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On Tuesday, the Rays tallied their fourth straight win after routing the Los Angeles Angels 11-1. Although the Rays sit comfortably atop of the Wild Card standings, manager Kevin Cash has his sights set on winning the division. The Yankees currently hold the lead in the AL East, but have struggled throughout the second half of the season (12-20 since July 21). Meanwhile, the Rays have seen more success as of late (16-14 since July 21).
Swiss-Army Knife
Christian Bethancourt threw GAS as a
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<) )╯POSITION
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/ pic.twitter.com/A9Twc7UzuG— Cut4 (@Cut4) August 24, 2022
Catcher Christian Bethancourt’s performance on Tuesday serves as an accurate reflection of his team’s recent success. Bethancourt brought in three runs on two separate hits during the 7th inning. The 30 year old hit his third home run in three days and hit a two-run single just a few minutes later. In the 9th inning, Cash let Bethancourt take the mound. The former pitcher tossed a scoreless inning, with his fastest pitch clocking in at a blistering 95 mph. For reference, the Angels also let a position player pitch on Tuesday. In one inning, Phil Gosselin did not manage to top 51 mph. Bethancourt hopes to return to the mound, joking that his performance was reminiscent to what Shohei Ohtani has provided to the Angels.
Dominance At The Mound
While the added help on the mound is always welcomed, the Rays pitching staff has already been a key proponent in continuing to allow them to propel to the top of the AL East. Throughout his first full season as a big-leaguer, Jason Adam has been a notable addition to the Rays bullpen. Fellow pitcher Adam Rasmussen explained that the diverse array of pitches at Adam’s disposal (4-seam, 2-seam, slider, change-up) allows for an even distribution that constantly leaves batters guessing incorrectly. Adams’ 1.07 ERA is the best among the MLB’s qualified relievers, a stark contrast from his previous 4.71 ERA.
Jason Adam’s 2022
50.2 IP
1.07 ERA
2.14 FIP
2.25 SIERA
33.7 K%
6.0 BB%
33.9 CSW%
37.6 whiff%
3.8 barrel%
3.21 WPATop 1% in: xwOBA, xwOBACON
So is he a top 5 reliever or does that only work with yankees? pic.twitter.com/ubVIn9apHc
— ¹ (@CamineroCrush) August 23, 2022
Despite struggling in recent outings, veteran pitcher Corey Kluber navigated through the Angels lineup with ease. The 36 year old pitcher gave up just five hits and one run in six innings, earning his first win since August 6th. However, Tuesday marked the fifth straight game that Kluber has given up a homerun. This may be attributed to the predictability of his pitches, as he relies on a breaking ball over 87% of the time.
Rays Rising Star
2021 AL Rookie of the Year Randy Arozarena has picked up where he left off from the previous season. The Cuban outfielder has totaled five hits in eight plate appearances this series, with an RBI in each game. Arozarena is hitting for a .261 average this year, with 17 homeruns thus far. Since his record-setting 2020 playoff run, Arozarena has been a consistent contributor to the Rays increase in success.
Upcoming News
The series will continue today, August 24th at 6:30 PM. Although the Rays are still eight games behind the Yankees, the teams recent success is certainly a reason to be confident about the future.
