Jeff Niemann Dominates, Helps Rays Beat White Sox 5-1
by Steve Slowinski on May 28, 2010 4:00 AM EDT
0 comments
It's incredible how fast public opinion can shift - or more precisely, the media. Going into the series with Boston, we were the media darlings; everyone was jumping on board the Rays' ship, proclaiming us one of the best teams in all of baseball. After being swept by Boston, now the media focus seems to be on all of our team's faults, specifically on Upton and Pena slumping. No doubt about it, it was a rough series against Boston - our pitchers showed they were human and our offense proved that no team can beat Lady Luck forever with runners in scoring position. Everything that was going right for the Rays stopped going right all at once, leaving the team to smack face-first into the wall in front of them.
Needless to say, coming off that series the Rays really needed to win last night. Not that the division was slipping away from then - they still have a comfortable cushion - but the Rays needed to regain some momentum instead of letting all their good vibes slip away in a protracted losing streak. Yeah, yeah, you can't measure or quantify momentum's effect on a team (and from a rational point of view, there probably is none), but I know this - the Rays can go to bed tonight feeling relaxed instead of anxious and they can come in to the clubhouse tomorrow loose instead of tense. Does that change anything? Possibly not, but it certainly can't hurt.
The big reason the Rays won this game? Without a doubt, Jeff Niemann.
A look at the batting average of each player and the team with and without runners in scoring position for the month of May. The number before the player name represents the number of AB with RISP. As a whole the team is hitting the same in both situations.
5/27/10 GDT: Chicago White Sox @ Tampa Bay Rays
by Steve Slowinski on May 27, 2010 6:00 PM EDT
542 comments
Current Series
4 game series vs White Sox @ Tropicana Field
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Chicago White Sox Thursday, May 27, 2010, 7:10 PM EDT . Game time temperature around .
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| Fri 05/28 | 7:10 PM EDT | |
| Sat 05/29 | 7:10 PM EDT | |
| Sun 05/30 | 1:40 PM EDT | |
We could really use a win right about now. We still have that cushion, but it would sure make me feel better as a fan.
Series Preview: Chicago White Sox @ Tampa Bay Rays
by Steve Slowinski on May 27, 2010 2:15 PM EDT
62 comments
First three games are 7:10 PM starts; the Sunday game is a 1:40 PM start.
Thursday, May 27: RHP Gavin Floyd vs. RHP Jeff Niemann
Friday, May 28: RHP Freddy Garcia vs. LHP David Price
Saturday, May 29: LHP John Danks vs. RHP Wade Davis
Sunday, May 30: TBA vs. RHP James Shields
We discussed the White Sox the last time we faced them, and not much has changed since then - they're a middle-of-the-road team playing like a middle-of-the-road team. Some of their hitters are performing, like Alex Rios (.408 wOBA), Paul Konerko (.401 wOBA), and the revitalized (?) Andruw Jones (.386 wOBA), but the drop-off is steep after those few. Carlos Quentin (.305 wOBA), Alexei Ramirez (.277 wOBA), and Gordon Beckham (.249 wOBA) were expected to be key contributors and have stunk up the joint so far, making their line-up underwhelming so far this season.
1010 Sports
Friend of the site, Bobby Fenton, will be filling in for J.P. Peterson on his afternoon show from 3-6pm on 1010AM in Tampa today and tomorrow. Do yourself a favor and listen.
B.J. Upton Overload: A Hypothesis and a Look at Upton's Balls in Play
by Steve Slowinski on May 27, 2010 10:37 AM EDT
107 comments
To those of you that don't like it when we drag a subject out, I'm sorry in advance. There were lots of words spilled on BJ Upton yesterday, with a FanPost by Transplanted, an article by Tommy, and an article by Dave Cameron over at FanGraphs. For those of you that didn't get a chance to read all those excellent articles, let me summarize them for you:
- Transplanted: All of BJ's major statistics have been trending downward over the past three years, and now his plate discipline seems like it's going as well. He needs to make more contact by "fixing his swing mechanics and recognizing pitches better."
- Tommy: Upton has gotten slightly unlucky with Balls in Play, meaning his average should be higher than it is, but the biggest problem with him is that he's swinging and missing waaaaay too much, especially on four-seam fastballs. Although we'll need to get the advice of a professional to know for sure, it seems likely that something is wrong with Upton's swing.
- Cameron: Abort, abort! Upton has a poor plate approach and he chases pitches outside of the zone. TRADE HIM NOW!
One of these things is not like the other. True, I've exaggerated Cameron's point a lot - and for the record, I'm a huge Dave Cameron fan and it's nice to hear an opinion on Upton from an emotionally-unattached fan. Maybe our fandom is blinding us and the Rays are stupid not to trade Upton at this point; you can certainly make an argument for trading him.
However, while I'm sure the Rays' front office is considering every option, I disagree that this is something the Rays will or should do. If the Rays had reason to believe that Upton is a true-talent .210/.285/.370 hitter, then yes, the Rays should trade him while his value is still somewhat high and bring up Desmond Jennings. Cameron's idea hinges on the belief that this Upton, the one with the hole in his swing and the .301 Weighted On-Base Average (wOBA), is who we're getting for the season. Upton's getting expensive and if he's not going to hit, the Rays should cut bait.
And that's where I disagree with Cameron: I do think Upton's going to hit this season. After the jump, find out why.
Swept Away; Rays Lose Game/Series to Red Sox 11-3
by Erik Hahmann on May 27, 2010 12:13 AM EDT
244 comments
We know the amazing start couldn't be sustained for the whole season. The starting pitching and the team's average with runners in scoring position were too good to not eventually take a spoon full of regression. It's just that no one thought they would both happen at the same time.
The Rays lost again Wednesday night, falling 11-3 at the hands of their AL East rivals. The three game sweep at the hands' of the Red Sox was the first suffered by the team this season.
Unlike Tuesday's game, which featured a strike zone the size of Kevin Mench's head, the Rays had no excuses this time around. They did it to themselves, leaving what seemed like a trillion men in scoring position and pitching exceptionally poorly. Although Matt Garza had a bad outing, when you have men on base in all but two innings you need to score more than 3 runs.
Speaking of Garza, The Crane just wasn't himself tonight. The only pitch he threw for a strike more than 60% of the time was his four-seam fastball, and that came in at 60.27%. His most effective pitch on the season has been his slider, which has the highest strike% (66.7%) and highest whiff% (22.6%) of any of his offerings. Tonight Garza threw the pitch 19 times for 10 strikes (52.63%), 2 swinging (10.53%). Not close to his season averages. Garza's control did not accompany him to the ballpark tonight, as he walked five batters in his five innings of work. He missed both high and low, and inside and outside. Checking out his strikezone plot, it looks like Garza's plan was to keep the ball inside to right handers and away from lefties. Had he hit his spots that plan may have worked out a wee bit better.
There isn't much else to say about this game or series. The Red Sox are a very good team, and to expect the Rays to dominate them over a full season is unrealistic. Though, granted, you'd like to see the team put up more than four runs over three games. There's no reason to panic. As odd as it may sound, I'm kind of glad the Rays are hitting a bit of a rough patch right now. I'd rather see the team go through these struggles now instead of later in the season when it would hurt far more. The stellar start to the season provided the Rays with a cushion that comes in handy when series like this occur.
Now, having said that (shout out to the 3 people who get that reference), if the team gets swept at home by the White Sox my calm demeanor may take a different form.
Sox @ Rays
by kericr on May 26, 2010 6:00 PM EDT
in Games
1015 comments
Current Series
Red Sox stole the first 2 games
| Mon 05/24 | WP: Clay Buchholz (6 - 3) LP: Wade Davis (4 - 4) |
1 - 6 loss |
| Tue 05/25 | WP: Jon Lester (5 - 2) SV: Jonathan Papelbon No Run Support: James Shields (5 - 2) |
0 - 2 loss |
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Boston Red Sox Wednesday, May 26, 2010, 7:10 PM EDT Gametime temperature is ALWAYS 72 degrees at the Trop.
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Rays lead the series 1-0
| Thu 05/27 |
WP: Jeff Niemann (5 - 0)
LP: Gavin Floyd (2 - 5) |
5 - 1 win |
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Friday, May 28, 2010, 7:10 PM EDT . Game time temperature around . |
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| Sat 05/29 | 7:10 PM EDT | |
| Sun 05/30 | 1:40 PM EDT | |
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