Andriese had a qualtiry start but took the loss./CARMEN MANDATO
Friday, 2 a.m.
This close to the finish — and to being finished — you might think the Tampa Bay Rays had figured out their starts.
Evidently, they have not.
The Rays were wrong from the first Thursday night. In the top of the inning, center fielder Mallex Smith was thrown out trying to steal third with no one out, a major gaffe. Then, in the bottom of the inning, Manny Machado hit a two-run homer for all the runs the Orioles would need.
Of course, Baltimore had a major advantage in the matchup. It was starting
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.
Mallex Smith was thrown out at third with none out in the first./CARMEN MANDATO
who's-he pitcher Gabriel Ynoa. Time after time down the stretch, the Rays have struggled to deal with young pitchers. This time, Ynoa went eight innings and allowed just five hits, two of them to Daniel Robertson.
Kiermaier flied out to end the game./CARMEN MANDATO
Tampa Bay is now five games under .500 and still talking about a winning streak.
Daniel Robertson had two of the Rays' five hits.
The Rays got off to a tough start, as Mallex Smith was thrown out trying to steal third with no one out in the top of the first. In the bottom of the inning, Machado hit his homer for all the runs the Orioles would need.
"I don't have the exact answer why,” said manager Kevin Cash. “We would probably all agree that that's not the situation to go. We had a situation to put two guys on with nobody out. They had already lost a ball in the sky to get him there, but those are the little things we have to eliminate real quick because they really impact the game in a negative way."
Despite giving up the early homer, Andriese turned in a quality start, going six innings and allowing all three runs. The Rays righty also struck out eight.
"Just looking at this outing," Andriese said, "giving up three runs in the first, at that point, I just want to turn that into a quality start and I was able to do that. It helps going into the next start."
The teams play again today at 7:05 p.m. Alex Cobb pitches for the Rays against Ubaldo Jimenez.
{ 0 comments… read it below or Subscriptions }