It was Game of Thrones night at Tropicana Field and I couldn’t have been more excited.
ST. PETERSBURG — The three-game series opener was an exciting one as 20,846 packed Tropicana Field for Game of Thrones night.
Tyler Glasnow, Lord of the lowest ERA in the American League, got off to a rocky start in tonight’s game. He allowed two runs in the first, one of which was unearned due to a throwing error by Yandy Diaz.
Thank goodness Diaz wasn't throwing dragon glass to Choi as that throwing error looked to hit Choi right in the heart…… #Rays #Yankees #GameofThrones
— EE (@EvansEric10) May 10, 2019
Glasnow was really dialed in after the first inning, however. He reached upper 90’s on his fastballs regularly and according to Baseball Savant he recorded 18 swinging strikes in his outing, including nine strike outs. The outing raised his ERA to 1.84, still best in the AL. This was the first loss Glasnow suffered this season.
Unfortunately for the Rays, not only did they lose the game, it appears that their breakout sensation is heading for a stint on the IL.
Glasnow departs with apparent injury
In the top of the sixth inning, Glasnow called for the trainers to visit the mound after he was flexing his right foreman. This was the second time in the game the trainers came out to the mound.
“Went out there the first time, it looked like it was his knee, it was actually his quad that was just kind of spazzing,” Kevin Cash, King of the Rays said regarding the mound visits. “Then we noticed he went to stretch his forearm. That’s not an ideal thing to see a pitcher do. I’m glad that we caught it. Now we just wait and see what people a lot smarter than us tell us.”
When Glasnow was asked about the injury, he that this to say: “I feel fine, honestly. I don’t really feel it. I threw like six pitches to end the inning and all of them I felt a little tightness.”
He then stated he had “no idea” what was going to happen and that he was going to get an MRI tonight.
Glasnow’s final line was: 5.1 INN, 5 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 9 K (92 pitches/58 strikes).
Meadows, Ruler of the Offense
Welcome back, Austin Meadows. After a leadoff double in his first at-bat, he smashed a game tying two-run home run in the fifth inning off Domingo German.
The Ruler of the Offense, whether he wants that title or not, now has seven home runs on the season. That surpasses his total from last year (six) and he did it in 100 less at-bats.
“I felt good. I felt comfortable at the plate,” Ruler of the Offense said talking about his return from the IL. “I’m just tying to do everything I can to make it game-like and I felt like it was fun tonight. I felt good. That’s all you can ask for being hurt for three weeks. Everything felt good.”
King of the Rays, Kevin Cash was equally as excited to get Meadows back into the lineup.
“Very, very. Didn’t look like tonight he missed a beat. He picked us up in a big way. It was nice to see the leadoff double and better to see the home run.”
Situational blunders
Tonight marked the second game in a row where the team has failed to capitalize with the bases loaded with no outs in an inning.
Imagine, you’re ready for this intense battle. You have the Dothraki at the front line, or in the case, you have the bases loaded. You’re ready for battle. But wait, it gets better. You’re swords — or baseball bats — are on fire and there are no outs. You’re ready for the battle of your life. You’re down one run, protecting Winterfell — well, Tropicana Field. I think you see where this is going. The Dothraki going full steam with their burning swords and one by one — until you get to three since there’s only three outs in baseball — in the inning is over. With nothing to show for.
The team has struggled all year with runners in scoring position — and tonight it proved costly once again. In the teams 14 losses, they’re hitting .129 (15-for-116) with RISP including 1-for-8 tonight.
“Yeah, there were a couple of missed opportunities in there,” Cash said regarded the struggles at the plate. “Credit [Adam] Ottavino for making some pitches. He kind of put himself in a bind by not finding the strike zone and we had good at-bats and then he really battled with Tommy [Pham] and got a big strikeout and the groundball from Ji-Man [Choi].”
Rays make a move
Right before Glasnow took the hill, the Rays acquired C Travis d’Arnaud — to man the wall — from the Los Angeles Dodgers for cash considerations. The oft injured catcher is a career .242/.303/.400 hitter.
To make room for d’Arnaud, the Rays have transferred Matt Duffy from the 10-day IL to the 60-day IL.
Up Next
Game two of the series features Ryne Stanek (0-1; 2.50) opening — likely for Yonny Chirinos — taking on the newest member of the 3,000 K club, CC Sabathia (2-1; 3.20). The Rays currently hold a half game lead over the Yankees for first place in the AL East.
