Rays of Light

[Game 6: RAYS 11, Orioles 3] Road woes? What road woes?

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Tampa Bay	0	4	0	0	4	0	1	2	0		11	17	0
Baltimore	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3		3	6	0

This is where I would normally put my witty little comment about how I was an idiot for even mentioning that James Shields struggles on the road or about how Grant Balfour is the worst pitcher with the middle name Robert ever to spend more than 6 years in the big leagues after being born in Sydney, Australia, in 1977. But I’m not going to.

Instead, here’s then things you should take away from this game, in no particular order.

1. Evan Longoria… is the beastliest beast stud in the history of beast studs. Sophomore slump my rear end. More like bona fide MVP candidate. (Okay, okay… it’s just one week, but still…)

2. Grant Balfour… looked like he wanted to be anywhere but on the mound today. I guess 11-run games just don’t do it for him. As long as he shows up tomorrow night for the Bombers, I’m good.

3. Ben Zobrist… was clearly feeling the blood of Christ on this Easter Sunday. After his bomb, are you going to doubt the power of he or his Christian music-singing wife?

4. The new FSN scoreboard font… is terrible. I wanted to try and give it a week to see how it felt. It still feels like wearing a pair of 3-size-too-small leather pants that have just been put through the rinse cycle. The 1’s look like 7’s. The 8’s look like 5’s. Somebody needs to fix that, pronto.

5. Apparently, Joe Maddon has been looking and spray charts… because he’s been employing a whole bunch of crazy shifts so far this early-season. It burned the Rays in the 9th inning today, but I like seeing his proactive nature.

6. Matt Joyce… is on the next flight back to Durham, as B.J. Upton has been confirmed for tomorrow night’s lineup against the Yankees.

7. One… is the number of home runs Jason Bartlett hit last year. One is also the number of home runs he has this year.

8. Gabe Gross… may be just 1-for-11 so far this season, but his OBP is at .375. He’s already drawn 5 walks in 16 plate appearances. In other words: that’s really damn good.

9. Three… is the number of hits that Akinori Iwamura, Evan Longoria, and Jason Bartlett each had today. It’s also the number of players that had 2 hits on the game: Carl Crawford, Pat Burrell, and Ben Zobrist.

10. Oh, yeah… that James Shields guy is pretty good, eh?

Tags: Orioles, win
Posted in Game Recap | 2 Comments »

[Game 6] RAYS @ Orioles: Oh, crap, Shields is pitching on the road again

2 straight losses to the Orioles. A shutout last night. Meh, I’ve got nothing else to say, just play ball boys.

What to watch for: James Shields turns into Dewon Brazelton on the road (okay, not THAT bad, but the hyperbole gets my point across, doesn’t it?), so he’ll need to show a little sumpin’ sumpin’ this afternoon and prove that his carrer struggles away from The Trop have been nothing more than a fluke.

Scouting Report on today’s starters from MLB.com:
James Shields - Shields had a rough Opening Day outing when he allowed five runs to take a loss against the Red Sox. Clearly Shields did not have his best stuff, but he battled through 5 1/3 innings. Shields has built a reputation as a pitcher who will do whatever is necessary to pitch his team into the seventh or eighth innings, which is evidenced by two consecutive seasons with 215 innings pitched. The right-hander is 4-1 with a 3.21 ERA in 12 career starts against the Orioles; 2-0 with a 3.14 ERA in six career starts at Camden Yards.

Adam Eaton - Eaton was released by the Phillies early in Spring Training despite still being in the final season of a lucrative three-year contract. Eaton, a former first-round draft pick, hasn’t had an ERA under 5.00 in any of the last three seasons. The right-hander still has a winning record for his career and the Orioles are hoping he can hold down a spot for the first half of the season. Most of Eaton’s experience has come in the National League, but he briefly pitched for the Rangers.

Be sure to join other fans in the chat room for some Rays talk during the game!!!

Tags: Orioles
Posted in Game Thread | 4 Comments »

[Game 5: Baltimore 6, RAYS 0] Thank goodness for DVR

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Tampa Bay	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	8	0
Baltimore	5	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	X		6	9	0

DVR is a beautiful thing… isn’t it? Due to various pre-Easter family commitments, I wasn’t able to watch the game live. But DVR… oh boy, DVR you are my friend. Because when Jeff Niemann allows 5 runs in the first inning before recording an out, you know it’s time to start fast-forwarding. And that’s just what I did.

You might say: “But Scott, you’re supposed to be covering the Rays! How in the world can you accurately do your job if you’re not watching the whole game?” And to those people I say: “Stuff it.”

I’m sure glad I did fast-forward through it, because not only was it a disappointing affair (O Pat Burrell, where art thou?) but it was an incredibly boring one, too.

B.J. Upton can’t get back soon enough. At least he keeps things interesting since you never quite know what dude is going to do on the basepaths next.

Tags: loss, Orioles
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[Game 4: Baltimore 5, RAYS 4] Hey, at least Longo is mashing

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Tampa Bay	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	1		4	9	0
Baltimore	2	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	X		5	11	0

This is going to be a short one tonight… I’m ready for bed.

Andy Sonnanstine… certainly wasn’t at his best tonight. And by that, I mean it was among the worst he’s ever looked. I mean, if you take out his control problems, his crappy fastball, and the fact that he never looked comfortable he had a pretty hood night. But if you’re rational or not entirely blind, you saw that this was not the same pitcher who ate a ton of innings for the club last year.

Let’s hope it’s just a little bit of rust or early-season kinks being worked out.

MVP! MVP! Okay, so maybe we’re 4 games into the season, but Evan Longoria looks like the league’s best player. He’s so locked in right now, it’s scary.

Gabe Kapler’s got a new nickname: From now on, we’ll start calling him Gabe “B.J. Upton” Kapler. You know why.

Sharpened Lance: Lance Cormier certainly fit the bill tonight, tossing 2 2/3 of scoreless ball to at least give the Rays a chance to get back into the game. They didn’t quite do it, but he was certainly a shot in the arm out of the pen. I never projected him to make the roster, but I’m sure glad that I was wrong.

Tags: loss, Orioles
Posted in Game Recap | 4 Comments »

[Game 4] RAYS @ Orioles: Ghost of Devil Rays past

Mark Hendrickson, eh? I think the Orioles are trying to give me nightmares about Devil Rays past. Not that he was awful on his own, mind you. But it is a reminder of a much different time; a time when we’re be thrilled to take two out of three from the Orioles. Not anymore, my friends. It would be a disappointment if the Rays came away with anything less than 2 of these next three, even with Sonny and Jeff Niemann going in two of them. The Rays should chew Hendrickson up and spit him out. Period.

In many ways, this is a matchup of the AL East present and the AL East future, as the Orioles have laid the groundwork for what could be a very competitive team in a few years. If they could only get some pitching…

Kind of disappointed that Matt Weiters isn’t up with the big club yet. I would love to see him play.

What to watch for: The approach at the plate has looked much better in games 2 and 3 than it did in game 1. If the Rays do the same, they should be able to explode for a few more runs tonight.

Scouting Report on today’s starters from MLB.com:
Andy Sonnanstine - Sonnanstine is a master of deception, employing an array of pitches that he can throw from all different angles. But he has learned to primarily use his fastball to setup the other pitches. Among those other pitches, Sonnanstine has added a changeup to his repertoire this spring, which he is fast gaining confidence in the more he masters it. The right-hander’s mantra is to dispatch of hitters one way or the other in three pitches, which allows him to get deeper into the games and save the bullpen. He is 2-2 with a 6.67 ERA in five career starts against the Orioles; he is 1-1 with a 3.86 ERA in two career starts at Camden Yards.

Mark Hendrickson - Hendrickson was signed by the Orioles in the offseason to slot in as a long reliever and spot starter, but several of Baltimore’s projected starters stumbled during Spring Training. That ceded a spot to Hendrickson, one of the more experienced pitchers on Baltimore’s staff. The southpaw began his career with the Blue Jays but has since bounced to Tampa Bay, the Dodgers and the Marlins before resurfacing in the American League East with Baltimore.

Be sure to join us in the chat room for some good Rays talk during the game!!!

Tags: Orioles
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Game #135: Sweep Dreams

The Rays are doing exactly what they have to do - beating up on lesser teams like the Orioles as they try to wrap up this American League East race and march on to the playoffs.

Today, James Shields gets the chance to deliever the sweep and pick up his 12th win of the year.

What to watch for: The Rays have struggled to pick up the “sweep” lately - dropping the final game after winning the first two a number of times in the past month and a half. Brian Burres might be the worst pitcher they’ve seen in those games, though.

Scouting Report on today’s starters from MLB.com:
James Shields - Shields took the loss against the Blue Jays on Tuesday night, allowing nine hits and four runs over six 2/3 innings. Despite carrying a League-leading 2.21 home ERA into the game, Shields wasn’t his usual dominant self at Tropicana Field and was outdone by Toronto ace Roy Halladay. Shields’ best pitch has always been his changeup, but he also has a plus fastball and curve, and he’s added a cutter that has helped him throw inside to left-handed hitters. He will face Baltimore for the fourth time this season, looking to match a career-high 12 wins from last season.
Brian Burres - Burres is back in the rotation, thanks as much to some injuries and some poor pitching by Baltimore’s starters as much as anything he’s done. The southpaw was yanked from the starting staff at the beginning of August and went down to Norfolk to work as a reliever but was recalled after Garrett Olson washed out of the rotation.

Check out the Rays’ career numbers against Brian Burres.

View the game preview from Baseball Reference.

Be sure to join us in the chat room for some good Rays talk during the game!!!

Tags: Orioles
Posted in Game Thread | 2 Comments »

Game #133: Time to put the foot on the throat

What to watch for: Which Scott Kazmir shows up? For our sake, let’s hope it’s the good one.

Scouting Report on today’s starters from MLB.com:
Scott Kazmir - Kazmir took a no-decision in his last outing, against the White Sox on Saturday, when he allowed three runs on four hits while walking two and striking out seven. The 24-year-old left-hander has struggled with his mechanics lately and has worked all season with little luck to gain command of his slider, which has historically been his best pitch. Without his slider, Kazmir has relied primarily on a fastball-changeup combination. He is 4-3 with a 4.70 ERA in 12 career starts against the Orioles.

Jeremy Guthrie - Guthrie, Baltimore’s ace, suffered through one of his worst starts of the season in his last outing, a 5-3 loss to the Yankees. The right-hander also served up two homers in his second consecutive loss. Still, the Orioles are likely not worried in the least about Guthrie, who has proven time and again this season to be the only person who can consistently and confidently take the ball every fifth day. Guthrie will also get an extra day of rest due to the Orioles off-day on Thursday. Guthrie has faced the Rays twice this season, both times at Tropicana Field, and he is 0-2, despite allowing just three combined earned runs.

Check out the Rays’ career numbers against Jeremy Guthrie.

View the game preview from Baseball Reference.

Be sure to join us in the chat room for some good Rays talk during the game!!!

Tags: Orioles
Posted in Game Thread | 1 Comment »

Game #50: Bring Out Your Brooms

And the Rays have yet another chance for a sweep! Go get ‘em, boys!

What to watch for: Cabrera has been pitching out of his mind lately, particularly in his ability to limit the number of walks. Can that really continue? Let’s hope the answer is a resounding no.

Scouting Report on today’s starters from MLB.com:
James Shields - Shields gave up five runs on eight hits in a no-decision against the Athletics on Monday night. Both totals are the second most he’s allowed this season. He’s allowed three or fewer runs in eight of his 10 starts. He followed his worst outing of the season in Boston with a one-hit shutout against the Angels. He’s beaten the Orioles once already, and has allowed four runs in 13 innings against them.

Daniel Cabrera - Cabrera doesn’t even resemble his former self at this point. The right-hander — who led the American League in walks in each of the last two years — has managed to have three walkless starts this year and has thrown eight straight quality starts.

Check out the Rays’ career numbers against Daniel Cabrera.

View the game preview from Baseball Reference.

Be sure to join us in the chat room for some good Rays talk during the game!!!

Tags: Orioles
Posted in Game Thread | 10 Comments »