The Tampa Bay Rays had a 24-year-old rookie who was designated for assignment by his original team in February, batting cleanup for them on Saturday. And Victor Mesa Jr. isn't some crazy player development success story either, he's just...fairly serviceable.
Which is to say that this Rays team with the best record in the American League makes its bones by keeping runs off the board, as demonstrated by two-time All-Star Drew Rasmussen and four relievers teaming up for a five-hitter; the seventh White Sox shutout loss of the season.
Facing Rasmussen, the White Sox offense struck out 10 times and had one at-bat with a runner in scoring position over six scoreless innings. So, they got steamrolled, right?
"Rasmussen, to start, a really good four-seam fastball with the lefties," said Will Venable. "Kind of cutting in on the lefties, and then we had some chase above the zone, and then a really good job with the righties, too, with the fastball away. Just really good stuff."
That's most of the story, since a pinch-hit Randal Grichuk bloop single off old friend Cam Booser was the only baserunner they managed against the Tampa bullpen. After a walk to lead off the game, and subsequent caught stealing for Sam Antonacci, Rasmussen struck out the next five hitters in a row, and he also closed out the sixth by striking out Munetaka Murakami, Miguel Vargas and Colson Montgomery.
But in between, the Sox made a little trouble and hit four balls in play at triple-digit exit velocities, and two more that would've rounded up to 100 mph.
Mostly in the fifth, where Braden Montgomery led off the inning by sharply singling a low and away changeup to left. Tristan Peters lined out to deep center, before a routine fly out from Chase Meidroth made the rally look dead on arrival. But the second convincing line drive single of the day from Edgar Quero deflected off Junior Caminero's glove on a leaping attempt to keep in in the infield, and in turn inspired a very inspired effort to take third by Montgomery.
The only rule is it has to work, and in the resulting scramble, Chandler Simpson's throw to third was wide--and was once more deflected by Caminero--allowing Quero to advance to second. Antonacci laced a first-pitch cutter that stayed middle, but while his 105 mph liner to right initially had Mesa turned around, it was only a few steps to his right and was easily snared.
"We didn’t do a bad job but we got away from our gameplan and kind of chased him up," Antonacci said. "It all adds up eventually. I’m sure I’ll get a bloop hit and I’m sure I’ll line out hard again. It’s just all part of the game. You can’t feel sorry for yourself. If anyone does here, it will be a short career or a short first stint here. Just gotta keep on going and focus on how can we beat the Rays tomorrow."
Entering behind a 1-2-3 first from opener Jordan Hicks, Noah Schultz offered a shortlist contender of the sharpest outing of his major league career to date, even if it technically wasn't a start. He retired the first six hitters he faced in order, and after Yandy Díaz led off the fourth with a single, Schultz used a nasty-looking changeup to strike out Caminero on three pitches as part of his escape.
"I'm definitely more of a east-west than a north-south pitcher, and I think pitching to my strengths is something that's important to go for," said Schultz, who worked sinker-cutter inside on righties all day. "Just had a great plan going into it, me and [Quero] were on the same page again. He's been great. Since he's caught me for a few years now, it's something where he knows me best and we just had a great game."
Schultz struck out four and walked no one over five innings, but the steady steam of weak contact was the most impressive element, until it betrayed him in the fifth. Jonny DeLuca grounded a grooved cutter through the right side for a leadoff single, but advanced to third with two outs on a stolen base and a groundout to first. Schultz's first pitch cutter to Nick Fortes was up and in on the Rays' catcher's hands and fouled off, but his second pitch fastball was in the same spot and fisted into short left to plate the only run of this game.
Vargas flew out to the track in left to lead off the ninth against Bryan Baker, and Randal Grichuk ripped a 110.9 mph foul ball at home run distance. Both were fun for a few seconds.
*Bullet points:
*Quero also went 3-for-3 on ABS challenges behind the plate. What's gotten into this man? Mostly, Alfonso Márquez's strike zone. Antonacci went 1-for-2.
"It's coming in great spots, especially to [Ryan] Vilade," Quero said. "The situation was if I don't challenge, it's first and second, and with that challenge it was a strikeout with one out down. It was pretty good."
*Want to get weird? Seranthony Domínguez has now allowed one run over his last 10 appearances, and pitched a 1-2-3 seventh that saw him throw 11 of 14 pitches for strikes.
*Everson Pereira's tendency to return from injury layoffs super duper keyed up at the plate continues. He's 0-for-7 with six strikeouts since being activated last week after striking out in a pinch-hitting appearance in the seventh. His work on a Díaz bloop single to center in the ninth isn't about to make him a threat to Peters' playing time either.
*Antonacci had a nice running catch in the left field corner in the first inning. His qoute about his outfield work was better.
"I haven’t done anything stupid out there in a while, so we got that going for us."
