Catching Some Rays: 5/8-5/14

It was a big week for the AL East as the Rays had two division clashes on the road. Things started in Baltimore as the Rays squared off with the second-place Orioles for the first time this season. They then finished the week with the second straight weekend series with the New York Yankees, this time traveling to the Bronx for the four-game set. While there wasn't necessarily anything at stake this week, it would be another tough test for Tampa Bay as they try to prove they are the team to beat in the American League. 

Monday 5/8

Rays 3, Orioles 0

WP- Shane McClanahan (7-0), LP- Kyle Gibson (4-2), SV- Jason Adam (4)

The AL East's top two teams kicked things off with the Rays sending ace Shane McClanahan out to face the Orioles. Josh Lowe wasted no time getting the Rays on the board by smashing a solo home run in the second inning off of Kyle Gibson. With McClanahan shoving it at the Orioles, the won run would be more than enough. The Rays would hold their 1-0 lead until Luke Raley scored on a sac fly by Wander Franco in the seventh. McClanahan would get through the seventh inning, allowing six hits and four walks while striking out seven over a scoreless start. Raley added a solo home run in the ninth inning as the Rays started the series with a 3-0 shutout victory. 

Player of the Game- Luke Raley (TB) (2-for-4, 2 runs, Solo HR)

Tuesday 5/9

Orioles 4, Rays 2

WP- Grayson Rodriguez (2-0), LP- Zach Eflin (4-1), SV- Felix Bautista (8)

The second game of the series would start with a bang as Wander Franco smacked a solo home run in the first inning. Unfortunately, the Orioles would find some offense and need just two innings to get enough of it. Baltimore would strike for three runs in the third inning against Zach Eflin. Jorge Mateo would drive in a run on a groundout before Adley Rutschman smashed a two-run home run to give the Orioles a 3-1 lead. Austin Hays added to the lead in the fourth inning with an RBI single. Taylor Walls would hit another solo home run for the Rays in the fifth inning but this would end the scoring as Baltimore held on for a 4-2 win, handing Eflin his first loss as a Ray. 

Player of the Game- Adley Rutschman (BAL) (1-for-3, 1 run, 1 home run, 2 RBIs, 1 walk)

Wednesday 5/10

Orioles 2, Rays 1

WP- Dean Kremer (4-1), LP- Yonny Chirinos (1-1), SV- Yennier Cano (3)

The theme of the series clearly was "no offense" because it was another low-scoring affair in the rubber match. The Rays deployed Jalen Beeks to be their opener before Yonny Chirinos took the bulk of the innings. The game was scoreless through five and a half innings with the Orioles scoring twice in the bottom of the sixth. Adley Rutschman scored on a fielder's choice and Austin Hays drove in another with a single to give Baltimore a 2-0 lead. Wander Franco got the Rays on the board in the eighth inning with an RBI single but this is all the Rays would muster as Baltimore took the series with a 2-1 victory. 

Player of the Game- Dean Kremer (BAL) (6.0 innings, 4 hits, 0 runs, 2 walks, 4 strikeouts)

Series Review

• The Orioles beat the Rays, 2-1
• The Orioles and the Rays finished 6-6 in runs
• The Rays have outscored or tied all but one series this season
• Series MVP- Wander Franco (5-for-11, 1 run, 1 home run, 3 RBIs, 3 stolen bases)

Thursday 5/11

Rays 8, Yankees 2

WP- Drew Rasmussen (4-2), LP- Domingo German (2-3)

After the Rays won the weekend series in St. Petersburg, the AL East rivals took things up north to begin a four-game set at Yankee Stadium. The two teams battled through four innings of a scoreless tie before Yandy Diaz drove in the first run of the game with an RBI double in the fifth. Josh Lowe blew the game open in the sixth inning with a bases-clearing double that just missed leaving the yard. Taylor Walls added another run on a double in the seventh to help put an emphatic statement on an excellent start from Drew Rasmussen. Despite some early inconsistencies, Rasmussen was dealing it to the Yankees. He went seven scoreless innings, allowing just two hits and striking out seven for easily his best start of the season. After just missing one in his previous at-bat, Lowe would find the seats his next time up for a two-run shot in the eighth and Isaac Paredes drove in one more with a double to give the Rays an 8-0 lead heading into the ninth. Gleyber Torres would ruin the shutout with a two-run single in the ninth as the Rays throttled the Yankees to begin the series. 

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

Friday 5/12

Yankees 6, Rays 5

WP- Clay Holmes (1-3), LP- Jason Adam (0-1), SV- Wandy Peralta (1)

No lead was safe in this game as the two sides fought back and forth for nine innings. Randy Arozarena smacked his tenth home run of the season with a solo shot in the first inning that found the upper deck in left field but his shot was answered in the bottom of the first by Anthony Rizzo's solo home run. Jose Siri hit another solo homer off of Gerrit Cole but Anthony Volpe responded a few innings later with his own solo bomb. Volpe and Oswaldo Cabrera would each add RBI singles in the seventh to put the Yankees ahead for the first time in the game. Josh Lowe carried his momentum from Thursday into Friday's effort with a three-run home run to put the Rays back ahead in the eighth. The lead wasn't meant to last as Rizzo hit his second home run of the game, this time a two-run shot to put the Yankees ahead 6-5, as it would remain as Wandy Peralta closed it out in the ninth. 

Player of the Game- Anthony Rizzo (NYY) (2-for-4, 2 runs, 2 home runs, 3 RBIs)

Saturday 5/13

Yankees 9, Rays 8

WP- Jimmy Cordero (3-1), LP- Ryan Thompson (1-1), SV- Wandy Peralta (2)

Things were going really well for the Rays before they started going very poorly. Taylor Walls got the Rays on the board in the second inning before they broke it open in the fifth on a grand slam by Yandy Diaz and an RBI single by Randy Arozarena. With a 6-0 lead, Shane McClanahan hit some trouble in the fifth inning. Kyle Higashioka and Aaron Judge each hit two-run home runs, chasing McClanahan from the game without recording an out in the fifth. The bullpen didn't help matters. Anthony Volpe scored on a wild pitch, Judge hit his second two-run homer of the game, and Oswaldo Cabrera drove in two on a single in the sixth as the Yankees stormed back with nine unanswered runs to take a 9-6 lead. Arozarena got the Rays back within one run with a two-run single in the seventh but this is as close as the Rays would get. The Yankees shut them down in the eighth and ninth innings to hold on to ensure at least a split in the series. 

Player of the Game- Aaron Judge (NYY) (2-for-4, 2 runs, 2 home runs, 4 RBIs, 1 walk)

Sunday 5/14

Rays 8, Yankees 7

WP- Zach Eflin (5-1), LP- Clarke Schmidt (1-4), SV- Jason Adam (5)

After dropping the last two games, the Rays needed to find a way to salvage this series by earning a split. They got to it early on offense picking up three runs in the first three innings. Brandon Lowe drove in a run in the first inning with a groundout and after Isaac Paredes drove in a run with a single, Lowe drove Paredes in with a sac fly. The Yankees responded in their half of the third inning with two-run shots from Oswaldo Cabrera and Anthony Rizzo to take the lead. Not wanting to be outdone, the Rays scored five runs in the top of the fifth inning with Randy Arozarena driving in one with a sac fly and Taylor Walls knocking a grand slam to take a 8-4 lead. New York tried to stage a comeback with Aaron Judge hitting an RBI single in the seventh and Anthony Volpe driving a two-run shot in the eighth to pull within a run. Jason Adam would come in and shut the door in the ninth to help Zach Eflin earn the win and get the split. Eflin went six innings and though he allowed four runs on seven hits, he limited the Yankees to one walk and struck out nine. 

Player of the Game- Taylor Walls (TB) (3-for-4, 1 run, 1 triple, 1 home run, 4 RBIs, 1 stolen base)

Series Review

• The Rays and the Yankees split the series, 2-2
• The Rays outscored the Yankees, 29-24
• Thursday's win made the Rays the first team to have 30 wins
• This is the first week this season the Rays finished with a losing record
• Series MVP- Taylor Walls (5-for-12, 2 runs, 1 double, 1 triple, 1 home run, 6 RBIs, 1 stolen base)

Injury Report/Other News

It was a tough week on the injury front for the Rays. Garrett Cleavinger will miss the rest of the season after suffering a torn ACL during a rundown. The rotation got hit hard again with Drew Rasmussen placed on the 60-Day IL with an elbow injury and while he could come back before the end of the season, it'll be a huge loss for the next few months as he joins Jeffrey Springs on the list. Tyler Glasnow had a little bit of a scare as he was pulled from his most recent rehab start after just one inning despite planning for four innings. It was announced as left-side tightness and his removal was just as a precaution but it was certainly a concerning development. He's scheduled to make at least one more start before returning to the team. 

With Cleavinger out for the season, the Rays had to make a few different moves. First, they signed Jake Diekman to a contract but to do so, they had to designate Chase Anderson for assignment after acquiring him last week. Anderson was claimed by Colorado but the Rays would snap Zack Littell off the waiver wire from Boston.

The Week Ahead

The Rays will remain in New York to begin the week as they face the New York Mets for a three-game interleague clash. Pete Fairbanks is expected to return from the IL during this series and is likely to be available as early as Tuesday. They'll then return home for the first time in almost two weeks as they host another interleague battle with the Milwaukee Brewers coming to town for a weekend series. This will begin a ten-game homestand that features matchups with the Blue Jays and the Dodgers.