Catching Some Rays- 4/10-4/16 Review

The Rays remained undefeated entering the week after three-game sweeps over the Washington Nationals and the Oakland Athletics. This week, they begin the division portion of the schedule with the Boston Red Sox coming to town for four games before taking it up north for a three-game weekend set with the Toronto Blue Jays. The Rays are chasing history to start the week as they aim to keep the perfect start going. It should be easy, as long as they can stay healthy. 

Monday 4/10

Rays 1, Red Sox 0

WP- Colin Poche (1-0), LP- Chris Martin (0-1), SV- Pete Fairbanks (1)

For the first time this season, the Rays faced a division opponent as they looked to keep their perfect start alive. It was also the biggest test the Rays had faced thus far. They returned to their "opener" strategy with Jalen Beeks toeing the rubber to begin the game before Josh Fleming took over. After a terrible outing to start the season, Fleming was very good when he got the ball in the third inning. He threw four shutout innings, allowing just one hit and striking out five. The problem was that the offense couldn't find a spark against Nick Pivetta and the Red Sox staff. The Rays ran into some trouble in the top of the 8th inning as the Red Sox loaded the bases with two outs against Colin Poche as Rafael Devers stepped to the plate. It took four pitches for Poche to get it done as he got Devers looking to escape the jam. Two batters later, Brandon Lowe stepped up and clubbed a solo home run to break the scoreless tie as he homered in his third straight game. Pete Fairbanks would come on to close the ninth inning and get the Rays to ten wins in ten games. While it did break their streak of wins by four or more runs, they would be satisfied with a win where they allowed just three hits. 

Player of the Game- Josh Fleming (TB)- (4.0 innings, 1 hit, 0 runs, 0 walks, 5 K)

Tuesday 4/11

Rays 7, Red Sox 2

WP- Shane McClanahan (3-0), LP- Garrett Whitlock (0-1)

The rotation turned back over for the Rays as Shane McClanahan looked to earn the Rays their 11th win of the season. The Rays came out hot after only scoring one run on Monday night. Wander Franco opened things in the first inning with an RBI double. Vidal Brujan drove in his first run of the season with an RBI single in the second. Isaac Paredes clubbed a solo shot in the bottom of the fourth before Yandy Diaz and Brandon Lowe went back-to-back in the fifth to make it 5-0. Boston broke the shutout in the sixth inning as the Rays sacrificed a run for two outs. Josh Lowe got that run back in the bottom of the seventh with a solo shot and Diaz scored in the bottom of the eighth to make it 7-1. Boston scored in the top of the ninth but it was far from enough as the Rays dominated for nine innings to push their perfect start to 11-0. Shane McClanahan also stayed perfect, throwing five innings and striking out nine while allowing a run on two hits. 

Player of the Game- Yandy Diaz (TB)- (3-for-3, 3 runs, 2 singles, Solo HR (3), 1 walk) 

Wednesday 4/12

Rays 9, Red Sox 7

WP- Taj Bradley (1-0), LP- Chris Sale (1-1), SV- Pete Fairbanks (2)

With Zach Eflin missing his start with back tightness and being placed on the 15-day injured list, the Rays called up their top prospect, Taj Bradley, to make his MLB debut against Chris Sale and the Boston Red Sox. The boys backed him up early as Randy Arozarena smashed a three-run home run the other way to get the Rays out to a quick 3-0 lead. Bradley would allow his first run in the fourth inning but the offense would extend the lead with three runs in the fourth, highlighted by a two-run single from Wander Franco. Kike Hernandez and Alex Verdugo would cut the lead in half with RBI singles in the fifth. Bradley's night would end after five solid innings, allowing three runs on five hits while striking out eight. Most importantly, he was in line for the win in his debut. Christian Bethancourt doubled home a run in the bottom of the fifth and Vidal Brujan added another on a single to make it 8-3. Boston made a big push with Rafael Devers hitting a three-run home run in the top of the seventh to pull Boston within a run. Arozarena drove in his fourth run of the night with a sacrifice fly and Pete Fairbanks closed out his second game of the season to get Bradley the first of hopefully many wins. 

Player of the Game- Wander Franco (TB) (3-for-5, 3 doubles, 2 runs, 2 RBIs, 1 stolen base)

Thursday 4/13

Rays 9, Red Sox 3

WP- Kevin Kelly (1-0), LP- Corey Kluber (0-3), SV- Braden Bristo (1)

With the series win already locked down, the Rays were looking to tie history. The Red Sox and the Rays traded home runs in the first inning with Rob Refsnyder and Yandy Diaz each driving one over the fence. The bad news is starting to pile up for the Rays on the pitching front. Early in the fourth inning, Jeffrey Springs would call out the training staff after feeling some discomfort in his pitching arm. After a warm-up pitch, Springs would come out of the game, taking the Rays' bullpen once again. Boston scored in the fourth and the fifth to take a 3-1 lead and put the pressure on the Rays. They responded by scoring seven runs in the bottom of the fifth on four RBI singles from Francisco Mejia, Brandon Lowe, Randy Arozarena, and a bunt single from Manuel Margot. Harold Ramirez would blow it open with a bases-clearing double down the left field line to make it 8-3 for the Rays. Lowe added his team-leading fifth home run in the bottom of the seventh to add insult to injury to complete the fourth sweep of the season and tie history. The Rays join the 1982 Atlanta Braves and the 1987 Milwaukee Brewers as the only teams since 1900 to start 13-0 in a season while also breaking the franchise's record for the longest winning streak at any point in a season. 

Player of the Game- Braden Bristo (TB) (3.0 innings, 0 hits, 1 walk, 4 strikeouts, Save in MLB Debut)

Series Review

• Rays sweep the Red Sox, 4-0
• The Rays outscored the Red Sox, 26-12
• Tampa Bay's 13-0 record is tied for the best in MLB's modern era ('82 Braves, '87 Brewers)
• Their 13-game win streak is a franchise record (beating June 2004's 12-game win streak)
• Series MVP- Brandon Lowe (3-for-8, 1 double, 2 home runs, 2 RBIs, 2 runs)

Friday 4/14

Blue Jays 6, Rays 3

WP- Jose Berrios (1-2), LP- Drew Rasmussen (2-1), SV- Jordan Romano (5)

The Rays' dreams of going 162-0 came to an end tonight as the Toronto Blue Jays handed the Rays their first loss of the 2023 season. Toronto jumped on Drew Rasmussen early and the team could never recover. George Springer smashed a solo home run in the bottom of the first and Bo Bichette added a run on a double in the second, one of his five hits in the game. Luke Raley got one back for the Rays in the fourth on a single but Toronto pulled away in the fifth with four runs to open up a five-run lead. Josh Lowe and Christian Bethancourt would go back-to-back in the seventh to make it look a lot closer than it was but Toronto really dominated from the start and got the best of the Rays tonight. Jose Berrios got through five innings, allowing one run on four hits, outpitching Rasmussen, who failed to make it through five. 

Player of the Game- Bo Bichette (TOR) (5-for-5, 2 doubles, 1 run, 1 RBI)

Saturday 4/15

Blue Jays 5, Rays 2

WP- Yusei Kikuchi (2-0), LP- Trevor Kelley (0-1), SV- Jordan Romano (6)

For the first time this season, the Rays are going to lose a series. The world is crumbling around us as the Rays go on their first losing streak of the season also. Yusei Kikuchi played a large part in that. The two teams traded runs early with Bo Bichette providing more offense for Toronto before Taylor Walls smacked a home run into the bullpen to tie it up. The middle innings would be the Rays; downfall with the Blue Jays scoring twice in the bottom of the fourth, once in the bottom of the sixth, and once in the seventh inning to extend their lead to 5-1. The Rays would only muster one more run on an RBI groundout from Randy Arozarena in the eighth before going quietly in the ninth to drop the game, 5-2. Kikuchi would pitch six innings, allowing one run on four hits and striking out nine to win his second game of the season. Each of the three Rays pitchers would allow a run as Trevor Kelley took the loss. 

Player of the Game- Yusei Kikuchi (TOR) (6.0 innings, 4 hits, 1 run, 1 walk, 9 strikeouts)

Sunday 4/16

Rays 8, Blue Jays 1

WP- Shane McClanahan (4-0), LP- Alek Manoah (1-1)

The Rays looked to salvage a tough series with Toronto by avoiding the sweep with their ace on the mound. The offense jumped on Alek Manoah early with Wander Franco walking home a run and Josh Lowe driving in two more by dunking a single into right-center field. Toronto responded by getting their first three runners with Vladimir Guerrero Jr knocking home a run to make it 3-1. Both starters settled into the game until the top of the fifth inning. After Manoah struck out the first two batters of the inning, Taylor Walls drew a walk and stole a base to put a runner on second with two outs. Lowe drove in another run with an RBI double and that seemed to break open the game. Vidal Brujan extended the inning with an infield single after Matt Chapman was unable to field the ball and tag Lowe at the same time before Christian Bethancourt unloaded a three-run bomb to make it 7-1. After allowing another hit, Manoah would exit having failed to finish the fifth inning. McClanahan would last six innings, allowing one run on four hits while walking two and striking out six. Brujan would add one more run on a single in the ninth as the Rays managed to avoid the sweep with an 8-1 win to close the series. 

Player of the Game- Josh Lowe (TB) (2-for-5, 1 double, 1 run, 3 RBIs)

Series Review

• The Blue Jays win the series, 2-1
• The Rays outscored the Blue Jays, 13-12
• The Rays have homered in all 16 games thus far
• Series MVP- Josh Lowe (4-for-10, 2 runs, 1 double, 1 home run, 4 RBIs, 1 stolen base)

Injury Report

The injury bug is already rearing its ugly head for the Rays' pitching staff. Zach Eflin missed his start during the Boston series, leading to Taj Bradley getting his first start. Eflin was placed on the 15-day injured list and we're yet to know when exactly he'll be back. Ryan Thompson will join Eflin on the IL with a lat injury, though the injury doesn't sound like it's anything major. The big injury this week is Jeffrey Springs. He lasted just over three innings before being removed for what would later be announced as ulnar neuritis. The injury is expected to keep him out for two months, which is a shame after his first two starts. 

On the positive side of things, Tyler Glasnow threw a 15-pitch bullpen this week and seems to be progressing nicely from the oblique strain he suffered in February. I'm not sure when he'll be back but I'm hoping it's soon. Jose Siri should be getting close to returning too. He's coming to the end of his ten days, so we might see him before the end of the week. 

The Week Ahead

The Rays will make one last stop on the road as they begin a three-game set in Cincinnati on Monday. With two of the three starters that would be in line to pitch under normal circumstances now out hurt, the Rays will likely get creative for this interleague set. They'll have an off day on Thursday to travel home before they begin a three-game series with the Chicago White Sox over the weekend.