Scuffling Rays lose season-high 4th straight game

ST. PETERSBURG — The way in which the Rays started the season set an nearly impossibly excessive commonplace. They received every of their first 13 video games and 29 of their first 36. They went nearly a month with out shedding consecutive video games at dwelling. Their first three-game shedding streak got here almost midway by their regular-season schedule.

However slumps are inevitable, even for the perfect crew within the American League.

“We’ll hit some robust stretches,” supervisor Kevin Money mentioned earlier than the Rays’ 8-4 loss to the Phillies on Wednesday night time at Tropicana Area, “and it seems like we have been on one.”

After giving up 17 hits to a streaking Philadelphia lineup, Tampa Bay has misplaced 4 straight video games for the primary time all 12 months. That is additionally simply the second time the membership has misplaced back-to-back dwelling video games. Having dropped 13 of their previous 23 video games, the Rays have struggled simply to tread water recently.

“All people in right here is aware of we’re not taking part in our greatest ball, however we all know that comes with a season that is 162 [games],” infielder Taylor Partitions mentioned. “We’ll get again to it. However fortunately, it is taking place now so we will clear a few of these issues up, discover a number of the weaknesses that we [have] now and get higher at them, so afterward down the street, we’re quite a bit stronger.”

After being on the incorrect finish of a pitchers’ duel within the sequence opener, the Rays had been outplayed in all sides on Wednesday night time by a Phillies membership that has received 21 of its previous 28 video games.

Tampa Bay scored early in opposition to starter Taijuan Walker, placing up 4 runs within the first three innings, however its pitching employees had blown three leads by the fifth inning. Then, the Rays’ bats went quiet, managing solely three walks and two singles from the fourth inning onward as Walker settled in to pitch seven innings to earn his sixth straight win.

“He is only a good pitcher. He was on the market executing his pitches, getting guys to swing and develop the zone,” mentioned Brandon Lowe, who went 2-for-3 with two doubles and two RBIs. “Actually, he was only a skilled arm on the market.”

In the meantime, the Rays despatched six pitchers to the mound; solely two of them, lefty relievers Jake Diekman and Colin Poche, didn’t permit a run. Opener Zack Littell gave up 4 straight hard-hit singles to allow two runs within the second inning, then right-hander Yonny Chirinos — coming off a powerful six-inning efficiency in Arizona — allowed three runs on eight hits whereas overlaying solely 2 2/3 innings.

“It felt like we had been type of — not giving it again, however they had been coming again,” Money mentioned. “Then, they finally took the lead and did not look again. A variety of good at-bats by them.”

Chirinos’ comparatively transient outing pressured the Rays to lean closely on their relievers the night time earlier than one other scheduled bullpen sport. Shawn Armstrong will open Thursday’s sequence finale, and whereas the membership will probably name up one other pitcher from Triple-A Durham, the relievers could have needed to do loads of work heading into this weekend’s sequence in opposition to the MLB-leading Braves.

The Phillies put 14 balls in play in opposition to Chirinos, and 7 of them got here off the bat with an exit velocity of not less than 95.5 mph, in accordance with Statcast.

“I used to be simply making an attempt to assault their hitters. They seem to be a actually good crew, so that they had been attacking me again,” Chirinos mentioned by translator Manny Navarro. “If you do this, generally you’ve gotten good outcomes, generally you’ve gotten unhealthy outcomes. However my purpose is to simply carry on working and simply be taught from it.”

As irritating as this stretch has felt, the Rays’ unimaginable begin to the season gave them the flexibility to resist it, to a sure extent. Their 57-32 report continues to be the perfect within the AL. They continue to be five games ahead of the Orioles (50-35) within the AL East, having misplaced just one 1/2 video games off their division lead throughout this 10-13 hunch.

Tampa Bay knew a hunch like this could occur sooner or later. What issues now’s how the Rays reply to it.

“All people in right here has been by it earlier than — individually, as a crew. That is just about the identical core guys that had been right here final 12 months, and we went by it final 12 months and we had some robust stretches,” Partitions mentioned. “Guys are going to have the suitable mentality to come back in, get their work completed, know learn how to climate by the storm, I assume you’d say, and are available out on prime.”