The Rays Are Playing Like The Devil Rays
How bad could it get for the Rays? Just a short week ago they were the talk of the league, sporting a five game lead in the least budget-conscious division in sports after winning 11 of 12 games. They haven’t won a game since. They dropped their sixth straight game tonight, and their previously comfortable lead is down to just half a game over the Red Sox. Oops. That’s now how the fairy tale was supposed to go heading into the All-Star break.
The latest one, tonight against Cleveland, was especially ugly. Matt Ginter hadn’t won in the majors in four years, yet he pulled it off. He was only pulled into action because the Indians needed to fill the spot vacated by Sabathia, and he was cheap and simple. Ryan Garko was in a hitting slump that hadn’t earned him an extra base hit in more than a month, yet he had five RBIs.
That loss to Cleveland was the third in a row, and it’s a sign of the reason why Tampa Bay fans probably aren’t feeling very good right now. The Indians, since losing Sabathia, know their season is over. It is too straightforward to assume that that means that they will just quit and pack it in, but it would seem more than likely that the Rays could have zapped the Indians of some will if they had come out playing strong. Cleveland had lost 10 straight coming into the series and their rotation was a disaster. Instead, the Rays lost the three games by a combined 26-6.
So, how bad could it get? I am sure that the Rays can right the ship and get things back in order. I would feel better, though, if they weren’t so young and inexperienced. For most of the team this will be the worst adversity that they have faced. That could make it too easy to panic, and they really don’t need to panic - at 55-38 they still have the third best record in baseball and are still atop their division. A win on Sunday would keep them there for the All-Star break. The break also comes at a great time for them to get their heads back on straight and come out swinging the next time around.
So, the point? Don’t give up on the Rays yet. It is more than conceivable that they could falter now, come back to earth a bit and miss the playoffs. I’m going to give them the benefit of the doubt, though. For now. They have been too surprising for too long now to assume that this is anything more than a pretty large pothole on the road to brighter things.
