At around 5:30 pm ET on August 8th, the Rays had a bismal 6-8 record and were about to start the 2nd game of a doubleheader after losing the first game to the Yankees ace, Gerrit Cole. The morale wasn’t low at the time, but I don’t think many people expected what would happen the next 6 days.
The Rays took the next two games against the Yankees by one run each. The last game of the series needed a 7th inning rally that would put the Rays into position for a Michael Perez walk-off single off of Zack Britton. It was an improbable comeback that gave the Rays some great momentum heading into Boston.
Recent history at Fenway Park has been very good to the Rays, but the numbers that the Tampa Bay sluggers put up in this series will blow your mind. The Rays scored 42 runs in the 4-game sweep of the Red Sox which is an average of 10.5 runs per game. They also tallied 59 total hits which is an average of 14.75 hits per game. 24 of those 59 hits went for extra bases and 9 of those extra base hits left the yard. Obviously, these stats are eye-opening and this is definitely a great sign for the Rays who struggled on the offensive side a couple weeks ago, but the Red Sox lackluster pitching staff certainly played a role in our offensive onslaught. I’m not taking any credit away from the Rays hitters, but as fun as this series was to watch, you can’t expect the offense to put up anything close to these numbers for the rest of the season.
This 6-game win streak has put Tampa Bay into a great position heading into the Blue Jays series this weekend and the Yankees series next week. The Rays are currently 12-8 and sit one game back of the first place New York Yankees in the AL East.
Source: tbraysreviews.com
