Cosmic Rays

 

Y'know...a week ago the Yankees could have scored runs off of Nick Martinez.

I dunno, man. You think you have a team figured out and then they can't do anything against Aaron Civale, then can't mount a comeback against a clearly mediocre Rays team. The Rays' bullpen has been vile this year, and still David Bednar goes 'watch this' and ruins everything.

What can't be disputed, even if I'd try to whine about how undeserving the Rays are of a .500 record even if they outperformed the Yankees at home, is the talent emanating from Chandler Simpson. THAT is a leadoff hitter. Get on base, hits triples, steals, gets home. Everything you want. The man is a contact machine, and he could ride a .300+ average for a while at this rate. 'Pesky' is a good word for someone like Simpson, and it's clearer to me how tough of an out he's gonna be in every subsequent Yankees series. At least last year the speedy tough out guy on the Rays could get traded to New York midseason and wind up as a fun utility guy here. Simpson's gonna be a Ray for at least another two years, maybe three if the Rays can't find a good enough trade partner in time. 

I say that, yet they still haven't managed to get rid of Yandy Diaz, and they're better for it. I never would have thought THIS GUY would be a valuable veteran power bat. I saw him as a fill-in infield guy playing for Cleveland in 2017 and I didn't really think too much of him, and then he goes to Tampa and becomes a white-hot power hitting corner. Diaz is currently hitting .362 with 21 hits, 14 RBIs and 3 homers. I know that the Rays expected someone like Aranda or Caminero to be off to a hotter power start, but they'll take more Yandy Diaz production, I know that. And admittedly Jonathan Aranda has 3 homers and 14 RBIs himself, so he's just heating up.

I think the perks of this Rays team get overlooked because it's so easy to see the flaws. Once again, they have no choice but to start Taylor Walls at shortstop, meaning they're wasting like 3 at-bats a game. The Cedric Mullins experiment is not working out yet, and he may in fact just be past his prime. The bullpen is still a major problem area, as even in today's win Mason Englert let an Aaron Judge homer by and nearly wrecked the game. The days of having a murderer's row of sneaky, unhittable specialists all in a line are gone; now these guys are just trying to keep a job. Only Hunter Bigge and Jesse Scholtens have ERAs below 2.50, and Scholtens arguably should be starting. At the very least Rasmussen, Matz and Martinez have been solid so far, but considering that Martinez was already a 'break in case of emergency' starter, and Ryan Pepiot's missing time, them having to reach into depth options IN APRIL isn't a great sign. This is why you don't trade Taj Bradley.

A sweep of the Yankees is a good source of dopamine, but it's still early, and this is still a weaker, flawed Rays team. Unless this really is a moment of pure turnaround, the Rays need to come to terms with their limitations or face another really rough July.

Coming Tomorrow- After three years of 'is he for real', 7 homers in 3 and a half weeks seem to provide a definitive answer to that.

Fast and Loose

 

The good news is that for the first time since arguably Carl Crawford, the Tampa Bay Rays have a genuine base running talent in their midst. The bad news is stealing bases seems to be the only thing he's good at; despite 38 steals, Chandler Simpson is an outfield liability and has a 6.85 OPS despite a .297 average. He gets singles, but he's not a great contact performer. But man does he get on base. 

This is the grey area the Rays lie in once again, in yet another period of mediocrity cut from the same cloth as their pre-2020 teams. They're certainly one of the most intriguing teams in the bigs, even if they aren't really one of the best. Having Junior Caminero up and hitting certainly helps; Caminero is on track for a 40+ homer season and an 100+ RBI season after being an All-Star starter at 21. It's very helpful that the Rays can see the future of their team in a young player who isn't about to throw it all away for a felony. Similarly promising is Carson Williams, a 22-year-old shortstop prospect who's already hitting .316 after 5 games in the majors, meaning he's already an offensive upgrade over Taylor Walls. But then again so is my grandmother. Williams, Caminero, Jonathan Aranda and arguably Chandler Simpson are pieces this team can build on, to the point where if they ever figure out this stadium nonsense, they'll have a competitive team to fill seats there.

But everything else for right now is more of the sideshow stuff that Cash teams are known for. Witness Bob and Ian, the incredible Seymour twins, two guys named Seymour who are both rookies for the Rays and ARE NOT RELATED, nor are they related to Carson Seymour, a third rookie for the Giants! Marvel at Ha-Seong Kim, who spent four glorious seasons in San Diego then completely forgot how to play baseball the second he got to Tampa! Watch in amazement as Jake Mangum, a 30-year-old rookie, seeks to have a breakout season on a team that doesn't even want to pay its 28-year-olds! 

Right now some of the most crucial Rays are scrub relievers having nice months. Garrett Cleavinger, Eric Orze...what else can you say about them other than 'well they relieve well'. At least Pete Fairbanks is a proven success, but compared to prior Fairbanks seasons this isn't much. The Rays used to be known for their DIY bullpens, now they're just like everybody else. 

The odd part is there hasn't really been a watershed moment of 'this doesn't work anymore' for these Rays teams. They're still thinking it's a viable tactic. They're probably gonna let Lowe, Fairbanks and Diaz, the sole remnants of the 2020 team, go in the offseason, probably not pick up Kim's option, and possibly even cut Taylor Walls. All to save room for a youth movement they probably won't pay because of a superstar they paid millions to who'll never play again. It's a little sad in a sense, or it is the moment you stop laughing.

Coming Tomorrow- He was having a breakout season four years in the making and then in came the Yankees to ruin it.