Glasnow ran his record to 5-0 on the season./JEFFREY S. KING
Monday, 4 a.m.
Inside the Tampa Bay Rays' deck of cards, there is a new ace.
No, not Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell.
No, not free agent signee Charlie Morton.
It's Tyler Glasnow, who was 1-5 as a starting pitcher with the Rays a year ago. Now? Now, he's 5-0 with a 1.75 ERA.
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Diaz had a double and a triple./CHUCK MULLER
Glasnow was impressive Sunday, throwing 6 2/3 innings to lead the Rays to a 5-2 victory over Boston. Glasnow struck out nine batters and allowed just six hits.
“I thought he was outstanding," Rays' manager Kevin Cash said. "He picked up right where he’s been all season. To limit that offense like that in this ballpark is really challenging. It speaks volumes how good is stuff was. It looked like he added some changeups in there. When you add that third pitch it gives the offense morre to think about it.
"I think he’s totally capable of doing this (the rest of the season). I don’t know if it’s fair to expect any pitcher to dominate the way he has. We’ve got to allow for hiccups here and there. I know when he’s on the mound or it's his day to start, our thoughts are that we're feeling really good about ourselves.
“You don’t trick anybody when you’re a two-pitch pitcher. It’s not under-the-radar stuff."
The win allowed the Rays (18-9) to win two straight against Boston after being swept by the Red Sox earlier at Tropicana Field..
"There is going to be good ones bad ones," Glasnow said. "As long as I go out and control what I can mentality and stuff and put in the work. I think I've always had the ability to throw strikes. I just needed to believe in myself. That's really what’s changed."
Once again, the Rays struck early, scoring twice in the first and twice in the second off of Chris Sale, who fell to 0-5 on the year. Daniel Robertson hit a two-run homer in the first, and Yandy Diaz (who also had a double) knocked in two with a triple in the second.
The Rays now move to Kansas City to play the Royals. Ryne Stanek will pitch against Brad Keller in today's game. The game begins at 8:15 p.m.
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