DRaysBay: All Posts by Erik HahmannA Tampa Bay Rays Blog: Ball on a Budgethttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/48753/drb-logo-fv.png2016-06-10T16:00:03-04:00https://www.draysbay.com/authors/erik-hahmann/rss2016-06-10T16:00:03-04:002016-06-10T16:00:03-04:00Rays face tough decisions on Moore's future
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<figcaption>Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>The Rays face tough decisions when it comes to the southpaw.</p> <p dir="ltr">The Matt Moore Situation</p>
<p dir="ltr">No one thought we would be here.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Not after the first game of the 2011 ALDS, when a 22-year-old Matt Moore, making just his second big league start, shutout the powerful Texas Rangers lineup over seven innings. One of the top prospects in baseball had made his name known on the national stage and it seemed like he wouldn't be leaving it anytime soon.</p>
<p dir="ltr">The Rays, ever proactive in locking up young talent for less than market value, signed Moore to a 5-year, $14 million extension in December 2011. The next two seasons were successes, starting 58 games with an ERA just north of 3.50. He would undergo Tommy John surgery in April of 2014 and has not been the same since. Tommy John success stories get publicized, Jose Fernandez and Matt Harvey for examples, to the point where it is expected a pitcher will come back as good as or better than before. Moore is evidence that is not the case.</p>
<p dir="ltr">He made twelve starts in returning from surgery last season and posted an unflattering 5.43 ERA. His final four starts were excellent and gave hope for improvement in 2016. Unfortunately that has not happened as his ERA currently sits at 5.56. This piece is not going to attempt to identify what his issues are and how to correct them. We are here to discuss what the hell the Rays do with Moore from this point forward.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Let's break down the options.</p>
<h3><b>Trade Him</b></h3>
<p dir="ltr">The team has been flirting with .500 all season and the pitching has surprisingly been lackluster. Having too many starting pitchers is a great problem to have, but it is still a problem. The rotation currently lines up as Chris Archer, Jake Odorizzi, Drew Smyly, Matt Moore, and Matt Andriese. That is not including Erasmo Ramirez, who started 27 games last season and is currently the fireman in the bullpen, top prospect Blake Snell who made a fairly impressive spot start late April, or Alex Cobb who will be coming back from Tommy John surgery in the latter part of this season.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Someone has to go eventually. Archer was one of the best pitchers in baseball last season and is signed to a very team friendly contract. Odorizzi is not yet eligible for arbitration and has been a good, steady contributor in his year and a half in the rotation. Smyly comes with some injury concerns and has another couple years of arbitration which could get costly if he reverts back to how he pitched last season. Andriese is a rookie and could fill in the backend of the rotation at a cheap price for a couple more seasons. Moore makes $6 million this season and has a $7 million team option for 2017, $9 million for 2018, and $10 million for 2019. While those dollar amounts are not a lot for most teams, for example Anibal Sanchez has a salary of $16 million and an ERA north of 6, they are for the Rays if the player is not pitching like David Price.</p>
<p dir="ltr">If the Rays are trying to shop Moore his performance certainly is not helping his case, though his walk rate is at a career low. Would the team trade him right now if given a decent offer, or hang onto him and hope his performance rebounds enough so he is more attractive come the trade deadline?</p>
<h3><b>Move him to the bullpen</b></h3>
<p dir="ltr">The Rays bullpen has been a mess outside of Alex Colome and Ramirez. It is possible Moore could excel in relief like Wade Davis circa 2012, being able to really unleash his fastball and focusing on fewer pitches. His salary would make this option seem unlikely, and would limit his trade value if he did succeed in the role.</p>
<h3><b>Option him to the minors</b></h3>
<p dir="ltr">He was optioned to AAA Durham in August last season after his poor post-surgery performance to fine tune things. He still retains an option and the Rays may feel they can better contend for a playoff spot with Blake Snell in the rotation than Moore and his near 6.00 ERA. It may also give them and Moore additional time to fix any mechanical or sequencing issues that may be lingering.</p>
<h3><b>Leave him be</b></h3>
<p dir="ltr">The Rays know Moore better than any of us. If they feel he is just a tweak or two from turning the corner back to success then they can ride it out with him in the rotation. If they fall out of contention then letting him work out the kinks in the big leagues instead of against replacement players at AAA might be the way to go.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Whatever the team decides to do, the fact remains there is still a young, talented pitcher who has struggled for the better part of two seasons now and we have no idea what the hell they are going to do about it.</p>
https://www.draysbay.com/2016/6/10/11898648/the-matt-moore-situationErik Hahmann2016-04-01T14:00:02-04:002016-04-01T14:00:02-04:002016 Q&A with Rays President Matt Silverman
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<figcaption>Tampa Bay Rays / Skip Milos</figcaption>
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<p>Matt Silverman joins us for his annual interview. </p> <p dir="ltr">In preparation for Opening Day, we talked with Rays' President of Baseball Operations, Matt Silverman, about the methodology behind team's current roster construction, international scouting, Erasmo Ramirez, and more.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Enjoy.</p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>Erik Hahmann: </b>Do you sense that the industry is zagging to mimic the Royals recipe of high contact offense and high velocity bullpens? What's the zig option there if a team wanted to go another direction?</p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>Matt Silverman: </b>You could see some evidence of those trends before the Royals won the World Series, and it's certainly more visible this offseason. With respect to the bullpen, some of it is a byproduct of the larger number of power arms across the league. But there's definitely a copycat effect in any sport whenever one team is successful by doing something slightly different. Obviously we have to read and react - and zig - but there's not a single way to do that.</p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>EH: </b>With the way this roster is shaping up, it seems as though there are more free swingers than in years past. Is that an intentional strategy and organizational shift in philosophy, or just a byproduct of the market?</p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>MS:</b> We were focused on adding power to our roster. We recognize the need to score more runs, and we wanted more threats up and down the lineup without sacrificing too much quality on defense. It's a challenging balancing act.</p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>EH: </b>The team hasn't had a pitcher over the age of 27 start a game in roughly two years. Is that a sustainable model if the team is going to keep contending in the future?</p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>MS:</b> If we continue to develop quality starting pitching, the bulk of our starts will likely come from younger pitchers coming up through our system. Plus, we're not likely to go out and spend big dollars on free agent pitching, and those are the veterans who are in their late twenties and early thirties. But there's no organizational aversion to pitchers over 27, it's just a result of the quality arms that we've been fortunate enough to develop.</p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>EH: </b>On the scouting side of things, how have the team's international scouting strategies differed after the Adrian Rondon singing and resulting penalty?</p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>MS: </b>We are using it as much as possible as an advantage. There's no point for us to spend time chasing the prospects with the big price tags, so instead we narrow our focus on the players we can sign. Their current talents may not be as evident, so it takes an even greater scouting effort to identify those who might just be late bloomers.</p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>EH: </b>Erasmo Ramirez became a key member of the rotation last season, and will seemingly stay in that role for 2016. He had mostly poor results before coming to the Rays. What made him someone the front office targeted?</p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>MS: </b>In 2013 we saw first-hand what Erasmo can do. That September he threw six shutout innings against us, keeping our hitters off balance with his fastball-changeup combination. Coming off that strong 2013 season, his 2014 results were disappointing but our reports on his stuff remained strong. We believed that if he could get his walk rate back in line, he'd be able to have success with us. What we didn't know then was how diligent he is. He keeps himself in great shape and he's very open to feedback from our coaches and catchers.</p>
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<br><i>Photo credit: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images</i></p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>EH: </b>Similar to the last question, what made Xavier Cedeno someone the team sought after for the bullpen?</p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>MS: </b>There was some fortuitous timing to that one. When Cedeno became available, we had a need in the pen for a lefty with the early season injury to Reifenhauser. Cedeno had been effective in AAA the year before especially against left handed hitters. It was a lower stakes move but turned out to have a great impact on the club last year. He fit in seamlessly in the clubhouse. We're looking forward to him being a key piece of our bullpen this year.</p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>EH: </b>Also, as teams increasingly adopt the highly analytical approach that had once been the Rays' "extra 2%", can you point to one or two organizational philosophies that are unique to this franchise? I realize you can't reveal trade secrets, but can you talk generally about what the Rays might see as unique organizational strengths?</p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>MS: </b>We know who we are, we know our financial limitations, and we don't fight them. We focus on areas where we can create value; we spend great energy on creating a positive, collaborative culture in the clubhouse and front office; and we have fun exploring new areas and trying new things. We know we can't win with our wallets, and we revel in finding other ways to help our players succeed and win games.</p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>EH: </b>Aside from the top prospects like Blake Snell, Brent Honeywell, Taylor Guerrieri, etc, who are a couple prospects fans should be looking out for in 2016?</p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>MS: </b>With the talent and depth in our system right now, it's really unfair to single out any one or two prospects. We have a strong wave of players at the AAA and AA level. For many of them, it's about getting the chance to show what they can do in the big leagues. I know our Major League staff really enjoyed getting to know some of the younger pitchers who got sent out early in camp this year Snell, Guerrieri, Faria, and Schultz. They all impressed and they all have bright futures.</p>
<p dir="ltr"><b>EH: </b>The team hired former knuckleball pitcher Charlie Haeger as a pitching coordinator, signed knuckler Eddie Gamboa, and had Dan Johnson in camp working on the pitch. This seems like a pointed strategy. What is the plan there? Also, there's never been a full time knuckleball reliever on the Rays. Is that something the team may try and focus on? Imagine going from facing Archer throwing 97 to a knuckleball going 75...</p>
<p><b>MS: </b>Charlie's already been very helpful with all of our minor league pitchers, and his knuckleball experience brings an extra dimension to our staff. We have a couple of pitchers in minor league camp who have toyed with the knuckleball. Charlie's a great resource for them as they work on that pitch. It's not for everyone. I do think there's something to the effect of the knuckleball pitcher on hitters whether coming in before or after a traditional pitcher. To the extent Charlie can help a couple of pitchers improve their knuckleball, it's a bonus.</p>
https://www.draysbay.com/2016/4/1/11333098/rays-president-matt-silverman-interview-2016Erik Hahmann2015-10-04T12:08:59-04:002015-10-04T12:08:59-04:00End Of The Year Reviews Are Silly And Here's Why
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<figcaption>Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Lies and bizarre shots at the sabermetric crowd make for a silly end of season review.</p> <p>Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times published his <a href="http://www.tampabay.com/sports/baseball/rays/rays-tales-reviewing-a-disappointing-but-interesting-season/2248269" target="_blank">end of season review </a>today. There...there are some things in it that need to be addressed. As always I'll preface my rant by saying beat writers have a hard job and it's not one I would like to do. They write a ton during the season and not everything is going to satisfy everyone. This is one of those times.</p>
<p>It starts off talking about the team MVP and mentions Kevin Kiermaier, Evan Longoria, and Chris Archer before settling on Logan Forsythe (more on him in a minute). The part about Kiermaier is what going to address.</p>
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<p><b>"Kevin Kiermaier</b>'s play in centerfield was outstanding and breathtaking, and his improvements at the plate allowed him to become an everyday player."</p>
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<p>Yes, Kiermaier is a good defender. Saying his improvements at the plate allowed him to become an everyday player is just flat out wrong. His averages the past two seasons are an identical .263 but his on-base percentage dropped from .315 to .298 and his slugging percentage dropped from .450 to .420. On the sabermetric side of things, his wOBA went from .333 to .309, wRC+ from 117 to 98 all while maintaining the same batting average on balls in play. He was worse at the plate in virtually every measure. His glove is what kept him in an everyday job.</p>
<p>On to Forsythe.</p>
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<p>But if you are wont to define most valuable as the player who provided the most when the team needed it, given injuries and inconsistencies that stripped down the lineup, 2B <b>Logan Forsythe</b> is that man. You could say, much to the chagrin of the computer crowd, he earned those honors the old-fashioned way, going out every day, playing hard, playing well, doing whatever he could — both at the plate and in the field — to help the team.</p>
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<p>He's a fine choice for team MVP. Nothing wrong with that pick at all. Having said that, what the hell does "much to the chagrin of the computer crowd" mean here? We in the "computer crowd" enjoy a player who plays hard and plays well. Who doesn't? Everyone should be thrilled to have a player like Forsythe on their favorite team. Is there another way in which a player can go about earning things that I'm not aware of?</p>
<p>Under "Most Surprising Rays" sits Brad Boxberger.</p>
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<p>Sitting in Port Charlotte last spring, it would have been hard to imagine one much more unexpected than RHP <b>Brad Boxberger</b> going to the All-Star Game as one of the AL's top closers. But after establishing himself first as a full-time major-league reliever then a potentially dominant set-up man last year, Boxberger stepped into the vacant closer's job created by LHP <b>Jake McGee</b>'s first-month absence and, even with some rough stretches and unhappy endings, led not just the Rays but the American League with 41 saves.</p>
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<p>It's not a surprise when a dominant setup man turns out to be a good closer. It's been happening for as long as we've had closers. Sure, he lead the league in saves but his ten losses were two more than any other reliever and his six blown saves were tied for the second most in baseball.</p>
<p>Finally there's Curt Casali.</p>
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<p>C <b>Curt Casali</b>: Didn't make the team out of spring, due in part to some roster manipulation, and didn't do much when he first came up in mid June. But given a chance to play regularly for a little more than a month before a hamstring strain, he showed enough — specifically 10 homers in 101 at-bats, a ratio of one per 10.1 that surpasses MLB leader <b>Chris Davis</b>' 12.51 — to be considered the starter going into spring.</p>
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<p>Chris Davis is going to have over 570 at bats. Let's not pretend that Casali's little string of power hitting is even comparable to what Davis has done.</p>
https://www.draysbay.com/2015/10/4/9449319/end-of-the-year-reviews-are-silly-and-heres-whyErik Hahmann2015-10-03T10:05:31-04:002015-10-03T10:05:31-04:00Jays, Buehrle Blast Rays At Trop
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<figcaption>Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>The Toronto offense is unsurprisingly good in another win against the Rays.</p> <p><b>Quick Hits</b></p>
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<li><span>Even when the Rays were up 4-1 you knew the Toronto offense wasn't going to stay quiet for long. They've wrapped up the division title but are still playing for the number one overall seed, so that means their full lineup was on display. It was actually fairly impressive to watch Erasmo Ramirez only give up four runs on the 10 hits he allowed, and not let the homer happy Jays go deep. </span></li>
<li><span>However, Andrew Bellatti didn't have that kind of luck. He came in to pitch the seventh inning and after, somehow, getting Jose Bautista to ground out, allowed a homer to Edwin Encarnacion, a triple off the catwalk to Chris Colabello, and a homer to Russell Martin. Good luck, rest of the American League.</span></li>
<li><span>The offense did all of their damage in the fifth inning. Richie Shaffer lead off with a double and came around to score on a Luke Maile single. Brandon Guyer was hit by a pitch (one of three times on the night) and Mike Mahtook brought he and Maile home with his eighth homer of the year. It was his third homer of the year off Mark Buehrle and he absolutely crushed it -- the ball landed beyond the seats in left field. He's currently slugging an even .600 in 110 plate appearances. </span></li>
<li><span>As I mentioned, Guyer was hit three times bringing his season total to 24. Jose Abreu is second in the American League with 15. Anthony Rizzo is the only player outpacing Guyer with 30 and he has over 300 more plate appearances. Guyer has 21 doubles and 24 HBP. I'd love to know if anyone with at least 300 plate appearances in a season has had more HBP than doubles. </span></li>
<li><span>Shaffer got his taste of the pickoff majesty of Mark Buehrle. With two outs in a one run game in the sixth inning Buehrle just caught Shaffer sleeping. He wasn't trying to steal, he just wasn't paying attention to Buehrle and that's all a guy like him needs pick off a rookie.</span></li>
<li><span>This loss officially seals a second consecutive losing season for the Rays, though they certainly have some bright spots to look forward to next year.</span></li>
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https://www.draysbay.com/2015/10/3/9445223/blue-jays-8-rays-4-pitching-falters-as-rays-can-no-longer-get-to-500Erik Hahmann2015-09-24T23:26:30-04:002015-09-24T23:26:30-04:00Rays take season series from Sox behind Ramirez
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<figcaption>Mark L. Baer-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Erasmo Ramirez throws seven strong innings and the offense once again picks up double digit hits in a Rays victory.</p> <p dir="ltr">If there's any consolation in a season in which the Rays aren't going to make the playoffs it's taking the season series from the Red Sox. That's exactly what they did tonight for the seventh time in eight years with a 4-2 victory.</p>
<p dir="ltr">The night didn't start out well for the Rays, with David Ortiz lifting a hanging, two-out slider over the Green Monster in left for a two run homer. Thankfully, that'd be all the damage the Rays would allow. Erasmo Ramirez, who has now allowed just four runs in his last 21 innings, was fantastic from the second inning on. He allowed two hits over those final six innings and faced just one over the minimum. The Sox didn't have a runner in scoring position all night. He also picked up strikeouts with all four of his pitches, showing This start lowered his ERA to 3.65, which would look much better without the 15 runs he allowed in his first five innings this season. If he's your number five starter to begin next season, which I'm assuming he will be with Nathan Karns in the pen, you could do a lot worse.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Alex Colome and Brad Boxberger completed the eighth and ninth inning respectively. Of course, as he's been doing the second half of the season, Boxberger allowed the tying run to come to the plate. It was made even scarier by the fact it was David Oritz, but he grounded into a game ending double play.</p>
<p dir="ltr">For the four game set, which the Rays won three of, the offense registered 11, 8, 14, and 11 hits and scored 7, 5, 6, and 4 runs. Tonight the middle of the lineup totally took over. Evan Longoria, Logan Forsythe, Asdrubal Cabrera, Steven Souza, and Kevin Kiermaier picked up all but one of the 11 hits and drove in every run. Each of them added an extra base hit, with Longoria clubbing two. His home run in the sixth inning on a chest-high fastball from Wade Miley was his 20th, marking the seventh time in his eight seasons he's hit that mark.</p>
<p dir="ltr">The Rays took the lead in the sixth inning, scoring three runs with two outs. The aforementioned Longoria homer, followed by a Forsythe single, and doubles from Cabrera and Souza. Kiermaier tacked on a solo homer in the seventh to give the Rays a two run cushion. With a 2-4 night Kiermaier also brought his on base percentage back up over .300. Keep it up, KK.</p>
<p>What do the Rays get as a reward for taking three of four from Boston and avoiding last place for the time being? A three game set in Toronto where they'll face R.A. Dickey, David Price, and Mark Buehrle. Thanks. At least the Saturday game is an Archer vs Price matchup, which is one of the best matchups you'll see this season. A sweep gets the Rays back to .500. Here's to delusional hope.</p>
https://www.draysbay.com/2015/9/24/9396235/rays-4-red-sox-2-rays-take-season-series-down-red-sox-behind-erasmoErik Hahmann2015-09-19T09:30:31-04:002015-09-19T09:30:31-04:00Mahtook's five hits lead Rays past O's
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<figcaption>Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>The rookie outfielder snags five hits, including two doubles, in the Rays 8-5 victory.</p> <p dir="ltr">Friday night quick hits:</p>
<p dir="ltr">Drew Smyly pitched better than his line indicated. He struck out the side in the first inning and only allowed one hit in the third, fourth and fifth innings. However, the second and sixth innings were nearly identical in their outcomes. He retired the first two batters in each, then allowed a baserunner and eventually a home run. Luckily the Rays had a five run lead at the time of the second homer.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Brad Boxberger came in for the save and gave up a solo home run, inching that ERA closer to 4.00.</p>
<p dir="ltr">The offense scored all eight of their runs in two innings. James Loney walked to lead off the second, and Tim Beckham drove a high fastball juuuuuuuuuust over the wall in left-center to pull the Rays within a run at 3-2. That makes nine homers for Beckham in a limited amount of playing time. He's going to make a nice utility player for the full 2016 season, or depending on what happens with Asdrubal Cabrera, a starter? No Nick Franklin, please.</p>
<p dir="ltr">My favorite thing in baseball is when a pitcher intentionally walks a batter only to get destroyed by the next man up. That's what happened in the fifth inning when Tyler Wilson walked Evan Longoria to load the bases with one out to get to Grady Sizemore. Sizemore laced a bases clearing double into the right-centerfield gap, putting the Rays up 5-3. Sizemore hasn't been a good hitter, but walking Longoria, who hasn't hit well against right handed pitching, to load the bases didn't make any sense. Steven Souza followed with a walk and was driven in with Sizemore on a double by James Loney. Nick Franklin would add yet another double, aided by poor fielding by Baltimore. He hit a pop up between second base and centerfield that no one took ownership of and hustled his way into second when the ball found the turf.</p>
<p>The real star of the game was Mikie Mahtook. The rookie outfielder had the eighth 5-5 night in Rays history, including two doubles. He only has 82 plate appearances, so a perfect night at the plate is going to substantially increase his slash lines, but he's now up to .301/.370/.562. The Rays are going to have some decisions to make for next season when it comes to the outfield. They have Kevin Kiermaier, Souza, Brandon Guyer, Desmond Jennings, and Mahtook all under contract. I have a feeling Jennings may be the odd man out.</p>
https://www.draysbay.com/2015/9/19/9356465/rays-8-orioles-5-mahtooks-five-hits-lead-rays-to-victoryErik Hahmann2015-09-12T21:27:33-04:002015-09-12T21:27:33-04:00Moore Struggles, Ortiz Hits #500 in Rays loss
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<figcaption>Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Matt Moore gives up #499 and #500 to David Ortiz as the Rays fall. </p> <p dir="ltr">When Kirby Yates is pitching the game is either going very well or very bad. Tonight happened to be the latter.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Matt Moore's second start since being recalled from Triple-A Durham wasn't close to being as successful as his first. In that first start he looked to be his old self for the first four innings, locating everything effectively and using his offspeed pitches to perfection. That wasn't the case tonight. Moore failed to command his fastball, leaving it over the middle of the plate a time or ten and paid dearly for it.</p>
<p dir="ltr">After two infield singles in the first inning, Moore left one of those aforementioned fastball's over the middle of the plate to David Ortiz, and Ortiz did what he'd done many times in that situation and crushed it over the right field wall for his 499th career home run. Moore saw his deficit mount to 5-0 in the third inning after just seven pitches as Mookie Betts and Dustin Predroia hit back-to-back home runs on elevated fastballs. The two runs the Red Sox would score in the fourth inning weren't all Moore's fault. With two outs, Asdrubal Cabrera was unable to field a Bett's grounder cleanly, allowing a runner to advance to third. Betts then stole second and both runners would score on a double from Pedroia.</p>
<p dir="ltr">David Ortiz lead off the fifth inning and crushed a hanging slider into next week for his 500th home run. He becomes the 27th player in MLB history with 500 homers and the fourth to do it in a Rays uniform. As much as he's annoyed Rays players and fans over the years, he's been a great hitter and the accolades are well deserved.</p>
<p dir="ltr">The mop up crew of Yates, C.J. Riefenhauser, Matt Andriese, and Andrew Bellatti finished out the game, with Riefenhauser getting tagged for two runs in his inning of work.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Offensively, the Rays couldn't carry over their hot hitting from last night to today. They scored four runs and picked up seven hits but were 0-4 with runners in scoring position and didn't get much to hit off Rick Porcello until the fifth inning when John Jaso launched a two-run homer to right field that nearly hit the video board. He'd allow one more run in the seventh on a double to rookie catcher Luke Maile who doubled in Daniel Nava for his first career hit. Richie Shaffer pinch hit in the eighth inning and hit an opposite field laser that just cleared the wall in right for his third home run.</p>
<p>Drew Smyly takes the hill tomorrow and it will be interesting to see exactly which pitcher he'll be. He's made five starts since coming off the disabled list and has alternated poor and good outings each time. He allowed four runs in five innings in his last start, so here's hoping the good trend continues.</p>
https://www.draysbay.com/2015/9/12/9317177/rays-4-red-sox-10-moore-struggles-ortiz-hits-500-in-rays-lossErik Hahmann2015-09-05T17:57:29-04:002015-09-05T17:57:29-04:00Kiermaier, Cabrera, Push Rays Past Yanks
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<figcaption>Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Two-out singles by Kevin Kiermaier and Asdrubal Cabrera keyed the Rays victory over the Yankees Saturday.</p> <p dir="ltr">Even though he only lasted 4.2 innings Saturday afternoon, Matt Moore looked like his old self in the Rays 3-2 win over the Yankees. His command, which was his main issue since returning from Tommy John Surgery, seems to have been fixed during the few weeks he was at Durham. He only walked two and kept the ball around the plate the entire game. Kevin Cash called his effort "outstanding" and praised the way he kept pounding the strikezone.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Moore only got into trouble in the fifth inning, allowing a leadoff walk to John Ryan Murphy who then scored on a double to left--center by Didi Gregorious. A pair of groundouts would give the Yankees another run and Moore would then be removed from the game after a walk to Chris Davis. If the batter had been left handed, or not named Alex Rodriguez, I think Moore would have stayed in, but clinging to a one run lead and making his first start in a few weeks, Cash made the correct call. After walking Rodriguez to put the tying run on second, Brandon Gomes got Carlos Beltran to fly out to center.</p>
<p dir="ltr">The pitching MVP of the day goes to Xavier Cedeno. The lefty started the sixth inning and threw 1.2 innings, walking just one and striking out four. That lowered his ERA to 2.16 and he's now struck out more than a batter per inning this season. Alex Colome recorded the last out of the seventh inning, but nearly blew the game in the eighth. Colome has been excellent in the relief role, but after recording two quick outs he allowed two singles and a walk to load the bases with a one run lead. He was fortunate to get out of the inning unscathved. Gregorious smoked a 2-1 fastball that would have absolutely given the Yankees the lead had it not been hit directly to Logan Forsythe. Brad Boxberger threw a perfect ninth to pick up his AL leading 34th save.</p>
<p dir="ltr">At the plate the Rays took the lead in the second on a two out single to right field from Kevin Kiermaier that scored Logan Forsythe, who had doubled earlier in the inning. What turned out to be the winning runs were scored the following inning on another two out single to right field, this time by Asdrubal Cabrera with the bases loaded.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Evan Longoria, who has missed just two games over the past three seasons, was removed after being hit with a pitch on the right elbow. Thankfully he said his issue was gripping the ball and he expects to play Sunday. Richie Shaffer replaced him in the lineup and walked twice. Play. Him. More.</p>
https://www.draysbay.com/2015/9/5/9267023/rays-3-yankees-2-kiermaier-cabrera-push-rays-past-yanksErik Hahmann2015-08-27T09:18:35-04:002015-08-27T09:18:35-04:00Missed chances at the plate doom Rays in loss
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<p>Leaving the bases loaded with no outs haunts the Rays in loss to Twins.</p> <p dir="ltr">It was a fairly uneventful game for the first five innings. The Twins threatened a time or two and the Rays finally got their first hit, and first run, on a Daniel Nava line drive homer to lead off the fourth. Chris Archer was mostly excellent until the seventh inning, but I'm here to talk about the sixth.</p>
<p dir="ltr">The Twins had tied the game on a two out home run by Eduardo Escobar. The Rays rallied in the bottom of the frame, singling three straight times to load the bases with no out for Rene Rivera. Here's where it gets interesting. Late in a tie game is a good place to pinch hit for the worst hitter in the majors, regardless of which position he plays and the circumstances surrounding it. Brandon Guyer is just sitting on the bench, and while he isn't good against right handed pitching, but he's a hell of a lot better than Rene Rivera. When asked about the decision not to pinch hit for Rivera, Kevin Cash said "Being a no-out situation, you hate to lose your catcher with Arch out on the mound. That's the guy that he's thrown to predominantly the whole [season]. So in that situation, no." That's a terrible excuse. Archer was close to 100 pitches and would have likely only thrown one more inning. If he can't throw one inning to J.P. Arencibia, with a potential lead if Rivera is pinch hit for, then he shouldn't be on the mound at all. Let's say this game was played in a National League park and it was Archer who was coming to the plate in the sixth inning of a tie game with the bases loaded. He's absolutely be pinch hit for, and the drop off from him to Brandon Gomes or whoever they'd bring in is far worse than Arencibia catching for three innings.</p>
<p>Unsurprisingly, Rivera popped out in foul territory. The Twins brought in southpaw Brian Duensing to face Daniel Nava. This is where Cash made another mistake. Nava CAN switch hit in the same sense that I CAN bowl with my left hand, it's just not going to be very good. Coming into the season his slash line from the right side of the plate was 209/.287/.298. During spring training he talked about giving up switch hitting. He's had nine plate appearances from the right side all season.</p>
<p>Again, Brandon Guyer, a better hitter and defender than Nava, sat on the bench. A few pitches later, Nava pops out into shallow right field. Now with two outs Cash decides to send Guyer to pinch hit for Grady Sizemore. Guyer flew out, but it would have been enough to score a run, had it come with zero or one out. Instead, the Rays loaded the bases and came up empty. Even if you believe in his rationale of leaving Rivera in you can't be OK with Nava and Guyer batting instead of Guyer and Sizemore. I've been a fan of the moves Cash has made this season, but that was probably his most egregious error.</p>
<p>On a positive note, Evan Longoria doubled and homered, Kevin Kiermaier extended his major league leading triples total to 12, and Archer recorded his ninth game this season with 10 or more strikeouts.</p>
https://www.draysbay.com/2015/8/27/9214451/rays-3-twins-5-missed-chances-at-the-plate-doom-raysErik Hahmann2015-08-18T09:23:32-04:002015-08-18T09:23:32-04:00Cabrera, Beckham Power Rays Past 'Stros
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<p>Asdrubal Cabrera keeps his hot streak going and Tim Beckham adds a three run homer to propel the Rays to victory.</p> <p dir="ltr">After being swept by the Rangers over the weekend, a strong start to the serious in Houston would go a long way in keeping up with the red-hot Orioles in the wild card standings. The offensive output in Dallas was lackluster, but thankfully that didn't transfer over on the short trip to H-Town.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Facing former Ray Scott Kamir, the Rays got to the scoring early. Asdrubal Cabrera continued his torrid pace with a two out run-scoring single in the first. That brought up Tim Beckham who took an 0-2 changeup and launched it into left field for a three run homer. They'd tack on another run in the fifth off Kazmir on a bases loaded sac-fly from Cabrera. Kazmir would be charged with his final run in the sixth after pinch hitter John Jaso sliced a single into left. All told, they tagged Kazmir, who had been pitching wonderfully with Houston, for nine hits and six runs over just 5.1 innings.</p>
<p dir="ltr">The offense wasn't done, scoring three more in the ninth thanks to run scoring singles from Cabrera and Curt Casali. Every starter picked up at least one hit with Cabrera and Beckham driving in three runs each.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Coming off arguably the best start of his career, Erasmo Ramirez turned in another good performance. He ended up being pulled with two outs in the sixth, but would have completed the inning if not for a throwing error by Tim Beckham on a routine groundout. He allowed a run in the second inning, aided by another error on Beckham. If the play is made cleanly, and even if it's not turned into an out at first, the runner has to hold at third and may not have scored later in the inning. The only hard hit ball came from the Paul Bunyan-like Evan Gattis. He took an 0-2 shoulder-high fastball that was well off the outside of the plate and smacked it into the right field seats. A better hitter doesn't even attempt to swing at that pitch. A better hitter doesn't get a run there either. Steve Geltz, Brandon Gomes, and the newly recalled Enny Romero teamed up to finish the game, each striking out two batters.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Jake Odorizzi takes the hill tonight, looking to rebound from one of the worst outings of his career with the Rays sitting 2.5 games back of the second wild card.</p>
https://www.draysbay.com/2015/8/18/9171727/rays-9-astros-2-cabrera-beckham-power-rays-past-strosErik Hahmann