Archive for Tampa Bay Rays

Going into today’s Red Sox-Rays game, plate discipline and the strike zone figured to play prominent roles. They did, to a certain degree. Defense — or lack thereof — played a bigger one.

As FanGraphs readers know, Red Sox and Rays hitters are patient at the plate. No team in either league swung at a lower percentage of pitches out of the strike zone than Tampa Bay. Their 0-swing% was just 27.1. The Red Sox were third-lowest at 28.2.

The Rays were more aggressive in the strike zone. The Red Sox swung at 62.4 percent of strikes, the lowest in baseball. Tampa Bay’s 64.8 z-swing% placed them closer to the middle of the pack.

What would that mean for today’s ALDS Game One match-up? Red Sox starter Lester walked 2.83 batters per nine innings this year, but has been known to work long counts and build up high pitch counts. Tampa Bay starter Moore walked 4.59 and has been described as effectively wild.

Before the game, manager Joe Maddon said of Moore, “When he’s kind of like this controlled wildness, they don’t get hits. He may walk a couple of guys, but they don’t hit him. And sometimes he’ll get over the plate, which you’d perceive to be better command, and he gets hit. That’s the problem. He walks this different kind of tightrope.”

As it turned out, Moore — despite pitching better than his line score — walked the gangplank. Early on, it was Lester who was getting a sinking feeling. Not surprisingly, plate discipline and the strike zone came into play. Read the rest of this entry »

Last month, I asked 10 big-league players if hitting is more of an art or more of a science. I posed the same question to Luke Scott. Not surprisingly, his answer was both thoughtful and interesting. Love him or hate him — the Tampa Bay Rays outfielder is outspoken, charismatic and controversial — Scott understands his craft. He also describes it in way that only Luke Scott can.

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How differently do pitchers and catchers think? They work hand-in-hand, but do they approach pitch selection the same way? Do they interpret the quality of a pitcher’s stuff the same way? Do they see the same things when reading hitters?

I’ve posed that question(s) to a number of pitchers, catchers and coaches over the course of the season. Selections from those conversations will be featured here in the coming weeks. First up is Tampa Bay Rays bullpen coach Stan Boroski.

Currently in his fourth season with the Rays, Boroski understands the pitcher-catcher dynamic as well as anyone. He played both positions in the minor leagues — “I couldn’t hit” is Boroski’s explanation for moving to the mound — before joining the scouting and coaching ranks. He was a pitching coach in the Astros system before coming to Tampa Bay. Read the rest of this entry »

Kyle Farnsworth is intimidating. The Tampa Bay Rays right-hander throws hard and isn’t afraid to come inside. He is also a sculpted 6-foot-4, 240 pounds with a background in martial arts. Charging the mound against him has never been a good idea.

That tough-guy image has overshadowed a long and mostly successful career. Farnsworth has never been a star, but he has appeared in 814 regular season games and 15 post-season games. In 941 innings he has fanned 934 batters. He has backed down to none of them.

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David Laurila: How different a pitcher are you now compared to when you broke into the big leagues?

Kyle Farnsworth: Not too much different. I obviously don’t throw as hard as I did back then. That’s going to happen over the years and this is my 15th season. You just have to continue to make adjustments as hitters make adjustments to you.

DL: How hard did you throw in those early years?

KF: I think I topped out at 103, but I was mostly high-90s. You can get away with a lot more mistakes when you’re throwing that hard, as opposed to being 90 or something like that. It’s a good luxury to have.

DL: Did you reach a point in your career where velocity wasn’t as important?

KF: Not really, although I realized that maybe movement was a little more important than velocity. Eventually hitters are going to catch up to straight 98, as opposed to movement and 94. That’s a lot harder to hit and the type of thing you figure out the longer you are into your career. You’d like to figure them out a whole earlier, but you figure them out when you figure them out.

DL: Have you ever done anything to improve the movement on your fastball? Read the rest of this entry »

Richie Shaffer won’t be displacing Evan Longoria any time soon. That doesn’t mean the 21-year-old Tampa Bay Rays third base prospect doesn’t have a promising future. Drafted 25th overall last year out of Clemson, Shaffer projects to bash his way to Tropicana Field.

Shaffer talked about his game when the short-season Hudson Valley Renegades visited Boston to play in the Futures at Fenway doubleheader.

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David Laurila: How have you been approaching your first professional season?

Richie Shaffer: I’ve been going out there and being myself. I’m playing baseball and doing the best I can, trying not to over-think things. I’m letting the work I do before games translate into production during the games. That’s the key. You want to be consistent. Basically, I’m trying to get the feel for what professional baseball is all about.

DL: Are there specific things you need to focus on?

RS: There are things I want to key on, both strengths and weaknesses. I want to do improve my game and make myself more well-rounded. I’m constantly working on my footwork at third. I’m constantly trying to keep my swing where it needs to be. I’m working on my pitch recognition and plate discipline. I’m thinking about my approach and driving the ball the other way. All of those things, because I want to be a complete, well-rounded baseball player.

DL: Have you seen scouting reports — in Baseball America or elsewhere — that you don’t fully agree with? Read the rest of this entry »

The Tampa Bay Rays have a deep and talented pitching staff, which extends into their farm system. Of the bunch, Taylor Guerrieri has a chance to be as good as any.

A 20-year-old [as of tomorrow] right-hander, Guerrieri is the team’s top pitching prospect. Drafted 24th overall in 2011, he began his professional career this summer with short-season Hudson Valley and dominated the New York-Penn League. He featured a mid-90s fastball and a plus curveball while he logged a 1.04 ERA and a 0.77 WHIP in 12 starts. In 52 innings, he struck out 45 batters and walked only five.

Guerrieri talked about his pitching approach after the Futures at Fenway doubleheader in mid-August.

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David Laurila: How do get guys out?

Taylor Guerrieri: I just get ahead with the fastball, or really with any pitch. Making sure you stay ahead is the key. To me, it’s get ahead early and get ahead often.

I try to stay true with my pitch sequence. A lot of it, for me, is based on where the guy is set up on the plate. If he’s further in, I’m going to come in. If he’s a little bit away from the plate, I’m going to go away. A lot depends on the batter, but I also have a game plan.

DL: Who dictates your game plan?

TG: It’s basically the manager, pitching coach and myself. It’s about staying ahead with the fastball until they prove they can hit the fastball. I usually don’t show them too much until they show they can hit it. The plan isn’t so much about particular hitters as it is my approach.

DL: You throw your two-seam fastball more than your four-seam. Why?

TG: I grew up throwing a two-seamer. I’m just now learning how to throw a four-seam off the mound and get comfortable with it. That will be a big pitch for me, so I’m looking to progress with it.

I don’t think there’s a lot of difference [in velocity]. It’s more of a placement pitch; more of a set-up pitch. I like to throw a lot of two-seamers and my four helps me set that up.

My two-seam has a little running action and some sinking, as well. It has more run toward the glove side and more sink toward the arm side.

DL: How important is velocity to your game?

TG: It is important. I’m not going to lie. Read the rest of this entry »

The Chicago White Sox organization has done an outstanding job of squeezing every ounce of value out of its prospects this season.

Back in March, four prospect analysts/publications (FanGraphs, Baseball America, Keith Law, Kevin Goldstein) all agreed – in separate rankings of the 30 organizations in baseball – that the White Sox club was indeed the weakest in all of Major League Baseball in terms of prospects.

The perceived lack of quality hasn’t stopped the club from trotting out 12 rookies this season – for a combined value of 3.1 WAR. The majority of the contributions have come from the pitching side. Only outfielder Jordan Danks and infielder Eduardo Escobar – since traded to the Minnesota Twins for Francisco Liriano – have played the field for the White Sox. Danks has managed to provide 0.2 WAR, while Escobar was in the negative prior to his departure.

Read the rest of this entry »

Rocco Baldelli knows what it’s like to be a promising young hitter. Drafted sixth overall out of a Rhode Island high school, in 2000 by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, he was viewed as a potential superstar. He reached the big leagues at the age of 21, and despite three solid campaigns was still a work-in-progress when his career was derailed by injuries and illness.

He is now entrusted with helping other young players reach their potential. Still just 30 years old, he is working for the Rays as a special assistant to baseball operations. Baldelli shared his thoughts on the art of hitting — or is it a science? — at the MIT-Sloan Sports Analytics Conference, earlier this year.

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Rocco Baldelli: “As a hitter — a former hitter — I’ve always been enamored of just watching guys and seeing who has success and who doesn’t. I’ve seen guys who look as though they should be able to hit and can’t. I’ve seen guys who struggle early in their careers and then figure out a way to become productive major-league offensive players.

“You look for separators, but it‘s not that simple. You start looking for commons traits in good hitters, and common traits in guys who struggle, and you think you’ve found them. Then you see some of the best hitters in baseball doing things you wouldn’t necessarily expect good hitters to do. To me, the amount of questions is endless. There are so many variables that go into the process of hitting at the highest level.

“Pitchers can reinvent themselves. For instance, say you have a big guy with a good arm and he can spin the ball a little bit. He can progress and change the type of player he is. But hitters and swings seem to be so ingrained. Read the rest of this entry »

Dave Martinez is expected to become a big-league manager someday, and he’ll be well prepared when he gets the opportunity. The Tampa Bay Rays bench coach couldn’t ask for a better mentor. Following a 20-year playing career, the 47-year-old Martinez has spent the last five seasons working under Joe Maddon.

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David Laurila: How differently might you look at the game were it not for Joe Maddon?

Dave Martinez: It would certainly be different. The game is changing and what I’ve learned from Joe is that you have to change with the game or you’ll fall behind. Joe is really knowledgeable and does his homework. We [coaches] get a bunch of information from him.

DL: What is your primarily role as the Rays’ bench coach?

DM: I do everything Joe does, except I don’t have to deal with the media and I don’t get credit for anything. I help manage the game the way I see fit. I’m very opinionated and give Joe my opinions. Ultimately, he makes the final decisions, but I do the best I can to manage the games alongside him.

DL; Does he expect you to disagree with him? Read the rest of this entry »

Burke Badenhop and the Tampa Bay infield are a marriage made in ground-ball heaven. MLB’s league-average GB rate fluctuates around 44 percent, and the sinkerballing right-hander boasts a career mark of 55.8 in 254 big-league relief innings. As Mike Axisa wrote when the Rays acquired him from the Marlins last December: “Tampa’s pitchers have enjoyed a .228 BABIP on ground balls over the last four seasons (.224 over the last three seasons), which plays right into Badenhop’s ground ball happy ways.”

Badenhop, who has an economics degree from Bowling Green, talked about his signature sinker and his utilization of PitchFX data when the Rays visited Fenway Park over the weekend.

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Badenhop on being an undervalued asset: “Thinking at the margin and responding to incentives are economic theories, and that‘s kind of how I got here. The Rays are more efficient with the way they utilize their resources and my innate ground-ball ability is where I derive my value. Last year, with the Marlins, I was throwing innings that usually weren’t the most important. Now, I’m with a playoff team that has a different way of looking at things. We’re more analytical here.

“If I’m with any other team, are they going to have someone who is essentially their ground-ball guy? I can’t imagine that I’d fit into every major-league bullpen in terms of what I do. Other teams might use me differently. Joe Maddon, Andrew Friedman, and those guys know what they’re doing. They’re very cutting-edge and are very — as Joe puts it — old school in their approach, but new school in the way they go about doing things.

“When I got traded over here, I kind of knew how they run things. I played with Randy Choate last year and he had played here. Joe Maddon obviously has a reputation throughout the game as being a forward-thinking guy.”

On defensive positioning and shifts: “Last year, going into September, I went through my numbers and found that my third baseman had made five plays for me. Read the rest of this entry »