You may have noticed the Rays have been winning lately. You may have also noticed that the offense has picked up considerably. Ben Zobrist, Matt Joyce and Jeff Keppinger have been the most consistent producers. What about the guys? Here are some slash lines in August:
Desmond Jennings: .324/.378/.544
B.J. Upton: .264/.303/.625(!)
Jose Molina: .314/.385/.400
Carlos Pena: .204/.350/.367
The numbers for Pena may not look great for a first basemen, but his current .717 August OPS would be his highest since April. Evan Longoria's return has helped, but the other guys in the lineup, guys that have struggled most of the season, have stepped it up as well. Tonight they welcome back Luke Scott, who had an .892 OPS in July before being injured. For the first time in a long time the Rays have all the pieces they want healthy. Let's see what they can do with it over the final six weeks.
Links:
- What's been behind the August swoon of the Angels? Jeff Sullivan, newly of FanGraphs, takes a look.
- The A's celebrated the 10 year anniversary of their 20 game win streak this past weekend. Wendy Thurm takes a look back and what it all meant. The (Devil) Rays longest streak is 12 games, to put that in perspective.
- Wright Thompson is one of the best writers in the world, and that's not hyperbole at all. His tale of Greg Halman, the Mariners player who died last season, is chilling and a must read.