Evan Longoria was named American League Player of the Week Monday!  He has been red hot at the plate and flashes the leather at the hot corner like a grizzled veteran.

Evan hit .433 (13-30) with five doubles, three home runs and 10 RBI. The 22-year-old rookie posted a .900 slugging percentage along with a .438 on-base percentage. During a three-game Interleague series against the Florida Marlins, Longoria went 7-for-16 with two home runs and six RBI.  On June 27th against Pittsburgh Longo went 4-for-5 with a homer, three RBI and three runs scored.

Longo for Rookie of the Year!  Start the chants early Ray fans!

Congratulations to Evan Longoria, AL Player of the Week!

And this why….

• The depth of their bench. They are solid and experienced. Hitters like Eric Hinske, Willy Aybar and Cliff Floyd have the experience. Gabe Gross and Shawn Riggans have shown a propensity for getting the big hit when we need it. Riggans has amazingly maintained a healthy bat only playing once a week or less – he’s been outstanding this season. The entire bench does not hit for average but when they do is take pitchers deep into counts and get a pitch they can do something with.
• The depth of their pitching staff. From the starters to the bullpen they have proven if one is struggling the others will have their back. If one goes down another from AAA is there to step right in without a hint of inability.
• The defense has been above average. The Rays do commit errors occasionally but they move past the error onto the next play.
• They play as a complete TEAM. Every night there is a new hero for this team. Who would have thought Andy Sonnanstine would lead our SP staff with 9 wins? Who would have thought we’d have as many walk off wins as we’ve had this season? Who really thought Troy Percival was going to come in here and close the door like he has?
• They are hungry! They have hit a few bumps in the road but have picked themselves up the next night. They want this – it’s in their eyes!

The next test comes at The Trop with division nemesis Boston red Sox. This will be a 3 game series that could see one team or the other fall far below the top in the AL East standings. Or we could just see another brawl! Here are your pitching Matchups:

June 30 – James Shields (5-5, 3.76) vs. Justin Masterson (4-1, 3.43) TV – ION Radio – 1250 WHNZ, 680 WGES (sp)
July 1 – Matt Garza (6-4, 3.76) vs. Tim Wakefield (5-5, 3.88) TV – FSN Radio – 1250 WHNZ, 680 WGES (sp)
July 2 – Scott Kazmir (7-3, 2.88) vs. Daisuke Matsuzaka (9-1, 3.21) TV – ION Radio – 1250 WHNZ, 680 WGES (sp)

The Tampa Bay Rays are true contenders in the AL East. This series will end with the Rays still atop the AL East and a series victory 2-1.

Go Rays!!

The Tampa Bay Rays overcame an error by BJ Upton, a brain cramp from Shawn Riggans, 10 K’s and 11 left on base to BEAT, yes, folks that’s right, BEAT the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-3 and win the series.  Andy Sonnanstine notched his 9^th victory of the season (9-3, 4.60) with a strong 7 inning showing.  Sonnanstine scattered 5 hits, allowed 1 ER, walked 1 and struck out 4 Bucs.  Dan Wheeler and Troy Percival pitch the 8^th and 9^th innings respectively allowing 2 hits, 1 ER and 1 walk. 

The offense was sparked once again by the long ball.  Willy Aybar and Shawn Riggans blasted solo shots.  Riggans was the offensive hero of the game going 3 for 4 with 1 run scored and 2 RBIs. 

This win combined with a Red Sox loss in Houston leaves the Tampa Bay Rays sitting alone atop the AL East halfway through this season!  The Rays come back to The Trop to face their archrival Red Sox in a 3 game set – could be a prelude to the playoffs!  Go Rays!! 

The Tampa Bay Rays let the Pittsburgh Pirates off the hook Saturday night.  The Rays generated 10 hits and 4 walks but managed to leave 12 on base.  Anytime you see numbers like this you know the ending cannot be a good one, this was no different.  Jason Hammel gave up a 13^th inning HR to Jason Bay for a walk off win.  Bay had gone 0 for 5 with 3 K’s up to this point.  It’s a mystery having had a guy figured out all game long how you serve up a HR pitch at this point in the game.  SP Edwin Jackson pitched well enough to win the game.  He went 6.2 innings giving up only 6 hits, 3 ER, 2 BB and 3 K’s.

Johnny Gomes had tied the game at 3 with a pinch hit HR in the 8^th.  The game remained knotted at 3 until the 13^th.   Eric Hinske, Carlos Pena and Jason Bartlett led the offensive charge all hitting 2B’s. 

The unfortunate fact of this game is that the Rays failed to get hits when they needed them.  Leaving multiple runners on base (12) and giving up a lot of strike outs (10) has been a trend for this team.  I thought that they had finally stepped beyond that point in their development with the offense they have shown on this road trip.   But, maybe that is wishful thinking on my part.  They had an opportunity to end the night sitting alone atop the AL East as the Red Legs lost.  The Rays must gain consistency in these areas to be able to continue to compete in the long term.  Don’t get me wrong, I know they are going to lose games.  If this were an isolated incident I would be ok with that.  It wasn’t, it has been a season long trend. 

Today’s matchup pits Andy Sonnanstine (8-3, 4.85) toeing the rubber against Tom Gorzelanny (6-6, 6.43).  Gorzelanny has proven to be a model of inconsistency.  He has accumulated 55 walks to only 41 K’s.  If the Rays hitters are patient at the plate they WILL get on base one way or another. 

This afternoon the Rays have the opportunity to end this road trip 5-1.  That would be a great boost to their confidence heading back home to The Trop for a match up against the Red Sox.  I’ll be watching to see how they improve or adjustments they make to score those runs when they have the opportunity. 

The Tampa Bay Rays rode the long ball to victory in the opening game of the 3 game series.  Evan Longoria led the charge having a GREAT night at the dish going 4 for 5 with a HR, a 2B, 3 RBI and 3 runs scored.  He was followed in the home run parade by Eric Hinske who blasted a 3 run shot and Carl Crawford who hit a solo bomb.  The Rays did a nice job at the plate banging out 15 hits with only 6 K’s. 

Scott Kazmir had a less than average outing for him in his 7^th victory.  He allowed 3 ER on 4 hits, 2 BB and a HR while compiling 4 K’s in just 5 innings pitched.  Kaz pitched well but he lacked the ability to get the final strike by the Buc hitters.  He went deep into far too many counts elevating his pitch count to 103 in just 5 innings. JP Howell followed Kaz and struggled with his control a bit.  Howell allowed 1 hit, 1 ER and 2 BB in just 1 inning pitched.  Grant Balfour and Trever Miller finished the game and quieted any hopes of a Bucs comeback.     

The return of Carlos Pena saw him go 0 for 3 with 1 BB.  Joe Maddon had him batting 6^th in the lineup behind Longoria which is a great call.  Pena wasn’t leaving too many runners in scoring position before his stint on the DL so good to see Maddon take some pressure off him in his return. By the way – the #4 hole was filled by Hinske who went 2 for 3 with 3 RBIs and 3 runs scored.  

The Rays have been taking advantage of mistakes made by opposing pitchers both in the series with the Florida Marlins and in the first game of this 3 game set.  If the Rays are willing to continue to be patient at the plate and force opposing pitchers to go deep they will sweep the Bucs.  This road trip should breed a ton of confidence in the Rays as they will return to The Trop with a winning road trip without having their full compliment of players but for 1 game (Iwamura will being to serve his suspension tonight). 

It’s a great time to be a Tampa Bay Rays fan!

The Tampa Bay Rays have swept the 3 game series from the Florida Marlins by winning the final game 6-1.  Matt Garza was awesome today!  He faced only 1 hitter over the minimum and allowed only 1 hit (albeit it was a HR to Ramirez)!  His line was a no-hit shutout until the HR to Ramirez in the 7^th inning.  Garza’s line was CG (5^th  combined of the season for the Rays staff) 1 hit, 1 ER, 1 walk, 10 K’s to bring his record to 6-4, 3.76.

The offense was clicking again with Evan Longoria leading the charge!  Longoria banged out 2 2B and a HR.  Ben Zobrist also went deep for the second straight game.  Shawn Riggans racked up a 3-RBI performance in front of his home town crowd. 

This game was all about Matt Garza.  I cannot say enough about his performance.  The Florida Marlins are a very good hitting team and he shut them down.  The HR Ramirez hit was a good pitchers’ pitch that reached out to get.  Garza’s meltdown on the mound a few starts ago seem to have led to a more focused and positive Garza.  He was not rattled at all today.

This sweep places the Rays .5 games behind the red legs.  It also places the Rays 16 games over .500 at 47-31.  The Rays now fly to the Steel City to take on the Pittsburgh Pirates in a 3 game series over the weekend.  This should be another series victory for the Rays!  Go Rays!

Matt Garza tossed a complete game one hitter as the Tampa Bay Rays defeated the Florida Marlins by the score of 6-1.  The only hit for the Marlins came in the seventh inning when Hanley Ramirez hit a solo home run off of Garza.  With the win, the Rays were able to sweep their in-state rivals in the three game series.

Garza was dominate all day long as he had ten strick outs to go along with only the one hit he gave up.  He improved to 5-5 with the victory and should have a lot of momentum heading into his next start.

Evan Longoria and Ben Zobrist both hit solo home runs for the Rays at the plate.  Shawn Riggans led the Rays at the plate with three rbi however.  Riggans had a sac fly in the second inning and then a two run double in the fifth inning.  Riggans also scored in the fourth inning on a infield single by Akinori Iwamura.

Great series sweep for the Rays and now they will start up a weekend series with the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday.  Rays Blog

WOW, the Tampa Bay Rays destroyed the Florida Marlins 15-3 Wednesday evening.  It was an amazing display offensive prowess!  The Rays banged out 15 hits including 2 HR by Carl Crawford, a HR by Evan Longoria and Ben Zobrist, 2Bs by Eric Hinske, Akinori Iwamura and Longoria.  The Rays also showed their patience at the dish by collecting 9 walks.    

James Shields pitched a strong 7 innings only giving up 1 run on 4 hits and collecting 5 strike outs.  This brings his overall record to 5-5, 3.76.  He was followed by Jason Hammel and Gary Glover who, combined, gave up 5 hits and 2 runs in 2 innings (they were trying out their best Percival imitation).

It was nice to see the Rays run away with a victory!  They showed a bit more plate discipline that they have been lately.  This plate disciple allowed them to get the pitches to hit.  And they hit them!  The Rays now move 15 games above .500 at 46-31.  What an amazing season!

Today the Rays go for the series sweep in Florida.  This will be a huge accomplishment for the Rays as they haven’t been a great road team.  A sweep of the Marlins, a very good NL team, may build the Rays “on the road” confidence.  I know I’ll be glued to my TV!

That Tampa Bay Rays literally walked by the Florida marlins 6-4 to won the opening game of the series.  I have to say – this was as ugly a win as I’ve ever seen!  There was mistake after mistake, on ALL sides of the ball.  Defensively, on the books, it states we only made 1 error (Crawford) and Dioner Navarro had 1 passed ball.  Watching that game was a whole different story.  Navi should have had at least one of the 2 wild pitches charged to Andy Sonnanstine, 2 pop ups fell in the infield and BJ Upton bounced a ball around allowing a run to score.  

The saving grace for this game was the ability of the bull pen to keep this game within reach.  JP Howell followed Sonnanstine and Dan Wheeler pitched the 8^th.  Troy Percival came in to “close’ the 9^th and what an antacid moment that was!  He started strong by striking out Luis Gonzalez but then lost the strike zone entirely.  He walked the bases loaded in the 9^th inning and Maddon left him in the game!  He then got the ground ball he needed but it took an ESPN highlight reel play for Evan Longoria to make the play to get an out at second base. Run scores bumping the score to 6-4.  Perci walks the next hitter, Cantu, to load the bases once again.  Perci records the last out – game over, Rays win, barely.

The offense performed just as poorly.  At one point we had bases loaded with 0 out and could not plate a run.  Navarro led off an inning with a double and we could not even advance him.  We scored our runs by making the pitcher go deep into a count – Joe Nelson walked across the tying and go-ahead runs.  Longoria then smacked a 2 run double in the 9^th.   

We had no business winning that game but we did, we’ll take it.  Wins come in all shapes and sizes, and a win is a win.  We need to improve our offensive production drastically to be able to keep up with the red legs.  Let’s hope tonight starts that turn around!

OK gang off on a short 6 game road trip so buckle up! First we head south to Miami to filet some fish. The Marlins (40-35) have been playing some great baseball this season much like the Rays (44-31). They now sit 1 game behind the Phillies in the NL East as the Rays sit 1 game behind the red legs in the AL East. This should be a great match up! The Rays took the series winning 2 of 3 when the Marlins came to The Trop 11 days ago.

Pitching Matchups as follows:

June 24 – Sonnanstine (8-3, 4.92) vs., Olsen (4-4, 3.51) TV – ION Radio – 1250 WHNZ, 680 WGES (sp)
June 25 – Shields (4-5, 3.94) vs. Tucker (2-1, 4.50) NO TV Radio – 1250 WHNZ, 680 WGES (sp)
June 26 – Garza (5-4, 4.10) vs. Hendrickson (7-5, 5.73) TV – FSN (12:10 First Pitch) Radio – 1250 WHNZ, 680 WGES (sp)
Key to Rays Victory: To win this series the Rays MUST take these young pitchers deep into the count. They gave easy outs to Houston in the last game of the series by swinging at first pitches – Backe only threw 5 pitches the first inning on Sunday. The Marlins starters are young and will wear down (except Hendrickson and I don’t think I have to say anything here).

After this the Rays travel to the Steel City, Pittsburgh to face the Pirates for 3. Edwin Jackson will be serving his suspension so Scott Kazmir will move up 1 day and pitch the Friday night game. The Bucs are struggling this year – trailing their division leader by 12 games at this posting. The Bucs have been very inconsistent this year winning some games they are not expected to win and losing some games they are expected to win.

Pitching Matchups as follows:

June 27 – Kazmir (6-3, 2.03) vs. Snell (3-7, 5.99) TV – ION Radio – 1250 WHNZ, 680 WGES (sp)

June 28 – Jackson (4-6, 4.35) vs. TBD TV – FSN Radio – 1250 WHNZ, 680 WGES (sp)
June 29 – Sonnanstine vs. TBD TV – ION Radio – 1250 WHNZ, 680 WGES (sp)
Keys Rays Victory: Consistency on all sides of the ball. The Rays cannot forget to play their game — solid pitching, solid defense and taken the pitchers deep.

My prediction – 4-2 road trip!

Go Rays!!!