Sunday, 3 a.m.
At the oddest of times, against the unlikeliest pitchers, the bats of the Tampa Bay Rays turn invisible.
They are not a great hitting team as it is. But there are times when their offense completely disappears. Like Saturday, for instance.
The Rays managed just four hits in a 9-1 drubbing by the Mnnesota Twins. The only run that Tampa Bay managed was a home run by Taylor Walls. He Rays managed just two of their hits against former Ray Chris Archer, a pitcher with one victory since 2019.
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"We had minimal opportunities to get anything going and we didn't," said manager Kevin Cash. "We have a lot of key components who are not doing anything they typically do right now."
Odd as it seems, the game was 1-1 going into the sixth inning. That's when Rays' starter Shane McClanahan gave up his second home run of the game to Kyle Garlick. Except for the home runs, McClanahan was sharp, giving up four hits in five plus innings and striking out 11.
"I thought McClanahan was just awesome again today," Cash said. "There were two pitches he’d like to have back. When they leave the ballpark it can be frustrating."
Javy Guerra gave up four earned runs in 2/3 of an inning as Minnesota blew the game open.
The Rays play the Twins again today at 1:10 p.m. at Tropicana Field. The Rays have not announced their opener. Chris Paddack will start for the Twins.