Game Report 04/26/07; RAYS at Anaheim

Anaheim 11, RAYS 3

Win Probability table courtesy of Fan Graphs.

Anaheim-The Angels got all 11 of their runs in the first four innings, knocking Jae Seo out early, and the offense and long relief didn't come anywhere close to compensating for it as the Rays dropped their second in a row and were swept in a two game series in Anaheim. The 11-3 loss was the fifth straight in Anaheim for the Rays, where they are now 13-32 all-time. It doesn't get any easier for Tampa Bay, as they now head north to Oakland where they are 8-34 since their inaugural season.

Jae Seo got the start for the Rays, but gave way to the bullpen early after an awful early stint in the ballgame. The Rays gave him no early cushion, as Rocco Baldelli hit the first of what would be two doubles in two at bats before leaving the game. However he was promptly stranded when the next three men went in order to end the inning. Seo began to crumble in the bottom of the inning. After Gary Matthews Jr. was caught stealing second, he walked Orlando Cabrera to put a man on, and promptly served up a home run to Angels RF Vladimir Guerrero on the first pitch he saw to spot Anaheim a 2-0 lead. Garret Anderson immediately doubled, and he himself was doubled home by Shea Hillenbrand two at bats later. After Erick Aybar singled him home to give Anaheim a 5-0 advantage, Delmon Young's indecision with where to throw the ball allowed Aybar to advance into scoring position, where he was singled home. Brandon Wood, one of Anaheim's top prospects making his major league debut, struck out to retire the side. He ended up being the only Angel to start and not get a hit, every other Anaheim position player that started also drove in and scored a run.

The Angels ultimately knocked Seo out of the game three batters into the next inning, with Seo having retired one of them. Matthews Jr. doubled to lead off the inning, and was advanced to third on an Orlando Cabrera Sac Fly. Seo then intentionally walked Guerrero, and was promptly lifted in favor of Gary Glover, who proceeded to allow the sixth Angel run to come home on a Garret Anderson sac fly. Seo finished the game having completed just 1.1 innings of work. He gave up six runs on seven hits, while walking two more. Anaheim would add three more runs in the bottom half of the third, and two more in the bottom of the fourth off of Glover to cap the scoring. Glover finished the game having pitched 2.2 innings of work while surrendering five runs on five hits and one walk.

In the top half of innings, however, the Rays were pretty much held at the mercy of Angels ace Bartolo Colon, making his second start of the season. Colon struck out 11 Devil Ray batters over seven innings of work, allowing just two runs and one walk in his second start of the season. He was touched up on by Carlos Peña in the top of the fourth for those only two runs on a shot that cleared the right-center field fence, but other then that, he was untouchable. Rocco Baldelli added a double in the third inning to make it two for the day, but he crashed awkwardly into the left-center field wall in the bottom of the third chasing down a fly ball and was removed from the game in favor of Elijah Dukes. He was diagnosed as having a right leg contusion, and is listed as day to day.

The Rays would add a garbage time run in the eighth off of Angels reliever Chris Bootcheck to make it an 11-3 final, but the Rays ultimately leave Anaheim having been outscored 20-4 in their two games. Jae Kuk Ryu kept the game from getting even worse, as he pitched four scoreless innings of relief, perfect innings at that aside from one lone hit. Besides Baldelli, Peña was the only other Ray with two hits; Delmon Young and Carl Crawford also had two hits, and Elijah Dukes walked twice and scored a run in his only two plate appearances in relief of Baldelli. Gary Matthews Jr. and Shea Hillenbrand ended up with two hits for Anaheim, while Garret Anderson had two. Seminole High graduate Casey Kotchman had a lone hit among the 13 for Anaheim, a triple.

RAYS at Anaheim
3:35; NO TV
RAYS RADIO/WHNZ 1250 AM

PITCHING MATCHUP:

RH Jae Seo, DEVIL RAYS:

Overview-Jae Seo takes to the mound for the Devil Rays as they look to salvage the finale of their quick two game set against Anaheim before heading up the coast to Oakland. Seo, originally from South Korea, was picked up in the 1997-98 offseason by the New York Mets organization, whom he pitched for until his trade to Los Angeles in the 2005-06 offseason. He steadily rose through the New York minor leagues until making his major league debut at the end of 2002. He has been, for the most part, a major league regular ever since. He came over to the Rays in the 2006 midseason deal that sent Dioner Navarro and Mark Hendrickson to the Dodgers. With the Rays last year, Seo posted a lower ERA than his season average-around 5.00 runs, however his peripheral stats were appreciably worse and he was hit very hard in making 16 starts over the second half of the season. This will be Seo's fifth start of 2007, in which he has a 7.66 ERA. He will need to avoid his penchant for being extremely hittable to have success against a slap-happy Angel lineup, against whom he has struggled mightily in the past. He likely will get bombed real early if he isn't throwing his best on the field today.

Recent Starts-Seo has given up at least four earned runs in every start he has made this year, being perhaps the most consistent pitcher on the staff in that reagard. Last time out against the Indians was no exception, as he surrendered five runs on eight hits over six innings of work, while walking two and striking out two. His best start this season came in his prior outing against the Minnesota Twins, in which he surrendered four runs over seven strong innings of work, walking just one. He surrendered 15 runs over his first two starts of the year against Texas and New York, being teed off on three times in his three innings of work deep in the heart of Texas.

vs ANA-Seo has struggled mightily against the Anaheim Angels in two career starts, both of which came last season in his brief stint with the Dodgers. He spotted Anaheim eight runs over 11 collective innings, giving up 15 hits while walking eight. In addition, Orlando Cabrera has had tremendous success in the past against Seo, as he is 12 for 21 with four doubles and two walks against the Rays' righty all-time stemming from his stint with the Montreal Expos when Seo was with the Mets. Interestingly enough, he has had Vladimir Guerrero of all people to account. Guerrero has just three hits in 16 at bats off of Seo, though one of those three hits was a home run.

RH Bartolo Colon, Anaheim:

Overview-Anaheim sends 2005 AL Cy Young award winner Bartolo Colon to the hill as he looks to rebound from his injury-plagued 2006 season to lead the Angels. Colon, signed by the Cleveland organization out of the Dominican Republic in 1993, spent the first nine years of his career in the Cleveland organization, making his major league debut with the Indians in 1997, while solidifying his role in the starting rotation of the AL Central champions the following season. He earned a reputation as a workhorse innings eater from 1998-2001, in which he made over 30 starts each year and posted an ERA of 3.91. He was in the middle of another productive season before being traded by the Indians in their mid-2002 firesale to Montreal. He made himself a very attractive top of the rotation candidate with his performance that season. Over 33 starts with the Indians and Expos, he posted a 2.93 ERA, and Minaya leveraged his value in dealing him to the Chicago White Sox prior to the 2003 season. He went back to posting a high 3 ERA that season with Chicago, and was let loose as a free agent that offseason, when he signed with Anaheim. He is in his fourth season with the Angels, and won the AL Cy Young Award after posting a 3.48 ERA in 33 starts in his second season with the ballclub. He was injured for most of last year, making just 10 starts and putting up poor numbers, however he looked good in his first start of the season this year against the Mariners last week, and looks to build on that with his start today against the Rays, a team whom he has tamed successfully many times in the past.

Recent Starts-Colon has only made one start this season for the Anaheim ballclub, and it was last Friday against the Seattle Mariners. If early indications are any good, he seems to be the Bartolo Colon of old, as he gave up just one run over seven innings of work in that start. On the other hand, he relied almost entirely on balls in play to bail him out, striking out just one and surrendering seven hits in his appearance.

vs RAYS-Colon should pitch in his 100th inning of work all-time against Tampa Bay sometimes in today's game as he takes the hill for the 16th time, all of which were starts. He has a 3.36 ERA and 1.32 WHIP all-time to show for his career against the Rays, to go along with 83 strikeouts in 96.1 innings of work. The Rays were one of just two teams that he faced multiple times last year, the other being a divisional opponent, and he struggled in both starts, surrendering seven cumulative runs in seven total innings of work. The only Rays hitter that really has any well-rounded success against Colon all-time is Jonny Gomes, who is 5 for 8 with two home runs all-time off of the righty ace. Rocco Baldelli has two home runs among his four career hits off of Colon in 14 at bats, as well, but hasn't walked. The rest of the Rays' lineup and bench hasn't done squat against Colon, with Carl Crawford and Carlos Peña leading that brigade in a team-high 20 at bats each.

STARTING LINEUPS:

GO RAYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!