Tampa Bay Rays news and links: Kiermaier stealing Souza’s spotlight?

Yesterday, Steven Souza Jr. made a fine play in right field to charge a short line drive and throw out Mike Trout at the plate to end the inning.

Then the Angels broadcast cut to a closeup of center fielder Kevin Kiermaier trotting back to the dugout.

I mean, did they just assume that any good outfield play was Kevin Kiermaier? Doing that would make a broadcast right more often than not. I guess in a game where failing two out of three times counts as success . . .

According to StatCast, Souza’s throw clocked in at 97 mph, his hardest yet tracked.

Links

• Rays Radio has interviews from the locker room with Matt Andriese, Steven Souza, Colby Rasmus, and Kevin Cash. Favorite part:

Reporter: You’re 5-1 now. Would you have thought that?

Andriese: You know, win loss record is, in the whole scheme of things it’s kind of irrelevant, but uh, it looks good, five wins.

• Just give it up, guys. Please. There’s a dumb question in the Souza interview, too: “Do you like how Colby’s swinging the bat?”
• And in the Colby Rasmus interview:

Reporter: Do you feel yourself coming out of it a little bit?

Rasmus: Coming out of what?

And later on.

Rasmus: This is a good fastball hitting team. When guys spot up breaking balls and then mix it up on us pretty good, that’s when we have our troubles. We’re, a good fastball hitting team, and they know that. Like I said, there’s enough smart folks, and all these computers and things that they’ve got nowadays, so they know what’s going on.

• Travis Sawchik wrote how Buster Posey was unhappy with Brandon Belt’s play, and he showed it publicly, in front of the cameras. It’s not the type of interaction we’re used to seeing.
• For Memorial Day, Mike Bates wrote about Eddie Grant, the first major-leaguer to die in World War I.
• Rachel Robinson will join her husband Jackie in the MLB Hall of Fame.
• Zach Crizer dives into the changes happening in the pitcher-batter relationship—more home runs, less success on balls in play. What’s driving it?