TAMPA — There was little drama, and positively no shock, because the Rays had been heading this route for some time, particularly within the final week or so.
There already had been speak of rookies getting extra alternatives that can profit them subsequent season. Friday afternoon, some gamers packed containers with gear, clearly not anticipating to be returning after this weekend to play once more at Steinbrenner Subject.
And with an unpleasant 11-7 loss to the Crimson Sox in Sport 154, the inevitable turned official because the Rays have been formally eradicated from the American League playoff race.
“It’s irritating,” Rays starter Drew Rasmussen mentioned. “It sucks. It sucks to not be within the playoff image.”
Worse, after reaching the postseason for 5 straight seasons from 2019-2023 — together with a 2020 run to the World Collection — the Rays are going dwelling early for the second straight season.
“You’re feeling annoyed in that [it’s] back-to-back years of failing, primarily,” supervisor Kevin Money mentioned. “We come out of spring coaching with the expectation that we’re going to discover a solution to play postseason baseball, and we simply haven’t performed ok to do this.
“No finger-pointing. To our whole roster, and positively myself, we simply haven’t gotten it completed.”
The loss dropped the Rays to 75-79 and made one other, albeit lesser, achievement additionally unlikely — ending above .500. To take action, they must go 7-1 the remainder of the best way. To match final yr’s 80-82 document, 5-3.
Additionally in play is avoiding ending final within the American League East. The Rays, who haven’t completed fifth since 2016, are two video games forward of the Orioles, whom they face thrice subsequent week.
As thrilling as making the playoffs had been, lacking out — even in a season wherein they have been displaced from the hurricane-damaged Tropicana Stadium to Steinbrenner Subject and misplaced a number of key gamers to accidents — was painful.
“You would put all types of silver linings on it and level to issues, however the backside line is it’s disappointing, and we don’t need even this stage of disappointment to be accepted or normalized in any method,” baseball operations president Erik Neander mentioned.
“No excuses. We’ve bought to proceed to get settled again in our dwelling ballpark subsequent yr and discover a solution to proceed to develop and develop this membership in a method that permits us the perfect probability to get again.”
The Rays appeared to have their possibilities to get in, with a 25-9 Might-June stretch that bought them close to the division lead and a seven-game late August-early September successful streak that put them again within the wild-card chase. However they faltered after each runs.
“We simply couldn’t fairly get synced up the best way you might want to to be a postseason group,” Neander mentioned “That’s one thing we’ll spend lots of time fascinated with, reflecting on, determining what’s simply baseball and what must get higher. There’ll be a lot within the latter, and we have to discover our method again.”
Friday’s loss was a considerably becoming illustration of a few of their points this season because the bullpen blew a seventh-inning lead and so they performed sloppily general, making a season-high-matching three errors and strolling 5.
Rasmussen, making the thirtieth begin of an general spectacular return to the rotation, was not sharp, lasting simply three innings whereas throwing 76 pitches. He additionally did not cowl first base, resulting in a run.
Nonetheless, the Rays had a 3-2 lead after a back-and-forth first three innings towards Sox ace Garrett Crochet.
Yandy Diaz, beginning a three-hit night time, doubled within the first and scored on a two-out single by Nick Fortes. Rookie Carson Williams homered off Crochet within the second, his fifth round-tripper in 25 video games.
Diaz hit his season-high-extending twenty fifth homer of the season within the third and, including to the accomplishment, the one centesimal of his profession.
“[I’m] completely satisfied,” he mentioned through group interpreter Eddie Rodriguez. “All people is aware of that I’m not a house run hitter, however thank God I used to be in a position to get to the 100 mark.”
The Rays took the result in the seventh, however Garrett Cleavinger, arguably their finest reliever, allowed a leadoff single to Ceddanne Rafaela after which a two-run go-ahead homer to Jarren Duran. That drew a big cheer from the Crimson Sox partisans within the sold-out Steinbrenner Subject crowd of 10,046.
The Sox added seven extra runs in a tough eighth off debuting reliever Cole Wilcox to make it 11-3. The Rays bought some again on Everson Pereira’s grand slam with two outs within the ninth.
“It’s very irritating,” Diaz mentioned. “However there’s nothing we will do about it. We simply have to begin making ready for subsequent season.”