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TAMPA — The Rays rarely bludgeon. They do not overwhelm, nor do they stomp.
When they win, it’s usually because they were incrementally better, a wee bit smarter and, occasionally, on the happy side of fortunate.
And when they lose?
It often looks like Sunday.
Going for their first series sweep in two weeks, the Rays fell excruciatingly short in a 4-2 loss to the Brewers on Mother’s Day.
The difference between winning and losing? Take your pick.
It could have been the two pitches Drew Rasmussen threw in back-to-back at-bats in the fourth that caught too much of the plate and were hit for opposite-field homers. It could have been the lack of situational hitting that led to two late double plays and a 1-for-8 performance with runners in scoring position.
Or it could have been Junior Caminero’s 348-foot drive with two runners on base in the fifth that was caught by leftfielder Jake Bauers with his back against the wall. One inning earlier, Christian Yelich also hit a 348-foot drive, but it was closer to the foul pole and left the park.
“I thought off the bat it (was gone),” Rays manager Kevin Cash said. “I thought that all the way until Bauers kind of made a right turn going to the corner. It kind of hung up there a little bit.”
It was that type of day for the Rays. More teasing than pleasing.
With a roster built around pitching and run prevention, the Rays knew they were in for a lot of these type of games this season. More than half of their 40 games have been decided by two runs or less, and the Rays are 11-11 in those contests.
And that’s not going to be good enough.
When you’re built for tight, low-scoring games, you cannot let the details slide. You cannot leave runners on base, and you cannot be near the top of the league in home runs allowed. You cannot let numerous opportunities pass.
For the series, the Rays were 3-for-24 with runners in scoring position.
“It’s definitely been a bit of a roller coaster for that stat throughout the season,” catcher Danny Jansen said. “I think it’s just about being aggressive, going after it and simplifying things. The effort has definitely been there on those situations. Obviously looking to improve always, but I think everybody has the right attitude.”
Surprisingly — or maybe maddeningly — the Rays are not getting those clutch hits from their most veteran players. Yandy Diaz, Brandon Lowe and Jansen went 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position. For the season, Diaz is at .227, Lowe is .212 and Jansen is .111 in those situations.
The Rays made situational hitting a priority in the spring and had renewed success for a time in April.
“I don’t know that they’ve necessarily gotten away from (the approach),” Cash said. “I think what’s taken place is they know just as much as you guys know, that the offense is not firing right now. It’s not rolling. It’s a struggle to score runs, and everybody is putting an added weight going up to the plate, trying to probably do a little more than they need to do and are capable of.”
They didn’t get any runners in scoring position in the final three innings, but that was only because they failed to capitalize with runners on first base. Caminero hit into a double play in the eighth, an inning after Chandler Simpson bounced into one.
Simpson, who had two doubles on the afternoon, has hit into three double plays already this season, which seems fairly shocking for a player with his incredible speed. Simpson is averaging a double play every 24 at-bats. Last season in the minors, he averaged a double play every 225 at-bats.
“I think it’s just hitting the ball hard,” Simpson said. “Balls that are barreled and going right to people giving them the ability to make a fast play.”
It also didn’t help that Rasmussen is giving up more home runs than at any point in his five seasons with the Rays. This was the second game in a row that he gave up at least two home runs. Prior to this week, the last time he gave up two home runs in even one game was June of 2022.
Still, Rasmussen seemed just as perturbed with the leadoff walk he allowed in the fifth that came around to score and turned out to be the game-winner after the Rays had tied the game 2-2 in the bottom of the fourth.
“(Sunday) is completely on me,” Rasmussen said. “We did score. We came back and answered the two homers in the fourth, and (I) immediately gave up a run in the fifth. That stuff just can’t happen. And that was all started because of a walk.”
• • •
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When they win, it’s usually because they were incrementally better, a wee bit smarter and, occasionally, on the happy side of fortunate.
And when they lose?
It often looks like Sunday.
Going for their first series sweep in two weeks, the Rays fell excruciatingly short in a 4-2 loss to the Brewers on Mother’s Day.
The difference between winning and losing? Take your pick.
It could have been the two pitches Drew Rasmussen threw in back-to-back at-bats in the fourth that caught too much of the plate and were hit for opposite-field homers. It could have been the lack of situational hitting that led to two late double plays and a 1-for-8 performance with runners in scoring position.
Or it could have been Junior Caminero’s 348-foot drive with two runners on base in the fifth that was caught by leftfielder Jake Bauers with his back against the wall. One inning earlier, Christian Yelich also hit a 348-foot drive, but it was closer to the foul pole and left the park.
“I thought off the bat it (was gone),” Rays manager Kevin Cash said. “I thought that all the way until Bauers kind of made a right turn going to the corner. It kind of hung up there a little bit.”
It was that type of day for the Rays. More teasing than pleasing.
With a roster built around pitching and run prevention, the Rays knew they were in for a lot of these type of games this season. More than half of their 40 games have been decided by two runs or less, and the Rays are 11-11 in those contests.
And that’s not going to be good enough.
When you’re built for tight, low-scoring games, you cannot let the details slide. You cannot leave runners on base, and you cannot be near the top of the league in home runs allowed. You cannot let numerous opportunities pass.
For the series, the Rays were 3-for-24 with runners in scoring position.
“It’s definitely been a bit of a roller coaster for that stat throughout the season,” catcher Danny Jansen said. “I think it’s just about being aggressive, going after it and simplifying things. The effort has definitely been there on those situations. Obviously looking to improve always, but I think everybody has the right attitude.”
Surprisingly — or maybe maddeningly — the Rays are not getting those clutch hits from their most veteran players. Yandy Diaz, Brandon Lowe and Jansen went 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position. For the season, Diaz is at .227, Lowe is .212 and Jansen is .111 in those situations.
The Rays made situational hitting a priority in the spring and had renewed success for a time in April.
“I don’t know that they’ve necessarily gotten away from (the approach),” Cash said. “I think what’s taken place is they know just as much as you guys know, that the offense is not firing right now. It’s not rolling. It’s a struggle to score runs, and everybody is putting an added weight going up to the plate, trying to probably do a little more than they need to do and are capable of.”
They didn’t get any runners in scoring position in the final three innings, but that was only because they failed to capitalize with runners on first base. Caminero hit into a double play in the eighth, an inning after Chandler Simpson bounced into one.
Simpson, who had two doubles on the afternoon, has hit into three double plays already this season, which seems fairly shocking for a player with his incredible speed. Simpson is averaging a double play every 24 at-bats. Last season in the minors, he averaged a double play every 225 at-bats.
“I think it’s just hitting the ball hard,” Simpson said. “Balls that are barreled and going right to people giving them the ability to make a fast play.”
It also didn’t help that Rasmussen is giving up more home runs than at any point in his five seasons with the Rays. This was the second game in a row that he gave up at least two home runs. Prior to this week, the last time he gave up two home runs in even one game was June of 2022.
Still, Rasmussen seemed just as perturbed with the leadoff walk he allowed in the fifth that came around to score and turned out to be the game-winner after the Rays had tied the game 2-2 in the bottom of the fourth.
“(Sunday) is completely on me,” Rasmussen said. “We did score. We came back and answered the two homers in the fourth, and (I) immediately gave up a run in the fifth. That stuff just can’t happen. And that was all started because of a walk.”
• • •
Sign up for our Sports Today newsletter to get daily updates on the Bucs, Rays, Lightning and college football across Florida.
Every weekday, tune into our Sports Day Tampa Bay podcast to hear reporter Rick Stroud break down the biggest stories in Tampa Bay sports.
Never miss out on the latest with your favorite Tampa Bay sports teams. Follow our coverage on X and Facebook.
Continue reading...
