Chang's hard hit ball should have been his first hit, but sometimes the defense takes away your best effort. Some teams do value defensive skills or players in their best position
Chang and Kike raking at a combined .081. Bradley throwing a no-hitter through 3 with 55% K's. Like SS says, look at the oppo. Perhaps a really bad roster and lineup. Maybe the Rays have found and DEVELOPED another starting pitcher
Sale reminding me of 3-4 years, maybe more, of Sox starters having no clue in 1st inning, getting behind and then finding the rubber beginning in the 2nd. Questioned the mental and physical warmup in Boston the last few years.
Bradley messes up Tapia and Dalbec quickly after getting Casas on a foul pop down the line. Maybe used 10 pitches. Did Sale get to sit down on his raw ass before he's back out?
31 pitches and a trip through 8 batters ? I am so tired of reading the same quote after many of these games...." We just have to do better".. No s*** guys.
Many complaints here about O'B and Youk as broadcasters but how would you create a good spin putting lipstick on this pig ?
Great find on the probability chart. We'll get to see Dalbec with 12-14 assists and no errors, plus a DP started . Now , the Rays tend to hit flyballs that go over the wall and Sale does give those up , so maybe not.
The right answer should be 3-4 years after beginning play within the system, not later than age 25 for a debut at the MLB level. Otherwise your chances of being a MLB regular contributor start falling off the cliff of woulda, coulda, shoulda
That final AB (now 0-27) by Kike should go into the HoF for swinging at a pitch high/inside that the rays catcher doesn't come close to handling . Kike then stands there like the numbnut he is, not realizing the ball rolls to the backstop. The catcher still has time to retrieve the ball and throw to 1st to get Hernandez by 10'. A real candidate for worst effort by a $10MM player.
I would go a step further out on the limb and say the roster construction is the beginning of the problem and then Cora , maybe with some analytic advice, has organized them into a mess of a lineup. The players themselves have responded with no production to speak of from about 6-7 of them.