The Rays Tank: Tampa Bay Hands Boston Their First Losing Season In Fourteen Years, And Other Links

Before we jump into today's Tank, I want to quickly introduce our two newest writers on staff: Daniel Russell and Gareth Rees. They've both written at SB Nation Tampa Bay before, and they'll be joining the team to help out with Rays Tanks and assorted other articles as they come up. Welcome aboard!

Doesn't it feel great to beat the Red Sox? To win a game with explosive offense? To personally hand Boston their first losing season since 1997? Or are you still distracted by those nine losses since September 5th? How's this for the bright side: with last night's victory, the Rays are only 5.5 wins out of the wild card with thirteen games to go, and the next six are against sub-.500 teams. So don't lose faith, Rays fans!

A few thoughts on last night: After the Rays chased Daisuke Matsuzaka out of the game, Fettuccine Alfredo Aceves pitched 2.0 innings in three frames, marking the eighth time in nine appearances that "Crazy Town" [There's the nickname you were looking for] Aceves has gone multiple innings. Considering how sparse the Sox are using him, it seems our rivals are stretching their former closer back into his original role as long man and/or starter. Worked out fine last night... ever wonder how the other half of The Experiment is doing?

Daniel Bard was recalled Aug 30th as a reliever and has thrown 3.1 IP in 23 AB, allowing 8 H, 9 R, and 5 BB in five appearances. Last night specifically, Bard allowed two walks, a sac fly, an RBI single, and another walk to load the bases. He threw a mere four strikes, with only one fastball touching 94 mph. What happened?

On to the Links!

• Miguel Cabrera is getting awfully close to that elusive Triple Crown, and he is certainly swinging with power.
• While the talking heads debate between Mike Trout and Miguel Cabrera for the 2012 AL MVP award, Matt Klaassen has a better idea. What say you? #TeamTrout
• Watch this guy in a bandana literally rip the ball out of some kid's hands. Really, Cubs fan? The "Friendly Confines" indeed.
• BrooksBaseball has a new tool for us to use: The Supar Fast Matchup Whizbang Thang!
• Complaining about run differentials, and a sports fan's debate on rooting for the Orioles from Baseball Prospectus. You know, 2012 might be the year of the Fighting Showalters, but beware those pesky Padres in the near future.
• This might not come as news, but Brian Wilson doesn't care what you think. Also something you might have noticed: Jake McGee is quickly becoming one of the best relief pitchers in Rays history, and Erik took a closer look yesterday.