Starting To Sting 

By: Mike Rifkin

The Rays lost three of four to the Baltimore Orioles over the weekend and seven of eight overall. Now, they find themselves two games behind Baltimore in the AL East. The Rays had led the division all season until now, but a 4-14 record in July, tied for the worst in baseball, has people wondering what is going on in Tampa. The Rays’ next eight games will be against in-state rival Marlins, the reigning World Series Champion Astros, and Division rival Yankees, all of whom currently have their issues. 

A big part of the Rays’ struggles has been injuries to their pitching staff, which they rely heavily on. Shane Baz, Drew Rasmussen, and Jeffrey Springs are all out for the season. Josh Fleming and Andrew Kittredge have started rehab assignments and are working their way back. Their two most reliable starters, Shane Mclanahan and Tyler Glasnow, have also been on the injured list this year. 

With the trade deadline rapidly approaching, the Rays should be in the pitching market for both starters and relievers. Here’s the thing: the Rays have always done things differently, and many experts write them off every year. But this American League is different. Everybody has been up and down. The Rays had been dominant up until this point. So why dip into one of the top farm systems in baseball and go all out and make a play for Shohei Ohtani? Ohtani probably wouldn’t re-sign in Tampa, but imagine adding him to that rotation and lineup. That would change the balance of power in the AL back to Tampa and could lead the franchise to its first World Series Championship.