Growing pains persist

ORIOLES 12, RAYS 2: A team kept intact has rough game in midst of a solid run.

By KEVIN KELLY, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published August 1, 2002

ST. PETERSBURG -- The interested called. The Rays listened.

But by the trade deadline Wednesday, team officials realized they were better off keeping the present club intact rather than trade away their best players for less experienced ones.

Keep that in mind -- that things could be much worse -- as the season's final weeks play out.

As the Rays absorb more losses like Wednesday's drawn-out 12-2 affair against the Orioles before 10,933 at Tropicana Field. As they experience the continued ups and downs and shakeups expected from the youngest ballclub in the majors.

"I think it's a positive keeping us together," Jared Sandberg said. "We're all pretty young and eager to go out there and play hard, play to win every day. I hope they keep us together for as long as possible because good things will happen."

The loss was the Tampa Bay's 20th in July, tying a club record for losses in a month, and could spur a shakeup in the starting rotation and bullpen.

Starter Luis De Los Santos might be headed to the bullpen, with reliever Victor Zambrano perhaps getting a start in another attempt to solve his confidence problems.

"It's sort of undecided," manager Hal McRae said of his plans for De Los Santos. "But I'm really concerned with Zambrano since he did so well for us last year and he does have good stuff. But he's not pitching well. Anything to try and get him on track I'll try to do."

De Los Santos, 24, has struggled in all three starts since the Rays selected him July 18 from Triple-A Durham, where he had a 6-1 record and 2.14 ERA.

The sinkerballer threw 68 pitches over four innings Wednesday. Two of those pinballed around the outfield seats as leadoff home runs that helped Baltimore take a 4-1 lead by the fourth. He was relieved having allowed four runs on seven hits.

"He couldn't get the ball down and didn't have very much sink," McRae said. "He's just not throwing it the way he did in the minor leagues. We hope that he comes around."

De Los Santos is 0-3 with an 11.57 ERA boosted by five home runs allowed to the Blue Jays, Red Sox and Orioles.

"It was a bad day. No luck," he said. "The Devil Rays have given me a chance to help the team, but I've had no luck."

With De Los Santos out early, McRae dipped into the bullpen and pulled Zambrano out first.

The right-hander allowed eight runs in 22/3 innings. The Orioles scored six in the seventh inning to take a 12-1 lead.

Sent to Durham on June 25 after posting a 5.93 ERA in his first 27 appearances with the Rays, Zambrano was recalled July 20 and is 1-0 with one save, but has a 14.09 ERA in four appearances.

"Victor is a puzzle," McRae said. "We're going to try and do whatever we can to try and get the best from him. He's pitched some innings. He's pitched short. We're thinking about possibly giving him a start to see if that could shake him loose."

Offensively the Rays found Rookie of the Year candidate Rodrigo Lopez a bit more difficult to figure out than Baltimore's starters the previous two nights. Tampa Bay scored 16 and got 33 hits against Travis Driskill and John Stephens.

Lopez, who was 2-0 with a 1.93 ERA against the Rays this season entering the game, wasn't unhittable. He was merely good enough in allowing one run on six hits over six innings.

"He was just making his pitches," Steve Cox said. "He's been doing it all year."

The Rays got plenty of runners -- nine in the first five innings -- but left nine during the game. Their first run came on a double to leftfield by Chris Gomez, which scored Sandberg in the second.

Pinch hitter Jason Conti homered in the seventh to make it 12-2.

Despite the ugliness of the 10-run loss, a win today would give the Rays their first series victory since late June against the Marlins and would be their seventh win in 12 games.

"A win tomorrow is very meaningful," McRae said. "Hopefully we can do that."