Rays head to postseason for first time in six years with 6-2 victory against Blue Jays.
If this doesn’t fire you up as a Rays fan – I don’t know what to tell you.
To everyone who doubted us. #RaysUp | #StayHungry pic.twitter.com/iD9oN5M8Ku
— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) September 28, 2019
Everyone doubted this team all season. The payroll. The injuries. The opener. The bullpen. Kevin Cash should be fired. When will the Red Sox pass them? They have no stars. The team is boring.
Blah blah blah.
This team, man. No team in baseball deserves a playoff run like this team. What Kevin Cash has done has been nothing short of amazing and he should – without a shadow of a doubt – be the American League Manager of the Year.
For the first time since the 2012 and 2013 seasons, the Rays have back-to-back 90+ win seasons. The 96 wins – a possibly counting – has given the Rays their first playoff berth since 2013 when they lost in the ALDS 3-1 to the Boston Red Sox.
First things first:
The clincher
The Rays got yet another stellar outing from Tyler Glasnow, who went 4.1 shut out innings, striking out four batters allowing zero hits and walking two. Since returning from the IL on September 8th, he’s now allowed two runs in 12.1 innings, including 10.1 scoreless innings. In those 12.1 innings, he’s struck out 21 hitters walking only five.
This scoreless streak has lowered his ERA to a minuscule 1.78 for the year.
The Rays got the scoring started in the third inning with a two-run homer off of the bat of Tommy Pham, his 21st of the year. Willy Adames and Avisail Garcia both tacked on RBI singles – Adames in the in the 4th for his 52nd RBI and Garcia in the 8th for his 72nd RBI.
All-Star slugger Austin Meadows came up with the Rays leading 5-2 to lead off the 9th inning. Meadows was 0-for-3 up to that point in the game.
Then – on a 3-2 pitch – Meadows launched a ball 371 feet for his 33rd long ball on the year. According to StatCast, the ball traveled 104.9 mph off the bat.
Meadows’ 33 home runs are tied for seventh in a single season in Rays history.
The real MVP
Fox Sports Florida on-field reporter, Tricia Whitaker. She was amazing as she was in the locker room as the celebration went from 0 to 100 (real quick). A target for nearly every beer poured and every champagne bottle that was being sprayed, Tricia asked all the questions with a smile from ear to ear and was a joy to watch. Tonight Tricia, you the real MVP.
“There’s a saying in baseball—you earn the burn.”
“I was in the Mexican League a month ago. Now I’m in the big leagues having a champagne shower. What?!”
“This is amazing. I’m about to cuss on TV right now I need to stop.” 😂
A montage of the “best of”🍾 interviews last night pic.twitter.com/Ex3Yi9xVZA
— Tricia Whitaker (@TriciaWhitaker) September 28, 2019
Litty Locker Room
What I would have done to be in that locker room!
From beers and champagne being dumped and sprayed everywhere, to cigars being lit, to the damn Cha-Cha Slide being played – that team partied. Hard.
Guillermo Heredia, the locker room hype man, was having the time of his life. Ji-Man Choi was puffin’ cigars like he needed to for oxygen to fill his lungs. Blake Snell, Kevin Kiermarier, Travis d’Arnaud – hell Kevin Cash. Every single one of them. They were having the time of their lives.
I can’t imagine that feeling. Or how Glasnow felt after this:
Yo, @TGlasnow. You ain’t have to do them like that! 😂 #RaysUp | #StayHungry pic.twitter.com/tBwOHNzyqS
— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) September 28, 2019
Up Next
The Rays still have two games to play against the Blue Jays. Meanwhile, the Athletics are in Seattle taking on the Mariners.
Both the Rays and Athletics have clinched their spot in the wildcard game. Now, we just need to determine where the game is being played.
The Athletics hold the tie breaker over the Rays as they won the season series 4-2.
According to CBS Sports, Cash announced that Charlie Morton would start the Wildcard game for the Rays. It is unknown who the Athletics will start as of this time.
The AL Wildcard game is scheduled for Wednesday, October 2nd at 8:09 p.m on ESPN.
