Rays' win streak nipped in the bud by pen breakdown

A depleted relief corps blows a lead in the eighth as Tampa Bay loses 5-3 to Cleveland to fall one short of a team-best streak.

By JOHN ROMANO

© St. Petersburg Times, published August 3, 2000

ST. PETERSBURG -- Jim Mecir is in Oakland. Rick White is in New York. Mark Guthrie is in Toronto. And the Devil Rays were in trouble.

For the first time since trading away the bullpen core, the Rays felt the need for relief Wednesday night.

Tampa Bay used four relievers while blowing a one-run lead in the eighth inning on the way to a 5-3 loss to Cleveland before an announced 16,909. The Rays fell one shy of setting a team record with seven victories in a row.

"We've got to move on," said closer Roberto Hernandez, who blew the save after converting his past 14 opportunities. "Mike Duvall did an outstanding job. (Billy) Taylor battled his tail off. (Doug) Creek did the same thing. They all did their jobs and we've got nothing to be ashamed of.

"Sometimes, the game just doesn't go your way."

To be fair, maybe the Rays would have lost even if Mecir, Guthrie and White had not been dealt for prospects in three deals in the past week.

But, as manager Larry Rothschild wore a path between the dugout and the mound, it was hard not to wonder what might have happened if one of the best bullpens in the American League had been left intact.

It began with two outs and nobody on in the eighth. Three pitching changes, two pinch-runners, two walks, two singles and a passed ball later, the Rays found themselves trailing.

"We got to two outs quick enough, we just didn't get the last one," Rothschild said. "(Manny) Ramirez hits the ball up the middle, just a ground ball, but it gets through. (Jim) Thome is a tough hitter and Doug (Creek) did what he could. They've got good hitters. That's going to happen. It's just worse when it happens in the eighth inning."

What made the loss more frustrating was that the Rays had pulled off a comeback of their own an inning earlier. After being held to one hit by Dave Burba and trailing 2-0 going into the seventh, the Rays scored three to take the lead.

The next time they came to bat, they were losing again.

Ramirez's hit seemed to be a harmless single with two outs in the eighth off Taylor. With the left-handed Thome coming up, Rothschild went to Creek. The left-hander nearly struck out Thome looking on a 2-and-2 pitch, but umpire Mike Fichter did not pull the trigger.

"I made the pitch I wanted to make," Creek said. "I'm not going to dispute the umpire's call. I don't know if it was down, or away, or what. It was a close pitch and it went to him."

Creek wound up walking Thome and Rothschild went to Hernandez. The Rays closer has been close to automatic during the past two months, holding opponents scoreless in 16 of his previous 17 appearances.

He came up short on this one. Hernandez gave up a single to Wil Cordero to drive in the tying run. Facing David Segui with a chance to get out of the inning, Hernandez threw a rising fastball that went off Mike DiFelice's glove for a passed ball as the winning run scored.

"There was no excuse," DiFelice said. "It was an easy run."

The Rays got three balls out of the infield in the first six innings, and Burba faced one batter over the minimum to that point.

The first time Tampa Bay got a runner in scoring position was in the seventh, when Miguel Cairo led off with an infield single and Greg Vaughn followed with a walk. Fred McGriff got to a full count before striking out on a high fastball. It turned out to be Burba's last pitch.

With a blister developing on Burba's right index finger, Indians manager Charlie Manuel went to right-hander Steve Karsay to face Jose Canseco.

He hasn't touched a glove in more than a year. He runs like he is wearing high heels. His back needs heat, his shoulder needs ice, his Achilles' could use a new tendon. But Canseco can still hit a fastball.

Karsay got a 94 mph heater past Canseco for strike two, but when he tried it again, Canseco hit a two-run double off the wall in centerfield.

"That was a rarity for me, seeing a 3-and-2 fastball," Canseco said. "Especially one that was around the plate."

Canseco moved to third when the throw home to get Vaughn skipped past catcher Einar Diaz. Third baseman Aubrey Huff, making his major-league debut, hit a sacrifice fly to deep left to bring in Canseco with the go-ahead run.

© St. Petersburg Times. All rights reserved.

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