Rays 2013 Preview and Offseason Review
Are you ready for another exciting season of Rays baseball? Because I certainly am! Some reports have been saying that the Rays will not do anything because of a lack of offense along with the impact of losing James Shields and B.J. Upton. If you ask me, I don’t know how you couldn’t think this year’s team is the best one yet. The critics can say whatever they want (bashing us like always) but the Rays prove them wrong every year. I’ll tell you this; it will be a nail biter in the AL East. The Blue Jays have turned things up a notch and made some big moves. The Orioles still have the capability to make a run. And you can never count out the Yankees and Red Sox.
However the Rays are well loaded just like the other teams in the AL east. They are bringing back 4/5 of the rotation that had the lowest ERA in the American League last year. That rotation had the most strikeouts in a single season in Major League History as well. Just because B.J. Upton is out of the line-up too, doesn’t mean that the Rays offense will be ready to go. Picking up Loney and Escobar gives the Rays an everyday shortstop and a big upgrade at first base. The trade that sent Shields to the Royals will help us in the long run. We acquired one of the most talked about young men in baseball; Wil Myers. Myers has the potential of Mike Trout or Bryce Harper, two young prospect outfielders we saw breakout last year. We know we will see him sometime this season. The Rays front office upped the payroll to 61 million, once again turning up the pressure to succeed this season.
Position Break Down
Rotation: Reigning AL Cy Young winner David Price leads the loaded Rays rotation. He is followed by Jeremy Hellickson, Roberto Hernandez (formally Fausto Carmona), Matt Moore, and Alex Cobb. Expect to see Jeff Niemann and Chris Archer before the season is done.
Catcher: I thought this would be Chris Gimenez’s spot looking at it at the end of 2012, but the Rays chose to resign Jose Molina. The backups will be Jose Lobaton, and Robinson Chirinos.
First Base: Carlos Pena is gone, James Loney is in. The Rays signed free agent Loney this offseason and he looks to have the majority of the playing time.
Second Base: This will be a tossup all season. It will all depend on where Ben Zobrist needs to play that day. The Position will be played by Zobrist, Roberts, Kelly Johnson, and Sean Rodriguez.
Short Stop: Let the Yunel Escobar era begin in Tampa Bay. The Rays acquired him via trade with the Blue Jays. He will play shortstop everyday which finally brings some stability to this position. On off days expect Johnson, Rodriguez, and Roberts to play there.
Third Base: As long as the Rays have Evan Longoria, they will be fine. The Rays signed Longo to a nine year extension in the offseason which means Longo could be here till 2022. As long as he is healthy, the Rays will be just fine.
Outfield: Desmond Jennings and Matt Joyce will for sure be out there, but who will join them? Wil Myers will eventually, but for now it looks like it could be Sam Fuld, Brandon Guyer, Ben Zobrist, or even Kelly Johnson.
DH: Luke Scott was resigned to handle the DH responsibility this year. He has already battled injures this spring and it appears he could start the season on the DL.
Projected line-up: Jennings, Joyce, Longoria, Zobrist, Scott, Escobar, Loney, Fuld, Molina.
Projected record: 92-70.
Seven In A Row: Rays Sweep Red Sox 4-2
If you were looking in the mirror around the league you could see Baltimore and Oakland taking big leads early, this gave the Rays one thing in their mind, LETS NOT LOSE GROUND. Young Alex Cobb started for the Rays as they began the game Wednesday night with a six game winning streak. Sitting just three games behind Oakland and three and a half games behind Baltimore, the Rays know they can’t afford to lose many games.
The Red Sox started off the scoring in the second with an RBI single by Daniel Nava giving Boston a 1-0 lead.
The Rays did not let that lead last long in the fifth. Carlos Pena belted a two run bomb, his 19th home run on the season, to center field to give the Rays a 2-1 lead.
The Rays did not stop there, later in the inning Ben Francisco hit a solo home run to increase Tampa Bay’s lead to 3-1.
Boston started to mount a comeback in the bottom of the sixth with a sac-fly by James Loney that scored Dustin Pedroia to make it 3-2.
The Rays added some cushion in the seventh with an RBI double by Jose Lobaton to score Jeff Keppinger and give the Rays a 4-2 lead.
Fernando Rodney came in the ballgame in the ninth, and completed his 45th save of the season. That ties the all-time Rays single season save record set by Rafeal Sorianao back in 2010. The Rays are now 85-70, they have now won seven games in a row.
notable stat lines
Alex Cobb W(10-9) 5 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 5 K
Jon Lester L(9-14) 6 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 5 K
Fernando Rodney S(45) 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K
Ben Zobrist (2-4)
Jeff Keppinger (2-4) 2 R
Carlos Pena (2-4) R, HR, 2 RBI
click here for a full box score
Rays news and notes
Tomorrow the Rays take on the White Sox. It will be James Shields (15-9, 3.65 ERA) vs. Jake Peavy (11-12, 3.40 ERA). First pitch is at 8:10 EST.
This is my last recap of the 2012 season. Continue to follow me on twitter @ASommers5.
Price Tosses Complete Game As Rays Win 5-2
The Rays know from here on out every game is huge. Every hit, run, play, and pitch is magnified to big spotlights. David Price is on a mission of his own, he wants to win twenty games for the first time in his career. Price has two starts left in the season, I think you can figure it out that David is not going to let the Red Sox get in his way of twenty wins.
Jeff Keppinger started off the scoring in the second with a three run home run to give the Rays a 3-0 lead.
The Sox responded in the second with an RBI single to score Cody Ross and make it 3-1.
In the bottom of the third, Cody Ross was batting when David Price committed a balk with runners on second and third. Daniel Nava scored and Boston cut the lead down to 3-2.
The Rays added insurance in the sixth with an RBI single by Jose Molina that scored Keppinger. Carlos Pena scored on that play as well via error by Daniel Nava. This gave the Rays a 5-2 lead.
David Price finished strong finishing off the complete game and giving the Rays a 5-2 win. The Rays are now 84-70. They have now won six games in a row.
Notable stat lines
David Price W(19-5) CG, 7 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 13 K
Clay Bucholz L (11-7) 6 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 5 K
Ben Zobrist (2-5)
Jeff Keppinger (2-4) 2 R, 3 RBI
Carlos Pena (1-3) R
Jose Molina (2-3) RBI
click here for a full box score
Rays news and notes
Tomorrow this short series ends. It will be Alex Cobb (9-9, 4.27 ERA) vs. Jon Lester (9-13, 4.96 ERA). First pitch is at 7:10 EST.
Rays Lose Fourth Straight 7-5
The Rays needed to snap this losing skid simply because they are running out of time. With only 15 games left, the Rays need to move and start winning fast. Jeremy Hellickson has pitched well all year but continues to not get much run support. However he took the mound for the Rays trying to get a spark started.
The Rays kicked off the scoring in the third when Doubront loaded the bases via walks. Ben Zobrist knocked in two runs with an RBI single.
The Next Batter Longoria knocked in Upton with a sac-fly to left field to give the Rays a 3-0 lead.
The Red Sox responded in the fourth with with an RBI single by James Loney to cut it to 3-1.
The Sox added on more in the fifth with an RBI single from Jacoby Ellsbury. Than Dustin Pedroia hit a sac-fly to tie the game at three.
Boston took the lead in the sixth on a throwing error by Sean Rodriguez. It was hit by Pedro Ciriaco and scored Ryan Lavarnway making it 4-3.
The Red Sox broke it open in the seventh with an RBI single by Saltalamacchia. Then Ryan Lavarnway doubled to score two more and give the Red Sox a 7-3 lead.
The Rays threatened to make it a game in the seventh when Ben Zobrist had his second two-run single on the night to make it 7-5.
The Rays just can’t win when they only collect three hits and they did fall back even more losing 7-5. The Rays are now 78-70.
notable stat lines
Jermey Hellickson 4 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 7 K
Felix Doubront W(11-9) 6 IP, 1 H, 3 R, 5 BB, 5 K
Ben Zobrist (2-4) 4 RBI
click here for a full box score
Rays news and notes
Tomorrow night the Rays continue the series. It will be Chris Archer vs. Dice-K. First pitch is at 7:10 EST.
Rays Fall To Red Sox 5-2 And Lose More Ground
Alex Cobb came in trying to stop the bleeding from what happened this past week in Baltimore and New York. What started out to be a great game for Cobb turned into a disaster quickly. A must win series for the Rays started out the wrong way.
The Rays started off the scoring in the fifth with a sacrifice bunt that scored Luke Scott and and gave the Rays a 1-0 lead.
Alex Cobb had a no hitter through 5.2 tonight, the longest of any Rays pitcher this season. It was broken up in the sixith with a two-run home run by Jacoby Ellsbury to break up the no-no and give the Sox a 2-1 lead.
The Sox struck again in the seventh with an two-run single by Mauro Gomez. Jacoby Ellsbury hit another run in a few batters later with an RBI single to give Boston a 5-1 lead.
B.J. Upton scored in the ninth on a groundout by Ben Zobrist to make it 5-2.
The Rays are now 78-69.
notable stat lines
Alex Cobb L (9-9) 6 IP, 2 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 4 K
Arron Cook W(4-10) 6 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 1 K
B.J. Upton (3-4) R
Luke Scott (1-2) R
click here for a full box score
Rays news and notes
Tomorrow the series continues with a 7:10 Game. It will be Jeremy Hellickson vs. Felix Doubront.
It’s a McLouthy Day In Tampa As Rays Lose 3-2
The Rays were not going to let the Orioles get away with this series without a fight, and they put up one Wednesday night. Alex Cobb set out to set the birds from Baltimore straight, and he settled down after a shaky first to end up pitching a great game. The Rays would have many opportunities to score and they did not get cheated out of this game.
The Rays started out the scoring in the first when B.J. Upton hit the second pitch of the game into the left field seats for his 22nd home run of the year.
The Orioles would strike back in the bottom of the first with an RBI single by Matt Wieters to score Nate McLouth and tie the game at one. Wilson Betemit hit an RBI single to Score J.J. Hardy and gave the O’s the lead 2-1.
The Rays tied it back up in the third with an RBI double by Ben Francisco to score Jeff Keppinger.
The Rays had runners in scoring position with less than two outs in the 6th and the 7th inning.
The Orioles won in the bottom of the ninth with an walk off single by Nate McLouth to give the O’s a 3-2 win.
The Rays are now 77-65.
notable stat lines
Alex Cobb 4.2 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 6 K
Miguel Gonzalez 6 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 5 BB, 4 K
Ben Francisco (2-4) 2B, RBI
Evan Longoria (1-2) 2 BB
Matt Joyce (1-2) 2 BB
click here for a full box score
Rays news and notes
The Rays and Orioles wrap up this series tomorrow afternoon with a day game. It will be Jeremy Hellickson (8-10, 3.33 ERA) vs. Wei-Yin Chen (12-9, 4.06 ERA). First pitch is at 12:35 EST.
Desmond Jennings will be in the line-up tomorrow afternoon.
Rays Drop Big Game To Orioles 9-2
These next six road games are extremely crucial for the Rays. It will literally make or break the entire season for Tampa Bay. The first set with the O’s, who the Rays are one game behind, and the second with the Yanks, who are two games ahead. They kicked them off with this three game series with the Baltimore Orioles Tuesday night. Matt Morre has been on a role as of late and he took the mound for Tampa Bay. Jason Hammel would take the hill for Baltimore in his second start back from the DL.
The Orioles cashed in on the error by Matt Joyce scoring Adam Jones on a single by Matt Wieters in the bottom of the first.
The Rays struck back in the top of the third with a solo home run by Ryan Roberts to tie the game at one.
J.J. Hardy hit Moore hard with a two-run home run in the bottom of the third to give the O’s a 3-1 lead.
Jason Hammel had an apparent right knee injury that forced him to leave the game in the fourth.
The Orioles added on more in the fifth with a two run RBI double by Matt Wieters to make it 5-1.
Baltimore added on insurance in the sixth with an RBI single by J.J. Hardy to put the O’s up 6-1.
Chris Davis hit a solo home run in the seventh to increase the lead to 7-1.
Elliot Johnson hit a solo home run in the eighth to cut the lead down to 7-2.
The Orioles added unesserary insurance with a two run home run by J.J. Hardy to give the Orioles a 9-2 lead.
The Rays are now 77-63.
notable stat lines
Matt Moore L(10-10) 4 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 4 K
Jason Hammel 3.2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 K
Ryan Roberts (1-1) R, BB, HR, RBI
Elliot Johnson (1-1) R, HR, RBI
click here for a full box score
Rays news and notes
Tomorrow this big series continues. It will be Alex Cobb (9-8, 4.28 ERA) vs. Miguel Gonzalez (6-4, 3.62 ERA) First pitch is at 7:05 EST.
Late Error Costs Rays Sweep Of Yanks 6-4
Late Error Costs Rays Sweep Of Yanks 6-4
The Rays have played this big series with New York very well. They traded blows with them Wednesday night and one play in the seventh inning would seal the fate of the game. The Rays only have so much fight in them, tonight their good luck ran out.
The Rays kicked off the scoring in the first with an RBI single by Evan Longoria to drive in Sam Fuld and put Tampa Bay up 1-0.
The Yankees stormed back with a 3-run fourth inning. A-Rod hit an RBI double to drive in Jeter. Russell Martin hit a ground rule double that would drive in two and give the Yankees a 3-1 lead.
The Rays rallied back in the fifth with a two-run triple by Ben Zobrist to tie the game at three.
Russell Martin kept up his big night with a solo homer in the sixth to give the Yanks the 4-3 lead.
The Rays came back again with a solo home run by Luke Scott in the sixth to tie the game at four.
In the seventh, Elliot Johnson throw away a ball at a play at the plate that allowed two Yankees runs to score to make it 6-4. The Rays would never recover from that and the Yankees won 6-4.
The Rays are now 75-62. They are 2.5 games out in the division and 1.5 game out in the wild card.
notable stat lines
Matt Morre L(10-9) 6.1 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 9 K
Hiroki Kuroda W(13-10) 6 IP, 8 H, 4 R, 2 BB, 3 K
Evan Longoria (2-4) RBI
Luke Scott (1-4) R, HR, RBI
click here for a full box score
Rays news and notes
The Rays have a off day tomorrow. They start a series with Texas on Friday. It will be Derek Holland vs. Jeremy Hellickson. First pitch is at 7:10 EST.
Homers Back Cobb as Rays Beat Yanks 5-2
Tuesday night continued a critical series with the New York Yankees at Tropicana Field. This time it was the 24 year old Alex Cobb’s turn. The ground ball pitcher certainly got his ground balls Tuesday and was able to retire 14 of his last 15 batters faced. With this performance by Cobb, all the Rays needed were some hits.
The Yankees got to Cobb early in the first when Robinson Cano hit a two-run home run to give the Yankees a 2-0 lead.
The Rays bounced right back in the bottom of the first with an RBI double by B.J. Upton to drive in Desmond Jennings 2-1.
After a great at bat by Ben Zobrist to draw a walk, Evan Longoria gave Tampa Bay the lead with a two run home run in the third inning.
In the bottom of the fifth, the Rays hit back to back solo homers to lead off the inning. The first one was hit by Desmond Jennings and B.J. Upton followed him up with his solo shot.
That would be beyond what the Rays needed as Rodney closed it out in the ninth for his 42nd save of the season. The Rays are now 75-61 and they are 1.5 games out in the wild card.
notable stat lines
Alex Cobb W(9-8) 7 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 5 K
Freddy Garcia L(7-6) 5.1 IP, 5 H, 5 ER, 4 BB, 5 K
Desmond Jennings (1-3) 2 R, BB, HR, RBI
B.J Upton (2-4) R, 2B, HR, 2 RBI
Evan Longoria (1-3) BB, HR, 2 RBI
Carlos Pena (0-1) 2 BB
click here for a full box score
Rays news and notes
Tomorrow the Rays go for the sweep against the Yankees at the Trop. It will be Hiroki Kuroda (12-10, 3.04 ERA) vs. Matt Moore (10-8, 3.58 ERA). First pitch is at 7:10 EST.
Robinson Cano and Evan Longoria were both back in the lineup for their teams Teusday night.
Labor Day Special: Gimenez, Shields Lead Rays Over Yankees 4-3
Labor Day opened up probably the biggest series of the year for the Rays as they took on the New York Yankees just 3.5 games back in the AL east. C.C Sabathia has struggled pitching against the Rays since he became a Yankee and the Yankees had struggled against the Rays as a team losing 9 of their last 10 at Tropicana Field. With James Shields having the lowest ERA on the Rays staff since July 31st, all signs pointed towards a good day for the Rays.
The Rays started off the scoring in the second with an RBI single by Chris Gimenez that scored Jeff Keppinger.
In the third, B.J. Upton led off the inning with a solo home run to give the Rays a 2-0 lead.
Shields got in trouble in the top of the fourth. First, Eric Chavez hit a sacrifice fly to left field that scored Robinson Cano making it a 2-1 game. Then, Raul Ibanez tripled in Alex Rodriguez to tie the game at 2.
The next batter, Russell Martin, hit the ball right back at Shields and it deflected off his leg and rolled to Jeff Keppinger. Keppinger gave a look to Ibanez but quickly hustled over to first base to try to get Martin out. Martin beat him to the bag, and Ibanez scored giving the Yankees a 3-2 lead.
The Rays came back with some slick base running in the fifth. After a double steal, Evan Longoria grounded out to short stop to score B.J. Upton and tie the game 3-3.
Joe Maddon was ejected in the bottom of the eighth when arguing that Rich Thompson had successfully stolen second base. Two batters later, Ryan Roberts singled, which would have been the go ahead run.
Maddon must have fired the troops up because Ryan Roberts stole second base and Chris Gimenez knocked him in with an RBI single to right field to score Roberts and give the Rays the 4-3 lead.
Fernando Rodney closed it out in the ninth with a runner on third for his 41st save of the season. The Rays are now 74-61 (3-0 in September) and two and a half games out of the AL east.
notable stat lines
James Shields W(13-8) 8 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 BB, 5 K
C.C Sabathia 7 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 4 K
B.J. Upton (1-3) 2 R, BB, HR, RBI
Evan Longoria (1-4) RBI
Chris Gimenez (2-3) BB, 2 RBI
click here for a full box score
Rays news and notes
Tomorrow this momentous series continues at Tropicana Field. It will be Freddy Garcia(7-5, 4.90 ERA) vs. Alex Cobb(8-8, 4.39 ERA). First pitch is at 7:10 EST.
Evan Longoria left the game in the seventh inning with what is being called an undisclosed injury.
