AL Notes: Rays Coming Back To Earth, O’s Surging, Yankees Getting Healthy

Two weeks ago, the Tampa Bay Rays rallied from a 6-0 deficit against New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole and defeated the Bronx Bombers 8-7 in 10 innings to win the rubber game of a three-game series and improve their MLB-best record to 28-7. The Rays have “slumped”, going .500 over the last 10 games, and still hold the top record in the majors at 34-14, but two of their division rivals have kicked in their afterburners and are gaining ground in the AL East.

Baltimore trails by just 2.5 games, mostly on the strength of a balanced offense led by first baseman Ryan Mountcastle (10 HRs), outfielders Cedric Mullins (.283, 7 HRs), Austin Hays (.311 avg), and young catcher Adley Rutschman (.271, 7 HR’s), but whether the Orioles can maintain their torrid pace will depend on whether their pitching can hold out until contenders begin to deal for rental arms close to the July 31st trade deadline. 

The loss on May 7 had the Yankees just one game over .500 (18-17), but since New York has gone 11-3, trail Tampa by 5.5 games, and are slowly getting their injured players back. Through April and early May, the Yankees rotation was essentially Cole (5-0, 2.01 ERA), Nestor Cortes (4-2), and the rest cobbled together between Clarke Schmidt, Jhony Brito, and Domingo German. On Sunday, Luis Severino made his first start since being injured in spring training, allowing one run in 4 ⅔ innings in a 4-1 victory over the Cincinnati Reds, and big lefty free agent Carlos Rodon is ramping up toward a return after Memorial Day.  

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The most consistent performer since Opening Day has been Anthony Rizzo, who leads the club with a .302 batting average and 11 HRs. After an awkward slide sent him to the IL, reigning AL MVP Aaron Judge returned to top form, with seven home runs in the last seven games, four of which came in a four-game set in Toronto against the slumping Blue Jays. The return of Harrison Bader from an oblique injury has provided stability and Gold-Glove-level defense in center field, and slugger Giancarlo Stanton is expected to start a minor-league rehab assignment this week. 

The return of their injured outfielders allowed New York on Saturday to designate outfielder Aaron Hicks for assignment. The 33-year-old has struggled with injuries and inconsistency since hitting 27 home runs in 2018. Hicks had this year and two more seasons remaining on a seven-year, $70 million deal and is still owed more than $27 million.