Rays 3, Yankees 6
Record: 43-30
Attendance: 40,479
The scrappy Rays had built themselves a satisfying 2-1 lead going into the bottom of the fifth. They got timely run-producing singles from Mike Zunino in the second inning and Avisail Garcia in the third. An add-on run would come in the seventh on a Travis d'Arnaud double driving in Joey Wendle--or it would have been an add-on run if the bullpen hadn't given up three in the fifth and real Yankee add-ons in the seventh and eighth. The one in the eighth came on Edwin Encarnacion's 22nd homer, just to add a little more pain to the box score, 6-3 Yanks.
The bullpen, such a source of strength for so long into the young season has more recently been giving up home runs and small-ball rallies too, finding more ways to lose ball games than to win them. Opener Ryne Stanek gave up a single run in his inning and a third. Ryan Yarbrough pitched three solid innings giving up a single hit and striking out two. But then came Chaz Roe, who has appeared in 31 games (0-4) and given up 12 runs on 23 hits (2 HRs) and 19 walks in 21 innings, a 5.14 ERA. And still Manager Kevin Cash keeps calling on him as though he were as reliable as he was last year.
Oliver Drake and newly added Andrew Kittredge from Durham (1,93 ERA and more than a strikeout an inning) finished up by giving up a run each.
It's time the Rays gave up some of their prized youngsters in the minor league system to improve the team right now with a name player or two. That would make the Rays more competitive for the rest of the summer and fall, but it would also send a message to the fans that their team is worth seeing in person at the Trop. Investing in the team is investing in attendance. And the Rays can afford a player or two. This is the time to pull the trigger.
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