Rays versus Red Sox………….Game 2 Pregame Statistics

 

In tonight game against the Boston Red Sox, Scott Kazmir will have to pitch the game of his young career. At stake is  first place in the American League East, and a shot at reducing their number to get into the playoffs for the first time in franchise history. Kazmir is considered Tampa Bay’s ace, even tho he is the youngest memeber of the starting rotation. He has the most experience of the 5 starters and is the most confidient going into tonight’s game.

 

                       Kazmir is currently 11-6, with a 2.99 ERA for the Rays. He is 8.2 innings short of applying for the AL leaderboard for his pitching accomplisments in 2008. If he qualified, he would be 4th in the AL with his 2.88 ERA, and would be tied with Boston’s Daisuke Matsuzaka with a .210 opponents batting average. He would also be 2nd in the AL with an average of 17.9 pitches per inning. But his 9.97 strikeouts per 9 innings would lead the AL.

In his last 2 starts, Kazmir is 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA. He has given up only 4 hits in his last 2 starts and held opponents to a .161 average in his last 5 starts. This will be his 20th career start against Boston. Kazmir got his 2008 debut in Fenway and suffered his first loss before winning the next 6 starts of the season. He is 6-6 lifetime against the Red sox, with a 3.02 ERA.  In his last 2 Bosotn starts, he is 0-1, with a 7.01 ERA.

He last faced Boston at home on July 2nd and pitched 5 innings, but did not get the decison in the last game of the 3 game sweep. Kazmir struck out 49 Bosotn batters in 2007, to become only the 4th highest strikeout amount by a opponent pitcher in the last 50 years against them. Kazmir hurled a 2-hit complete game shutout, the only one of his career against the Red Sox at home on July 3,2006.

 

Red Sox batters against Kazmir in 2008:

 

Coco Crisp                    1.000             1 stolen base, 1 walk, 1 run

Jacob Ellsbury               .166              1 stolen base

Mike Lowell                  0-4                 2 strikeouts, 1 walk

Dustin Pedroia             .800               1 double, 1 triple,1 homer

Jason Varitek               .250               2 strikeouts, 1 walk

Kevin Youkilis             .250               1 RBI, 1 walk

Dustin Pedroia is the only Red Sox to hit a homer run off Kazmir this year.

 

                             Daisuke Matsuzaka is currently 16-2, with a 2.88 ERA in 25 starts for the Red Sox this season. He has 3 career starts against the Rays at Fenway Park, but this will be his first since August 15, 2007. Tampa Bay has gone 2-17 against him in 2008. He has given up only one earned run in 5 innings against the Rays in 2008.

In his career, he is 1-1 against Tampa Bay in Fenway, and is 0-2 at Tropicana Field. He currently is 3rd in the AL in ERA with 2.88. And is tied with Toronto’s AJ Burnett with 16 wins this season for 4th in the AL. He is second in the AL in walks allowed with 85 for the year, and  has only given up 6.81 runs per 9 innings to lead the AL. Righties are hitting only .199 against him, and lefites are hitting .221 in 2008.

 

Tampa Bay Rays batters against Matsuzaka:

Akinora Iwamura          0-3

B J Upton                      0-2                2 stolen bases, 1 walk

Carlos Pena                  0-2                 2 strikeouts, 1 walk

Cliff Floyd                    0-1                 1 walk      

Eric Hinske                  0-1                  1 walk, 1 strikeout

Dioner Navarro           0-2                  1 strikeout

 

The only Rays batters to get a hit off of Matsuzaka this season are Evan Longoria and Carl Crawford, who will not be available for this Boston series.