TAMPA BAY RAYS NOTES:
SILENCED IN SAN DIEGO — Tampa Bay saw its three-game winning streak come to an end with last night’s 2-0 loss at San Diego…RHP Zach Eflin fell to 8-3 after tossing 6.0 innings, allowing two runs on four hits and two walks with five strikeouts…1B Yandy Díaz (1-for-3, 2B, BB) was responsible for Tampa Bay’s lone extra-base hit.
Tampa Bay was shut out for just the fourth time this season for the first time since 5/29 at Chicago-NL (1-0).
San Diego pitchers induced 17 strikeouts, including 12 from LHP Blake Snell…the 17 strikeouts by Tampa Bay hitters matched a season high (also 5/17 at NYM)…it was the first time Rays batters struck out at least 17 times in a nine-inning game since 9/10/20 vs. BOS (also 17SO)…Randy Arozarena matched a career high with four strikeouts (also 6/2/21 at NYY).
Prior to last night’s defeat, the Rays were 25-1 when their starter worked at least 6.0 innings…both losses have come in starts made by Zach Eflin (also 5/9 at BAL).
YANDY DANDY — Yandy Díaz is slashing .318./.417/.528 (56-for-176) with 13 doubles, 8 HR, 22 RBI and 26 walks against 30 strikeouts vs. right-handed pitching this season…min. 200 PA vs. RHP, Díaz ranks among AL batters in OBP (1st), OPS (2nd, .946), AVG (2nd) and SLG (3rd) vs. righties.
Díaz drew his 237th walk as a Ray in last night’s game, surpassing Kevin Kiermaier for the ninth-most free passes in franchise history…in 444 games since joining Tampa Bay in 2019, Díaz has 237 walks against only 266 strikeouts…his .377 OBP since 2019 is fourth highest in the AL, trailing only LAA Mike Trout (.401), NYY Aaron Judge (.393) and HOU Yordan Alvarez (.384).
BARRELED RAMÍREZ — Despite seeing his season-high-tying 10-game on-base streak come to an end last night, Harold Ramírez is slashing .361/.400/.528 (13-for-36) with three doubles, one home run, 7 RBI and three steals in 11 games this month…in the month of June, he ranks among AL leaders (min. 40PA) in batting average (6th), OBP (11th) and OPS (13th, 1.038).
ROLLING ON THE ROAD — Manuel Margot is slashing .319/.385/.464 (22-for-69) with seven doubles, 9 RBI and six walks over his last 22 road games since 4/18…he has reached base safely in eight of his last 10 road games since 5/30, batting .333 (11-for-33) with five doubles.
In 21 road games dating back to 4/29, Wander Franco is slashing .309/.367/.444 (25-for-81) with five doubles, two homers, 6 RBI, 12 steals and eight walks against 11 strikeouts during that stretch.
BULLISH ON THE ‘PEN — Since yielding eight runs on 6/3 (G1) at Boston, the Rays bullpen has recorded a 1.61 ERA (56.0IP, 10ER) over the last 15 games, holding opponents to a .151 average (28-for-186) and 0.64 HR/9.0 IP with 57 strikeouts against 25 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 six games (7.1IP) 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.
BALANCED ATTACK — The Rays lead the majors in stolen bases (95) while their 117 HR are second most behind Atlanta (122HR)…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 seven players with 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).
CALIFORNIA DREAMIN’ — Today, the Rays conclude the 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.
Today’s series finale also concludes a stretch of 17 games in 16 days with no off days for Tampa Bay — they are 11-5 since that stretch began on 6/3 at Boston.
INTERLEAGUE TALK—Tampa Bay is 15-8 (.652) in Interleague play this season, the fifth-best winning pct. in the majors behind Miami (16-5, .726) and New York-AL/Toronto (12-5, .706) and Arizona (11-5, .688)…the Rays have outscored NL opponents, 123-77 (+46).
As a team, Tampa Bay ranks among MLB leaders in Interleague play in SLG (1st, .465), stolen bases (1st, 41), OPS (2nd, .797) and HR (3rd, 39).
Since the beginning of the 2019 season, the Rays are 69-34 (.670) in Interleague play, the best winning pct. in the majors during that span ahead of Los Angeles-NL (59-33, .641) and New York-AL (56-41, .577).
CLOSE SHAVES — Thirty-two of Tampa Bay’s 74 games this season have been decided by two runs or fewer, with the Rays going 17-15 in those games…this includes a 13-12 mark in one-run contests…the only club in the AL to play in more one-run contests this season is Cleveland (13-17).
SERIES-LY SPEAKING — Entering today’s series finale, the Rays are 15-5-2 in series play, including 11-1-0 at home and 4-4-2 on the road…Tampa Bay is 4-3 in rubber games.
YOU STAY CLASSY, SAN DIEGO — Tampa Bay and San Diego wrap up a three-game set this afternoon at Petco Park…the two clubs last met in 2019, with the Rays taking two of three games from the Padres in San Diego.
The Rays are 6-2 all time at Petco Park, winning five straight from 6/15/04-8/13/19.
Tampa Bay has taken 10 of its last 12 from San Diego dating back to 6/24/10, outscoring the Padres, 73-38 (+35), during that span.
TODAY’S STARTER: RHP YONNY CHIRINOS (3-1, 2.35)
TODAY’S START — RHP Yonny Chirinos makes his third start (10th app.) of the season in today’s rubber match at Petco Park, marking his first road start since 9/13/22 at Toronto…has turned in a 0.96 ERA (9.1IP, 1ER) in two June outings (one start), holding opponents to an 0-for-5 clip with runners in scoring position…has recorded a 3.27 ERA (11.0IP, 4ER) in his two starts and a 1.98 ERA (27.1IP, 6ER) in seven relief appearances.
LAST TIME OUT — Pitching behind opener LHP Jalen Beeks (1.2IP, 2H, 0R, BB, 3SO), Chirinos scattered a pair of hits over 3.2 scoreless frames in Tampa Bay’s 2-1 defeat at Oakland on 6/13 (3.2IP, 2H, 0R, BB, 2SO)…retired six consecutive batters to begin his outing before a two-out single by Seth Brown in the fourth inning…stranded Brent Rooker at third base in the fifth to preserve a 1-0 Rays lead…the outing marked his first scoreless appearance since 4/23 vs. Chicago-AL (3.0IP, 0H, 2SO).
WESTWORLD — Today marks Chirinos’ first career appearance against San Diego…he has two prior outings against NL West clubs under his belt, going 1-0 with a 1.04 ERA (8.2IP, 1ER)…this includes a start at San Francisco’s Oracle Park on 4/7/19 (W, 5.0IP, 2H, 0R, BB, 5SO) and a 3.2-inning relief appearance on 5/22/19 vs. Los Angeles-NL (3.2IP, 3H, ER, HR, 2SO).
INTERLEAGUE INTEL — In seven career games (3 starts) against NL opponents, Chirinos is 3-0 with a 2.10 ERA (30.0IP, 7ER), including 1-0 with a 3.68 ERA (7.1IP, 3ER) in two relief outings this season (4/18 at CIN; 5/16 at NYM)…the Rays have won each of his last six Interleague appearances dating back to 4/7/19.
ON THE LEADERBOARDS — Among AL pitchers with at least 35.0 IP, Chirinos’ .178 opponent average (24-for-135) is tied with LAA Shohei Ohtani for the lowest mark in the league…he also ranks highly in hits per 9.0 IP (2nd, 5.63), opp. OPS (3rd, .551), WHIP (3rd, 0.96), opp. SLG (4th, 296), opp. OBP (6th, .255), ERA (9th, 2.35) and HR per 9.0 IP (13th, 0.70).
LET THAT SINK IN — Chirinos throws his sinker 47.7 pct. of the time, registering a .155 opp. average (11-for-55) on the offering…min. 50 PA ending with the pitch, it marks the third-lowest opp. average on any pitcher’s sinker in the majors, trailing SD Josh Hader (.147) and NYY Michael King (.149)…opposing hitters are slugging just .239 against Chirinos’ sinker, the second-lowest mark in MLB behind Hader (.206) under the same parameters.
In a limited sample last season, batters hit .353 (6-for-17) and slugged .412 against his sinker.
THIS AND THAT — He has gone 2-1 with a 2.22 ERA (24.1IP, 6ER) in six road outings, and 1-0 with a 1.04 ERA (8.2IP, 1ER) in two day games (one
start)…has held opponents to a 2-for-26 (.077) clip with runners in scoring position, including 0-for-13 with RISP and two outs…opposing hitters are 6-for-62 (.097) following a first-pitch strike and 13-for-54 (.241) following a first-pitch ball…opponents are 0-for-11 against him in full counts.
Chirinos, whose 45.8 pct. ground ball rate is the highest rate of any season in his career (excluding 2G in 2022), has benefitted from Tampa Bay’s defense, as opponents have registered a .183 batting average on balls in play, the lowest mark in the AL (min. 35.0IP)… the Rays currently rank fourth in the majors with 28 defensive runs saved (Fielding Bible).
After opening the season with 24.1 homerless frames across his first six appearances, he has permitted three homers in his last three outings (1.93 HR/9.0IP in that span).
SAN DIEGO PADRES NOTES:
Snell goes 6.0 scoreless innings against his former team as Padres blank Rays 2-0
- Starter Blake Snell faced his former team for the 1st time in his career, and he struck out 12 Rays with 6.0 scoreless frames…he allowed 2 hits and 2 walks.
- In the 5th inning, Fernando Tatis Jr. doubled, Juan Soto hit a sac fly, and Manny Machado singled to third, scoring Trent Grisham to make it 2-0.
- In relief, Steven Wilson, Nick Martinez, and Josh Hader combined for 3.0 innings of 1-hit, scoreless ball with 5 punchouts…Hader recorded the save, his 17th of the season.
Snellzilla becomes 4th pitcher since 1961 to punch out all 9 starters in back-to-back starts
- Last night, Blake Snell became the 1st Padre to ever strike out every opposing starter he faced in back-to-back starts (did so last Sunday @ Coors Field), and he became the 4th pitcher since 1961 to do so in B2B outings, per ESPN Stats & Info…the others were Jacob deGrom (2021), Pedro Martinez (1999 + 2000), and Randy Johnson (1992 + 1999).
Joe Musgrove gets the rock on Father’s Day
- Before today, starter Joe Musgrove has got the ball twice in his career on Father’s Day, and he’s gone 0-2 in those outings: went 5.2 IP with 5 runs allowed on June 18, 2017 with Houston and went 4.1 IP with 6 runs allowed on June 17, 2018 with the Pirates (Elias)…today will be his 1st start on Father’s Day as a Padre, and his dad, Mark, will be in attendance today, watching his son pitch on Father’s Day for his hometown team.
Friars hope to take the series on Father’s Day from baseball’s winningest team
- The Padres are 24-29 on Father’s Day, all-time…last year on Father’s Day, they lost 8-3 vs. Colorado…a win today would be their 1st Father’s Day win since they defeated the Reds 3-2 on June 20, 2021.
- Today will be the Padres 10th rubber game played, and they’ve gone 3-6 in such games so far.
Keepin’ it quality
- In their last 12 G since May 21, SD starters have a 3.21 ERA…in those 12 G, they’ve thrown 7 quality starts.
- Since the start of June, the Padres have won 7 of their 8 games in which their starter had a quality outing.
Padres break the Petco Park single season sellout record
- The Padres welcomed 43,180 fans last night, and it was their 27th sellout, breaking the Petco Park single season sellout record (set with 26 last season in 2022)…the 27 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 1,465,832 fans at Petco Park so far in 2023, not including the 39,244 in the 2 Mexico City series games vs. SF…in their 36 Petco Park games, they’ve averaged 40,717 fans per game, the 2nd-highest home attendance average behind just LAD’s 47,903 fans per game.
San Diego looks for a 3rd straight series win
- The Friars won their series against the Rockies (2-1) and the Guardians (2-1), and if they win today, it’ll be their 1st time this season winning 3 straight series.
STARTER – JOE MUSGROVE #4
Musgrove set for first appearances vs. TB since 2017
Joe Musgrove is slated for his first action vs. the Rays since 2017 as a member of the Astros…he allowed 4 runs across 6.0 IP in a start on April 23, 2017 @ Tropicana…his other career outing vs. TB came in relief on Aug. 2, 2017, tossing 3.0 shutout innings of 2-hit ball.
Quality outings continue last time out vs. CLE
Musgrove faced off against the Guardians for the first time as a Padre and the first time since Sept. 26, 2020, earning his 3rd win in a row and his 3rd consecutive quality start vs. the Guardinas in his 4th career start vs. the club…it was also his 3rd quality outing in his last 4 starts this season since May 26 @ NYY.
Petco Park’s finest
He’s made 34 road app. (33 starts) since joining SD compared to his 35 home app (all starts)…on the road, he is 15-9 with a 3.22 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and .223 AVG…he is 1 of 13 pitchers who have made at least 35 career starts in Petco history (including Postseason), and Joe ranks 3rd in ERA (2.89), trailing only Andrew Cashner (2.76) and Jake Peavy (2.80)…his 1.13 WHIP ranks T-4th with Yu Darvish (0.96), Peavy (1.09) and Chris Young (1.12) in downtown SD history, trailing only…his .225 opp. AVG ranks 6th.
Breaking bad
Yu Darvish (2,760 rpm) and Joe Musgrove (2,722 rpm) have the 2nd and 3rd-highest spin rates on breaking balls, respectively, among all NL pitchers since the start of last season (min. 1,250 pitches)…they trail only ATL’s Charlie Morton (3,072 rpm).
Musgrove’s chase rate, avg exit velocity and hard hit% among best in NL
Joe’s 35.7 chase % this season is a career high and ranks in the 96th percentile…it’s the highest chase rate among all NL hurlers (min. 200 PA)…it trails only MIN’s Joe Ryan (37.2%)… his 85.2 mph avg exit velocity trails only his 85.1 mph from the shortened 2020 campaign and ranks in the 95th percentile…among all hurlers (min. 200 PA), he trails only fellow hurler Nick Martinez (83.5 mph), Justin Steele (84.7) and Shohei Ohtani (85.1)…his 30.3 hard hit% is a career-best and ranks in the 91st percentile….his 30.3 hard hit% trails only Martinez (27.8%), Steele (28.0%) and Tommy Henry (30.2%) – min. 200 PA.
