Rays fall 3-2 to Mets despite Seymour's 10 strikeouts
Ian Seymour struck out 10 over 6.1 innings, but the Rays managed only 2 runs in a 3-2 loss to the Mets to close a 4-1 stretch that included a sweep of the Padres.
Seymour's 10 strikeouts go to waste
Tampa Bay lost 3-2 at home to the New York Mets on August 31, snapping a stretch that had been about as good as the Rays have played all year. It ended a run in which they had won 4 of their last 5, a stretch that included a 3-game sweep of the San Diego Padres capped by wins of 9-4, 7-6 and 5-4, plus a 3-0 win over the Detroit Tigers on August 26. Against the Mets, none of that offense showed up.
Mets2-3Ian Seymour did his part, working 6.1 innings and allowing 3 earned runs on 6 hits with no walks while striking out 10. Tampa Bay's lineup could only turn that into 2 runs, and the Rays fell to 82-55 on the season despite the strong start.
Sept is looking pretty swaggy 🎟️: t.co/H2pl4rJHfY
Toronto's 20-12 run since July 27 hasn't touched the gap
At 82-55, the Rays remain alone atop the AL East, 4.5 games ahead of the second-place New York Yankees (78-60) and 7.5 up on the Boston Red Sox (75-63). Baltimore (69-69) and Toronto (68-70) sit further back, 13.5 and 14.5 games out respectively, with elimination numbers of 12 and 11 games. None of the division's other clubs currently has Tampa Bay within reach with a month of the season left.
Toronto has been the closest thing to a threat lately — per Jon Morosi, the Blue Jays are 20-12 since July 27, trailing only the Rays in the American League over that stretch. But a 20-12 mark still hasn't cut into the gap in the standings, and Tampa Bay's own recent form, 4-1 in its last 5, has kept the division from tightening at all.
Upcoming
Freddy Peralta gets the ball for Tampa Bay tonight as the Rays host the Mets, taking a 6-11 record and 5.11 ERA into a matchup with Sean Manaea (4-6, 4.55 ERA). Peralta was excellent in his last turn, throwing 6 shutout innings against the Detroit Tigers on August 26 with 4 strikeouts and no walks in a win. Manaea's last start went the other way — 5.2 innings against the Milwaukee Brewers on August 27, 6 earned runs allowed on 8 hits in a loss.
The Rays are favored tonight, and the total points to a low-scoring game. That lines up with the way both pitchers have trended: Peralta shutting Detroit down 6 days ago, Manaea getting hit hard in his last outing, and a Tampa Bay lineup that just got shut down itself by the Mets a night earlier. If the number holds, it will take another quiet night for Manaea and the Mets to beat it.