Tampa Bay Rays Aim to BOUNCE BACK in Texas After Griffin Jax's Shaky Return

0:00This is the Lockdown Podcast Network celebrating 10 years of your team every day. The Tampa Bay Rays will seek redemption in Texas. You are Lockdown Rays. Your daily Tampa Bay Rays Podcast, part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. Kevin Weiss running solo today, you listies and I will be back later on in the week. And today's episode is brought to you by Fandall. College football Saturdays are already packed with reasons to get excited. And this season, Fandall is giving fans even more ways to get in on every matchup you can join all the action at Fandall.com. Later on today's show, the best teams may not have the best playoff seating in a few minutes.

1:03A six man rotation is a reality for the Rays in the short term. But to start, Griffin Jacks, his return was anything but a disaster. And the Rays ended the Met series on a sour note. Yes, the Rays lost two of three to the New York Met at home, including the 10 for drumbing on Wednesday. And we thought it would be better vibes as Griffin Jacks coming back from injury. And he struggled in myriad ways. He pitched two and two thirds innings, allowed six runs, seven hits, two walks and one strike out should note that three of those six runs were earned. He did not have a lot of help defensively. So it was not totally his fault, but not the most picturesque pitching line for Griffin Jacks.

2:03But we have to give him the benefit of the doubt. We have to give him a reprieve. We have to give him time and patience to work back in the swing of things. That comment doesn't just apply to golfers. It doesn't just apply to softball hitters or baseball hitters, but it also applies to pitchers. Sometimes it takes some time to get back into the swing of things. Let's remember Griffin Jacks missed nearly a month due to right elbow discomfort, which was addressed with rest injection rehab. And didn't really get many rehab or tune up outings if I recall. So pretty much thrown into the fire and even against a team that's not very good in the New York Mets. You're still facing major league baseball players, decorated professionals and there's going to be some issues with the pace of the game.

3:04And if you leave one hanging, you leave one in the zone in the wrong count or you don't put the pitches in the zone from the get go. A team, a major league baseball team is going to take advantage. And luckily for Griffin Jacks, if you look at the data in terms of velocity, spin rate, degree of break, pitch shapes, that'll look fine. The issue was executing those pitches in game situations and some mechanical issues that the race mentioned, sequencing, strike throwing all those problems, bid him in the butt, so to speak. But I will be really curious to see how Griffin Jacks evolves and gets more comfortable and confident in a handful of days and a handful of days after that. What really matters to me about Griffin Jacks and everybody else, how are you doing at the very tail end of the season going into the playoffs?

4:06There's still some time for Griffin Jacks to get right. So I don't want to lay necessarily a ton of blame on him. I want to give him some credit and opportunity to work back into what he had pretty much been earlier this season. I think we've all been relatively or pretty pleased with the Griffin Jacks experience and there were some really solid items of his repertoire to highlight this entire season. I mean, if you look at what he had done with runners in scoring position before he got injured, it was immaculate. So Griffin Jacks, however the race decide to deploy him and utilize him, he should be a net benefit for the race going forward. But yeah, it is frustrating that the race lose two or three to the meds. That's what happens in baseball, even in a... It goes to show you why the race don't want to get involved in a best of three wild card series where you could be the top seed and...

5:10You could be a really good team and a not so good team beats you in a best of three. So that's where the race want to clinch that ALE spot and get the buy and fight it out in the best of five ALDS. And we'll talk a little bit about playoff seeding in the third segment. But hopefully the race can get right against the Texas Rangers, which has served as a kryptonite for Tampa Bay seemingly in perpetuity. But the race believe it or not, they have lost their last nine games at Globlai field and are 4 and 12 overall against the Rangers. So there's something going on in Texas. I feel like Globlai field was built to just demount the race, if you will. So this could be a really good confidence boost. The race can go in and take a couple games from the Texas Rangers.

6:11But yes, disappointing Met series, especially coming off the sweep against a really good Padres team. And you had some of those very exciting come back come back victories. But we have to also look at the big picture here in the big picture here is you look across baseball and the race are sixth in runs per game. First and batting average, first and on base percentage, first and OPS, first install and bases, fifth and TMERA. That should put you on pretty solid footing. You should be pretty happy and elated with where the rays are at in the standings and overall with the underlying numbers in metrics. And yeah, sucks to lose 10 to 4 to the mets, but what can you do that space ball that's going to happen over 162. So let's see how they can move on and evolve from it and back to the Griffin jacks point.

7:18I think he'll get better. I think he'll figure out what went wrong. Look, it's not any major issue where oh my gosh is his fastballs lost life. His breaking balls aren't breaking. I don't I think it's just a matter of getting out there and doing it and repetition and getting caught up to the speed of the game again. And it it happens. I mean, sometimes it's easier for others to come back after a couple weeks of not facing high quality competition. Other guys, it takes a little bit longer. So with Griffin jacks, not really all that concerned, it's good to do it now as compared to lean an egg or a dud in October. So we'll take that for what it is as well. All right, moving on. The rays are meantime trying to figure out they're starting pitching schedule going forward. A big thank you to our friends at Amazon for this limited break this back to school season spend less on your kids with Amazon.

8:24We all know how crazy the back to school shopping experience can be. It starts with a few items on the list and then suddenly you're shopping for supplies, clothes, lunch gear, tech. And about 10 other things that you didn't see coming and it adds up fast. And when you buy clothes for back to school, then your kid has a growth spurt two weeks later. And you're right back where you started. Sometimes it genuinely feels like they're growing faster than your budget can keep up with that. So remember with Amazon's low back to school prices just spend less on your kids because every dollar that you don't spend on them is a dollar you haven't spend on them shop back to school at Amazon and spend less. Thank you for listening to the locked on race podcast and making us your first listen of the day we appreciate it. We are of course part of the locked on race podcast. The number one sports podcast network out there the six man rotation is finally happening for the race at least temporarily possibly very temporarily look at the race rotation.

9:42You look on the depth chart, you go to their website and they have six individuals in the rotation category, duress muston, nic Martina, shame, clean and very proper all to ENC more. And of course the gentleman we talked about in the last segment, riff and jacks. So that means the raise for now will have a six man rotation at least that's according to Kevin cash where it is suggested that shame a clean of hand he'll start on Thursday at Globally field followed by nic Martina's on Friday, duress muston on Saturday and ENC more on Sunday. And then after a Monday off day Freddie Perolta will be going on Tuesday. So that's six men when you include what Griffin jacks did this past Wednesday against the Metz. The key here though is what do the raise do after next Tuesday. What do they do from there. There's a couple of different options. The raise could stay with this six man rotation.

10:52They could pair up to starters to share a day, perhaps Griffin jacks and ENC more or they could move one of the starters to the bullpen. Whatever is decided and I have a lot of confidence in Kyle Snyder Kevin cash in the front office to make the smart accurate and correct decisions is it really all comes down to communication with the staff. If you communicate with the guys, the pitchers, the starters, who will be affected by the scheduling in the off days and whether you're going with a five man rotation, six man rotation, you're moving somebody to the bullpen, whatever you're doing as long as you're up front about it and you clarify it and the players can properly prepare for what's coming down the pike. I think that's most important and I've no doubt that Kyle Snyder and company will be able to do that and we talked on the show about some of the pros and cons of a six man rotation. I mean, we know that with the six man, you're getting a benefit in terms of workload management and better health and rest, but there's also some cost. It means fewer starts for your star pitchers, i.e.

12:16Nick Martinez and Drew Rasmussen plus the routine disruption of hey, I'm not pitching every fifth day, I'm pitching every six day or seventh day and I believe there's several off Mondays over the next several weeks. So the schedule could really be out of whack over the next few weeks, if you will. And you know, having that extra day off or extra two days off, yeah, you might be more rested, but could you also be a little bit more rusty. We've seen that at times this season where a guy gets an extra day or two of rest and they lay an egg. So all that has to be taken into considered into consideration and monitored and let's also realize that again, there's always hoopla about my gosh six man rotation and when it's being deployed and utilized, this is very temporary, I think, just over the next couple weeks at max to maybe

13:28two weeks a day, I think it's time to put the ball down and then I think it's time to tear down the innings limits of, especially some of those guys who have dealt with major surgeries in the past, because when you get to the post season, when you get to the playoffs, especially in early round, like even the ALDS, you really only need the three star or a core maybe four. At some point, one or more of these pictures is going to have to go to the bull pin as a bulk guy, a long reliever or a high leverage guy and luckily the the raise might have a key candidate for that in EMC more, who has been utilized in multiple different options. He's been a starter, he's been a bulk inning pitcher, he's been a reliever. And luckily, he said, hey, I'm happy to do what is ever asked of me. So he might also be a guy that you can, as Griffin, Jacks is trying to get back in a groove, you just pair up Griffin, Jacks and EMC more and see how it works out over the next couple weeks.

14:48I mean, what's pretty cool is that, yeah, we have technically six starters, three of them lefties and three of them righties. So that facilitates some creativity for this team going forward. And I think just if this was another organization where you have pictures on really high contracts and they have egos, this might not so this idea might be a good idea. It might not go over so well, but the raise is a culture tried to foster and preach, let's do what's best for the team. It's not all about me, it's all about we and what we can do as a group together. So I think the guys for the most part will fall in line and be good with whatever's decided, it's just about being upfront and communicating the game plan to these guys.

15:51So that's what I'm looking forward to is, you know, a couple weeks from now when we get into the playoffs is who's going to be that one, two, three. I mean, we pretty much know we have rest, moussen, martina's, and McLean, but where does parolta fall in line in comparison to and see more in Griffin, jacks. So those will be some of the conversations that are figured out and decided going forward. But again, one of those good problems to have that we are in early September and we have six healthy, six healthy starters. So take that for what it's worth. And hopefully all these guys can stay healthy and be ready for a strong push in October. And we'll see what happens. But I would imagine that the raise will be very strategic about how they work this rotation going forward.

16:58And they'll figure it out. I trust them. But for the time being, people have asked for that six man rotation, you're going to get it, even if it's for a very brief time. And maybe in the future, if the raise see that it's working, then maybe they decide next year to go with it a little bit longer. I don't know. It of course depends on the shape and scope of the roster. So there we go. Just want to throw out a quote here from Kevin Cash. Right now, I think we're going to stay in turn. And then I know we have an update coming up after the Texas series and we'll have constant conversations. But nothing has been decided so far on a six man rotation long term. So there we have it. All right, to close out this episode, no more divisions in MLB. Let's talk about.

18:05College football Saturdays are already packed with reasons to get excited. And this season, Fandall is giving fans even more ways to get in on every matchup back your favorite team, build a same game, parlay, that team props, or make your picks on the biggest games of the weekend. And throughout the season, keep an eye on the Fandall app for even more ways to get rewarded with a full slate of college football every single Saturday. Oh boy, I'm excited. There are plenty of opportunities to follow the games and find new ways to get involved on Fandall having Fandall it just gives me and you and everybody more ways to get involved across the entire Saturday instead of just focusing on one single game. I can jump from one match up to the next and enjoy myself all day long. And if you want to, you can just visit Fandall.com to get started.

19:11Make baseball season even more this year with Calci on Calci, you can trade on every single game. In fact, right now I have in front of me. The odds of the raise against the Rangers on Friday, September 4th. And the raise are trading at a 51% chance to beat the Rangers, meaning a $100 bet will yield you $189 and 11 cents if the raise win on Calci. So you see, you're trading against peers in a live market, meaning there's no house. And as the probability changes, you can buy in and out of your position. So what are you waiting for? Download the Calci app and use code locked on L.O.C.K.E.D. O.N. to get $10 when you trade $10.

20:22A L S H I Calci trade on anything 18 plus only restrictions and eligibility requirements apply event contract trading does involve risk and may not be suitable for all investors. Calci products are not available in all jurisdictions, prices, values and available markets may differ from those mentioned for more information. So you can see Calci.com slash regulatory. Well, as we know, the A L East looks to be very well represented this postseason and that brings up an interesting question about post season seedings. We have a mail back question from Gary Siler AKA elephant 2024. Long time less than we appreciate Gary. Gary says, dear Kevin and Ulysses with the raise Yankees and Red Sox looking like they will have the top three seeds.

21:27The top three records in the A L, I should say, should MLB reexamine the way teams are seated in the postseason instead of seating teams higher on the basis of winning a division. Should the playoff teams be seated one through six on the basis of record without regard to division, having the teams with the top two records received first round buys regardless of whether one of them is a wild card team. While the number three see the team host number six and number four host number five well Gary thank you for the question and you bring up a solid point and argument I guess my point to that would be if we're just going to be facing seating in the post season off records why have divisions in the first place. Maybe we have a national conference in an American conference split up evenly and the top six teams in each quote unquote conference make the playoffs and I think that's really where it goes is is is that the type of model you want to set because I think there's something to be said for having those geographic or division based rivalries and there's also arguments regarding how that impact.

22:47So the number six travel and scheduling and TV broadcast times in all that and it's kind of a wonky year where yes the raise the red socks and the Yankees would have the three best records. The raise would be the number one seed that is not a Freudian slip the raise would be the number seat the number one seed while the Yankees and red socks would be the four and five seeds even though they have the two and third best records and it kind of maybe could ultimately hurt the raise because again as the post season picture is set right now the raise have the buy in the ALDS and they're facing the winner of the red socks. Yankees as opposed to the winner of the Astros and the Guardians that to the red sock or the the white socks would get the face man I'm having a tough time with my Yankees red socks white socks but hopefully you get the point so Gary I see where you're coming from I kind of like the idea of I still like the idea of division winners.

24:04Getting that first round by in the playoffs it gives a reason to win the division and I understand that hey once you have the division in toe you can kind of coast and you don't necessarily have to go for the best record but I guess that's why you do all the work in the lead up to we need a vision so you can rest some of your key players for what you hope is a deep post season run what I ultimately think will happen is MLB will expand the 32 teams and will be able to do that. And we'll get eight divisions for teams across eight divisions and maybe that'll smooth or even things out and maybe major league baseball even expands to a 14 team post season format in the future so I guess it's all a long winded way of saying that baseball is in fair life isn't fair things aren't fair you can have a team in baseball with a $350 million payroll and you can have a team with a $75 million payroll some of it just doesn't add up I mean honestly in terms of quote unquote fixing or resolving some of the issues with the playoffs

25:28beyond the the top three teams regardless of division get those top three seeds so it's all based on record and divisions really don't matter at that point beyond that besides that what I would love to see and I'd have to talk and discuss with you listies to see if he agrees with me on this but I I'm still of the opinion that the MLB playoff should be longer I still understand to a point of having a best of three wild card but when you get to the ALDS I think that should be a best of seven and maybe you even make the wild card a best of five I just find it kind of boggling that baseball by far

26:28has the longest regular season of anybody plus you add in spring training and all that yet their post season seems to end in an instant I mean you look at NBA all their post season series or best of seven you look at NHL all their post season series are best of seven why can't baseball do something similar or at least beef it up to where hey if you get that first round by you're in the ALDS or NLDS right off the bat you're the raise you're the white socks you're the braves you're the brewers I'd rather have a best of seven and a best of five I think over the in that would eliminate some of the chance and the crap shoot that is the major league baseball playoffs that hey raise and brewers good luck beating us in a best of seven best of five you might have a better chance based on the flip of the coin and your best three starters best of three total crap shoot anything happen a best of three

27:48best of seven I think could help you know give those teams that really really earned that right to get there to move ahead and forge ahead into the CS in ultimately the world series but Gary again you bring up interesting points I get it I wouldn't make any rash decisions based on a one off and I'm going to do it I'm going to do it's going to be a one off and yes the AL East is dominant and it'll probably continue to be so for some time although maybe not forever maybe once and I'll be expanse to 32 and then the other two are switched and swapped and changed around maybe the AL East isn't the big dog that it once was depending on how it all shakes out but I get it for this year where it's like holy cow you know the raise or either going to have to face the winner of the anchors the red socks that doesn't seem very fair but it's just the way it goes sometimes but I still like that feel

29:01that I think it's a good thing to have a good deal of divisions and rivalries and back and forth and there's something special about it so and right now I mean NFL seems to have a pretty good strangle hold on things is there post season format all that different the major league baseball I know they have 14 teams that make the playoff seven from the AFC and seven from the NFC but seeds one through four go to the four division winners in each conference ranked by their win loss records so the four division winners you might have a division winner that wins 15 games you might have a division winner that wins 10 games and they're going to be in a good spot so yeah Gary I appreciate the question might have to broach it with you Lissys to get his take on it all I am hoping for of course is for the raise to make a very deep run the playoffs and maybe win a world series on the same in the same calendar year as a new stadium was announced in Tampa how cool would that be on that note we hope you have a wonderful day stay safe and we will talk to you later.

30:30I'm going to be very happy to be back to school shopping experience can be starts with a few items on the list and suddenly you're shopping for supplies close lunch gear tack at about 10 of the things you didn't see coming and it adds up fast like when you buy clothes for back to school and your kid has a growth later in your right back where you started sometimes it genuinely feels like they're growing faster than your budget can keep up or when the teacher supply list arrives and somehow every item feels completely reasonable on its own then you add everything together and realize just how much stuff one kid needs for one school year and that's why finding low prices on all things you need make such a big difference this time of beer so remember with Amazon's low back to school prices just spend less on your kids because every dollar you don't spend on them is a dollar you haven't spent on that shop back to school at Amazon and spend less on your kids on cowsie you're trading against peers in a live market meaning there's no house and as the probability changes you can buy in and out of your position for a limited time download the cowsie app and use code locked on to get $10 when you trade 10 KAL S H I cowsie trade on anything 18 plus only restrictions and eligibility requirements apply event contract trading involves risk and may not be suitable for all investors

31:45prices values and available markets may differ from those mentioned for more information see cowsie dot com slash regulatory the locked on podcast network is brought to you by fan dole baseball fans if you think you know who's hitting a home or today fan dole is giving you a free chance to call your shot with daily dingers it's easy to play just make your free pick for who you think will hit a home run in their game if you're right you'll receive a profit boost to use on your next bet for a chance at extra winnix best of all you can make a free pick every day throughout the MLBC's so you're ready to play your game today join all the action at fan dole dot com that's fan dole dot com to play daily dingers and make your free pick on who's hitting a home play ball and swing for the fences on the fan dole an official partner of the MLB thank you for making locked on your first listen every day for your second listen find the all night locked on MLB game night every game every night until a world series champion is crowned get local analysis on a national scale find MLB game night on locked on MLB on YouTube or wherever you listen to podcasts