Thursday, August 29. Game 135: Rays Up! 9-8. Kick Astro Asses

Rays 9, Astros 8

Record:  77-58

Attendance:  33,051.  Minute Maid Park

The Rays scored in six of the nine innings on Thursday, piled up 14 hits, and came from behind three times to win a very crucial game three against the Astros, 9-8. In the process, they also avoided a three-game sweep; in fact, the more realistic way to look at the series is that they managed to take one of the games, which some would have thought is about all they could reasonably have hoped for against these Monster Astros.

And they beat new Astro Zack Greinke--well, he didn't take the loss, but the Rays did rough him up to the tune of six hits, one walk, two HRs, and five runs in five and two-thirds.  And they weren't very respectful to Gerrit Cole the night before either, scoring four runs off him in six and two-thirds.  A third loss in a row would have buried the Rays, but they found some inner strength, rallied, picked up momentum, and now face new hope against the Cleveland Indians.

But when your pitching staff gives up eight runs on eight hits and ten walks, five by Colin Poche in the fifth inning, something has gone wrong.  All told Rays pitchers walked three runs in.  But fortunately they got a gutsy performance from Emilio Pagan, who got the final seven outs for his 15th save.  They got home runs from Austin Meadows (24) and Travis d'Arnaud (14) and clutch hitting from Ji-Man Choi (two RBIs).  All season long these players have been by turns brilliant and brutal--it is just impossible to guess which team will take the field on any given day or night.

It's a crap shoot again on Friday night against the red-hot Cleveland Indians.  Are the Rays really in the post-season hunt?  It hardly seems possible after the last five games that the Rays are going to be relevant in late September.  But if everything falls just right, and the Rays put the right team on the field for the next month, it could happen.  Maybe.