All in all, Friday was a good day for the Tampa Bay Rays. Wouldn't you say.
Not only did the Rays get the decisive votes from the Hillsborough County Commission to build their new ballpark, they celebrated with a 9-4 trouncing of the San Diego Padres. They became the first American League team to win 80 games this season.
The Rays scored five runs in the fourth inning on the way to their win.
San Diego managed just four hits. However, those were good for four runs -- two coming on groundouts and two more on a home run by Jackson Merrill.
Simpson's average is up to .309./KIM HUKARI
The Rays got home runs from Yandy Diaz, his 20th, and Cedric Mullins, his 14th. Diaz, Chandler Simpson and Taylor Walls all had two hits.
Shane McClanahan ran his record to 10-6. He spread three hits over five and two-thirds innings. Relievers Manuel Rodriguez, Kevin Kelly and Steven Matz combined for three and a third innings of one-hit, shutout baseball.
The Rays lead the Yankees by four games and the Red Sox by seven.
Tampa Bay and San Diego play again today at 4:10 p.m. at Tropicana Field. Nick Martinez (13-4) will start for the Rays against Walker Buehler (8-6).
Calm down. All Friday night proved is that the guys who aren't going to play for Jacksonville seem to be better than the guys who aren't going to play for Tampa Bay.
The Bucs took in on the chin Friday night, losing 19-0.
Chief among the disappointments was rookie quarterback Jalon Daniels, who had led the Bucs to comeback vicotries in his first two games. This time, however, Daniels was just eight of 15 for 57 yards. He was sacked three times and lost a fumble. The Bucs had six punts and a fumble on their first seven possessions.
It was that way for the Bucs, who kept their stars on the shelf once more. Josh Williams led Tampa Bay in rushing, but he had only 21 yards. Eric Rivers’ 24 yards led the receivers.
Granted, the Bucs' defense was a bit better. They gave up 86 yards rushing and 163 passing. But Jacksonville scored on a 61-yard field goal by Cam Little and a 63-yard punt return by Michael Wortham.
The Bucs open their regular season on Sept. 9 against Cincinnati at 1 p.m. at Paycor Stadium.
This Freddy Peralta trade may work out, after all.
Peralta, unimpressive in his first four outings with the Rays, had a superlative outing Wednesday in a 3-0 victory over the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park.
Peralta has struggled for most the season. Even with his win against the Tigers, he is 6-11 one year after winning 17. But Wednesday's game provides hope he can help down the stretch.
The shutout was the Rays' 12th of the season, pulling them into a tie for fourth in the majors.
Peralta pitched six innings and allowed just two hits and no runs. Kevin Kelly followed with two perfect innings and Tyler Wells finished it up with his fifth save.
The Rays scored twice in the first inning when Jonny DeLuca doubled in a run and Cedric Mullins singled. Liam Hicks drove in the third run in the sixth with a sacrifice fly to bring home Jonathan Aranda.
Aranda and Junior Caminero each had two hits.
The Rays are off today. They begin a series against the Padres at 7:10 p.m. Friday night at Tropicana Field.
Don't you hate when your local professional baseball team forgets how to play the game?
The Tampa Bay Rays seemed to be cruising along Tuesday when a nightmarish fifth inning struck them. They gave up a 1-0 lead and fell apart in a 4-1 loss to the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park.
Over seven batters, the Rays were hardly the best team in the American League. They gave up a two-strike single. They let a pop-up fall harmlessly to the turf. They commited an error. They were called for a balk. They gave up a home run.
That, combined with an anemic offense, caused their downfall. The Rays scored just once, that coming in the fourth inning when the Rays loaded the bases with one out. Jonny DeLuca's infield single brought home Junior Caminero, but both Richie Palacious and Keven Walls struck out and no more damage was done.
Besides the three hits in that inning, the Rays had only two more against the Tigers. Caminero and Liam Hicks each had two of the hits.
Detroit starter Jackson Jobe was only 1-1 with a 4.56 ERA coming into the game, but he controlled the Rays.
Tampa Bay started Casey Legumina, who allowed just one hit in two and a third innings. Ian Seymour came in and allowed four runs in five and two-third innings.
The Rays and Tigers play again today at 1;10 p.m. at Comerica Park. Freddy Peralta (5-11) will start for the Rays against Troy Melton (7-2).
Tuesday, 4 a.m. Is there any way for the Tampa Bay Rays to go to a two-man rotation. One day after Nick Martinez fashioned a 3-1 victory over Baltimore, teammate Drew Rasmussen threw a gem of his own in a 4-1 win over Detroit. Martinez allowed just one hit in six innings for his 13th […]
Monday, 4 a.m. If the Tampa Bay Rays are going to hold onto the American League East lead, it will take pitching performances like this. Nick Martinez, stopper, threw six innings of shutout, one-hit baseball Sunday to lead the Rays to a 3-1 victory over the Baltimore Orioles. Although the Rays are in first place […]
Sunday, 4 a.m. Five outs away, and the tumbling Tampa Bay Rays still could not seal the deal. The Rays lost yet again to the Baltimore Orioles Saturday at Camden Yards. Tampa Bay has lost eight of its last nine games to the Orioles, still the last-place team in the AL East. This one must […]
Sunday, 3 a.m. Two games in, and the question about Jalon Daniels deserves an update: Is this guy going to settle for the No. 3 spot on the depth chart, or is he aiming even higher. Daniels, an undrafted rookie, was the star for the second straight week in Saturday night’s 16-15 preseason victory over […]
Saturday, 4 a.m. So far, he is not exactly the cavalry. So far, Freddy Peralta is just one disappointment in a clubhouse filled with them. The Tampa Bay Rays continued their slide back toward the rest of the AL East Friday night, losing a 5-3 game to a Baltimore team that has had their number. […]
Friday, 4 a.m. Remind yourself: they remain in first place. They are 25 games above .500. They have won the third-most games in the major leagues. On the other hand, man, are they playing lousy baseball. The Rays lost their sixth game in the last eight Thursday, falling 5-1 to the Toronto Blue Jays. It […]
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About Gary Shelton
• No one covers Tampa Bay like Gary Shelton.
• No one has seen as many moments, as many athletes, as many coaches as he has over the last quarter of a century.
• No one has won more awards, including two national Associated Press Sports Editors Best Columnist awards and eight top 10 finishes. He also just received his sixth Sportswriter of the Year award for Florida by the NSSA.
• No one has seen more big events, including 29 Super Bowls, 10 Olympics and 11 Final Fours. Gary still goes into the locker rooms to obtain his stories.
• No one has made you angrier, or laugh louder, or think harder about what he has written.
Now, he begins a website designed to keep him in touch with the readers who have grown up on his words.
