Tuesday, 4 a.m.
After a win this large, the Tampa Bay Rays should be euphoric. They should be talking about the power in their lineup. They should be talking about the stars of their bullpen.
Instead, they are in a holding pattern.
Uh-oh.
The Rays lost pitcher Tyler Glasnow after four innings Tuesday night to an elbow strain, and you could almost see an entire franchise hold its breath. Oh, the Rays won a 5-2 decision over Chicago, the second-best team in the American League, but it didn't quite feel like time to celebrate.
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The Rays, as is their custom, wouldn't say much about Glasnow's health after the game, deferring to the MRIs that are to be taken today. But anything to do with a pitcher's elbow is serious stuff.
"Just the last couple of pitches, I felt a tug," Glasnow said. "I think I got it relatively early. I just don’t want to go out and chance it. The velo (velocity) and everything was still there. It just felt ... not right.
“Maybe I could have gone out and thrown another inning, but I’d rather be safe. I’m just being cautious. Something in my body was telling me ‘let’s just take it easy.’ There wasn't like this crazy pain."
Before the injury, Glasnow seemed just three outs away from his sixth victory, which would have tied his career high. He struck out six and allowed three hits in his four innings.
“He’ll get some images tomorrow.," said Rays' manager Kevin Cash. "It's not ideal. We're excited about the win, but we want to see what the doctors say and get some images. He just felt a couple of pitches in there where it didn’t feel right. I applaud Glas for acknowledging that. Hopefully, we got him out at the right time. We’ve got to wait and see now.
By then, the Rays had the lead. Austin Meadows hit a two-run homer in the first inning off Chicago ace Lance Lynn, giving him 50 RBI for the season. Brandon Lowe followed with solo homer in the third.
Later in the game, the Rays added one run on Randy Arozarena's ninth homer and an error (that came on Brett Phillips' infield single).
"Lynn is pitching as well as anyone in the game," Cash said. "We had great at bats and he was still able to get through six."
One more time, the Rays' bullpen was impressive. On a night where they didn't figure to get much work because of the length Glasnow has shown lately, they worked five shutout innings and allowed just two hits.
The Rays will start Shane McClanahan tonight against Chicago in a game that begins at 8:10 p.m. at Guaranteed Rate Field. The White Sox will start Dallas Keuchel.