The Tampa Bay Rays have scored an inordinate amount of their runs via the long ball. On a day such as Sunday, who’s complaining? The Rays hit two more home runs against the Los Angeles Angels Sunday, powering their way to a 3-1 victory. It was the first series sweep of the season for the Rays, and it lifted them above .500 at 15-14 for the year. In all, it wasn’t a bad day for the Rays, who got the…
For the Tampa Bay Rays, the Vulture has struck again. The Rays won Saturday night, which pretty much means that relief pitcher Erasmo Ramirez won again, 4-2 over the Los Angeles Angels. For Ramirez, it was his sixth win of the 14 games the Rays have won this season. The Rays have begun to refer to Ramirez as “the Vulture” because of his penchant for being on the mound during the innings the team happens to score. “He needs to…
It wasn’t the best night for the Tampa Bay Rays not to be televised. Playing in Los Angeles against the Angels, late in the evening following the Lightning’s playoff victory, the Rays were blacked out in their 5-2 victory over the Los Angeles Angels. Chris Archer pitched six shutout innings to bring his record to 2-4. Corey Dickerson hit a three-run homer in the first. And Brad Miller, the light-hitting shortstop, went four-for-five to up his average to .216. The…
The Tampa Bay Rays are going to need a few more digits on their foam fingers. Like, um, 18 more. According to Bleacher Report‘s power rankings, the Rays are the 19th-best team in baseball. The Rays, like always, are built around their pitching, which is fourth in the AL with a 3.37 ERA and a 1.074 WHIP and .221 opponent’s batting average. The Rays, who play under manager Kevin Cash, have been struggling to hit, however, with a .224 average. The…
It starts when you notice a toe twitch. Then there is a low moan. Then comes the faint heartbeat. My goodness, the offense of the Tampa Bay Rays is alive! That offense, dormant most of the season, finally flipped the switch Wednesday night against the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Rays hit four home runs and two doubles and went on to an 8-5 victory. The Rays are now 12-14 on the season. The Rays got a home run from Brandon…
The Tampa Bay Rays don’t play the Los Angeles Dodgers very often. Judging from Tuesday night’s result, perhaps that’s a good thing. The Rays fell hard to the Dodgers, losing 10-5 to fall to 11-14 through their first 25 games. Pitcher Matt Moore in particular had a tough night, giving up seven earned runs in only 4 1/3 innings and striking out only two. “He didn’t locate the ball as well as he should have, and they took advantage of…
Now that Andrew Friedman is coming home, will the winning return as well? That’s the way a lot of people see it, mind you. Friedman was the general manager in charge during most of the Rays’ good days; therefore he enabled them. Right? Well, it isn’t that simple. Friedman, now in charge of the Los Angeles Dodgers, actually had a lousy season (77-85) the last time he (and Joe Maddon) were in charge of the Rays. They ran a team…