Monday, 4 a.m.
On a lot of days, fans don’t notice Isaac Paredes.
He isn’t flashy like Randy Arozarena, he isn’t splashy like Jose Siri, he doesn’t have the bulging biceps of Yandy Diaz. Unless he’s hitting home runs, he tends to fade into the background.
Even when he slumps, no one seems to talk about Paredes.
Fans might mention him a time or two after Sunday’s game.
Content beyond this point is for members only.
Already a member? To view the rest of this column, sign in using the handy "Sign In" button located in the upper right corner of the GarySheltonSports.com blog (it's at the far right of the navigation bar under Gary's photo). Not a member? It's easy to subscribe so you can view the rest of this column and all other premium content on GarySheltonSports.com.
Parades led the Rays to a. 5-0 victory over Washington, hitting a home run, a triple and a double. Once more, he looked like a potential all-star.
It hasn’t been that way lately. Pardes hit just .221 in June with just two homes, and he was two-for-his-last-20 coming into the game. On Sunday, he missed hitting for the cycle only by a single. He flew out to center in his lasts at-bat.
The Rays, 42-42, got a strong start from Taj Bradley, who went 5 2/3 innings and gave up just three hits. He struck out 11.
Tampa Bay got 3 1/3 innings of no-hit relief from Colin Poche, Jason Adam, Garrett Cleavinger and Phil Maton. As a group, the Rays struck out 16 batters.
The Rays also got home runs by Jose Caballeros and Randy Arozarena. Jose Siri drove in another run with a sacrifice fly.
The Rays next play on Tuesday night in Kansas City at 8:10 p.m.. Zack Littell will start for the Rays against Brady Singer.