of his healthy contract. The price was a decent pitching prospect in Victor Ruiz, who is ranked about #138 overall, but we also picked up a couple of more pitchers (thanks new OOTP23 package shopping). Ramos is the better of the two and both can either start or relieve with Lugo a veteran lefty who's got mediocre stuff but is almost impossible to homer off of. Robicheaux will take Sato's place but I have to figure out where the other two will go. Leo Bernal is probably the likeliest to go and Ismael Vargas has options.

[Art Deco]

April 21: Placed P Satoshi Sato on the 10-day IL with a torn rotator cuff, activated P Mike Robichaux.

Still trying to figure out where to slot the other two pitchers acquired from Minnesota, but no question where Robichaux goes. I have several spots open on the 42-man roster so no need yet to put Sato on the 60-day IL.

Game 1: Dan Robinson continues to be all I expected and more as the offseason acquisition went to 4-0 after going 6 shutout innings in a combined 2-hitter which the Rays won 4-0. Robinson lowered his ERA to 1.88 after a 6 2 0 0 3 5 outing while Mike Robichaux made an impressive Rays debut getting Ed Pretty out of a jam in the 7th with a strikeout to end the inning and then 2 more in a scoreless 8th. Luis Barela had a 2-run double in the 3rd and then Jose Mendez singled him home to provide all the runs needed.

Game 2: Jonathan Melendez surprised us all by how well he pitched in his season debut in Fenway, but really wowed us today by going 6 1 0 0 0 7 as the Rays beat Houston again 5-3. The rookie is now 2-0, 0.82 but will still likely head back to Durham as Greg Bookhart is ready to come off the IL and we're already roster-crunched. The bullpen made a 4-0 game interesting when Jose Mendoza served up a 2-run homer as he's been struggling big-time this year, and Sean Forbes allowed an unearned run in the 9th while getting save #4. Although unearned, the run allowed ended a remarkable streak of which I wasn't aware until this popped up:



What a stretch. On offense the big hits came from Tomas Laboy (HR #6, a solo shot) and Jose Mendez (an RBI triple).

Game 3: The Rays completed the sweep of Houston behind another excellent outing from a starter and a high-powered offense in an 8-1 rout of the Astros. Joel Gird turned in his second straight fine outing at 5 2 1 1 3 3 to even his record at 2-2, and Dave Frick had a big game with an RBI single and a 2-run HR (#3). Tomas Laboy went yard once again with his team-leading 7th homer, and Jose Mendez was 3-5 with an RBI.

Team record: 14-6. Next up: 3 games in Baltimore.

MLB News: Toronto's Nikola Grieco hurled a no-hitter over the weekend at Anaheim against the Angels, going 9 0 0 0 3 5 on 105 pitches.

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April 24: Traded 29-year old RHP Leo Bernal to the San Francisco Giants, getting 25-year old minor league RHP Jimmy Wernz and 24-year old minor league CF Nate Stone in return.

I just couldn't trust Bernal in key situations any more after allowing 4 homers in 7 relief appearances to start the year, and I needed to make room for Caleb Ramos. Both the minor leaguers acquired are longshots to make the team although Stone has good power and is a good outfielder who can play center, so he's more likely to ultimately contribute.

Optioned P Jonathan Melendez to AAA Durham, activated P Greg Bookhart from the 10-day IL.

Hated to do this after Melendez pitched two gems while filling in, but I really didn't have any other options.

Game 1: Gordie Ager finally turned in a quality start and the Rays beat Baltimore 6-2 at Camden Yards. Ager started 0-3 and hadn't pitched well, but went 6 7 2 2 1 7 today to notch his first win of 2045. He was supported by Jose Mendez was 4-5 with an RBI while Dan Gregory knocked in 3 with a pair of singles. They could have scored more, leaving 15 men on base as they had 12 hits (all singles), 9 walks and a hit batter.

Game 2: Greg Bookhart was sharp in his return from the IL as the Rays made it 6 straight wins with a 6-3 decision over the Orioles. The lefty was 5.1 5 2 2 1 8 to improve to 2-1, and Sean Forbes had a 1-2-3 9th for his 5th save. Doug Johns got things going with a 2-run homer in the first, his 5th and first since the opening week of the season while Seth Williams also homered (#5) and drove in a pair.

April 26: Placed OF Jose Mendez on the 10-day IL with back tightness, recalled OF Jared Richardson from AAA Durham.

Richardson finally gets the call to the Show after being a good solider at Durham for several years, having been in our system for almost 8 years after being acquired in a deal with San Francisco. He's a good OF (60 in both corners) and would probably hit around .260 with 25 HR if he played every day in the bigs. Mendez's injury is a day-to-day one for two weeks but "moderate" so onto the IL he goes.

Game 3: The Rays completed the sweep of Baltimore and won their 7th straight by outlasting the Orioles 8-7. Doug Johns had another big day with a 2-run HR (#7) and RBI single, Mario Saro, who will be playing a lot more with Jose Mendez out, hit his first MLB longball with a man on, and Nelson Bocardo had a solo shot (#3). Jim Brophy (3-0) started and got the win, but didn't pitch well at 5 7 5 5 2 2 while Sean Forbes recorded save #6.

Team record: 17-6. Next up: A day off then 3 games in Toronto.

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Game 1: Dan Robinson tasted defeat for the first time and so did the Rays for the first time in 8 games as Toronto got the best of them 8-3 in the series opener at Rogers Centre. Robinson (4-1) was 5 6 4 4 1 5 and put the Rays in a 4-0 hole before they rallied for 3 in the 6th including a Luis Barela homer (#4) and a Dan Gregory RBI triple. But Ismael Vargas was terrible in the 8th, allowing an inherited runner to score and three of his own without recording an out, and the game was out of hand.

April 29: Optioned P Ismael Vargas to AAA Durham, added P Dave Lugo to the active roster.

And we finally find a spot for the third player acquired in last week's trade as the veteran lefty takes Vargas's place after last night's fiasco.

Game 2: The Rays scored 3 times in the 6th inning again today and this time it was enough to get them a 4-3 win over the Jays. Another Luis Barela homer (#5) started another rally and Dave Frick and Tony Cordova delivered RBI singles later in the inning. Barela also tripled in the first Rays run in the opening frame. Gordie Ager picked up his 2nd straight win after dropping his first 3 decisions on a 5 7 2 2 0 8 outing and Sean Forbes recorded the final two outs for save #7.

Game 3: Amazingly for the third straight day the Rays had a 3-run 6th inning and for the third straight day Luis Barela homered in it (#6), this time driving all 3 in on his longball. That gave the Rays a lead the bullpen unfortunately couldn't hold and they lost 6-5 in 10 innings. It was 4-2 in the 7th and Ben Moses allowed a run to make it 4-3, then Mike Robichaux lost the plate in the 8th, walking three straight men to force in the tying run and giving way to Sean Forbes, who allowed a sac fly to put Toronto ahead. Tomas Laboy answered with a dramatic 9th inning homer (#8) to tie the game, but in the bottom of the 10th Ed Pretty put a couple of men on and gave up a walk-off RBI single. Joel Gird started and pitched well (6 7 2 2 2 4) while Jose Castillo had an inside-the-park homer in the first inning, his 4th. 31-year-old Jared Richardson made his MLB debut had a couple of hits, including a double while Dan Gregory had to leave with back spasms and will head for a short stay on the IL.

Team record: 18-8. Next up: Our annual home-and-away with "natural rival" Columbus (the former Marlins) starting with 2 games in Ohio.

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May 1: Placed CF Dave Gregory on the 10-day IL with back spasms, purchased the contract of OF Mike Hayes from AAA Durham.

Gregory heads for his annual trip to the IL although it shouldn't be too serious. Hayes was our 3rd round pick in 2039 and does some things well like hit for power (65) and play RF (65) but other things not so well (40 contact, 30 avoid Ks).

Game 1: Chris Parham picked a great time to hit his first homer of the year as his solo shot in the 9th broke a 2-2 tie and gave the Rays a 3-2 win over Columbus at Nationwide Ballpark. Greg Bookhart had a solid start (6 8 2 2 1 8) but the bats couldn't do too much for most of the game. Dan Anderson (1-0) notched the win in relief and Ed Pretty took care of the 9th for his first save.

Game 2: The Rays found themselves down 6-1 after 6 innings but fought back to tie it up and won it in the 12th 7-6 to take a sweep of the 2-game mini-series in Columbus. Jose Castillo's bases-clearing double in the 8th got them evened up, and Nelson Bocardo singled in Dave Frick who had led off the 12th with a double for the game-winner. Jim Brophy had a rough start at 5.1 5 5 5 2 3 but Jose Mendoza was impressive in relief, pitching the final 3 innings to get his 3rd win already in the young season. Luis Barela had a pair of RBI hits including a key double in the 7th which started the comeback.

Team record: 20-8. Next up: We return to Tampa to play these same Lightning two more times.

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Game 1: Dan Robinson was hit hard to put the Rays behind big early, and although they made their patented comeback they still fell short losing 9-7 to Columbus as the teams switched venues to Publix Park. Robinson (4-2) was staked to an early 3-0 lead but imploded in the 3rd, allowing 6 runs and finishing 2.2 5 7 4 3 2. A Seth Williams error didn't help and the Rays' 1B had a dismal game, later committing a second error and then getting picked off after singling to lead off the 9th down 2 runs. The Rays did still load the bases in the 9th but Jared Richardson struck out to end the game. Mario Saro led off the game with HR #2 and Jose Castillo hit his 5th as part of a 3-5, 3-RBI day. Tomas Laboy also contributed a pair of doubles as he was 3-4 with 2 RBI.

Game 2: The Rays bounced back from last night's loss by annihilating the Lightning 13-1 and playing home run derby by putting six in the seats. Doug Johns led the charge with a pair of dingers and 5 RBI, giving him 8 and 28 on the season. Tomas Laboy also found the stands twice, upping his team-high total to 10 and driving in 4, while Seth Williams (#6) and Luis Barela (#7) also went deep. Gordie Ager enjoyed the support and evened his record at 3-3 after going 6 8 1 1 1 3. Dave Lugo went the final 3 allowing only 2 hits and fanning 3 for his first Rays save.

Team record: 21-9. Next up: Our third series of the year already with Toronto as they come to Publix Park for the weekend.

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Game 1: The Rays lost an early 3-0 lead but came back late to take a walk-off 6-5 win over the Jays in the series opener at Publix Park. Doug Johns, who helped them to the early lead with a 2-run double, hit the walk-off-winning single after Luis Barela's RBI hit tied it up. Joel Gird ran out of gas in the 6th and finished 5.1 6 4 4 0 4 while Mike Robichaux notched the win with a scoreless 9th.

Game 2: Tampa Bay routed the Jays 10-4 in the second game as Doug Johns continued on his tear, going 3-3 with 4 runs scored, two doubles and 4 RBI including a 3-run homer (#9). Tomas Laboy was 3-5 with 2 RBI and Seth Williams went 4-5 with a double and RBI. Greg Bookhart (3-1) was hittable but still picked up the win at 5 9 3 3 0 4.

Game 3: The Rays pulled out another late one to complete the sweep over Toronto, scoring twice in the 8th and holding on to win 5-4. Tomas Laboy came off the bench to break a 3-3 tie with an RBI single and Tony Cordova added a sac fly to make it 5-3. Sean Forbes got Mike Robichaux out of a jam in the 8th after the lefty blew the lead, but struggled himself in the 9th allowing a run and needing to get former Ray Josh Beckett to bounce into a double play to end the game, earning his first win of the year. Jim Brophy was denied the win after going 6 6 2 2 2 4 and Luis Barela earlier had a 2-run homer (#9).

Team record: 24-9. Next up: We conclude the homestand with 4 games against Kansas City.

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Game 1: Doug Johns was the walk-off hero in the opener of a 4-game set at Publix Park versus Kansas City when he homered with 2 out in the 9th (#10) to break a 2-2 tie and give the Rays a 3-2 win. The Royals took a 2-0 lead against Dan Robinson, who went 6.1 7 2 2 1 4 before Dave Frick tied it with a 2-run single in the 7th. Sean Forbes (2-0) picked up the win.

Game 2: More walk-off magic for the Rays as they scored in the 9th on a Chris Fox RBI single to take a 5-4 win over the Royals. Gordie Ager started and pitched well (7 4 3 3 1 3) but Mike Robichaux blew another lead in the 8th, requiring Fox's heroics. Jared Richardson was 2-4 with a 2-run double, his second of the game, while Dave Lugo got the final out in the 9th and recorded his first Rays win.

Game 3: No need to walk it off today as the Rays made it 7 straight wins with a 10-5 drubbing of Kansas City. Mario Saro was 3-5 with a double and RBI, Jose Castillo had a 2-run HR (#6), and Dave Frick had a pair of sac flies to lead the offense. Joel Gird had the run support but couldn't finish the 5th for the win at 4.1 9 4 4 2 4 on 95 pitches so it went to Dan Anderson (2-0).

May 11: Activated OF Dan Gregory from the 10-day IL, optioned OF Mike Hayes to AAA Durham.

Game 4: The Rays completed the sweep of Kansas City and extended their win streak to 8 behind a fine outing from Greg Bookhart in a 5-0 win. Bookhart went 6 4 0 0 1 6 to improve to 4-1, 2.83. Mario Saro had a 2-run homer (#3) and Tomas Laboy made it 20 straight games with a hit by going 2-3 with 2 RBI.

Team record: 28-9. Next up: We hit the road starting with 3 in Boston.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: Well the opener was a classic Fenway Park game which ended in a football score after the Rays blew a 9-run lead and still won by 4. Rather than attempt to recap, here's the box (dig that win probability chart):



Game 2: Two Rays streaks stayed alive today in a 7-2 win at Fenway as the team went to 10 wins on the trot while Tomas Laboy made it 22 straight with a hit, a streak he'll have to pick up later in the season (more on that in a moment). Dan Robinson pitched to contact today, but not a lot of hard contact as he improved to 5-2 after going 6.1 4 2 2 2 1. Seth Williams clubbed a pair of homers, driving in 3 and giving him 8 longballs on the season, while Doug Johns blasted a 3-run shot in the 3rd to break a 1-1 tie, sending the Rays on their way and giving him an MLB-best 42 RBI in 35 games. Laboy however strained his forearm and is going to miss 6 weeks.

May 14: Placed 2B Tomas Laboy on the 10-day IL with a strained forearm, purchased the contract of IF Jon Callahan from Durham.

Game 3: The Rays put 6 on the board in the 3rd and never looked back in a 9-3 win at Boston, making it 11 straight wins. The highlight of that 3rd was the first MLB homer for Jared Richardson, a grand slam over The Monster. Mario Saro added a 2-run blast (#5) and Doug Johns drove in his MLB-leading 43rd run. Gordie Ager (4-3) started and wasn't that good, but he made it through 5 despite allowing 3 runs on 5 hits with 4 walks and only one whiff for the win.

Team record: 31-9. Next up: 3 games in Cleveland.

The next morning the AL announced the following: