The 2022 (and beyond) Tampa Bay Rays

[Art Deco]

Yep, it's time to start a third Rays dynasty. This one is going back to Opening Day 2022 and I'm starting with same 40-man roster and Opening Day roster subject to any deals I might make. Right now I don't plan to recap each game like I do in the 2020 and 2021 dynasties but instead update by week and make special mention of any outstanding performances and moves I make. I may even do more simming than actual game-playing, at least in the early going of the season to catch up with things.

Here are the preseason predictions, which aren't too bullish on us outside of Drew Rasmussen:



I am making one big trade which will be unpopular with the fans but inevitable to clear $11.5M:



Welcome to Tampa Bay, Lars Nootbaar! St Louis was the only team offering prospects for him, so I took them up on it. Nootbaar will go on the active roster and be a backup, although he make take at-bats from Brett Phillips against lefties.

Opening Day was dreadful:



Lot of hits, a lot of LOB on the offense while Shane McClanahan was all over the place.

About a week later we did this with some of the $11.5M we cleared off the books by trading Kiermaier:



Conforto gets his 1-year, prove-it deal, and we get a legit power hitter for the lineup. We sent Lars Nootbaar to Durham to make room and moved Yonny Chirinos to the 60-day IL.

How we're doing through the first full week ending April 17:



Team record: 5-5.

Looked like a totally lost weekend in Chicago until Brandon Lowe came off the bench with 2 out in the 9th to hit a pinch-hit grand slam off Liam Hendriks to give the Rays a thrilling win.

MLB Standings/Leaders in the early going:



Rays stats:

[Art Deco]

A good week for the Rays as they go 4-2 and improve to 9-7. Both losses came courtesy of the bullpen as on the 19th the loss to Chicago came after Brandon Lowe hit another clutch homer, a 2-run shot to give them the lead in the top of the 9th before Jeffrey Springs gave up 3 in the bottom of the 9th. In the other loss to Boston they had a 3-2 lead after 6 before JT Chargois gave up 3 runs. We had injuries galore with Wander Franco suffering a herniated disc which will put him out for 5 more days but not enough to IL, Manuel Margot sprained an ankle which did send him to the IL and we called up Vidal Brujan, and most significantly Josh Lowe broke a bone in his elbow and he's out 4 1/2 months. Lars Nootbaar was recalled in his stead, leaving up temporarily with Brett Phillips as our only true CF.

[Art Deco]

Now that I've caught up (and passed) reality, I'll post this series-by-series, but I'm not going to write up recaps like in the 20 & 21 dynasties. At the end of each week, I'll post standings and stats like I did in the previous two posts.

April 26: W 8-0. WP-McClanahan (1-1, 3.43, 5.2 3 0 0 1 7). HR-Zunino (4). Y.Diaz 3-4, 3 RBI.

April 27: W 7-1. WP-Rasmussen (3-0, 3.27, 5.2 3 1 1 2 11). HR-Conforto (1). Choi 2-4, 2B, RBI.

April 28. W 8-3. WP-Fleming (1-1, 5.23, 3.2 1 1 1 1 2). HR-Zunino (5), Y.Diaz (1). Yandy was 3-5 with 4 RBI while Corey Kluber had to leave in the 2nd with a minor injury which will not keep from his next start but now he's only thrown a total of 12 IP in 4 starts after leaving early with injuries twice.

Record: 12-7, 3 behind the red-hot Yankees who have started 15-4.

[Art Deco]

April 29: 4-3 W. WP-Springs (1-1). Starter-Yarbrough (5 3 1 1 1 3). HR-Zunino (6), a solo walk-off in the bottom of the 9th.

April 30: 7-12 L. LP-R.Thompson (1-1). Starter-Patino (5 5 3 3 1 3). HR-Conforto (2), a 3-run shot. Bullpen was dreadful as all four relievers were hit hard.

May 1: 2-0 W. WP-McClanahan (2-1, 6.2 6 0 0 0 10). S-Kittredge (4). HR-Conforto (3). Wander Franco, who returned to action today, had an RBI single in 6th to break up scoreless duel with former Ray Joe Ryan.

Record: 14-8. Next up: We head out west starting with 3 in Oakland.

Transactions: With roster expansion ending May 1, we got back down to 26 by optioning P Ryan Thompson and IF/OF Vidal Brujan to AAA Durham.







April Players of the Month: AL-Mike Trout, NL-Cody Bellinger.
April Pitchers of the Month: AL-Gerrit Cole, NL-Brandon Woodruff.

I put the injury setting on high (modern MLB) and well there have been a lot of significant injuries around MLB. Nathan Eovaldi (3-4 weeks), Dylan Bundy (rest of season), Carlos Carrasco (torn UCL, done for year), Zack Wheeler (4-5 months), Eduardo Rodriguez (6 months), Brandon Belt (4 months), Carlos Rodon (out for the year), John Means (4-5 months - just like real life).

[Art Deco]

I probably shouldn't set the injury frequency to "players are made of glass" since there were two more major injuries in MLB, both of superstars in the NL East. Atlanta has lost Ozzie Albies for the season with a torn labrum and the Phillies lost JT Realmuto for the year with a torn PCL. Also the Dodgers gave Trea Turner a massive 7/260 extension.

Game 1: 5-1 W (13 innings). WP-Feyereisen (2-0). Starter-Rasmussen (6 2 1 1 3 11). HR-B.Lowe (6). Arozarena's 2-run double in the 13th broke the tie.

Game 2: 5-1 W. WP-Kluber (1-1, 7.2 4 1 0 1 3). HR-Phillips (1), a 3-run shot.

Game 3: 3-5 L. LP-Yarbrough (0-2, 6.1 9 5 5 0 3). Rays' highlight: 2-run double from Mejia.

Team record: 16-9, two back of the Yankees. Next up: 4 games in Seattle.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: 1-5 L. LP-Patino (2-1, 4 7 4 4 1 7). Rays were dominated by a Ray named Robbie to the tune of 9 3 1 1 1 12.

Game 2: 4-3 W. WP-McClanahan (3-1, 7.2 3 3 3 3 6). S-Kittredge (5). HR-Nootbaar (1), Mejia (1), W.Franco (2). Wander's homer came off former Ray Diego Castillo.

Game 3: 2-1 W. WP-Rasmussen (4-0, 6 5 1 1 3 7). S-Wisler (1). Randy Arozarena's 2-run single supplied all the offense.

Game 4: 5-3 W. WP-Kluber (2-1, 5 4 3 3 4 6). S-Kittredge (6). HR-Walls (2), H.Ramirez (1). Kittredge loaded the bases in the bottom of the 9th but got Mitch Haniger on a fly ball caught right in front of the fence to end it.

Team record: 19-10, now in first place, 2nd in the power rankings. Next up: The west coast swing concludes with 3 in Anaheim against the Angels, where they'll face Shohei Ohtani on the mound and at the plate in the first game.





These hitting numbers are fairly ugly, and Michael Conforto has yet to provide any kind of offensive spark - instead he's hitting like Kevin Kiermaier without Kiermaier's defense. The pitching is great, however:



Transactions: We made two moves before the game on May 8: Manuel Margot was activated from the IL and Josh Fleming optioned to Durham to give us 13 and 13 on the roster again. And Shane Baz was sent to Durham on a rehab assignment where he'll get a couple of starts and if all goes well he'll likely take Ryan Yarbrough's spot in the rotation.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: 5-6 L. (LP-Yarbrough 0-3, 5.2 9 5 5 1 5, 2 HR). HR-Margot (1), Phillips (2). Matt Wisler gave up a 2-run homer to Jack Mayfield in the 6th to break a 4-4 tie, after the Rays scored 4 in 6 off Shohei Ohtani.

Game 2: 2-6 L. (LP-Patino 2-2, 3 6 5 5 2 2, 2 HR). HR-Walls (3). We were dominated by Noah Syndergaard (7 3 2 0 2 10). People who talk like pirates enjoyed the Syndergaard-Nootbaar matchup.

Game 3: 3-1 W. (WP-Feyereisen 3-0, Starter-McClanahan 5.2 4 1 1 3 6). S-Kittredge (6). Ji-Man Choi, starting against a lefty only because Yandy Diaz was tired, ended up hitting a pair of RBI doubles, twice driving in Manuel Margot who was 3-3.

Team record: 20-12, 1/2 game behind the Yankees. Next up: An off-day then we return to St. Pete for 3 against the Jays.

We made a trade!



Now if you read the OOTP23 general discussion forum, you'll see I started a thread about how the Phillies were incredibly eager to get rid of Bohm, willing to take literally anyone in the organization. This is some kind of glitch, so while I wasn't willing to take advantage of it to that extent, I did send a package of players who could potentially help Philly but that we wouldn't miss that much and to make sure they didn't trade him to a rival. Hunt was one of the key players acquired in the Blake Snell trade a couple years back and is rated 70 for catcher defense, while Doxakis and Montgomery have a good shot at the majors. Blair is kind of a fill-in guy.

Bohm will be a regular for us, DHing against righties and playing 1B against lefties. We had been playing the light-hitting Taylor Walls at 3B with Yandy at 1B against lefties but that was sub-optimal. Despite this Bohm made his Rays debut at 3B with Yandy tired in the third game of this series, and he contributed the insurance run in the 3-1 win with an RBI double. To make room for Bohm, Lars Nootbaar was optioned to Durham and we had a spot open on the 40-man so nobody needed to be waived.

Also Shane Baz was hit hard in his first rehab outing, so he's going to need at least one more start if not two.

Some interesting MLB trades: Giants sent Wilmer Flores to the Twins for Tyler Duffey and prospect Royce Lewis, and the Cardinals sent Dakota Hudson and a prospect across I-70 to the Royals for Adalberto Mondesi.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: 8-7 W (13). WP-Chargois (1-1), starter-Rasmussen (5.1 6 5 4 1 11). HR-Choi 3 (4), B.Lowe (7), W.Franco (3). What a remarkable game. Ji-Man hit his second homer of the game in the 9th to tie it, and after Toronto scored in the 10th, Wander went deep with 2 out to tie it again, and then Choi, who had 4 hits in total, walked it off with his 3rd tater of the game in the 13th. Yandy Diaz started a brawl after being hit following Choi's first homer and is suspended three games. Isaac Paredes is up from Durham to take his place.

Game 2: 5-6 L. LP-Feyereisen (3-1), starter-Kluber (5 5 4 4 4 5). HR-B.Lowe (8). Jeffrey Springs gave up a 2-run shot to Alejandro Kirk, Kirk's second of the game, in the 8th to lose it for the Rays.

Game 3: 10-5 W. WP-Yarbrough (1-3, 5 7 5 5 3 1). HR-H.Ramirez (2). Harold Ramirez had a slam to cap a 6-run first which Ryan Yarbrough almost gave back before Alec Bohm's bases-clearing double restored a healthy Rays advantage while Isaac Parades had 3 hits and an RBI.

Team record: 22-13, back in first 1/2 game up on New York. Next up: 3 more at home against Detroit.

Notes: Shane Baz was hit hard again in his second rehab start so another one he will get, and the Rangers traded closer Joe Barlow to the Reds (who unlike real life are off to a good start at 20-16) for a couple of prospects.

[Art Deco]

Transaction: Yandy Diaz comes off the restricted list, Isaac Paredes is optioned to Durham.

Game 1: 3-8 L. LP-Patino (2-3, 4.2 3 5 5 3 8, 2 HR). Ji-Man drove in all 3 runs with a pair of doubles.

Game 2: 2-4 L(13). LP-Wisler (0-1), Starter-McClanahan (5 6 2 2 3 7). HR-B.Lowe (9). Wisler gave up a 2-run HR in the 13th, his 5th of the year already, although in his defense we burned through the pen and had to use him at 47% rest.

Transaction: Optioned Jason Adam to Durham, recalled Josh Fleming. We desperately needed a fresh arm with only Brooks Raley not fatigued after the last couple of nights.

Game 3: 7-2 W. WP-Rasmussen (5-0, 7 1 0 0 0 8). HR-Zunino (7), Conforto (4). We needed length with the pen fried and Rasmussen provided it, no-hitting Detroit through 6.

Team record: 23-15, 1 up on the Yankees. Next up: A much-needed off day to rest the pen, then 3 games in Baltimore.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: 6-8 L. LP-Kluber (2-2, 1.2 7 5 5 0 1). HR-Zunino (8), a slam in the 9th that made the final respectable.

Game 2: 6-8 L. LP-Yarbrough (1-4, 4.1 12 8 8 3 3). HR-Phillips (3), W.Franco 2 (5). Just like yesterday, a 2-run Wander homer in the 9th made the score closer than it really was.

Game 3: 4-2 W. WP-Patino (3-3, 6 3 2 2 1 7). S-Kittredge (8). HR-Arozarena (3), B.Lowe (10). Arozarena's solo homer in the 6th broke a 2-2 tie.

Team record: 24-17, tied with the Yankees atop the AL East. Next up: An off-day then 2 at home vs Miami.

Transaction: After his latest beating we optioned Ryan Yarbrough to Durham and recalled Ryan Thompson. When Yarbrough's turn comes up, we'll recall Shane Baz, who looked very good in his third rehab start at Durham, to join the rotation.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: 4-1 W. WP-McClanahan (4-1, 8.1 4 1 1 0 11). HR-H.Ramirez (3). Shane McClanahan was two outs from a shutout before giving up a homer and Harold Ramirez' 3-run blast in the 2nd was the big hit.

Game 2: 4-3 W. WP-Kittredge (2-1). Starter-Rasmussen (5 4 0 0 2 9). Andrew Kittredge blew the save in the 9th but Harold Ramirez was the hero again with a pinch-hit walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the inning.

Team record: 26-17, 1/2 behind the Yankees who won 3 against Baltimore. Next up: A big 4-game series with those same Yankees at the Trop with Shane Baz making his season debut in the opener.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: 1-5 L. LP-Baz (0-1, 5 4 2 2 2 6). HR-W.Franco (6). Shane Baz pitched well in his season debut but wasn't supported by either the bats or the pen.

Game 2: 0-18 L. LP-Kluber (2-3, 3.1 8 10 9 4 3). Things got so ugly Taylor Walls pitched the 9th (and gave up 3 runs).

Game 3: 3-4 L. LP-Springs (1-2). Starter-Patino (4 4 2 2 4 4 on 94 pitches). HR-Phillips (4). Rays had a 3-2 lead after 6 but JP Feyereisen gave up a Joey Gallo homer to tie and a Yandy Diaz error led to the winning run.

Game 4: 3-4 L. LP-Feyereisen (3-2). Starter-McClanahan (4 6 2 2 2 3 on 99 pitches). HR-W.Franco (7). Carbon copy of yesterday's game, Rays went up 3-2 through 6, this time it was Stanton with a 2-run homer to win it as the Rays suffer a sweep.

Team record: 26-21, now 4 1/2 behind the Yankees. Next up: 4 games at Texas.



This team can't hit its way out of a paper bag now:

[Art Deco]

Game 1: 12-3 W. WP-Rasmussen (6-0, 7 7 3 3 1 7). HR-Arozarena (4), Phillips (5), Conforto (5). Cole Winn walked the bases loaded in the 3rd ahead of Arozarena, who hit a slam to send the Rays on the victory.

Game 2: 2-3 L. LP-Wisler (0-2). Starter-Baz (6 4 2 2 1 6). A good Shane Baz start was wasted when the Rays left 12 on base (7 individually by Francisco Mejia) and Wisler gave up his 6th homer in 26 innings this year, this one to Adolis Garcia to break a 2-2 tie in the 7th.

Game 3: 8-5 W. WP-Fleming (2-1). Starter-Kluber (2.2 1 0 0 0 1). HR-W.Franco 2 (9). Kluber left early once again, this time with a dead arm and will go on the IL. Jason Adam is recalled from Durham.

Game 4: 3-6 L. LP-Patino (3-4, 4 5 4 4 2 6). HR-Walls (4). Patino remains consistenly inconsistent.

Team record: 28-23, 5 behind the Yankees who took 2 of 3 from the Angels. Next up: Back home for 3 vs the White Sox.

Players of the Month: AL-Byron Buxton, Twins (.314-9-31), NL-Johan Camargo, Phillies (.376-11-27).

Pitchers of the Month: AL-Nick Pivetta, Red Sox (5-0, 3.12), NL-Joe Musgrove, Padres (5-0, 2.68)

[Art Deco]

Game 1: 2-3 L. LP-Kittredge (2-2, BS3). Starter-McClanahan (5 4 1 1 1 4). HR-Choi (5). Andrew Kittredge blew another game, giving up 2 in the 9th to send us to defeat, although the lack of hitting was just as big a culprit.

Game 2: 1-3 L. LP-Rasmussen (6-1, 5.1 4 2 2 3 5). We had 11 hits (all singles) but couldn't get one when it counted as this team remains mired in an offensive funk.

Game 3: 4-1 W. WP-Baz (1-1, 5.2 4 1 1 1 10). S-Kittredge (9). HR-Bohm (1), B.Lowe (11), Phillips (6). Shane Baz was electric and three homers accounted for all the scoring.

Team record: 29-25. Next up: An off-day then some interleague action as St. Louis visits for 3.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: 7-9 L. LP-Fleming (2-2, 4.1 7 5 5 1 3). HR-Y.Diaz (2), Bohm (2). Paul Goldschmidt killed us, first with a 2-run homer in the 1st and then with a grand slam off Chargois in the 5th after Fleming loaded the bases. It was 9-2 before a too little, too late rally.

Game 2: 5-4 W. WP-Wisler (1-2). S-Raley (1). Starter-Patino (5.1 6 4 4 1 4). HR-Arozarena (5). Randy Arozarena's homer in the 8th broke a 4-4 tie and gave the Rays the win.

Game 3: 5-6 L. LP-McClanahan (4-2, 6 7 6 5 2 4, 4 HR). HR-Bohm (3). McClanahan couldn't keep the ball in the park and another late rally came up short. Bohm's homer came as part of a 4-5 day.

Team record: 30-27, as we continued our slide into mediocrity. 17 runs over 3 games is usually good for at least 2 wins with our normal pitching, but we couldn't keep the Cardinals in the park. The only good news is that the Yankees were swept by the Twins to keep us still in touch at 5 games back. The bad news is that we go to Minnesota next to face those same first-place Twins.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: 3-4 L. LP-Rasmussen (6-2, 5.2 5 4 3 1 7). HR-Zunino (9). The Zunino homer gave the Rays an early 3-1 lead, but Rasmussen couldn't hold it and the offense petered out from there.

Game 2: 5-6 L. LP-Kittredge (2-3, BS 4). Starter-Baz (2.2 4 2 2 0 2) HR-Arozarena (6), Y.Diaz (3). Andrew Kittredge blew yet another save as he was handed a 5-3 lead in the bottom of the 9th, put the first two men on, and then gave up a 3-run walk-off homer to Miguel Sano. He's now out of the closer's role, we will go with a committee. Baz tweaked a hamstring and left in the 3rd but he will be OK for his next start.

Game 3: 0-7 L. LP-Fleming (2-3, 4.2 7 4 4 1 1). Fleming wasn't as bad as his line looked as Matt Wisler once again came in and gave up a homer to the first man he faced, this one Carlos Correa with a 3-run shot. The bats had 7 hits + 7 walks and couldn't get a single man home in a pathetic display.

Team record: 30-30, 7 behind the Yankees and barely clinging to a wild card as 6 teams are within 1 game of each other for the 3 spots. They've now lost 4 straight, 7 of 8 and 13 of their last 17 as changes will be coming if things don't turn around soon.







MLB News: The Red Sox traded C Christian Vazquez to the Mets for a couple of low-level prospects.

[Art Deco]

The offense has been so bad that it felt the need to make a couple of deals to shake it up:

First the big one:



We needed a thumper in the lineup and Bell fits the bill, on pace for a 5-WAR season this year and a switch-hitter we don't have to platoon. This is a rental as he's a free agent at year's end. Fan favorite Brett Phillips goes the other way, and while he created many indelible memories for the club (especially in the 2020 World Series), the fact remains that for all his defensive prowess, he just can't hit. Barnhart and Molina were second-tier (really third-tier) pitching prospects whom the scouts think will be lucky to be spot starters, and we have a lot of minor league depth. My assistant GM didn't like the deal, and it will cost us nearly $6M in salary leaving us $7M to play with, but that's why I get paid the big bucks.

As a result of this deal it was time to swap another fan favorite:



We get a few bucks back by dealing Ji-Man, but most importantly Josh Bell took his 1B job so he was expendable. There wasn't a tremendous amount of interest in Choi around the league, but Seattle's offer of Toro jumped out at me as I've always liked him (traded for him in my 2020 save) and he can play some middle infield as well. For now though he goes to Durham as we're awash in corner infielders with Yandy and Bohm already present. Lars Nootbaar is coming back up from Durham where he hit well to give us another outfielder, and this trade makes Manuel Margot the full-time CF with Randy Arozarena available to slide over when Margot needs a day off.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: 6-4 W. WP-Adam (2-0). S-Feyereisen (1). Starter-Patino (4 5 4 4 2 2). HR-Zunino 2 (11), B.Lowe (12). Mike Zunino's 2nd homer of the game was a 3-run shot off Aroldis Chapman in the 9th to stun the Yankees and give the Rays the win. Josh Bell was 0-3 in his Rays debut but did walk to lead off the 9th to start the rally. The Rays overcame a 14-strikeout performance from Gerrit Cole.

Game 2: 5-4 W. WP-Springs (2-2). S-Kittredge (10). Starter-McClanahan (5 5 4 4 2 5). HR-Nootbaar (2), B.Lowe (13). The Rays were no-hit by Luis Severino for 6 1/3 and trailed 4-0 but they fought back, tying it on a 2-run Lowe homer in the 8th and winning it when Aroldis Chapman walked Lowe with the bases loaded.

Game 3: 11-13 L (11). LP-Adam (2-1). Starter-Rasmussen (5.2 5 6 6 2 6). After two miracle come-from-behind wins against them the Yankees turned the tables and overcame deficits of 7-3 and then 11-7 in the bottom of the 9th to shock the Rays. It was a total bullpen meltdown, especially after the Rays scored 4 in the top of the 9th to go up 11-7. Aaron Judge's 3-run HR in the 9th tied it and Josh Donaldson's 2-run shot in the 11th won it. Wander was 3-7 with 2 triples, including a bases-clearing one, but also left 7 on base as despite scoring 11 the Rays could have had several more.

Team record: 32-31, 6 behind New York and hanging on to the first wild card by a game over a huge pack.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: 3-4 L (10). LP-Springs (2-3). Starter-Baz (6 5 2 2 0 7). HR-Conforto (6), Zunino (12). Another blown game by the pen as Zunino put them up 3-2 in the 8th with a homer but Jason Adam gave one up to Trey Mancini to tie it. Manuel Margot had to leave with elbow inflammation, he's headed to the 10-day IL and should be back when eligible. Vidal Brujan is called up from Durham.

Game 2: 7-3 W. WP-Kluber (3-3, 7 6 2 2 0 3). HR-Conforto (7), Nootbaar (3). Wander Franco was 2-4 with 2 RBI, Yandy Diaz had 3 hits.

Game 3: 5-9 L. LP-Patino (3-5, 4.1 8 9 9 2 4). Brandon Lowe had a big game in a losing cause, going 3-5 with 2 doubles and 3 RBI. Patino is just about out of the rotation; Yonny Chirinos is rehabbing at Durham and will probably take his spot.

Team record: 33-33. Well we've finally dropped to .500 but thanks to the ridiculously compressed AL, we're still a wild card team and as you can see from standings below, only 3 teams in the league have a winning record. Next up: The Yankees visit the Trop for 3. Wheeee!

MLB News: Atlanta acquired Mike Clevinger from the Padres for 3 prospects and the Phillies shipped Corey Knebel to St. Louis for a prospect. Also Brett Phillips, whom we just traded to Washington, suffered a torn ACL and is done for the year.





Josh Bell not exactly lighting it up in his first 5 games as a Ray.

[Art Deco]

Game 1: 2-8 L. LP-McClanahan (4-3, 5 4 3 3 2 7). HR-Zunino (13), Nootbaar (4). 4 different Rays pitchers gave up homers to the Yankees, including Stanton's 3-run blow off McClanahan in the 6th when the Rays led 2-0 at that point.

Game 2: 9-4 W. WP-Springs (3-3). Starter: Rasmussen (4 6 4 4 2 9, 2 HR). A remarkable game in that Jameson Tallion was no-hitting the Rays into the 7th with a 4-0 lead and it all fell apart in a 7-run inning featuring 3 Yankee errors, some walks, and some key hits as Mejia and Wander had 2-run singles in the inning.

Game 3: 2-4 L. LP-Baz (1-2, 6.1 2 4 4 4 10). Baz was burned by a 3-run Stanton homer which decided the game. Josh Bell, who came in 3-28 since being acquired, finally came to life going 3-3 with a pair of RBI doubles. Rays pitchers have now allowed 90 homers in 69 games, 10th-worst in the AL.

Team record: 34-35, still good for the third wild card spot (yay new playoff format!). Next up: Our pitchers won't allow any homers tomorrow because we're off, then the Pittsburgh Pirates come to the Trop for 3.

MLB News: The Texas Rangers put last year's Rookie of the Year contender Adolis Garcia on waivers, and I put in a claim. We'll see how it goes.