ST. PETERSBURG - Let's put aside Dewon Brazelton 's uneven performance Sunday against the A's because it was the exception rather than the rule for the Devil Rays' starting pitchers.
In five previous games - one trip through a rotation that includes Rob Bell , Hideo Nomo , Scott Kazmir and Mark Hendrickson - the starters were not the weakness almost everyone expected them to be. In fact, they were a strength.
Brazelton walked six in five innings in a 6-1 loss, but the numbers still are good: 36 innings, 12 earned runs, 25 hits, 21 strikeouts, 13 walks and, entering Monday, a league-low .191 opponent batting average and a 3.00 ERA, behind only the White Sox.
"Guys are going out there and we've gone right at hitters," Bell said. "We're not tiptoeing around the strike zone. Guys have gone out and challenged hitters and I think it's worked. We have some guys in this room with some really good stuff."
"The big thing is that we've thrown strikes," manager Lou Piniella said. "We've made the other team hit the ball and we've played well defensively.
"That's really the secret to our starting pitching. We're not an overpowering starting pitching staff where we're going to strike out a lot of people. We have to stay ahead of them and be aggressive in the strike zone."
"We have a lot of room to grow," Bell said. I think the improvement here is going to be very measurable."
SEARCHING FOR C.J.: The Rays expect catcher Charles Johnson to be at the Trop for tonight's game against the Orioles.
General manager Chuck LaMar implied last week there could be consequences if Johnson, granted a leave of absence Wednesday to handle a personal problem, was not with the team today. LaMar declined to be specific because he said he expected Johnson to return.
Johnson, 33, was signed for $316,000 on April 4 after he was traded by the Rockies to the Red Sox and released. Colorado and Boston are paying the rest of his $9-million salary.
ON THE RUN: The Rays really pressured the A's on the bases Saturday, especially in the fourth inning when, leading 7-1, they stole three. Carl Crawford swiped second and third and the Rays added four runs during an 11-2 victory.
When is it time to back off?
"We don't run with a five-run lead late in a ballgame," Piniella said. "We'll try to win baseball games, but we're not going to try and shove it down anybody's neck because what goes around comes around. And I'm very familiar with that. We're just going to play the game."
As for the fourth inning against the A's, Piniella said, "Those four runs we put together really put the game away. If you sit on a seven-run lead and don't add to it, the other team gets the feeling, "Well, they're done scoring. We can mount a challenge.' But, boy, oh boy, you tack on a run here and tack on a run there, the other team starts thinking tomorrow."
LESSONS LEARNED: After Julio Lugo was tossed Wednesday against the Blue Jays for questioning strike three, the Rays shortstop said he realized, "This year the (umpires) are more sensitive."
So when Lugo was called out at third Friday at the end of a double play (replays indicated he was safe), he threw his head back in disbelief but walked away. He did the same Saturday after he was called out on a play at home in which he also appeared safe.
"The first day I got thrown out, I didn't see the reason why," Lugo said. "I asked a simple question, so I figured I'd better keep my mouth shut and take it."
MISCELLANY: Second baseman Jorge Cantu started Monday with three home runs, tied for the AL lead. His .391 average was eighth. ... The Rays' Hispanic radio network has added 1420-AM, Bradenton.
