When David Price struggled through his first five starts of the season, there was a lot of focus on his fastball velocity which was slower than what we are used to seeing from the Rays’ ace. But if we take a closer look, it wasn’t just the fastball, and in [...]
Even without James Shields, the Rays still have one of the best rotations in baseball. And while we all know these guys have high ceilings and think we know what they are capable of achieving, let’s see if we can come up with a realistic idea of what to expect, [...]
![The Rays’ Playoff Hopes Are Surging [CHART]](http://www.raysindex.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/11-150x150.gif)
If you read “The Hangover” in the morning, you know that we occasionally reference the Rays’ playoff chances from CoolStandings.com. Basically, they look at how well a team is playing, as well as their remaining schedule, and simulate the remaining games millions of times to see how often that team makes [...]
![The Orioles, The Rays And Their Strange Race For A Wild Card Spot [CHART]](http://www.raysindex.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/1-150x150.gif)
I mentioned this earlier in the week in “The Hangover,” but it is worth taking a closer look. Below is the game-by-game records of both the Orioles and the Rays and how many games above/below .500 the two teams have been this season. And it is quite incredible just how [...]
After pitching so well in 2011, you would think that James Shields wouldn’t want to mess with what worked. But for some reason he has completely changed the way he is pitching to batters, and so far, it has not been for the better. Below we are going to look [...]
There are several great stats out there that can tell how well a player is hitting, but they don’t tell us who is getting the hits when it matters most*. For example, most stats will treat a home run hit in the 9th inning of tie game the same as [...]
As we near the All-Star break, there are some genuine concerns with the Rays offense. But like everything in baseball, a player’s actual numbers may not accurately portray how well a player has performed. Sometimes a player a gets lucky and finds holes in the defense and sometimes a ball [...]
![A More Aggressive BJ Upton Could Be Headed For A Big Season [CHART]](http://www.raysindex.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/14.gif)
BJ Upton is off to a good start, hitting .300 with a .357 OBP, and he is on pace for 20 home runs and 50 stolen bases. All of those numbers, except for the home runs, would be his best marks since 2007. So what’s different? Well, there is his [...]
The simple answer is “yes.” And that is why many people believe Hideki Matsui will likely be called up this week. But like many things, it’s not that simple. Here’s a look Matsui’s career splits… That is about as even as it ever gets for a left-handed batter. And in [...]
When a player is at the plate, there are a number of different possible outcomes. And maybe the worst of those is the swinging strike. For the batter, a swinging strike is one pitch closer to an out. But unlike a called strike which may just be a matter of [...]
