Red Sox: 3 keys to beating the Tampa Bay Rays in the ALDS
By Sean Penney
Red Sox pitchers must beware of lefty mashers
The Rays struggled mightily against left-handed pitching early in the season but much has changed since then.
The mid-season acquisition of Nelson Cruz was made to shore up this weakness. While he was mildly disappointing in a Rays uniform, Cruz is a notorious lefty masher.
The emergence of rookie sensation Wander Franco gave the Rays another significant boost. Franco hit .357 with a 1.020 OPS against lefties. Catcher Mike Zunino crushed lefties to the tune of a .342 average and 1.287 OPS. Randy Arozarena (.302 AVG, .921 OPS) and Yandy Diaz (.288 AVG, .812 OPS) also posted strong numbers against southpaws.
Tampa Bay scored the second-most runs in the majors this season. They ranked third with a 110 wRC+ against right-handed pitching. Despite some early season woes against lefties, the Rays lineup still finished with a solid 107 wRC+ against them. They may be stronger against right-handed pitching but this lineup remains potent against lefties.
That’s notable since the Red Sox are expected to start lefties Eduardo Rodriguez and Chris Sale in the first two games of this series. Neither pitcher has wide platoon splits in their careers but there are a few right-handed bats they need to be careful with in this Rays lineup.
Boston will carry three left-handed relieves on their ALDS roster, although it’s hard to imagine Martin Perez taking the mound unless it’s in mop-up duty or an extra-innings game where they run out of other options.
Josh Taylor and Austin Davis have both been lights out against lefties but hit hard by right-handed hitters. They could be tasked with facing Austin Meadows, Brandon Lowe or Joey Wendle, all of whom were liabilities with batting averages around the Mendoza line against lefties. The Rays will be wise enough to avoid stacking those hitters together though. Unless it’s at the end of the inning, Boston won’t be able to call in either lefty reliever to face them without exposing them to at least one right-handed hitter due to MLB’s three-batter rule.
The starting pitching should be fine against this lineup but how Alex Cora utilizes hit lefty relievers will be a key factor in this series.