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Old 03-23-2021, 04:27 PM   #1
Art Deco
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The 2021 (and only 2021) Tampa Bay Rays

Just grabbed the OOTP22 beta, and will be playing the 2021 Tampa Bay Rays season out here. This of course is separate and apart from my long-running Rays dynasty, currently in 2031. I will transfer that over to OOTP22 during the 2031-32 offseason as well. The plan is to just play out the 2021 season as I don't have the time or inclination to play out multiple dynasties in the manner I've done the main one (edit: HA!). Nevertheless I'm going to treat my play-out of the season as if I was going to continue to keep playing so I'm not going to act as if there's no tomorrow and, say, trade Wander Franco and Vidal Brujan etc. so I can build a mega-team to try to win it all this year.

I'm not going to get into roster configuration, etc. as this is in beta which means the 40-man isn't filled out, but the 26-man roster which came with the game looks pretty realistic (although it isn't accounting for the current Ji-Man Choi injury, so I just held him out of the opening day lineup). I'm not going to try to parallel what the real team does in terms of moves, etc. - once the season starts we're in our own parallel universe.

NOTE (5/29): The "only 2021" part turned out to be a lie, I felt compelled to keep going into 2022 and I'll probably keep going beyond.

Last edited by Art Deco; 06-05-2021 at 03:44 PM.
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Old 03-23-2021, 04:35 PM   #2
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April 1-3: at Miami (3)

Game 1: Coming off a World Series trip the 2021 Rays face a lot of questions given the roster turnover which featured their top two starters (Blake Snell and Charlie Morton) departing for elsewhere. Was Randy Arozarena a postseason fluke? Can aging, fragile vets like Rich Hill, Chris Archer and Colin McHugh give them meaningful innings? When will Wander Franco be up? We'll try and answer all those questions and see how 2021 goes. The season opened in Miami, and since it's Opening Day I'll post the boxscore below. As you can see, Tyler Glasnow was electric, the offense wasn't but scratched out two runs, and the Rays took a 2-0 win to start the season. Yoshi Tsutsugo, a flop last season (which was accurately predicted in my main save) was the hitting hero today with a pair of doubles including one which drove in Austin Meadows who had also doubled in the 4th and then after his 7th inning double he scored on a Mike Brosseau sac fly. After Glasnow's 7 shutout innings, Diego Castillo pitched himself into a jam in the 8th, loading the bases with one out but getting a fly ball double play to get out of it when Kevin Kiermaier gunned down Jorge Alfaro at home plate. Nick Anderson was dominant in the 9th for the save.

Here's the box:



Game 2: Whereas yesterday the Rays relied on a dominant outing from a starter today it was the bullpen and bats which came through in a 6-4 win over Miami. Ryan Yarbrough started and he wasn't terribly effective, going 4.2 9 4 4 0 4 in coughing up a 4-2 lead before he could qualify for a win. But Yarbrough was effective with the bat, delivering a 2-run single which put the Rays up 3-0 early so the day wasn't a total loss for him. Chaz Roe gave up the hit to score the tying run in the 5th but got the final out and was credited with the win when the Rays scored twice in the 6th on a 2-RBI bases-loaded single from Kevin Kiermaier (who also had another outfield assist today). Then the bullpen took over, and while the starting rotation may have its question marks the pen is loaded like it was last year and the key arrival in the Blake Snell deal, Luis Patino, came through big. He pitched 2 electric innings, striking out the side in the 6th to go with a scoreless 7th in which he picked up another whiff. Pete Fairbanks had a 1-2-3 8th in his season debut and Nick Anderson got it done again in the 9th against his old team with a 1-2-3 inning for save #2. The Rays also scored on a Willy Adames groundout and Mike Zunino's homer in the 4th, the first of the year for the team.

Game 3: Chris Archer returned to the mound in a Rays uniform for the first time in three years and it turned out not to be as triumphant as he or Rays fans had hoped as Miami took a 4-3 win. Archer was victimized by one of his old Rays teammates, Corey Dickerson, for a 3-run homer in the first and although the Rays battled back to tie it up Archer was hit for another run in the 5th and had an unappetizing 4.1 5 4 4 3 3 line. The bullpen was great again with Chaz Roe whiffing 4 in 1 2/3 scoreless and Michael Wacha made his Rays debut with a pair of shutout innings. The offense couldn't generate much outside of the 3-run rally in the 3rd that saw a 2-run single from Manuel Margot and an RBI single from Brandon Lowe as they only managed 5 hits for the entire game.

Team record: 2-1. Next up: An off-day then we head to Fenway for 3 games.

Last edited by Art Deco; 03-23-2021 at 09:54 PM.
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Old 03-24-2021, 03:22 PM   #3
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April 5-7: at Boston (3)

Game 1: The only thing colder than the temperature at Fenway on an April night (34 degrees, with a 44-minute rain delay) were the Rays' bats as they fell 2-0 to Boston. Trevor Richards opened for Rich Hill, and pitched a scoreless first before having to leave with wrist soreness. Hill took over and was OK, but ran into trouble with a couple of walks in the 5th and with a couple of hits mixed in the Sox managed to score both their runs as Hill ended up 4 4 2 2 2 3 for his outing. Luis Patino was great again with 2 more scoreless innings in relief and Cody Reed made his season debut, pitching around a pair of errors to retire Boston in the 8th. The bats only managed 5 hits for the game and really didn't come to life until the 9th against Boston closer Adam Ottavino as Brandon Lowe singled to center and Randy Arozarena beat out an infield hit. Pinch-hitter Yoshi Tsutsugo should have made the final out but Bobby Dalbec booted his grounder to load the bases for Willy Adames, who grounded meekly back to Ottavino to end the game.

Game 2: After last night's pitchers' duel, tonight was the polar opposite as both teams scored early and often but the Rays came away with a 10-6 win to snap their 2-game mini-losing streak. Although the Rays got a 1st inning run on a Randy Arozarena ground out, Collin McHugh's Rays debut was one to forget as he served up a grand slam to Rafael Devers in the bottom of the inning and was tagged for 6 runs in total in a 3.1 7 6 6 1 1 nightmare outing. Fortunately for the Rays, Boston pitching was extraordinarily wild, issuing 11 walks on the night and Tampa Bay made them pay. Kevan Smith keyed a 4-run rally in the 2nd with a 2-run double as the Rays went back up 5-4 before McHugh gave that lead back. This set up the 6th where two walks (including a bases-loaded one to Mike Brosseau) and a hit loaded the bases for Joey Wendle, who took Matt Hall deep for a grand slam to break the tie. From there the bullpen took over, going 5 2/3 scoreless with Chaz Roe pitching the first 1 2/3 (and striking out the side in the 5th) and scoreless innings from Cody Reed, Peter Fairbanks, Diego Castillo and Nick Anderson to finish the game. Roe picked up his 2nd win of the young season.

Game 3: The bullpen let the Rays down in a big way today as they blew a 4-2 lead in the 7th and then Enrique Hernandez drilled a 2-run homer off Nick Anderson in the bottom of the 9th to give Boston a 7-5 win over Tampa Bay. Tyler Glasnow got the start and for 6 innings he was hooked in a duel with Boston's Eduardo Rodriguez with the Sox up 2-0 on a Bobby Dalbec homer and a Rafael Devers double. Glasnow finished 6 4 2 2 1 6 in another fine start but he looked to be a hard-luck loser until the Rays got to Rodriguez and the Boston pen in the 7th. They loaded the bases and pinch-hitter Joey Wendle, fresh off a grand slam the night before, drilled a bases-clearing double to make it 3-2 Tampa Bay. Manuel Margot, who had a 3-hit game, added an RBI double and it was 4-2 and things looked in good hands with the Fairbanks/Castillo/Anderson trio ready to go. But Fairbanks was terrible in the 7th, putting 2 on and giving up a 3-run homer to Kevin Plawecki of all people to put Boston back on top. But the Rays wouldn't quit, and Yandy Diaz's RBI single in the 8th tied it back up. Castillo did his job in the 8th with a pair of whiffs but Anderson gave up a leadoff single to Marwin Gonzalez and Hernandez took him over the Monster to send the Fenway Park crowd home walk-off winners.

Team record: 3-3. Next up: An off-day then we get to open the home portion of our season with the Yankees coming to town for the weekend.

Last edited by Art Deco; 03-25-2021 at 12:54 PM.
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Old 03-25-2021, 11:19 AM   #4
OrangeP47
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Hey, just want to say I like your style, and I'll be reading this. It's kinda the style of game reporting I *try* to do but don't quite pull off as well.
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Old 03-25-2021, 04:29 PM   #5
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April 9-11: vs NY Yankees (3)

Game 1: The Rays kept taking the lead, but the dam finally burst in the 7th when the Yankees scored 6 times to take a 9-5 win over the Rays in the home opener at Tropicana Field. The Rays took a 4-3 lead into the 7th and Luis Patino, who had looked quite good in his first two appearances, didn't have it today, walking 3, giving up 3 hits (including a 3-run HR to Kyle Higashioka) and 6 runs in total. He had two outs with only one run allowed but then gave up a 2-run single ahead of the Higashioka homer, and the bullpen was kind of tired so he had to hang in there. Ryan Yarbrough started and went 4 6 2 2 2 5 on 81 pitches, giving way to Michael Wacha in the 5th. Wacha allowed a run in his two innings of work but had to leave with forearm stiffness. Cody Reed was forced to pitch the final 2 1/3 and although he didn't give up any runs he threw 55 pitches in the process. Offensively, Joey Wendle stayed hot with his 2nd HR and 8th RBI in the last 3 games as he gave the Rays a brief 4-3 lead. Mike Zunino and Brandon Lowe had RBI singles, and Randy Arozarena hit his first homer of the year in the 8th.

Game 2: Another crushing defeat in a game which saw them burn through the bullpen thanks to Chris Archer having to leave in the first inning with a dead arm. Despite falling behind 5-0, the Rays rallied to take an 8-7 lead into the 9th inning only to see closer Nick Anderson give up a 1-out solo homer to Giancarlo Stanton to tie it and then a 3-run homer to DJ LeMahieu (his second of the game) to win it for the Yankees 11-8. LeMahieu's first three-run homer came off Trevor Richards as he suddenly had to replace Archer in the 1st after only three batters. The Rays got 3 back in the 2nd to cut it to 5-3 with the big hit a 2-run single from Joey Wendle, giving him 10 RBI in the last 4 games. After Gio Urshela homered off Richards in the 4th to make it 6-3, the teams traded runs before we went to the bottom of the 7th with the Rays down 7-4. Yandy Diaz then clubbed his first homer of the year with two men on to tie it, and Mike Brosseau followed with a blast of his own to give the Rays the lead. Chaz Roe and Pete Fairbanks bridged the middle innings through the 7th, and Diego Castillo had a scoreless 8th despite putting a couple of men on. But then Anderson imploded in the 9th and an improbable comeback was wasted.

April 11: Placed P Chris Archer on the 15-day IL with a dead arm, recalled P Andrew Kittredge from AAA Durham.

I'll probably bring up Josh Fleming to start in Archer's place in 5 days, but for now we desperately need a fresh arm for the bullpen.

Game 3: With only three pitchers showing as not tired (today's starter Rich Hill, the just-recalled Andrew Kittredge, and Luis Patino) facing the big bad Yankees seemed like a daunting task especially after the staff allowed 20 runs in the first two games of this series. But Hill was brilliant, going 5 5 1 1 1 6 on 88 pitches, Kittredge was even better (3.1 2 0 0 1 3) and Patino got the final two outs for his first Rays save as Tampa Bay salvaged the third game of this series 3-1 over the Yankees. It was a low-scoring tense affair throughout and the Rays got on the board in the 3rd when Willy Adames hit the first of his two triples on the day and scored on Francisco Mejia's groundout. The Rays doubled their advantage in the 4th when Austin Meadows walked, went to 2nd on a Corey Kluber wild pitch and scored on Randy Arozarena's single. They added some much-needed insurance in the 8th when Manuel Margot doubled and Brandon Lowe singled him home. The Yankees did get two on with one out in the 9th to chase Kittredge, but Patino got Gio Urshela to pop to 2nd and Rob Brantly to ground out to end the game and send the Trop crowd home happy.

Team record: 4-5. Next up: The Texas Rangers come to town for four straight.

Last edited by Art Deco; 03-25-2021 at 08:41 PM.
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Old 03-26-2021, 09:13 PM   #6
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April 12-15: vs Texas

Game 1: I'm beginning to think this team isn't very good as they were walloped by Texas tonight 7-2 and only managed 3 hits. Collin McHugh was victimized by a Rougned Odor grand slam in the first inning and finished 5 8 6 6 1 5. And the 2 runs came courtesy of the wildness of Texas starter Kyle Cody, who walked 6 by the 2nd inning including Mike Zunino with the bases loaded while the other run scored on a wild pitch in that inning. If this doesn't get better by the end of the month, we might see some callups like Shane McClanahan and Wander Franco.

Game 2: Power was the name of the game for the Rays tonight as they rode the power pitching of Tyler Glasnow and 3 home runs to defeat Texas 4-1, snapping the Rangers' 8-game win streak. Glasnow was brilliant once again, going 7.2 4 1 1 3 9 and notching his second win of the season, lowering his ERA to 1.31 in the process. The length of his outing was much-needed with a tired bullpen, but Diego Castillo got the final 4 outs including a whiff of Khris Davis as the tying run at the plate in the 8th for his first save. The offense wasn't generating rallies with only 7 hits tonight but three of them left the yard. Austin Meadows led off the game with his 1st of the year and the big blow came in the 7th with the game tied at 1 as Mike Zunino went deep for the 2nd time with a man aboard to make it 3-1. Brandon Lowe drilled his first homer of the year in the 8th to provide some insurance, against a lefty as well. Kevin Kiermaier had a nice game, going 2-3 with a run scored and his third outfield assist of the season, gunning down Sam Huff as he attempted to stretch a double into a triple.

Game 3: The Rays won a slugfest for a change, outlasting Texas 8-6 after falling behind 4-2 early. Willy Adames' 2-run double gave them a short-lived lead in the 2nd, Austin Meadows doubled in a run in the 4th to get them within 4-3, and Joey Wendle continued on his RBI binge with a 2-run single (he now has 12) to give them the lead to stay in the 5th. Then the power bats came out in the 6th in an important 3-run inning to put them up 8-4. Mike Zunino homered for the second straight day (#3) and then with a man on against a lefty again, Brandon Lowe went deep on consecutive nights as well with #2. Michael Wacha got the start and had a schizophrenic game, striking out the side in the 1st, then giving up a homer to former Ray Nate Lowe in the 2nd and getting hit hard in the 3rd including a David Dahl 2-run shot. But he recovered to pitch two more scoreless innings and ended up with his first Rays win going 5 6 4 4 1 6. Cody Reed had a 1-2-3 6th but probably shouldn't have been pushed into the 7th when he put a couple of men on who Peter Fairbanks allowed to score. Fairbanks stayed on and got through the 8th while Nick Anderson pitched around a walk in the 9th for his 3rd save as the Rays won consecutive games for the first time since the opening two games of the season.

Game 4: The Rays made it 3 straight wins and moved above .500 thanks to one of Ryan Yarbrough's best games of his career in a 4-1 win. The crafty lefty took a 1-hit shutout into the 9th inning before giving up a Nick Solak homer, with the only hit coming on a misplayed pop fly as he ended 8.1 2 1 1 1 5 on 110 pitches to pick up his first win of the year. Diego Castillo got the final two outs, whiffing Khris Davis and Joey Gallo to end the game. As great as Yarbrough pitched, Texas pitchers Kyle Gibson (who had to leave in the 3rd with elbow inflammation) and Jordan Lyles no-hit the Rays through the first 5 innings before Francisco Mejia broke the ice with a single to center. That hit jump-started a 2-run rally with a Brandon Lowe RBI single and Mike Brosseau pinch-hit sac fly. Then in the 8th Lowe and Randy Arozarena went deep back-to-back to provide insurance, with Lowe homering for the third straight game (and #3 overall) and Arozarena hitting his 2nd.

Team record: 7-6. Next up: We head to Yankee Stadium for the weekend.

Last edited by Art Deco; 03-27-2021 at 01:45 PM.
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Old 03-27-2021, 02:11 PM   #7
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April 16-18: at NY Yankees (3)

Game 1: A heartbreaking loss for the Rays as Gleyber Torres hit a walk-off homer off Andrew Kittredge in the bottom of the 9th to give the Yankees a 3-2 win after the Rays came back late from down 2-0. Trevor Richards opened for the Rays and was terrible, giving the Yankees two runs in the 1st inning. Rich Hill took over and was excellent, going 5 3 0 0 0 6 in his bulk outing, and Chaz Roe and Diego Castillo pitched scoreless innings to get them through the 8th. The bats were slow to wake against Jordan Montgomery, who held them to 3 hits and 1 run in 6 1/3 with the run scoring in the 7th on Joey Wendle's pinch-hit sac fly, giving him a team-leading 13 RBI. Brandon Lowe homered for the 4th straight game to tie it in the 8th, and it could have been a 2-run shot but Austin Meadows was caught stealing during Lowe's at-bat. They still only managed 4 hits on the night but were in it until Kittredge gave up the Torres homer after retiring the first two Yankees in the 9th.

Game 2: As tough as last night's loss was, today's win was just as exhilarating. The Rays scored 4 times in the 9th, with both of the key hits coming against Aroldis Chapman, to break a 3-3 tie and beat the Yankees 7-3. Leading off the away 9th Joey Wendle drew a walk against Justin Wilson and stole second, leading the Yankees to bring in Chapman. The Rays caught a break when Manuel Margot's popup was dropped by Caleb Kowart with one out, putting men on 1st and 3rd for Yandy Diaz, who singled off Chapman to give them the lead. And then two batters Randy Arozarena took the Cuban Missile deep to RCF to give the Rays ample breathing room. The homer was Arozarena's 3rd of the season and extended his hitting streak to 12 games in his last at-bat. Luis Patino picked up the win, pitching the final 2 1/3 with 3 whiffs. Collin McHugh started and was rudely greeted by Mike Tauchman, who took him deep to lead off the game, but settled in from there and only allowed a Luke Voit solo homer the rest of the way in a 6 5 2 2 1 2 outing. Cody Reed took over in the 7th and unfortunately gave up a run that allowed the Yankees to tie it at 3. The Rays had scored earlier on a Diaz RBI double, Kevin Kiermaier's RBI single, and Zunino's sac fly.

Game 3: The final score said Yankees 10, Rays 7, but it wasn't really that close of a game as New York bombed Tyler Glasnow for 8 runs in 1 2/3 innings, or should I say Gleyber Torres bombed Glasnow as he hit a first-inning grand slam then a 2-run shot in the 2nd. It was 8-0 at that point and it was 10-4 going into the 9th when Randy Arozarena hit another 3-run homer (#4) in the 9th that wasn't quite as thrilling as yesterday's. He earlier had a 2-run single to give him a 5-RBI day and extend his hitting streak to 13 as he and Brandon Lowe (2-5 today) seem to be the only Rays consistently hitting with Kevin Kiermaier (just barely at .208) the only other regular above the Mendoza Line. Trevor Richards (2 1/3, 1 run allowed) and Andrew Kittredge (3 scoreless innings) mopped up Glasnow's mess while Chaz Roe allowed a run in his inning of work. Meanwhile Blake Snell went 9 1 0 0 1 11 today for San Diego against the Dodgers of all teams.

Team record: 8-8. Next up: We head to Kansas City for 3 games.

Last edited by Art Deco; 03-27-2021 at 10:24 PM.
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Old 03-28-2021, 11:57 AM   #8
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April 19-21: at Kansas City (3)

Game 1: The Rays jumped out to an early 6-0 lead, watched the Royals climb back within 6-4 and then blew it open with a 5-run 8th to win going away 11-4. The Royals decided to bring up all of their top prospects today with Daniel Lynch getting the start, Bobby Witt Jr starting at 3rd, and Asa Lacy (who pitched 3 innings in relief, allowing a run) in the bullpen. The Rays treated Lynch rudely in his debut, putting four on the board in the first highlighted by RBI doubles from Austin Meadows and Brandon Lowe, and then Yandy Diaz added a 2-run double in the 4th to make it 6-0. But the Royals kept chipping away against Michael Wacha. After holding them hitless through the first 3 2/3, Hunter Dozier homered and they added runs against him in the 5th and 6th, when he left with the bases loaded and nobody out. Peter Fairbanks came on and walked a man to force in a run but whiffed the next 3 to snuff out that rally. Carlos Santana homered off Fairbanks in the 7th to make it 6-4, but Diego Castillo got the final out of that inning before the Rays broke it open in the 8th with another Diaz RBI double and a 2-run single from Lowe the big hits of that inning. Luis Patino came on for the 8th and couldn't finish the 9th, loading the bases but Cody Reed came in and got the final out. Wacha picked up the win to go to 2-0 with a 5 5 3 3 3 4 line.

Game 2: The Rays' bats were as cold as a Kansas City winter as the Royals handled Tampa Bay 6-0 today, with Royals pitching holding them to 2 hits and striking out 15. Kris Bubic, who came in after opener Jakob Junis, was pretty much unhittable going 6.1 1 0 0 2 10, and rookie Asa Lacy pitched again going the final 1 2/3 with 3 whiffs. Randy Arozarena saw his 13-game hitting streak snuffed out in the process. Ryan Yarbrough was matching zeroes with Bubic until the 6th, when he had two out and one on and then proceeded to give up 5 straight hits, leading to 4 runs. He finished 5.2 9 4 4 0 4 and Cody Reed gave up a 2-run homer to Jorge Soler to cap the Royal scoring. Nick Anderson had a 1-2-3 2K 8th inning getting some work in on a night the Rays would like to forget.

Game 3: Old man Rich Hill was great and Willy Adames delivered a grand slam and drove in 5 to lead the Rays to a 6-0 win over Kansas City to take the rubber match of the series. The 41-year-old Hill taught the young whippersnappers of Kansas City some lessons today, going 6 3 0 0 2 6 and improving to 2-1, 1.35. Peter Fairbanks struck out all 5 Royals he faced, and Diego Castllo, Chaz Roe and Nick Anderson finished off the combined shutout. Adames' slam off Brady Singer in the 2nd inning, his first homer of the year, would be all they'd need but he did add an RBI single in the 6th while Brandon Lowe had an RBI triple in the 2nd after the Adames homer. Yandy Diaz was on base all 4 trips to the plate with 3 singles and a walk and 2 runs scored.

Team record: 10-9. Next up: an off-day then back home at the Trop to face Toronto.

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Old 03-29-2021, 06:08 PM   #9
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April 23-25: vs Toronto (3)

April 23: Placed C Kevan Smith on waivers and designated him for assignment; activated 1B Ji-Man Choi from the 10-day IL.

It'll be good to have Ji-Man back as the offense needs help, although he'll sit tonight against the lefty Hyun-jin Ryu.

Game 1
: The Rays blew a 4-1 lead and lost to Toronto 5-4 today as they can't seem to escape the gravitational pull of the .500 mark. They were primarily done in by Teoscar Hernandez, who went 4-4 and missed the cycle by a double. Hernandez started tormenting Rays pitchers when he took Collin McHugh deep in the first, but his homer was answered by Brandon Lowe's off Hyun-jin Ryu in the bottom of the inning. And then the Rays struck for 3 in the second, with some help from a Toronto error. Willy Adames made it 7 RBI in 2 games with a 2-run double, and he scored on Mike Zunino's groundout. But the Jays hit back for a pair against McHugh in the 4th, although he made it through 6 and left with a 4-3 lead, going 6 4 3 3 1 8 in a largely impressive outing. Luis Patino got through the 7th but walked Cavan Biggio to lead off the 8th and then that man Hernandez again came through with a triple off Diego Castillo to tie the game up, and he came home on Vlad Guerrero Jr's sac fly to give the Jays the winning margin. The offense was non-existent after the first two innings as they only managed 5 hits on the night.

Game 2: It was the Tyler Glasnow show at the Trop on a Saturday as the Rays righty dominated the Blue Jays to the tune of 7 1 0 0 1 9 and picked up the win in a 3-0 decision. Glasnow allowed a Cavan Biggio single to lead off the game and gave up nothing else from there as he needed to be sharp with the team not doing much scoring for him. Diego Castillo pitched the 8th and Nick Anderson the 9th for save #4 and Glasnow is now 3-1. Ji-Man Choi made a triumphant return to the Rays lineup, figuring in both of their first two runs. In the 2nd he doubled and scored on Kevin Kiermaier's RBI single off Nate Pearson, and then in the 6th he doubled home Randy Arozarena. They added an insurance run in the 8th on a Yandy Diaz groundout scoring Brandon Lowe who had doubled to lead off the inning.

Game 3: Michael Wacha had his sinker working today and the Rays survived a shaky 9th inning from Peter Fairbanks in a 5-4 win over Toronto to get them 2 games over .500. Wacha had the Jays pounding the ball into the ground for 7 innings, getting 14 groundball outs and only allowing a Lourdes Gurriel homer in the 5th as the only Toronto hit before giving up a leadoff double in the 8th. Chaz Roe allowed that runner to score and Wacha ended 7 2 2 2 0 2 to improve to 3-0, albeit with a 4.29 ERA. It was 5-2 going into the 9th when Fairbanks put the first two men on, got a double play ball, and then allowed three consecutive singles to score 2 more runs before finally getting Randal Grichuk to fly to center to end the game. Fairbanks was called on because Diego Castillo and Nick Anderson were both tired, and he did pick up his first save despite not really deserving it. Randy Arozarena led the offense, homering off Robbie Ray with a man on in the 4th (#5) to make it 2-0 Rays, and he had an RBI single in the 6th to restore the 2-run lead at 3-1. Manuel Margot had a big RBI double in the 7th, and Mike Brosseau hit a massive 447-foot homer to LCF in the 8th (#2) which proved to be the margin of victory.

Team record: 12-10. Next up: Oakland comes to town for four games.

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Old 03-30-2021, 03:55 PM   #10
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April 26-29: vs Oakland (4)

Game 1: The Rays made it three in a row and three games over .500 for the first time this season with an 8-2 triumph over Oakland. The offense rode the longball to success today, with Brandon Lowe hitting a 3-run jack (#6) in the 1st, Austin Meadows with a man on (#2) in the 5th and Joey Wendle with a 2-run shot (#3) in the 8th. Ji-Man Choi's RBI groundout in the 8th was the only non-homer run today for the Rays. Ryan Yarbrough started and pitched well, even if he wasn't his usual efficient self, going 5.2 6 2 1 2 6 on 100 pitches. Andrew Kittredge got him out of the 6th and pitched the 7th, Chaz Roe struck out the side in the 8th, and Cody Reed finished in the 9th. The Yankees keep winning at 16-6, so the Rays remain 3 1/2 behind as the wild card may be their best bet this season.

Game 2: An 11-run 5th inning propelled the Rays to a 15-1 blowout of Oakland today, their 4th consecutive win. It was an inning Francisco Mejia will always remember, as the Rays' catcher started it off with a 2-run homer (his first as a Ray) and followed later with a bases-clearing triple to give him 5 RBIs in one inning, which might be a club record. Austin Meadows also had two extra-base hits in the inning, doubling to continue the rally after Mejia's homer and then homering himself (#3) after Mejia's triple. Interestingly, the scoring in the 5th should have been limited to Mejia's homer as with two out Chad Pinder dropped a fly ball which would have been the third out, allowing two runners to score. Mike Brosseau was 4-5 with 2 RBI and Willy Adames was 3-4 with a double and 3 RBI as the team bashed a season-high 16 hits. Just as impressive as the offense was Rich Hill on the mound, as he came through with another brilliant outing, going 6.1 4 1 1 1 6 after Trevor Richards opened for him with 1 2/3 scoreless. Hill is now 3-1, 1.37 with his ERA second-best in the AL and his 0.8 WAR third-best. Chris Archer made his first appearance after coming off the IL with a 1-2-3 9th to finish the game. The Yankees lost for a change so the Rays creep within 2 1/2 of the division lead.

Game 3: It was a night to forget at the Trop for the Rays and their fans as Oakland returned the favor of last night's blowout and waxed Tampa Bay 9-2. Collin McHugh wasn't very good and will be leaving the rotation for Chris Archer, who mopped up today with 2 2/3 innings of relief. McHugh was hit for 4 runs and 7 hits in 4 innings and sports a 7.77 ERA. Andrew Kittredge relieved him and gave up 4 runs on his own, while the offense did very little with Kevin Kiermaier singling in Willy Adames after a triple and Randy Arozarena's RBI double the only runs the Rays could muster. The Yankees won big (8 HRs in a 16-4 win at Baltimore including 3 from Aaron Judge) so they're back to 3 1/2 behind although they can take solace from the fact they have the same record as the Dodgers who are also 14-11.

Game 4: Tyler Glasnow, ladies and gentlemen. The Rays righty was absolutely in command today, taking a no-hitter into the 7th inning before losing it with one out on a Matt Olson grounder into the shortstop hole that Willy Adames probably should have made a better play on in a 4-0 Rays win. (Had this not been OOTP, a subjective official scorer would probably have given Adames an error.) Glasnow ended up 7 1 0 0 1 13 on 100 pitches and is now 4-1, 2.72 and has moved to 3rd in the AL in pitcher WAR. Cody Reed got 4 outs and Peter Fairbanks 2 to combine with Glasnow for the 1-hit shutout. Austin Meadows gave Glasnow all the offense he would need by leading off the game with HR #4, but Adames (who had a 3-hit day) singled in a run in the 1st as well. Later Yoshi Tsutsugo made a rare positive contribution with an RBI double and they scored a 4th run on a rare error from Matt Chapman. Baltimore took care of the Yankees today so once again they're back within 2 1/2.

Team record: 15-11. Next up: The Houston Astros come to town for a weekend series.

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Old 03-31-2021, 09:53 PM   #11
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April 30-May 2: vs Houston (3)

Game 1: The Rays picked up where they left off in last year's ALCS and continued their winning ways (6 of their last 7) by beating the Houston Astros 8-3 at Tropicana Field tonight. Brandon Lowe continued to rake, hitting a 2-run shot (#7) in the first to put them up 2-0 as part of a 3-5 night, and Yandy Diaz was 4-4 with an RBI. After Houston pulled within 2-1, Austin Meadows led off the 6th with HR #5 and they tacked on two more on a Randy Arozarena double and Willy Adames' RBI single, and added 3 more in the 8th to blow it open. Michael Wacha started, and although it seemed he was constantly in trouble he got the big outs and stranded Astro baserunners, going 6 7 1 1 2 5 to improve to 4-0, 3.67. Chaz Roe whiffed a pair in the 7th, Peter Fairbanks gave up an unearned run in the 8th, and Trevor Richards got into some trouble, allowing a run before Cody Reed got the final two outs. The Yankees rolled on, so the Rays remain 2 1/2 back.

Game 2: The Astros and Yuri Gurriel in particular battered Tampa Bay pitching today, and although they made a late comeback after trailing 8-2, the Rays fell short by an 8-6 score today. Gurriel was 4-4 with 3 doubles, a homer and 4 RBI with most of the damage coming against Ryan Yarbrough, who went 6.1 9 5 5 0 4. Diego Castillo took over for him and was hit hard as well, allowing 3 runs on 5 hits in only an inning of work with Trevor Richards pitching the final 1 2/3. Early on the only Rays offense came from Brandon Lowe, who stayed hot with HR #8, but later they chipped away with Willy Adames going 3-5 with a pair of doubles and an RBI, Kevin Kiermaier driving in a pair with a single, and Manuel Margot 2-5 with 2 doubles and an RBI. All of that added up to them loading the bases after scoring 2 runs in the 9th, but Houston closer Ryan Pressly wriggled out of it, whiffing Margot and getting Kiermaier to ground out to end the game.

Game 3: The Rays were in bad shape today after Rich Hill's run of excellent starts came to a crashing halt against Houston today. The Astros kept adding runs throughout, and by the time Hill left in the 5th it was 5-0 Astros. Hill ended up 4.1 7 5 5 3 2 and saw his ERA double to 2.64, with Andrew Kittredge taking over for him. Meanwhile the offense was being shut down by Jose Urquidy, who allowed them only two hits over the first 4 innings. Then something strange happened. The Rays started hitting, and pretty much didn't stop. The first 7 batters in the bottom of the 5th, and 8 of the first 9, all hit safely and a 5-0 deficit became a 6-5 lead. It started with a Joey Wendle single before Francisco Mejia hit HR #2 to make it 5-2. Austin Meadows then went back-to-back with Mejia and it was 5-3, then a Randy Arozarena RBI single and a Yoshi Tsutsugo RBI double tied it and Kevin Kiermaier's RBI single gave them the lead. They didn't stop there either. In the 6th, Meadows went deep again for #7 and Yandy Diaz went back-to-back with him (#1), Mejia added a sac fly in the 7th and in the 8th Tsutsugo hit his first homer of the year with a man on and the Rays went on to win 11-6. Kittredge picked up the win, Chaz Roe got a couple of outs, Cody Reed gave up a run in his 1 1/3 and then Nick Anderson got the final four outs for save #5 in what will have to go down as the biggest 180-degree turnaround of the season. The Yankees won't stop winning so they stay 3 1/2 back, but they're now tied with Seattle for the second wild card.

Team record: 17-12. Next up: A west coast road trip starts with 4 in Anaheim.

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Old 04-02-2021, 02:49 PM   #12
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May 3-6: at LA Angels (4)

Game 1: Not a lot of positives in tonight's 6-2 loss to the Angels. Chris Archer was hit hard early for 4 runs in the first and although he piled up some strikeouts, his 4 8 6 5 1 7 outing was not the return to the rotation he had hoped for. The man he supplanted, Collin McHugh, went the final four innings scoreless. The offense had some chances, getting 12 hits, but couldn't come through when it counted with only Yandy Diaz's RBI single in the 4th and Kevin Kiermaier's solo homer, his first of the year in the 7th, getting the Rays on the board.

Game 2: Tyler Glasnow pitched decently but the bullpen was even better, going 5 2/3 scoreless to allow the Rays to grab a 3-2 win in 11 innings in Anaheim. The Rays loaded the bases with nobody out in the 11th and Willy Adames' sac fly brought home Randy Arozarena with the winning run. In regulation, the Rays' two runs came on a pair of Austin Meadows homers, one leading off the game and the second in the 6th to tie it up and give him 9 for the season. Meanwhile the Angels answered with two home runs from Anthony Rendon off Glasnow, one in the bottom of the 1st and the other in the 3rd. Glasnow went 5.1 7 2 2 0 6 and left a jam for Chaz Roe in the 6th, but he got a pair of strikeouts with a man on 3rd and 1 out to escape it and pitch through the 7th, Peter Fairbanks had a perfect 8th, Diego Castillo pitched heroically through the 9th and 10th and earned the win, and Nick Anderson pitched around a hit batter to nail down save #6. The Yankees lost to Houston so the Rays are now 3 back in the division.

Game 3: Austin Meadows was the offense and the pitching was solid again as the Rays scored twice in the 9th inning to beat the Angels a second straight night, 4-2. After the Angels scored first against Michael Wacha, Meadows led off the 3rd with a triple off Shohei Ohtani, scored on a Yandy Diaz single and Diaz came home on Randy Arozarena's double. Wacha wasn't great, but he was gutty, getting 3 double plays and leaving with a 5.1 4 1 1 3 2 line. Andrew Kittredge got him out of the 6th and pitched the 7th, and with two lefties due in the 8th Cody Reed got the call. The problem was that the guy in the middle of the two lefties was righty-hitting Anthony Rendon, and the Angel 3B took Reed deep for his third homer in two games to tie it up. But the Rays responded immediately in the 9th as Francisco Mejia singled, pinch-hitter Mike Brosseau was hit by a pitch, and Kevin Kiermaier bunted them over to 2nd and 3rd. This brought up Meadows, who lined a single to right to score them both. Peter Fairbanks had gotten the final out of the 8th in relief of Reed, and had a 1-2-3 inning in the 9th all set but Willy Adames dropped his second popup of the game which apparently rattled Fairbanks. He walked the next two batters to load the bases and Nick Anderson had to come in, getting Taylor Ward on a grounder to third for his 7th save while Fairbanks got his first win of the season. The Yankees keep winning so no ground gained there but the Rays remain tied with Kansas City for the 2nd wild card (technically back on percentage points).

Game 4: Not sure I've played a game where the win probability swung so much. The Rays fell behind 5-0, went ahead 10-5, and thanks to Trevor Richards' complete inability to get anyone out, lost 11-10 after the Angels scored 6 times in the bottom of the 9th. Ryan Yarbrough started and gave up a 2-run homer in the 2nd to Taylor Ward and then 3 more in the 3rd. Cody Reed and Richards were the only relievers not showing as fatigued, so Yarbrough was given a long leash and ended pitching a great game considering he allowed 5 runs, finishing 8 6 5 5 2 7. And after the Rays took a 10-5 lead on Ji-Man Choi's first 2 homers of the year driving in 4 and a Yoshi Tsutsugo grand slam (#2 for him), Richards should have been able to finish out a 5-run lead in the 9th. But he only managed to get one out, giving up 5 hits culminating in a 3-run homer from - you guessed it - Anthony Rendon to tie it. Reed then came in and got Shohei Ohtani out but gave up a Max Stassi single and a David Fletcher double to score Stassi and the Angels had an improbable walk-off win in a heartbreaker for the Rays. The Yankees and Royals both lost, so they missed a golden chance to gain ground on both.

Here's the win probability chart. I'd liken it to a rollercoaster, but it looks more like someone climbed a mountain and then jumped off it:



Team record: 19-14. Next up: The road trip continues with 3 in Oakland.

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Old 04-04-2021, 03:48 PM   #13
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May 7-9: at Oakland (3)

Game 1: Rich Hill was brilliant again in leading the Rays to a 3-1 win over Oakland, but unfortunately he had leave with a strained hamstring and will be out for six weeks. Hill stuck around long enough to qualify for the win, leaving with 2 out in the 6th after going 5.2 4 0 0 0 8 in his best outing yet as he'll go on the shelf with a 4-1, 2.23 record. Andrew Kittredge took over for him and was greeted with a Matt Olson homer, but that's all the bullpen yielded as Kittredge pitched through the 7th, Diego Castillo the 8th and Nick Anderson the 9th for save #8. Austin Meadows doubled in the 2nd and Willy Adames singled him home for the first run, Kevin Kiermaier took lefty Sean Manaea deep for HR #2 in the 3rd, and Brandon Lowe came through with some insurance on an RBI double in the 8th off former Ray Adam Kolarek. And the news got better with the Yankees losing, moving the Rays to within 2 of the division lead, and the Royals falling as well putting the Rays into sole possession of the second wild card. But they're going to need a new starter next time through.

May 8: Placed P Rich Hill on the 15-day IL with a hamstring strain, recalled P Ryan Thompson from AAA Durham.

Thompson will give us an extra arm in the pen the next few days, and will probably go back for Brendan McKay or Shane McClanahan to start in Hill's next turn.

Game 2: The Rays continued their successful west coast trip with a 6-3 come-from-behind win in Oakland to make it four wins in five (and it should have been 5 in a row if not for that ridiculous bullpen meltdown in Anaheim). Trailing 3-2 after 6, Mike Zunino drilled a solo HR (#4) in the top of the 7th to tie it, and they broke it open with 3 in the 8th to win it. Randy Arozarena doubled in Yandy Diaz (who had 4 hits in a ballpark he loves hitting in after homering twice in the 2019 wild card game) to give them the lead and then Kevin Kiermaier had a 2-run single to make it 6-3. The win went to Cody Reed, who pitched 2 perfect innings in middle relief. Pete Fairbanks had a scoreless 8th and Nick Anderson a scoreless 9th for save #9. Chris Archer started and was decent, victimized for a 2-run homer in the 4th which was unearned due to a Diaz error, and he finished 5 6 3 1 1 5. The Rays scored early on Ji-Man Choi's sac fly after Austin Meadows led off the game with a double, and Yoshi Tsutsugo homered for the second time in 3 days (#3) to give them an early 2-1 lead. The Yankees lost again to Washington so the Rays creep to within 1 game of the AL East lead. The only negative today is that Arozarena had to come out of the game on his 8th-inning double with patellar tendinitis, and will be sidelined for a week. He'll likely go on the IL.

Game 3: When you score 8 runs and have Tyler Glasnow starting, you expect to win but that wasn't the case today as the Rays' ace had a rough game and although they kept making it close they fell short 10-8 in the end. Glasnow had a rough first inning, giving up a 2-run homer to Matt Chapman and it didn't get much better from there as he allowed 2 in the 3rd and 2 more in the 4th on a Matt Olson homer, leaving with a 4 8 6 6 2 6 line. Collin McHugh came on and gave up a couple of unearned runs in his 2 innings of work thanks to Willy Adames' second error of the game, and Ryan Thompson made his season debut and gave up a 2-run homer of his own in the 8th which proved in the end to be the difference when the Rays' 9th inning rally came up short. Ji-Man Choi had a 2-run HR (#3) in the 3rd while Kevin Kiermaier and Brandon Lowe were each 3-5 with an RBI. They pulled within 8-6 in the 7th and then with the tying run on in the 9th and two out, Oakland closer Trevor Rosenthal came in and got Choi to fly to center to end it. The Yankees lost yet again so still 1 back in the AL East, but Kansas City won to tie them again for the second wild card.

Team record: 21-15. An off-day then it's New York week at the Trop as the Yankees come in for 3 followed by 3 with the Mets.

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Old 04-05-2021, 03:33 PM   #14
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May 11-13: vs NY Yankees (3)

May 11: Placed OF Randy Arozarena on the 10-day IL with patellar tendinitis, activated OF Brett Phillips from the 10-day IL.

World series hero Brett "Maverick" Phillips is back while Arozarena will be out for a week with that DL stint backdated three days.

Game 1: The Yankees came to down for an early-season showdown series with the Rays just one game behind, and Tampa Bay and Michael Wacha answered the bell to pull even with New York thanks to a 6-1 win at Tropicana Field. Things did not start well for Wacha as Mike Tauchman led off the game with a 457-foot homer to center, but he gave the Yankees nothing after that for 7 innings, scattering some hits and not walking anyone to go to 5-0, 2.97 off a 7 7 1 1 0 3 outing. Chaz Roe whiffed a pair in the 8th (he now has 29 Ks in 15 innings) and Andrew Kittredge got through the 9th without any issues. The run-scoring was kind of odd tonight for the Rays. Kevin Kiermaier led off the 3rd with a single, was balked to second by Jonathan Loaisiga, went to 3rd on a grounder and scored on another one from Willy Adames. Then they erupted for 4 in the 4th which saw Loaisiga come unglued after giving up three singles to load the bases, balking again* to force in a run, wild-pitching in another and walking Adames with the bases loaded, and after a Francisco Mejia RBI groundout it was suddenly 5-1.

*Over the last year-plus, I've managed over 2,000 Rays games in my 2020 dynasty plus the 40 or so here, and that's the first time I've seen the same pitcher commit two balks in a game.

Game 2: Meet your first-place Tampa Bay Rays! The Rays took care of Gerrit Cole and the Yankees today in a 7-4 win which puts them a game ahead of New York in the AL East, the sixth straight loss for the Yankees. After falling behind 2-0 in the first they jumped all over Cole in the 2nd through the 4th, battering him for 7 runs and 9 hits with the damage mainly coming from the unlikely trio of Yoshi Tsutsugo, Brett Phillips and Mike Zunino. Willy Adames hit a one-out triple in the 2nd, Tsutsugo tripled him home and then Phillips and Zunino had RBI singles to make it 3-2. In the 3rd, Tsutsugo hit his second double in as many innings to score a pair and in the 4th Zunino drilled HR #5 with Phillips aboard. The three combined to go 7-12 with all 7 RBI and Phillips stole a couple of bases as well in his season debut. Ryan Yarbrough started and was adequate, going 6 5 4 4 2 5, giving up a 2-run single to Aaron Judge in the 1st and a 2-run homer to Miguel Andujar in the 4th. The Peter Fairbanks-Diego Castillo-Nick Anderson triumvirate pitched the 7th, 8th and 9th allowing a total of one hit between them with Anderson nabbing save #10. Anderson tied Aroldis Chapman and former Ray Alex Colome for the AL save lead.

Game 3: High drama at the Trop as Mike Zunino hit a 2-run homer in the 7th to tie it at 4 and then another 2-run homer (#7) in the bottom of the 9th off Aroldis Chapman (it never gets old seeing the Rays take Chapman deep to win games) to give the Rays a thrilling 6-4 walk-off win and sweep of the series. In dooming New York to its 7th straight loss the Rays now open up a 2-game lead in the AL East. Chris Archer started for the Rays and was extremely wild, hitting Brett Gardner with a pitch to force in a run and walking Gio Urshela with the bases loaded to force in another. He was lucky to escape with only those two runs allowed as he went 3.1 4 2 2 5 3 on 88 pitches. Trevor Richards got him out of a 4th-inning mess and retired all 8 Yankees he faced to get through the 6th. That bought them enough time to tie it up on a Willy Adames sac fly and Ji-Man Choi RBI single, but Chaz Roe didn't fare as well in the 7th, giving up back-to-back homers to the first two batters he faced, Giancarlo Stanton and Gleyber Torres. But Zunino's first homer tied it up, Peter Fairbanks and Nick Anderson shut the Yanks down in the 8th and 9th with Anderson getting his first win of the year, and then Zunino was the hero again in the bottom of the 9th.

Team record: 24-15. Next up: The Yankees' crosstown rivals the Mets come in for 3 over the weekend.

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Old 04-06-2021, 10:06 AM   #15
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May 14-16: vs NY Mets (3)

Game 1: A tough loss for the Rays, who got a taste of their own come-from-behind medicine as the Mets rallied in the late innings to beat them 5-3. The Rays jumped out to a 3-0 lead off Taijuan Walker in the 1st on an RBI triple from Brandon Lowe, an RBI single from Ji-Man Choi (who was 4-4 today) and an RBI groundout from Manuel Margot. They had more chances to score in the next couple of innings but failed to do so, and it came back to haunt them in the end. For a long time it didn't like that way, though, as Tyler Glasnow was dealing with a 1-hitter through 5. But he started running out of gas with Dominic Smith hitting a 2-run shot off him in the 6th and the Mets tied it off him in the 7th so he finished 7 6 3 3 1 9. With Peter Fairbanks and Nick Anderson tired and Diego Castillo behind held for the 9th, Andrew Kittredge got the call in the 8th and gave up a 2-run shot to Pete Alonso and that turned out to be the difference. Ryan Thompson had a 1-2-3 9th. Fortunately for the Rays the Yankees continue to spiral downward, losing their 8th straight to Baltimore thanks in part to Adley Rutschman's first MLB homer so the lead stays at 2 games.

May 15: Optioned P Ryan Thompson to AAA Durham, recalled P Shane McClanahan from AAA Durham.

Let the Shane McClanahan era begin! The rookie lefty will get the start tonight against the Mets after looking great in his first two starts at Durham, in which he whiffed 18 and walked 4 in 13 1/3 innings with a 2.70 ERA.

Game 2: Shane McClanahan had a regular-season debut to forget as the Rays lefty phenom was battered by the Mets in a 7-2 loss. McClanahan gave up a 2-run homer to Dom Smith in the 1st inning, a 2-run blast to James McCann in the 2nd, and then a 2-run double to McCann in the 3rd as he went a disastrous 2.1 6 7 5 2 4 on only 47 pitches before being pulled. Collin McHugh, Trevor Richards and Cody Reed were great in long relief but the horse had long left the barn. Ji-Man Choi and Willy Adames (now leading the club with 25 RBI) drove in the two runs with singles in a game the less said about, the better. The Yankees won in Baltimore to pull back within 1 game.

May 16: Placed P Collin McHugh on the 15-day IL with elbow inflammation, recalled P Ryan Thompson from AAA Durham.

McHugh should only miss the 15 days, but I doubt we'll miss him. Thompson comes right back up.

Game 3: After sweeping one New York team the Rays were swept by the other as the Mets handed the Rays a tough 4-3 loss. The Rays had leads of 2-0 and 3-1 but Michael Wacha had his worst start as a Ray against the team he pitched for last season, allowing 3 runs in the 5th to put the Mets in front with what would be the last scoring of the day. He finished a rough 4.2 6 4 4 3 3. Andrew Kittredge, Ryan Thompson and Diego Castillo went 5 1/3 scoreless to keep them in the game but the offense could only muster a lone single over the final 5 innings and only four hits for the day. Things started well as the Rays scored two quick runs in the 1st when Manuel Margot singled, stole second, went to third on an Austin Meadows single, and then scored on a wild pitch before another wild pitch sent Meadows to 3rd and he scored on Brandon Lowe's sac fly. After the Mets made it 2-1, Mike Brosseau restored the two-run lead in the 4th with his 3rd homer of the year, but that was the end of the offense for Tampa Bay today. The Yankees lost to Baltimore so the Rays remain a game up in the standings, although they're tied in the loss column.

Team record: 24-18. Next up: an off-day then 3 games in Baltimore.

MLB News: The first significant trade of the season saw the Twins send OF Max Kepler and rookie C Ryan Jeffers to their division-rival Chicago White Sox for starter Lance Lynn.

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Old 04-06-2021, 09:35 PM   #16
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Out first trade



Not sure if Shane McClanahan is the answer right now (I know, one start, small sample size) so we picked up the veteran Alex Wood at little cost. Tyler Frank is kind of a utility-type whose best position is 1B but he doesn't have a lot of power. The Giants are also retaining 50% of Wood's contract so it will cost us $1.1M, leaving us with about $10M to play with. Wood's numbers aren't eye-popping but he does have an excellent 10/43 BB/K ratio in 44 innings, the big problem is that he's allowed 10 homers and he's rated at 45 movement. The Trop should help some of that but the other AL East parks won't.

Also in MLB news, the White Sox have lost Nick Madrigal for the rest of the season with a broken kneecap.

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Old 04-06-2021, 10:04 PM   #17
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May 18-20: at Baltimore (3)

Game 1: The Rays rode another big homer from Mike Zunino and some solid pitching from Ryan Yarbrough to a 6-5 win over the Orioles in Baltimore. Zunino, who famously had a pair of 2-run HRs in a thrilling win over the Yankees last week, came through again with the sacks jammed in the 2nd inning as his slam (#8) gave the Rays an early 4-1 lead. They only had 5 hits for the day but made the most of them with Brett Phillips' fielder's choice in the 4th and Austin Meadows' sac fly in the 7th providing the other runs. Yarbrough was very good, going 7.2 5 3 3 0 2 to improve to 4-2, 4.63 and Diego Castillo whiffed Ryan Mountcastle to end the 8th, but it would turn out they'd need every one of their runs when Nick Anderson had a shaky 9th, giving up a 2-run HR to Pat Valaika, and then a single to Chance Sisco, who got himself thrown out at 2nd trying to steal and that seemed to calm Anderson down who finished for save #11. The Yankees pounded Texas and won the night before as well so they're within 1/2 game of the Rays.

May 19: Activated OF Randy Arozarena from the 10-day IL, designated OF Brett Phillips for assignment and placed him on waivers. Optioned P Shane McClanahan to AAA Durham, activated P Alex Wood.

Wood will start tonight in Camden Yards (O/U on HRs allowed: 2). Hoping Maverick clears waivers so we can keep him in the org.

Game 2: Alex Wood was outstanding in his Rays debut and the offense backed him up big-time in a 10-3 thumping of Baltimore. Wood was solid throughout and never really in trouble until he left with two men on and two men out in the 6th up 5-1. He finished 5.2 5 1 0 0 4 on 80 pitches with the lone run against unearned when Mike Zunino threw a squibber in front of the plate into center field to set up the Orioles for a sac fly. Chaz Roe got him out of that jam and pitched the 7th, while Trevor Richards came on in the 8th with the score 10-1 and got all 6 of his outs over the final 2 innings via strikeout but gave up a 2-run homer in between. Ji-Man Choi and Manuel Margot had big days in particular. Choi had an RBI double in a 4-run 2nd and a solo homer (#4) in the 5th in a game where he reached base all 5 times on 3 hits and 2 walks as he's now hitting .321 with a .419 OBP. Margot had an RBI single in that 2nd inning and another one in a 5-run 8th as part of a 4-hit day, and Willy Adames had a 2-run single to take over the team RBI lead with 27 despite hitting only one homer all year. The Yankees blew out Texas again to keep the pressure on.

Game 3: The Rays lost a tough one in 10 innings to Baltimore 4-3 on a walk-off Yolmer Sanchez homer off Andrew Kittredge. This came after the Rays loaded the bases with nobody out in the top of the 10th off Tanner Scott but Manuel Margot hit into a 4-2-3 double play and Brandon Lowe flied out. Tyler Glasnow started for the Rays against the venerable Felix Hernandez for Baltimore and after the first four innings Glasnow looked like the old man struggling to stay in the league while King Felix looked like his self from 10 years ago, as he allowed only one hit over the first 4 with 6 whiffs. Glasnow meanwhile struggled, especially with Chance Sisco who doubled off him and scored the first run in the 2nd and then homered off him in the 4th. The Rays righty went 5 7 3 3 2 8 on 101 pitches. But they did fight back from the 3-0 deficit to score twice with two out against Hernandez on a Francisco Mejia single and Hernandez's balk in the 5th. Then Randy Arozarena took The King deep in the 6th with HR #6 to tie it up. Cody Reed, Peter Fairbanks and Diego Castillo all shut down the O's through regulation, but Kittredge gave up the 2-out walk-off blast to Sanchez and that was that. The Yankees suffered their own 10-inning 4-3 walk-off loss in Texas so the Rays cling to first by 1/2 game and New York also lost Giancarlo Stanton for 5 weeks with a sprained ankle.

Team record: 26-19. Next up: a weekend in Toronto to face the red-hot Blue Jays, winners of 8 straight.

Last edited by Art Deco; 04-07-2021 at 06:21 PM.
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Old 04-07-2021, 06:57 PM   #18
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May 21-23: at Toronto (3)

This should say 4 games above, I just realized after playing the 3rd game it's a wraparound series including a Monday game.

Game 1: The Rays scored 6 times in the 5th to erase a 4-0 deficit and held on to beat the Blue Jays in Toronto 6-4 as Chris Archer picked up his first Rays win in 3 years. It was a rough go for Archer early, especially when it came to Teoscar Hernandez. Twice with two outs Archer needed to get the Jays OF, but twice he burned him, first on an RBI single in the 1st and then with a 3-run homer in the 3rd. But the Rays bided their time against Trent Thornton and pounced in the 5th, first with a Yandy Diaz RBI single and then Brandon Lowe stepped up and drilled a 3-run homer (#9) to tie it up. They kept the rally going with two more men on and Willy Adames brought them home with a double. Archer hung in through the 6th and finished 6 8 4 4 0 3, nothing to write home about but enough to get it done tonight. Ryan Thompson, Cody Reed and Chaz Roe got them through the next two innings, and Nick Anderson pitched around a couple of walks in the 9th to grab save #12. The Yankees won so the lead stays a slender 1/2 game.

Note: Colorado claimed Brett Phillips off waivers, so farewell to the Maverick. We'll always have Game 5 of the 2020 World Series. "The fan interest decreased notably".

Game 2: The Rays took a 5-1 win over Toronto today behind solid pitching from Michael Wacha and the bullpen. Wacha wasn't exactly dominant but got the job done, going 5.2 8 1 1 1 6 and is now 6-1, 3.26 as he's been the most effective of the veteran retreads brought in to take the place of Blake Snell and Charlie Morton. Ryan Thompson, Peter Fairbanks and Andrew Kittredge combined for 3 1/3 innings of 1-hit relief to keep any thoughts of a Toronto comeback in check. Randy Arozarena's 2-run double in the first proved all the offense they'd need but Francisco Mejia hit a solo homer (#3) and Brandon Lowe and Ji-Man Choi added RBI singles in a 3-run 5th. The Yankees lost so the Rays get a bit of breathing room, now up 1 1/2 in the division.

Game 3: Ryan Yarbrough pitched the game of his life, 2-hitting the Blue Jays in a complete game shutout which saw him strike out 8 and walk nobody. And it wasn't one of those sit-back-with-a-big-lead shutouts either as the Rays won 3-0. The lefty threw 110 pitches, getting Rowdy Tellez looking to end the game and improving to 5-2, 3.99. The bats managed 13 hits and had runners on base all game long, but could only score via the solo homer. Mike Zunino broke the ice in the 3rd with HR #9 and then Randy Arozarena hit a pair in the 6th and 8th, giving him 8 for the season. Combined with a Yankees loss the Rays now have their biggest division lead of the season at 2 1/2 games.

Game 4: When we acquired veteran Alex Wood to join the rotation our one concern was his propensity to give up the longball. He escaped unscathed in his debut against Baltimore, but he ended up quite scathed today as the Jays blasted 4 homers off him in 3 innings, including a pair from Vladimir Guerrero Jr., in a 9-4 Blue Jays beatdown of the Rays. Wood got through the 1st without incident and when Willy Adames hit a 2-run homer (#2) in the 2nd to give them a brief lead it looked like the good times would continue to roll. But then the ball started leaving the park after it left Wood's hand and by the end of the third it was 7-2 Toronto and Wood was an ugly 3 6 7 7 2 1. Trevor Richards went 3 1/3 and allowed a couple of runs and Andrew Kittredge went the final 1 2/3 scoreless. Brandon Lowe hit a 2-run homer (#10) for the other 2 Rays runs. With the Yankees idle, the lead is now 2 games.

Team record: 29-20. Next up: 3 at home vs Kansas City.

Last edited by Art Deco; 04-08-2021 at 06:32 PM.
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Old 04-09-2021, 01:48 PM   #19
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May 25-27: vs Kansas City (3)

Game 1: The Rays nearly pulled off a miraculous 9th inning comeback but fell just short in a 6-5 loss to Kansas City. Trailing 6-2, they loaded the bases off KC closer Greg Holland with nobody out, and got a Yandy Diaz single to make it 6-3. It looked like the comeback was dead when Brandon Lowe hit a comebacker to Holland who turned it into a 1-2-3 double play. But Randy Arozarena drilled a triple off the RCF wall, just missing a game-tying homer, to make it 6-5. Alas, pinch-hitter Joey Wendle struck out and they came up short. Of course the previous 8 1/2 innings weren't so great for the Rays as Tyler Glasnow couldn't hold a 2-1 lead after 5, allowing the equalizer in the 6th and then getting hit hard in the 7th to finish 6.1 7 5 5 1 5. Chaz Roe got him out of the 7th but the Jorge Soler homer Ryan Thompson allowed in the 8th turned out to be big in retrospect. Earlier the Rays got HR #10 from Austin Meadows and a Diaz (who was 4-4 today) RBI single for their first two runs. The Yankees beat Toronto to pull back within 1 game.

MLB News: Minnesota's Byron Buxton homered 3 times tonight in a 7-0 win over Baltimore, and now has an amazing 22 HR in 46 games and 200 AB.

Game 2: A great night all around for the Rays as they pounded the Royals 9-0 behind a complete-game 4-hit shutout from Chris Archer who turned back the clock tonight. The shutout was Archer's first since 2015 and he walked none and struck out 6. He nearly pulled off a Maddux at 96 pitches facing the final batter Adalberto Mondesi but went into a deep count before striking him out to end the game as he evens his record at 2-2 and lowers his ERA to 4.79 after a rough start to the season. The bats put this one away early off Royals rookie Daniel Lynch, scoring 8 times in the first 4 innings. Yandy Diaz stayed red-hot, getting hits his first 3 times up after going 4-4 yesterday as his RBI double opened the scoring and he later added an RBI single. Mike Zunino homered again (#10) with a man on, Manuel Margot was 3-5 with an RBI and Willy Adames was 2-4 with an RBI double. They scored all these runs without two of their top hitters, Austin Meadows and Brandon Lowe, who were in need of a rest. The Yankees fell to Toronto so the lead is back up to 2 games.

Game 3: Much like the first game of this series, the Royals raced out to a big lead only for the Rays to come back later and make the score respectable. In today's 10-7 loss to Kansas City the Rays scored 5 times in the 7th after being down 10-2 and had the tying run at the plate but fell short. Michael Wacha was roughed up for a pair of homers including a solo shot from Bobby Witt Jr and a 3-run blast from Salvador Perez and ended an ugly 5 6 6 6 3 6 today. Andrew Kittredge was even worse, coughing up 4 runs in 2 innings including a 2-run Jorge Soler homer. Meanwhile the Rays were flummoxed in the early going by former Florida Gator standout Brady Singer, who retired them in order for the first 3 innings before hitting Austin Meadows and giving up a 2-run homer to Yandy Diaz (#3). He still held them to that one hit through 6 before he had a bout of wildness, the Rays picked up a couple of RBI infield singles from Yoshi Tsutsugo and Kevin Kiermaier, and a Hunter Dozier error all ended up leading to 5 runs before Josh Staumont got KC out of it. They didn't really threaten in the 8th and 9th while Pete Fairbanks and Diego Castillo each got in a scoreless inning of work. The Yankees beat Toronto to pull within 1 game.

Team record: 30-22. Next up: A rare Friday off-day, followed by 2 games at the Trop against Philadelphia.

Last edited by Art Deco; 04-09-2021 at 03:26 PM.
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Old 04-10-2021, 11:47 AM   #20
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May 29-30: vs Philadelphia (2)

Game 1: Interleague action at the Trop and the Rays clubbed four homers off Aaron Nola in the 3rd and 4th innings to propel them to a 9-4 win over the Phillies. The Rays actually found themselves behind early when JT Realmuto and Alec Bohm had RBI doubles in the top of the 1st off Ryan Yarbrough, but they turned it around quickly. Mike Zunino led off the 3rd with yet another homer (#11, he's hitting .198 but slugging .532), which apparently rattled Nola as he put two more men on for Brandon Lowe to take him deep for Lowe's 11th and give the Rays a 4-2 lead. The pattern repeated in the 4th with Austin Meadows hitting his 11th and Randy Arozarena following with a 3-run shot (#9) and the rout was on. Yarbrough gave up a couple of solo homers later in the game that weren't damaging and finished 6 8 4 4 0 3 and improved to 6-2. Chaz Roe had a scoreless 7th and Ryan Thompson finished up a pair of zeroes. The Yankees were shut out by Matt Manning and the Tigers so the lead is now 2 1/2 games after the Yankees also lost last night.

Game 2: Alex Wood made his Tropicana Field debut for the Rays and he helped lead them to a 7-1 win over Philadelphia and a sweep of the 2-game series. Wood was masterful, going 6 5 1 0 0 5 with the only run against scoring thanks to a Joey Wendle error. He's now 2-1 in his 3 starts with the Rays. Trevor Richards struck out 4 in 1 2/3 innings and Cody Reed finished up the final 1 1/3. Like yesterday the Rays rode the longball on offense, victimizing Vince Velasquez three times today. Velasquez walked Austin Meadows to lead off the game and Yandy Diaz followed with a 2-run shot (#4) to give the Rays an instant lead, and in the 3rd Brandon Lowe took over the team lead with HR #12, a solo shot, and Willy Adames homered with a man on (#3) to make it 5-0. Wendle later added a pair of RBI singles for the other two Rays runs while Kevin Kiermaier had 3 doubles. The Yankees clobbered Detroit 11-0 so the lead remains 2 1/2.

Team record: 32-22. Next up: 4 big games with those same Yankees at the Stadium.

Last edited by Art Deco; 04-10-2021 at 12:24 PM.
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