TAMPA BAY RAYS NOTES:
SUGAR SHANE DELIVERS — Tampa Bay earned its third straight victory after defeating San Diego, 6-2, in yesterday’s series opener…LHP Shane McClanahan earned his MLB-best 11th win after tossing 6.2 innings of one-run ball, allowing three hits and three walks with five strikeouts…the Rays received homers from LF Randy Arozarena (2-for4, HR, 4RBI) and 3B Isaac Paredes (1-for-3, HR, RBI, BB), while RF Luke Raley (2-for-4, 2 2B, 2R) matched a career high with two doubles (also 7/25/22 at BAL).
Tampa Bay has won 10 of its last 11 games against San Diego dating back to 6/24/10…during that stretch, the Rays have outscored the Padres 73-36 (+37).
Isaac Paredes became the fifth Ray with 12+ HR, joining Randy Arozarena (13HR), Yandy Díaz (12HR), Luke Raley (12HR) and Jose Siri (12HR)…Tampa Bay joins Atlanta as the only teams with five players with 12+ HR.
CALIFORNIA DREAMIN’ — The Rays are on their first of three West Coast road trips this season (also: 6/27-7/2 & 8/14-20)…following a six-game homestand vs. Baltimore (2G) and Kansas City (4G) from 6/20-25, Tampa Bay heads back out west to face Arizona (3G) and Seattle (3G) for the club’s final road trip before the All-Star break.
The Rays are in the midst of a stretch of 17 games in 16 days with no off days — they are 11-4 since that stretch began on 6/3 at Boston.
HOME AWAY FROM HOME — After hitting his team-leading 13th home run and producing 4 RBI in last night’s win, Randy Arozarnea is slashing .373/.418/.863 (19-for51) with 8 HR and 13 RBI in 13 career games (including Postseason) at Petco Park.
Arozarena has five games with 4+ RBI this year, tied with teammate Isaac Paredes for the most such games in MLB.
YEAR OVER YEAR CHANGE — After last night’s 6-2 victory, Tampa Bay has scored 6+ runs in an MLB-best 37 games, ahead of Los Angeles-NL (34G) and Texas (32G).
It is the most 6+ run games through 73 games to start a season in franchise history, ahead of the 2009 Rays (33G)…the 2022 Rays had 20 games with 6+ runs through 73 games.
BULLISH ON THE ‘PEN — Since yielding eight runs on 6/3 (G1) at Boston, the Rays bullpen has recorded a 1.67 ERA (54.0IP, 10ER) over the last 14 games, holding opponents to a .156 average (28-for-180) and 0.67 HR/9.0 IP with 56 strikeouts against 24 walks.
RHP Jason Adam has five saves with a 0.87 ERA (10.1IP, 1ER) to go with a .121 opp. average (4-for-33) and 13.06 SO/9.0 IP over his last 10 outings since 5/26…the Rays have won each of the last 13 games he has pitched in dating back to 5/19.
RHP Kevin Kelly has not allowed an earned run over his last 13 appearances (9.2IP), producing a 54.5 pct. ground ball rate in that span.
RHP Robert Stephenson has allowed only one hit and one run in six outings (4.2IP) since being acquired by the Rays…RHP Shawn Armstrong has not allowed a run in five games (6.1IP) since his season debut on 6/4.
After pitching to a 7.94 ERA (11.1IP, 10ER) in 13 games with Chicago-AL to open the season, LHP Jake Diekman has a 3.27 ERA (11.0IP, 4ER), a 1.00 WHIP and a .143 opp. average (5-for-35) with the Rays (14G)…Diekman, who has turned in nine straight scoreless outings (7.0IP), has stranded all nine of his inherited runners as a Ray.
LEFT SIDE, STRONG SIDE—The Rays are an MLB-best 11-3 (.786) against left-handed starters, ahead of Atlanta (12-5, .706) and Baltimore (17-8, .680).
Tampa Bay ranks among MLB leaders against left-handed pitching in SLG (2nd, .519), OPS (2nd, .867), AVG (3rd, .289), OBP (4th, .348) and HR (5th, 28).
Min. 60 PA, Wander Franco’s .340 (18-for-53) batting average against southpaws ranks fourth in the AL behind BOS Rob Refsnyder (.373), HOU Kyle Tucker (.357) and SEA Ty France (.348).
BARRELED RAMÍREZ — Harold Ramírez has reached base safely in a season-high-tying 10 consecutive games (also 4/12-24)…during the run, he is slashing .406/.444/.594 (13- for-32) with three doubles, one HR, 7 RBI and three steals…during the month of June, he ranks among AL leaders (min. 30PA) in batting average (3rd, .406), OBP (T6th, .444) and OPS (12th, 1.038).
Since 5/27, Ramírez is 10-for-17 (.588) against left-handed pitchers, the highest such average in the majors in that span (min. 15AB).
Since the beginning of 2022, he has been one of baseball’s most prolific hitters against southpaws, leading the majors (min. 150PA vs. LHP) in batting average vs. lefties (.381) while ranking in OBP (2nd, .421) and OPS (8th, .965).
ROLLING ON THE ROAD — Manuel Margot is slashing .338/.405/.492 (22-for-65) with seven doubles, 9 RBI and six walks compared to nine strikeouts over his last 21 road games…he has reached base safely in eight of his last nine road games since 5/30, batting .379 (11-for-29) with five doubles.
INTERLEAGUE TALK — Tampa Bay is 15-7 (.682) in Interleague play this season, the fourth-best winning pct. in the majors behind Miami (16-5, .726) and New York-AL/ Toronto (12-5, .706)…the Rays have outscored NL opponents, 123-75 (+48).
Harold Ramírez is batting .339 (21-for-62) with one double, 4 HR and 11 RBI in 17 Interleague games…min. 60 PA, his .339 AVG vs. NL opponents ranks second in the AL, trailing only CWS Luis Robert Jr. (.385).
As a team, Tampa Bay ranks among MLB leaders in Interleague play in SLG (1st, .478), OPS (1st, .815), stolen bases (1st, 40) and HR (3rd, 39).
BALANCED ATTACK — The Rays lead the majors in stolen bases (94) while their 117 HR are second most behind Atlanta (118HR)…per Elias, no club has paced MLB in both home runs and steals over a full season since the 1955 Brooklyn Dodgers, and only 10 clubs have turned the trick in the Modern Era (since 1900)…the Rays have three players with 7+ HR and 15+ SB (Wander Franco, Josh Lowe, Taylor Walls); only five other players in baseball have accomplished the feat this season, none from the same club.
Tampa Bay has six players with 10+ homers, tied with Los Angeles-NL for second most in MLB behind Atlanta (7)…the Rays have an MLB-best six players in 7+ steals…no other team has more than four (CIN, CLE, MIL, PIT).
The Rays were the first team in MLB history (since 1901) to record 100+ homers and 80+ stolen bases within their first 70 games of a season (113HR, 89SB).
YOU STAY CLASSY, SAN DIEGO — Tampa Bay and San Diego meet for game two of a three-game set tonight at Petco Park…the two clubs last met in 2019, with the Rays taking two of three games from the Padres in San Diego.
he Rays are 6-1 all time at Petco Park, winning five straight from 6/15/04-8/13/19.
TODAY’S STARTER: RHP ZACH EFLIN (8-2, 3.28)
TODAY’S START—The righty makes his 13th start of the season, including his sixth on the road, seeking his ninth win…marks his third career start at Petco Park and his first since 6/25/22…the Rays are 10-2 in his starts, including an undefeated mark in his seven daytime starts, with Eflin going 6-0 with a 2.72 ERA (43.0IP, 13ER) in those outings…his 24.2 pct. whiff rate is the highest mark of any season in his career (prev. 24.0% in 2020).
LAST TIME OUT — Took his second loss of the season after being tagged for a season-high-tying four runs in Tampa Bay’s 4-3 loss at Oakland on
6/11 (4.2IP, 5H, 4ER, 2BB, 6SO)…held the Athletics scoreless over the first \4.0 innings, fanning six in that span…loaded the bases with no outs in the fifth frame before allowing a bases-clearing double and an RBI-single… the outing was his shortest as a Ray and snapped a career-high-tying streak of 12 consecutive starts of 5.0+ innings.
FRIAR FEATS — Eflin is 2-2 with a 3.38 ERA (26.2IP, 10ER) in five career starts against San Diego, including 1-1 with a 3.27 ERA (11.0IP, 4ER) in two outings at Petco Park…made two starts against the Padres in 2022, recording a 2.45 ERA (11.0IP, 3ER) with eight strikeouts and a pair of walks.
He is 5-12 with a 5.20 ERA (147.0IP, 85ER) in 27 career starts opposite NL West clubs, his highest ERA against any division in his career, ahead of the AL East (4.70)…however, he recorded a 2.43 ERA (29.2IP, 8ER) and a 0.94 WHIP in five starts against the NL West in 2022.
The Rays have won all three of his Interleague starts this season, with Eflin going 2-0 with a 2.70 ERA (20.0IP, 6ER) in those games while holding opponents to a .162/.174/.279 (11-for-68) clip.
HOMEBODY — While Eflin’s 1.85 ERA (43.2IP, 9ER) at Tropicana Field signals the fourth-best home ERA in the AL (min. 25.0IP), his 5.53 ERA (27.2IP, 17ER) on the road ranks 47th under the same parameters…has received 8.86 runs of support per 9.0 IP at home compared to 4.76 on the road.
Since the beginning of May, he has a 1.30 ERA (27.2IP, 4ER) in four home starts compared to a 5.96 ERA (22.2IP, 15ER) on the road (4GS).
In 72 career appearances (66 starts) on the road, he is 16-30 with a 5.38 ERA (356.2IP, 213ER), compared to 28-17 with a 3.41 ERA (374.1IP, 142ER) in 67 games (61 starts) at home.
AHEAD OF THE CURVE — Eflin’s curveball has induced a 36.9 pct. whiff rate, third-best on any AL pitcher’s curve (min. 200 curveballs thrown) behind DET Alex Lange (48.8%) and CLE James Karinchak (41.7%)…his 28.2 pct. putaway percentage (pct. of two-strike pitches resulting in a strikeout) ranks fourth under the same parameters.
His 27.3 pct. usage rate on the offering is third-highest on any AL pitcher’s curve (min. 1,000 total pitches thrown)…it marks his highest usage rate on the curveball in his career, ahead of 2022 (20.1%).
WINNERS WIN — Eflin is the third pitcher in Rays history to win eight of his first 10 decisions with the club, along with Charlie Morton (2019) and Jeremy Hellickson (2010-11)…with a win today, he would join both pitchers as the only Tampa Bay hurlers to start 9-2 through 11 decisions.
QUALITY CONTROL — Eflin’s 6.55 SO/BB ratio is second-best in the majors (min. 60.0IP) behind only SEA George Kirby (11.83)…he joins Kirby (71SO, 6BB) as the only pitchers in MLB with 70+ SO and 11 or fewer walks.
Eflin has walked two or fewer batters in each of his last 15 starts since 6/14/2022, the second-longest streak of his career (longest: 33GS, 8/29/20-6/3/22)…overall, the righty has issued two or fewer walks in 48 of his last 49 starts dating back to 8/29/2020.
Eflin’s 4.0 pct. walk rate is the second-lowest mark of any season in his career, trailing only his 2021 campaign (3.6%)…since the beginning of 2021, his 4.1 pct. walk rate is the lowest in the majors (min. 1,000BF), outpacing KC Zack Greinke (4.6%).
GONE FISHING — Opposing hitters are offering at 32.5 pct. of Eflin’s pitches outside of the strike zone, tied with rotation-mate Shane McClanahan for the seventh-highest chase rate in the AL and 13th-highest in the majors min. 250BF)…excluding the shortened 2020 campaign (34.5%), it marks the highest chase rate of any season in his career.
GOING DEEP — He has typically been at his best deep into his outings, registering a 3.75 ERA (48.0IP, 20ER) in innings 1-4 compared to a 2.31 ERA (23.1IP, 6ER) from the fifth inning on.
SAN DIEGO PADRES NOTES:
Darvish allows 6 runs as Padres fall 6-2 to Rays in Game 1 of the series
- Starter Yu Darvish allowed 6 runs (all ER) in his 5.0 innings of work with 8 hits…he struck out 5 Rays and allowed a walk and 2 home runs…he was saddled with his 5th loss of the season (now 5-5)…after Ryan Weathers allowed 6 ER the night before on Thursday, it marked the 1st time since August 4-5, 2022 in which San Diego starters allowed 6+ ER in consecutive games.
- Fernando Tatis Jr. went 2-for-4 witha double and a walk, Xander Bogaerts also doubled, and Nelson Cruz hit his 5th homer of the season in the 7th inning (a 2-out, solo shot)…Friar batters went 1-for-6 with RISP.
Bump Day: Snell finally faces his former team
- Today, Blake Snell takes the mound for his staff-leading 14th start and the 1st against his former club…entering the season, the Reds and Rays were the only 2 MLB clubs Snell had yet to face, and after facing Cincinnati on May 1 (got the win in his quality start), the Rays are the 30th and final team for him to face.
- Snell is coming off his best start of the season against the Rockies last Sun @ Coors Field, in which he posted his 1st double-digit strikeout game since a career-high-tying 13 (4x) on Sept. 21, 2022 vs. STL…the 85 pitches it took him to get thru at least 7.0 frames were the fewest of his career, ahead of the 95 pitches in 7.0 IP September 16, 2022 @ ARI. San Diego bullpen has best WHIP & ERA in MLB since the start of May
- Since the start of May, the Friar ‘pen has the best ERA in all of baseball (2.35 ERA) and the lowest WHIP in the Majors (1.04)…their .204 opponent clip since May 1st is 3rd in MLB behind SF (.200) and CWS (.199).
- San Diego bullpen’s ERA overall in 2023 is 3.21, ranking 4th in baseball, and their .217 opponent average overall this year is the 2nd lowest clip in MLB behind the Yankees (.213).
XBH allowed
- The Padres pitching staff has allowed just 179 extra-base hits this year, the 2nd fewest in MLB (Texas has allowed 176 XBH).
Padres poised to break the Petco Park single season sellout record
- The Padres welcomed 42,367 fans last night, tying the Petco Park single season sellout record at 26 (set last season in 2022)…the 25 sellouts also do not include the 2 “home games” in Mexico City vs. SF, and a sellout today would break the record.
- The Padres have seen 1,422,652 fans at Petco Park so far in 2023, not including the 39,244 in the 2 Mexico City series games vs. SF…in their 35 Petco Park games, they’ve averaged 40,647 fans per game, the 2nd-highest home attendance average behind just LAD’s 47,800 fans per game.
RISP woes
- The Friar offense has hit .221 (29-for-131) in the month of June with RISP with
a .318 OBP and a .427 SLG…prior to June, however, they were hitting .192 with
RISP…their .199 average overall with RISP is an MLB-low.
Padres have lost 9 of their last 10 games against Tampa Bay - The Rays have won 9 of the last 10 matchups against the Padres since the 2013
season, and of the Padres 7 games played at home against the Rays, the Friars
have won just 1 of them (August 14, 2019).
STARTING PITCHER – BLAKE SNELL #4
After today’s start, Snell will have faced every ML club 30-year-old left-hander Blake Snell takes the mound for his staff-leading 14th start and the first against his former club, the Tampa Bay Rays…entering the season, CIN and TB were the only 2 ML clubs Snell was yet to face.
Posts season highs in strikeouts (12) and IP (7.0) @ COL Last Sun @ Coors Field, Snell posted his first double-digit strikeout game since a career-high-tying 13 (4x) on Sept. 21, 2022 vs. STL…the 85 pitches it took him to get thru at least 7.0 frames were the fewest of his career, ahead of the 95 pitches in 7.0 IP Sept, 16, 2022 @ ARI. 16.0 scoreless-inning streak 3rd-longest of his career With Ezequiel Tovar’s solo HR in the 1st Sun @ COL, Snell’s scoreless inning streak was snapped at 16.0 innings, the 3rd-longest of his career, and it began in the 2nd inning of his May 25 start @ WSH…the streak trails only his 20.0 scoreless innings from Sept. 16-Oct. 2, 2022 and 17.0 scoreless IP from June 19-July 1, 2018.
Snell has allowed just 3 HR in last 6 starts
In his 6 starts since May 12 @ LAD, Snell has allowed just 3 HR, and his 0.79 HR/9 IP ratio since May 12 ranks T-13th fewest among all qualifying NL starters with rotation-mate Joe Musgrove…he’s 1 of just 14 Major League pitchers (including Musgrove) to allow 1 HR-or-fewer among all qualifying starters since May 25…he allowed 7 HR in his first 7 starts this season, posting a 1.80 HR/9 IP clip.
Snell’s run support average 6th-fewest in the NL
Snell’s 3.78 run support average is 6th-fewest in the NL (min. 13 starts), and since the start of ’22, his 3.99 RSA is 10th-fewest in the NL.
Among the best vs. the NL West
Among all ML pitchers who have made at least 35 career starts vs. NL West opponents, Snell (.187) joins Jacob deGrom (.178) as the only 2 hurlers with a sub-.200 opponent clip… his 2.59 ERA vs. the NL West ranks 5th against the division in NL West history, trailing only deGrom (1.84), Bill Swift (2.48), Clayton Kershaw (2.56) and Cliff Lee (2.57).
