Friday, May 10. Game 37: Dog days of summer arrive early

Rays  3,  Yankees  4

Record:  23-14

Attendance:  20,846  Swollen by 10,000 hated Yankee fans.


The euphoria of spring baseball in Tampa has given way to an early summer reality check.  It doesn't matter where you look, all the news is bad.

For example, the Rays lost yet another one-run game, extending their futility in this regard to 1-7.  Brandon Lowe struck out three consecutive times, making an incredible team-tying eight consecutive strikeouts going back to Wednesday night against the D-backs.  His personal futility of course impacts the futility of the team trying to score runs (nine left on base last night, eleven on Wednesday).  For the second consecutive game they loaded the bases and failed to score a single run.  That's 0-6 with the bases loaded and nobody out. Nick Ciuffo the catcher called up for his defensive strengths (and also because Mike Zunino and Michael Perez went to the IL within hours of each other) managed to turn a passed ball into a run by the Yankees.

And of course none of that is the worst news.  Tyler Glasnow, he who was previously 6-0, was saddled with his first loss and and experienced "tightness" in his right (pitching) forearm that forced him out of the game in the sixth inning.  Tests are scheduled to determine the extensiveness of the damage and how much time he will lose.

But I lied about all the news being bad.  Austin Meadows came off the IL and went 2 for 4, including a double and a two-run homer, his seventh, in the fifth.  Ji-Man Choi added a solo homer in the same inning.  And with an absolutely depleted catching corps at the major and triple A levels, Rays management went out and landed a once-highly regarded catcher off the Dodger roster, Travis d'Arnaud, who hit .244 with 17 HRs and 57 RBIs in 2017 for the Mets.  He was out with an elbow injury for most of 2018 before being designated for assignment by the Mets and being signed by the Dodgers, where he appeared in only one game.  He will provide a veteran presence behind the plate.  Ciuffo will be his backup and backing up the backup is one Anthony Bemboom, 29, who has been in the minors seven years and is now about to join his first major league team.  It isn't likely he realizes that his presence on the roster is a sign that the Rays are on the verge of falling apart.