Yarbrough took the mound tonight against Boston for the second game of a two game series at Tropicana Field. He gave up eight hits in five innings and had five strikeouts. Trouble struck when a breaking ball to Alex Verdugo ended up as a two run home run in the 4th inning.
Fast forward to the 6th inning, Yarbrough gave up a double to Xander Bogaerts to start the inning. A single by Christian Vasquez scored a third run for Boston. Still with no outs, Michael Chavis hit a three run home run, bringing the score to 5-0 Boston.
Yarbrough was hit pretty hard. For someone who induces contact, limiting balls in play to soft contact is key. Yarbrough’s hard hit percentage for tonight’s game was 44%. The harder the ball is hit, the more likely it ends up causing damage.
See the image below (from Baseball Savant) for a list of the hard hit balls in play against Yarbrough tonight, and their exit velocities. (Exit velocity greater than 95 mph is considered hard hit).
Meanwhile, Red Sox starter Martin Perez was throwing a shutout through five innings, only giving up 4 hits.
The Rays threatened in the bottom of the fourth, putting two on with no outs. Unfortunately, they weren’t able to move any runners up or score. Brosseau popped out, Lowe lined out, and Adames struck out. To be fair, Adames put together a pretty good at-bat, working the count full and hitting a long foul ball up the left field line. Regardless, leaving runners on base has been a problem for the Rays as long as I can remember. They need to start improving manufacturing runs and moving runners over.
The Rays offense remained quiet through the end of the game, with 5-0 being the final score.
Promising Sign: Yandy Diaz
Yandy Diaz had a quiet start but hit two doubles in tonight’s game. Although he hasn’t been hitting as much as a lot of fans would like, he actually hasn’t been that bad at the plate this season. So far this season, he’s struck out 11 % percent of the time (which is roughly one time per 10 at-bats). He’s also walked 21% of the time (roughly once every 5 at-bats).
Up Next…
Rays have a tough weekend ahead, facing the first place Yankees. The Yankees have been off to a hot start. Rays will need to find a way to put together some runs, score when there are runners on base, and get at least two wins.
Keep an eye out for Saturday’s games in particular. The Rays are playing a double-header, which this season consists of two seven inning games. Very curious how the Rays decide to play those pitching-wise. The Rays also have the tendency to score later in the game, which isn’t going to work. Here’s to hoping they make some adjustments, get rest during tomorrow’s off day, and find a way to beat the Yankees.