Tampa Bay Rays News and Links: THE TRADE DEADLINE HAS ARRIVED

These past four games for the Tampa Bay Rays are just precursors for what they can expect over the next two weeks as they get set to take on several of the top teams in baseball. However, despite losing thee of the four contest, they were highly contested bouts that with just a little more luck, things could have turned out much differently.

Nonetheless, the Rays were able to take the final game of the series to put their record at 54-52 and with the Yankees and Red Sox both losing, the Rays gained a game on their division foes (3.5 back in the division, and 2.5 back in the Wild Card).

• Brendan McKay made his professional pitching debut, tossing two scoreless inning while racking up four strikeouts, but also walked a batter.

• Adrian Beltre tallied his 3,000th hit yesterday afternoon, a double down the left field line.
• Former Rays lefty masher, Steve Pearce, launched his second walkoff grand slam in just four days
• It’s the trade deadline and two marquee players have already been dealt within the past 12 hours as Jonathan Lucroy has been sent to the Colorado Rockies for a player to be named, while Justin Wilson has been traded to the Chicago Cubs
• The Tampa Bay Rays and Curtis Granderson have completed a trade for the ‘wefollowlucasduda’ instagram account