This is a hard pill to swallow, but the Rays offense has not been terrible over the last 14 days:
Last 14 Days, AL Teams
So how can they have a 99 wRC+ and yet average 2.1 runs per game since visiting KC (3.0 runs over the last 14 days)?
Well, on the season, the offense has averaged about 7.2 runners LOB per game. Since KC, they've average 8.8 LOB. With the bases loaded, two outs, this team as a .139 BABIP and .377 OPS. Last year, they had a .405 BABIP and .959 OPS.
With the bases loaded, any outs, this team has a .632 OPS. But overall, the Rays have a .259/.330/.410 slash and .741 OPS. In the modern run environment, that's actually quite good.
But when the bases get juiced? Lately that has been a death knell. Players have been pressing, yes, but at some point events are going to cluster in a favorable way, and the Rays will finally have a chance to lose a game not because the offense couldn't close, but rather the bullpen couldn't.
Poll
Biggest area of concern right now:
This poll is closed
-
64%
Offense.
-
0%
Defense.
-
17%
Bullpen.
-
17%
Rotation.