Blue Jays and the full AL East Recap: Week 4

Tampa Bay’s rotation heats up… as offence cools down

Tampa Bay Rays: 11-13

The Rays were an enigma the last three weeks. While their offence was consistent and dangerous, their rotation was not, which was the opposite of the team we saw in 2015.

This week, however, the Rays looked exactly like they did in 2015; Their pitching staff was very good but their offence couldn’t catch a break. This week saw a strong outing by Chris Archer, netting him his first win of the season, and featured a strong contest by Jake Odorizzi in Sunday’s loss.

That said the offence netted just 12 runs in 5 games, roughly 2 and a half runs per game. The Rays currently sit in last place league-wide in terms of scoring, also ranking dead last with a team batting average of .221.

In spite of that, their strong bullpen combined with a rejuvenated rotation took two of three from Baltimore before losing the series against the Blue Jays late on Sunday. If their rotation can keep it up, they might not need the best offence to take advantage of their opponents.

Final Takeaway:

The Rays flip flipped their advantage with their disadvantage by trading offensive production for rotation stability. Both will need to be stable for the Rays to break onto the scene.

Next: Last-place Yankees beginning to see flaws