Would-be division champs settle for wild-card series
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Rays and Texas Rangers both looked like they might be the best teams in baseball for significant stretches of a long season in which they now find themselves facing each other in an AL Wild Card Series.
The Rays got off to a historic 13-0 start and led the American League East by as many as 6½ games before a horrendous July left them playing catch-up the rest of the season to eventual division champion Baltimore.
Texas, meanwhile, is back in the playoffs two years after losing 102 games.
A dominant offense carried the Rangers much of the season, enabling them to weather injuries and remain in prime position to win the AL West until their potent bats faltered in the closing days, when they fell one win shy of a division title.
“It’s a resilient team . ... We’ve had our share of ups and downs,” Rangers general manager Chris Young said Monday.
“We certainly sustained a number of injuries that have impacted us, yet here we are in the playoffs, which is a big step forward for our franchise,” Young added. “We’ve won 90 games coming off a 68-win season. That’s a huge accomplishment.” The Rays also overcame injuries that wrecked their starting pitching rotation, while also finding a way to hold their season together without All-Star shortstop Wander Franco, who’s been on administrative leave since mid-August amid investigations into an alleged relationship between Franco and a minor.
Despite not being able to catch the Orioles, the Rays went 28-15 finished with 99 wins — second-most in franchise history. They’re in the postseason for the fifth straight season with a goal of not only reaching the World Series but finally winning it all.
Since losing to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 2020 World Series, played the Rangers’ stadium in Arlington, Texas, due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Rays have lost their opening playoff series in each of the past two years.
Game 1 starter Tyler Glasnow (10-7, 3.53 ERA) stressed the Rays aren’t looking beyond the Rangers, who are in the playoffs for the first time since 2016.
“I think when you start thinking like that, it just adds unnecessary pressure. .. I know it’s cliche, boring, but you just have to deal with what you have in front of you at the time,” the righthander said. “You play each game and live in the moment.”
Lefty Jordan Montgomery, 4-2 with a 2.79 ERA in 11 appearances with the Rangers after being acquired from St. Louis, will start for the Rangers, who were shut out twice while losing three of four at Seattle. That allowed the Astros to win the AL West title.
“All year offensively we’ve had an identity. We’ve been able to score runs,” Young said. “Sometimes we’ll go through a stretch where ... they are a little streaky. When our group is on, they’re able to score and produce runs,.
One of the interesting subplots is a highly anticipated showdown featuring featuring Josh Lowe of the Rays and Nathaniel Lowe of Rangers.
Younger brother Josh said Monday that lots of extended family will be in the stands for the series, however their mother, Wendy, will not make the trip to Tropicana Field because she has cancer and is undergoing chemotherapy.