Results tagged ‘ World Series Game 5 ’
Game 5.5 Signals the End of the Rays Run
Phillies 4, 
Rays 3
I was told that J P Howell was taking the loss pretty hard last night after the Philadelphia Phillies ended the 46 hour lay-over of Game 5 of the World Series. I do not know why he is thinking it is the end of all things right now. You have to remember that this years’ team went above every expectation set by the coaches’ and management. they flew beyond any goal or lofty intention of every and any fan, and last, but not least, they made us proud to be Ray Fans.
I did not go out to the Trop last night at 3 a.m., I wanted to cheer and applaud for the Rays for a job well done. But this is private time. I know as an ex-athlete that you need a little space right after a collossial event to get your feet back on the ground. It has been an emotional rollercoaster for the team the last 3 days. And no matter what the outcome, there was going to be some backlash mentally and emotionally.
Just remember guys, on Saturday at the City of St. Pete celebration, it will all seem to fade away. We have 107 days until we start it all over again, and I can not wait personally. Not for the goals and aspirations of 2009, but because the Rays deserve another shot at the title. If Rocco can come back off the canvas, why can’t we get another shot at the ring and the dream.
Congrats to the World Champions
Seriously, it was a great World Series from Game 1-5. The Phillies have been hungry for a title for 28 years in baseball. Heck, Pete Rose was playing third base back then for the Fightin’ Phillies. What was so special was to see 40-something Jamie Moyer go out to the pitching mound and take a pole and wedge that pitching rubber out of the clay and take it home.
It was an exciting series. And do I enjoy the end result………well, no, but I do enjoy the fact that it was settled on the field and not in a boardroom or in a conference call. We got to finish the game, and for that we have to thank Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig. He wanted to play these games to their conclusions. He did not want a shortened World Series, or a series that would be questioned. He might still be questioned, but I think it was done with the most respect for both teams and was done as fast and as safe as possible.
Game 5 had to be stopped, and the Rays scoring in the top of the 6th inning on Monday gave him ample cause to suspend it and play it under better circumstances. There were an announced crowd of 44,000 on hand Wed. night. That is about 1,000 less than Monday, but those people might have already been on Broad Street preping for a good time by 8:30 that night. We played out the final 2 1/2 innings and the city got to have a dry and cool celebration after all.
Bullpen Moments
The Rays Bullpen has been a mainstay of this team for so long this season it amazes me that they are taking this loss so personally. If not for the efforts of everyone down there, especially Grant Balfour and J P Howell, we might not have even hit the playoffs at all this season. If you are looking for true MVP’s of this playoff run, you have to consider the entire Bullpen as a whole. They have gone above and beyond themselves all year long, and do not have anything to be ashamed of at all.
Grant Balfour went to the mound in the bottom of the 6th and Phillies Manager Charlie Manuel sent up Geoff Jenkins to pinch-hit for Cole Hamels, who was still the pitcher of record for the Phillies. Jenkins had played with Balfour with the Milwaukee Brewers’ and probably knows his pitching style better than anyone else on the bench.
On a 2-2 count, Jenkins hit a long fly ball into the right-center gap that hit off the scoreboard just out of the reach of a sprawling Rocco Baldelli. The ball fell to the turf and B J Upton went and retrived the ball to keep Jenkins to a double. With Jenkins in scoring position, Jimmy Rollins came up and put doen a sacrifice bunt to move Jenkins less than 90 feet from giving the Phillies the lead in the game.
Jayson Werth then came up and hit a shallow looper to the spot between second base and the outfield. Akinora Iwamura went out to try and pull in the ball, but after trying to catch it via a basket-catch, the ball trickled down from his glove to the turf and Jenkins scored to give the Phillies the lead 3-2. That was the end of the night for Balfour, who went 1.1 innings total in the game, but went 1/3 of an inning tonight, giving up 2-hits and a lone run.
J P Howell then came on to face Chase Utley and got him to strikeout on 3 pitches. Ryan Howard then came to bat and hit a fly ball to Evan Longoria at third for the final out of the 6th inning. In the 7th inning, Pat Burrell came up to start the 7th inning and was hit-less in this years’ World Series. He was currently 0-13, when he hit hanging curveball into the left-center section of the outfield and clipped the high wall to settle for a double.
Burrell was immediately replaced by pinch-runner Eric Bruntlett at second base. That ended the night for Howell as he went 2/3rds of an inning throwing 7 pitches and giving up 1-hit and 1-run for the Rays. Chad Bradford came on and quickly got Shane Victorino to ground out to Iwamura at second base. This moved Bruntlett to third with 1-out in the inning. Pedro Feliz then hit a ball up the middle for a RBI single and the Phillies were up 4-3 at that time.
Bradford got Carlos Ruiz to hit into a 4-6 force out at second, with Ruiz on first on a fielder’s choice. Iwamura made an amazing play behind second base to get the force out on Feliz. Phillies reliever J C Romero the came up and hit a ball to Iwamura that he flipped to Bartlett at second base for another force out to end the inning.
David Price then came on in the 8th inning and got a quick fly out from Rollins and a strikeout of Werth. He then gave up a walk to Utley before getting Howard to strikeout to end the inning for the Phillies.
Rocco Baldelli’s Blast
In the 7th inning, with Ryan Madson on the mound for the Phillies, Dioner Navarro struck out to lead off the inning. Then rocco Baldelli came up and on the first pitch took Madson deep to leftfield on a line drive homer to tie the game at 4-all. The Blast was just the first homer of the World Series for Baldelli, but it put life back into the Rays’ hopes for a Game 6 at Tropicana Field on Thursday night.
Jason Bartlett’s Gamble
You have to be pleased with the effort of Jason Bartlett at shortstop for the Rays this season. He has brought a solid defense and a secure bat to the lineup that the Rays have never had at the position. In the top of the 7th inning tonight, Bartlett hit a single to leftfield to try to keep the rally going after Baldelli’s homer.
J P Howell came up and batted in the inning for the Rays. This was an unsusual play as Rays Manager Joe Maddon could have used a pich hitter to hit for Howell since he had David Price and Chad Bradford warmed up in the Bullpen. But Maddon let Howell take his whacks at the plate for the Rays. Howell put down a perfect sacrifice bunt to move Bartlett to second and into scoring position for the Rays.
Iwamura then came up and hit a infield single to shallow centerfield and Bartlett was rounding third when Utley faked the throw to first and threw to home to get the streaking Bartlett by less than a foot at the plate. Bartlett was tagged out as he was stretching his hand for the plate and it ended the 7th inning for the Rays. It was a gutsy play by the Rays shortstop, and one that almost made a huge difference in the contest.
You have to credit Utley for seeing Bartlett taking a wide turn at third and streaking for home. If Utley has held onto the ball a split second longer, Bartlett would have scored and tied tha game at 4-all for the Rays. So if you have to find a defining moment in this game……..this was the series clincher fo the Phillies…. at the plate.
The Rays did try amd mount another rally in the 8th inning after Carl crawford lead-off with a single to centerfield. B J Upton hit a ball to short that Rollins turned into a 6-4-3 double play to remove the Rays threat in the inning. Pena then hit a weak fly ball to left to end the inning for the Rays.
In the 9th, Evan Longoria lead off the inning by hitting a fly out to second base. Navarro then hit a shattered bat single to right that fell in front of a hard charging Werth. Maddon then sent in Fernando Perez as a pinch-runner for Navarro. With pinch-hitter Ben Zobrist at the plate for the Rays, Perez stole second base on the third pitch to Zobrist and put a runner in scoring position for the Rays.
Zobrist then hit a shot to right that was caught by Werth for the 2nd out of the inning. With 1-out left in the Rays season, Maddon sent up Eric Hinske to pinch-hit for Bartlett. Hinske went down on three pitches to give the Phillies their first championship since 1980 in the majors.
Welcome Home Rays
The Rays were scheduled to be flying into St. Petersburg-Clearwater Airport at 3 am on Thursday. The team did not have a planned greeting at the airport and the team was to quickly get on their coaches’ for the trip to the Trop. Several people were at the airport waiting for the team, but they did not come through the baggage area and loaded straight from the plane on the tarmac.
The Rays then trekked from the airport to the back enterance at the Trop. There they were greeted by a few dozen fans who stood out in the cold to cheer for the hometown Rays. Several members of the team did come out and salute the crowd before heading into the Trop to pack and have some private time with team mates and family.
I will be getting the information on the City of St. Petersburg celebration sometime today or tomorrow. Stay tuned to your favorite Rays blog and I will be sure to pass on all the info I get as soon as I recieve it. Again, remember that this team exceeded all expectations of it during the season and should be roundly applauded for their hustle and determination to even get into the playoffs this season.
The Saturday event will be to celebrate not only the team;s efforts, but the increased support and bonding of the Tampa Bay area this season behind the Rays “Magical Summer Tour 2008″. The region has grown from just a spotty support group for the team, to an increasing fan base throughout the country and the world. The Rays are no longer the loveable losers of yesteryear. We now have tasted the fruits of winning, and it is sweet to our mouths, and we yearn for more……….
Pitchers’ and Catchers’ Report in 107 DAYS.
Congrats Phillies on a Phantastic World Series
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Congrats to the Philadelphia Phillies for a hard fought, clean series. the games on the field were some of the best all-around baseball we have seen played against our Tampa Bay Rays this year.
You deserve the win, and the celebration. The play where Chase Utley threw to Phillies catcher Carlos Ruiz at the plate with the Rays, Jason Bartlett barreling in on him was on the money and the play of the game.
Broad Street deserves this win, and the Phillies and their organization can be proud of the way they handled themselves on the field during the World Series. Congrats to Pat Guillick, who kinds wavered a bit there. Maybe he will comer back for another season Phillie fans?
Go celebrate Philly as we plan and have our own party for our boys in downtown St. Petersburg on Saturday, November 1st. It was an end to an incredible season for both teams. We still have a million things to be proud of this season with the Rays.
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I will be posting a World Series Game 5.5 blog in the morning. I think it is only fitting that we let the Phillies celebrate and relish the acccomplishments they have earned this season. In hindsight, it might have taken almost 48 hours more than planned, but the celebration is going on wild in the streets of Philly right now.
So, come back in the afternoon for my wrap-up of tonight’s game and for the latest news on the Rays celebration in St. Petersburg on Saturday.
Again, Congrats Phillies on a great season and World Championship.
Suspended Game 5.5 Tidbits……………The Wednesday Delaware Edition
The Rays are staying at a posh, very romantic resort in Wilmington, Delaware right now, and it is the perfect place for them to relax and recharge before taking on the Philadelphia Phillies tonight and hopefully, extend this series to at least 1 more game……….or more.
Game 5 Tidbits
Scott Kazmir walked 6 batters in only 4 innings on Monday, making him only the 3rd pitcher to walk that many batters in that few innings in a World Series game. The Brooklyn Dodgers’ Rex Barney walked 6 Yankees batters in 2 2/3 innings in 1949 and the Tigers’ “Wild Bill” Donovan lived up to his moniker by walking 6 Pirates batters in 3 innings in 1909.
B.J. Upton stole his 4th base of the World Series in the top of the 6th, and it turned out to be a crucial move, as he scored the tying run on Carlos Pena’s RBI single. Upton’s 4 steals are the most by a player in one World Series since Omar Vizquel had 5 in 1997.
Umpires come clean on two key calls in the World Series.
The Philadelphia Phillies scored in the first inning of Game 4 on Sunday night after Jimmy Rollins scampered safely back to third during a rundown. But television replays showed he was tagged on the backside by Tampa Bay’s Evan Longoria and should have been called out by 3rd base umpire Tim Welke.
Longoria swiped his arm in frustration after Rollins was called safe, and Rays manager Joe Maddon came out for a brief argument. “I just saw him swing and miss. I never saw a tag,” Welke explained after Sunday night’s game. “That’s a swipe tag. A lot of times on a swipe tag, the glove will pause. I saw him try to make a swipe tag but I never saw the glove pause.”
Rollins wound up scoring when Pat Burrell drew a bases-loaded walk from Andy Sonnanstine, and the Phillies went on to a 10-2 victory that gave them a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven Series.
It was the Rays who got a break in Game 3, when speedy Carl Crawford was called safe by 1st base umpire Tom Hallion on a 7th-inning bunt single. Replays showed Jamie Moyer’s glove flip to first baseman Ryan Howard beat Crawford on a close play.
“Bang-bang play, and I tried to get the best angle on it,” Hallion told a pool reporter. “I really didn’t get a sound to be able to judge. It winds up being a great play. And looking at a replay here, they just got him.” Crawford scored as part of a 2-run rally and Tampa Bay tied it later, but Philadelphia won, 5-4.
There were a couple of disputed calls during the first 3 games at Tampa Bay, too. Maddon screamed for a balk on Cole Hamels when he picked off a Carlos Pena in the opener, and Rocco Baldelli drew a key walk on a checked swing in Game 2 that the Phillies thought had been called strike three.
And then there is the strike zone. Fox and its announcing team of Joe Buck and Tim McCarver have also pointed out several inconsistencies throughout the series.
Moyer seemed to benefit from Fieldin Culbreth’s calls behind the plate in Game 3, when Fox’s tracking system registered several pitches out of the strike zone that went in the Phillies’ favor.
In Game 5, the tracking system showed that Rays starter Scott Kazmir received at least three ball calls from Jeff Kellogg that looked to be strikes. Two to Pat Burrell, with 2 strikes, in the fifth inning led to Kazmir’s 6th walk, and he was pulled thereafter. In the previous inning, the Rays’ Akinori Iwamura struck out on a pitch that appeared several inches out of the strike zone.
This is the first postseason in which baseball is using replay–though only to review home run calls.
Game 5 to Resume on Weds. Night
Welcome to uncharted waters. We’re moving forward, but it’s definitely still very murky. But to the people in Florida, murjy is not always a bad thing. You know we do have swamps and bogs and underwater caves to explore in this state.
With the first suspended game in World Series history now scheduled to resume on Wednesday. Major League Baseball officials ruled that Tuesday was out of the question after logistics and the current weather was put to senarios and complications of playing in the weather.
The implications stretch beyond tickets and travel. The Rays and Phillies have baseball questions to answer with 3 1/2 innings left to play. It gets interesting right from the top, as Philadelphia will send a pinch-hitter to the plate to open the bottom of the sixth inning. Starting pitcher Cole Hamels’ work is done
Manager Charlie Manuel confirmed what was already a formality on Tuesday. But Hamels would be in line for his fifth victory of the postseason if the Phillies could push across a run in the 6th and hold on to the lead for a win. Hamels would be the first starter in postseason history to win five games in five starts.
Rays manager Joe Maddon said on Monday night that Grant Balfour, who pitched the fifth for Tampa Bay after starter Scott Kazmir was pulled, is his pitcher to start the sixth.
But there’s an excellent chance that will change quickly.
Most of Philadelphia’s dangerous pinch-hitters bat from the left side, most notably Matt Stairs. So Manuel likely will summon a lefty as his first hitter once the game resumes, and Maddon likely would counter with a southpaw on the mound.
In fact, Maddon would be wise to warm up a lefty at the same time Balfour warms up. I am guessing that Rookie phenom, David Price will be warmed and ready to go by game time if Maddon inserted him into a long reliever’s role to take over the lasdt 3 innings of the game for the Rays.
Both teams have well stocked Bullpens that will have plenty of rest. No pinch-hitters have been used, and the switch from Kazmir to Balfour is the only pitching change. So both managers have a full complement of tactical options once the game gets back under way. Both, meanwhile, downplayed the possibility of using a starting pitcher as a reliever in Game 5.
So in the practical sense, there’s no real advantage going forward. Yet Tampa Bay has to feel on some level that it has pulled something of an escape. The Rays outlasted Hamels, and they’re not behind. They may have the starting pitching advantage in Games 6 and 7, should those occur, and they’d also have home field.
That starting advantage in a potential Game 7, however, could go completely out the window if baseball adds a travel day after Game 5. The possibility is still in play that following a game Wednesday, the teams would travel on Thursday and play Game 6 in St. Petersburg on Friday. That would put Game 7 on Saturday, which would allow Hamels to pitch on full rest.
Additionally, the dynamics of Games 6 and 7 change in other ways. If Game 6 is held until Friday, then every starter on both teams save Hamels and Kazmir would be available to pitch on full rest in that game.
Game 4 took place on Sunday, so a Game 6 on Friday would provide four full days of rest for Joe Blanton and Andy Sonnanstine. At the very least, Blanton and Sonnanstine would be available to pitch in relief as much as needed in that game. Both of these bullpens are excellent, though Philadelphia has at least one advantage in that it needs 3 fewer outs. The Phils also have all of their end-of-game options intact, while the Rays do not have a shut-down closer this postseason.
It all starts with the Rays and Phillies getting through Game 5. That could be Wednesday — or later. It could start with Chris Coste against Balfour, and it could start with Stairs facing David Price .Whatever the course, each team will steer itself towards a clear and presnet advantage.
If the Phillies find that safe portage, the series is over and the celebration will start on Broad Street immediately. And if the Rays can pull off another miracle, we get to go to a closed dome stadium where weather and the elements are not a concern once you head into the doors of the Trop. So we get a night to relax, recharge and rejoice th fact that the World Series will take a few more days to complete, but then again………..Febuary is coming fast.
Uncharted waters, indeed. ..
MLB Rule Book Concerning Game Suspensions
The following passages are taken directly from the Major League Baseball Handbook distributed to all members of the MLB and it’s clubs. I got a copy of this manaul this year from someone within the Rays organization, and it is pretty informative if you ever get a chance to read it. It might not great bedtime reading, but if you have a lazy day and just want to learn something trivial and might be useful one other time in your life…………this is the book.
4.12 SUSPENDED GAMES.
(a) A game shall become a suspended game that must be completed at a future date if the game is terminated for any of the following reasons:
(1) A curfew imposed by law;
(2) A time limit permissible under league rules;
(3) Light failure or malfunction of a mechanical field device under control of the home club. (Mechanical field device shall include automatic tarpaulin or water removal equipment);
(4) Darkness, when a law prevents the lights from being turned on;
(5) Weather, if a regulation game is called while an inning is in progress and before the inning is completed, and the visiting team has scored one or more runs to take the lead, and the home team has not retaken the lead; or
(6) It is a regulation game that is called with the score tied.
National Association Leagues may also adopt the following rules for suspended games. (If adopted by a National Association League, Rule 4.10(e) would not apply to their games.):
(7) The game has not become a regulation game (4½ innings with the home team ahead, or 5 innings with the visiting club ahead or tied).
(8) If a game is suspended before it becomes a regulation game, and is continued prior to another regularly scheduled game, the regularly scheduled game will be limited to seven innings.
(9) If a game is suspended after it is a regulation game, and is continued prior to another regularly scheduled game, the regularly scheduled game will be a nine inning game.
EXCEPTION: Optional Rules 4.12(a)(7), 4.12(a)(8) and 4.12(a)(9) for National Association Leagues will not apply to the last scheduled game between the two teams during the championship season or league playoffs.
No game called because of a curfew (Rule 4.12(a)(1)), weather (Rule 4.12(a)(5)), a time limit (Rule 4.12(a)(2)) or with a tied score (Rule 4.12(a)(6)) shall be a suspended game unless it has progressed far enough to have been a regulation game pursuant to Rule 4.10(c). A game called pursuant to Rules 4.12(a)(3) or 4.12(a)(4) shall be a suspended game at any time after it starts.
NOTE: Weather and similar conditions–Rules 4.12(a)(1) through 4.12(a)(5)–shall take precedence in determining whether a called game shall be a suspended game. If a game is halted by weather, and subsequent light failure or an intervening curfew or time limit prevents its resumption, the game shall not be a suspended game.
If a game is halted by light failure, and weather or field conditions prevent its resumption, the game shall not be a suspended game. A game can only be considered a suspended game if stopped for any of the six reasons specified in Rule 4.12(a).
(b) A suspended game shall be resumed and completed as follows:
(1) Immediately preceding the next scheduled single game between the two clubs on the same grounds; or
(2) Immediately preceding the next scheduled doubleheader between the two clubs on the same grounds, if no single game remains on the schedule; or
(3) If suspended on the last scheduled date between the two clubs in that city, transferred and played on the grounds of the opposing club, if possible;
(i) Immediately preceding the next scheduled single game, or
(ii) Immediately preceding the next scheduled doubleheader, if no single game remains on the schedule.
(4) Any suspended game not completed prior to the last scheduled game between the two teams during the championship season shall become a called game. If such game becomes a called game and
(i) has progressed far enough to become a regulation game, and one team is ahead, the team that is ahead shall be declared the winner;
(ii) has progressed far enough to become a regulation game, and the score is tied, the game shall be declared a “tie game.” A tie game is to be replayed in its entirety, unless the league president determines that playing the rescheduled game is not necessary to affect the league championship; or
(iii) has not progressed far enough to become a regulation game, the game shall be declared “No Game.” In such case, the game is to be replayed in its entirety, unless the league president determines that playing the rescheduled game is not necessary to affect the league championship.
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A suspended game shall be resumed at the exact point of suspension of the original game. The completion of a suspended game is a continuation of the original game. The lineup and batting order of both teams shall be exactly the same as the lineup and batting order at the moment of suspension, subject to the rules governing substitution.
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Any player may be replaced by a player who had not been in the game prior to the suspension. No player removed before the suspension may be returned to the lineup.
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A player who was not with the club when the game was suspended may be used as a substitute, even if he has taken the place of a player no longer with the club who would not have been eligible because he had been removed from the lineup before the game was suspended.
Rule 4.12(c) Comment: If immediately prior to the call of a suspended game, a substitute pitcher has been announced but has not retired the side or pitched until the batter becomes a base runner, such pitcher, when the suspended game is later resumed may, but is not required to start the resumed portion of the game.
However, if he does not start he will be considered as having been substituted for and may not be used in that game.
(d) Rain checks will not be honored for any regulation or suspended game that has progressed to or beyond a point of play described in Rule 4.10(c).
Rays Renegade
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