Monday, 2 a.m.
Charlie Morton can't count on his curve ball anymore.
And the Rays can't count on relief pitcher Pete Fairbanks.
Those two things, along with their fourth loss in six games, made Sunday a hard day to deal with for Tampa Bay, which absorbed a 6-3 defeat at the hands of the Boston Red Sox.
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Morton fell behind 2-0 after two batters, giving up a home run to Christian Vazquez. The Rays managed to move back in front 3-2, but Fairbanks gave up the tying run in only two-thirds of an inning.
For Morton, one of the top pitchers in the American League last year, the no-decision left him at 1-2 on the season.
"That’s been my bread and butter for years," Morton said. "If hitters are going to anticipate breaking balls coming, that means the stuff coming out of my hands is going to have to be better.”
Fairbanks was even more blunt.
"
“The ball was not over the plate consistently," he said. "I don’t know if you guys saw that. When you don’t throw strikes, usually you're not very good. I didn’t throw a lot of strikes and I was not very good."
The Rays got back in the game on Kevan Smith's two-run homer. It wouldn't last, however, as the bullpen faltered.
"Just nothing was able to get in rhythm for anybody," said Rays' manager Kevin Cash.
"We left a lot of guys on base. We didn’t get that big hit. Anytime you get beat and the opposing team had some errors in there, it gets more frustrating."
The Rays are off today, then play the Washington Nationals Tuesday night at 6:40 p.m. at Tropicana Field. John Curtiss will pitch for the Rays against Anibal Sanchez.