Race threw nine innings without scoring against the Red Sox today, but until it was not erased during a wild tenth inning, Kevin Kirmayer’s exit from Homer gave Tampa a 3-2 victory. Six different Rays pitchers combined to hold Red Sox bits without scoring or running during the first nine innings of the game, but Tampa Bay’s squad was also ruled out (with two hits) against Boston’s target. The Sox finally erupted with two hits and two runs at the top of the 10th, but the rays returned to the bottom half of the inning for what may now be the most unusual win of their season.
This is the 15th time in the history of the Premier League that a potential striker without a striker has not been beaten to extra innings, and only the second time such a match has been thrown by more than one pitcher. Matt Garza’s gem on July 26, 2010 remains the only striker in the history of the Rays franchise. Tampa has been at the wrong end of the games without hitting five times, three of which are perfect games (by Mark Burle, Dallas Braden and Felix Hernandez).
A few more notes from St. Pete …
- It was known that Seiya Suzuki was on the list of targets of the rays during the off-season and the club was obviously ready to make a big investment. The New York Post’s John Heyman reports that Rays’ offer to Suzuki was “close” to a five-year $ 85 million deal that the outfielder eventually received from the Cubs. Between this push for Suzuki and the even more surprising interest of the rays in Freddie Freeman last winter, this may suggest that Tampa Bay is ready to be more financially aggressive than usual in the pursuit of the World Series, which could set the stage for some interesting trade opportunities as the deadline approaches. It also seems that the rays have thought of something with Suzuki, given how it ignited in the first two weeks of his career in the Major League.
- Ryan Yarbro will begin rehabilitation at Triple-A today, said Rays manager Kevin Cash of Mark Topkin of The Tampa Bay Times and other reporters. If all goes well, this could arrange for Jarbro to be activated from the 10-day injury list in time to start Reyes’ match with the Mariners on Thursday. Jarbro has yet to play this season due to a groin injury. Working as a reveler, opener, pitcher and traditional starter during his four seasons at MLB, Jarbro has a 4.30 ERA over 499 2/3 innings in his career with Tampa.
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