Game 150: Sep 19, 1999 (L: 15-2)
[ Previous Game | Next Game ]
[ Schedule Menu | Main Page ]

My Commentary

Very very shameful.  :(

Mike Simms did finally make an appearance in 1999 as a pinch hitter in the ninth inning.  Was his first appearance since last September 27th.

-- Joe Siegler

Game Recap

ARLINGTON, TEXAS (TICKER) -- Fred McGriff became just the second player to hit 30 homers with four teams and the Tampa Bay Devils tied a franchise record for runs in a 15-2 pounding of the Texas Rangers.

Bubba Trammell tied a season with with four RBI for the Devil Rays, who also scored 15 runs in a win at Seattle on May 30.

"It's good to see us explode like that," said Devil Rays manager Larry Rothschild. "We haven't had one of those in a while."

Tampa Bay won for just the fourth time in 12 meetings this season with the American League Western Division leaders.

"Everyone was swinging the bat well today," Rothschild added. "Trammell had a good day."

It was the fifth time this year Texas has allowed 15 or more runs in a game. They allowed a season-high 18 in a loss at Anaheim on June 30.

Trammell tied career highs by recording three hits and belting his 12th homer, a two-run shot against John Burkett (7-8) in the first inning that gave the Devil Rays a quick 3-0 lead.

"I was really surprised that the home run went out," said Trammell. "The pitch was on the outside part of the plate. I just went with it and it really took off."

McGriff provided Tampa Bay with a five-run cushion by hitting a solo shot against Burkett with one out in the third, giving him 30 homers homers in his second season with his hometown team. He also reached the 30-homer plateau with the Toronto Blue Jays, Atlanta Braves and San Diego Padres.

Teammate Jose Canseco is the only other player to accomplish the rare feat, clobbering 30 homers for Oakland, Texas and Toronto.

The Devil Rays pounded out five runs against both Burkett, who lasted just 2 1/3 innings, and Mike Morgan, who gave up five hits in his 1 1/3 frames. He surrendered Trammell's two-run single in the fourth that pushed Tampa Bay's lead to 8-0.

"I just had trouble throwing strikes early, and that put me in a big hole," said Burkett.

Jose Guillen followed moments later with a two-run homer, his second, and the game was officially a rout.

That was plenty of support for Rolando Arrojo, who won for the second time in three starts by allowing just two runs and three hits over six innings, striking out with while issuing two walks.

"It really helped working with a lead like that," Arrojo said. "I was able to challenge them and things seemed to work out well."

"Arrojo was mixing his pitches well," Rothschild said. "He was staying ahead in the count and that's what made the difference for him today."

Texas would get single runs in the fourth and fifth on an RBI double by Rafael Palmeiro and Royce Clayton's 10th homer.

The Devil Rays, however, scored five times in the seventh, Dave Martinez capping the scoring by delivering a two-run single. Bobby Smith and Tony Graffanino also drove in runs in the inning.

According to Johnny Oates, there was one highlight for the Rangers. The manager got to "see some of our pitchers that I haven't seen in a while."

One of those was Jeff Fassero, who was acquired from the Seattle Mariners on August 27, the sole reason being he is left-handed. But Fassero has been awful since the deal and was recently banished to the bullpen. He allowed two runs and three hits while recording just one out.

"You never like to get beat like we did today, but I can always find a few positives out of it," Oates said.

Recap #2

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) -- His teammates gave Tampa Bay pitcher Rolando Arrojo a luxury he hasn't enjoyed much lately -- a lead.

Fred McGriff, Bubba Trammell and Jose Guillen homered as the Devil Rays routed the Texas Rangers 15-2 Sunday.

"We did something we hadn't been doing. We bunched some hits together and got some runs in," Devil Rays manager Larry Rothschild said.

"Arrojo had good movement. He threw the ball well. But the best thing was, after he got the lead, he kept pitching. Actually, he had better concentration after we got the big lead than before."

Rangers starter John Burkett (7-8) and reliever Mike Morgan gave up 10 runs on nine hits in four innings.

McGriff reached the 30-homer mark for the eighth time, becoming the second player to hit 30 for four different teams, joining teammate Jose Canseco. McGriff also hit 30 homers for the Blue Jays, Braves and Padres.

"The Rangers have a great team, and for us to come in here and win two of three games is nice," McGriff said. "We really haven't had many blowouts, so it's good to come in and win a big game."

Trammell went 3-for-5 with four RBI and Tony Graffanino had a pair of RBI doubles for the Devil Rays, who tied a club record for runs scored set earlier this season.

"It feels good to wind up on the winning side of it," Trammell said.. "Arrojo did a good job, and it was nice to give him a big lead. There have been some games that we didn't score too many runs for him."

Arrojo (6-11) checked Texas on three hits in six innings. With the help of a double play, Arrojo retired nine of his first 10 batters, giving up only a walk and a single.

Arrojo allowed an RBI double to Rafael Palmeiro in the fourth and a solo homer to Royce Clayton in the fifth, then retired his last five batters before giving way to reliever Mike Duvall to start the seventh.

Tampa Bay got five runs off three Rangers pitchers in the seventh.

"Today was one of those goofy days," Burkett said. "It felt like I had pretty good stuff, but I never got into a rhythm."

Burkett lasted just 2 1/3 innings. He walked Graffanino in the first inning and David Lamb in the second, and both came around to score. Graffanino went to second on a wild pitch and scored on McGriff's single, and Trammell followed with his 12th homer of the season.

Graffanino's double scored Lamb to make it 4-0 in the second, and Burkett was lifted after giving up a one-out solo shot to McGriff in the third.

Morgan hit Guillen, and back-to-back singles by Mike DiFelice and Bobby Smith gave the Devil Rays a 6-0 lead.

"It feels like we got knocked out in the second round of a championship game," Palmeiro said.

"Every time we lose ... we say we're going to put it behind us and move on. It's not a good pattern, really, but we have to put this one behind us and steamroll to the postseason," Palmeiro said.

In the fourth, Dave Martinez doubled, Canseco walked, and both moved up on McGriff's groundout. Trammell hit a two-run single and Guillen chased Morgan with a two-run homer, his second of the year.

GAME NOTES: Trammell tied his career high for homers. ... Tampa Bay won 15-7 at Seattle on May 30. ... Before the Devil Rays got to Morgan in the third and fourth innings, the right-hander worked 4 2/3 shutout innings in two relief appearances since going to the bullpen on Sept. 1 after 25 straight starts. ... Steve Cox doubled in his major league debut, pinch-hitting for McGriff in the seventh. ... Mike Simms, on the disabled list all year with a torn left Achilles', had a pinch-single in the ninth in his first at-bat since Sept. 27, 1998. 

Photos
(Click on any of them for a larger image)

Tampa starter Rolando Arrojo	The Crime dog gets congrats for a home run	Todd Zeile making a play in the field	Johnny Oates & Gregg Zaun waiting for a relief pitcher to come in

Box Score

Line Score
AL  FINAL
                    1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9     R  H  E
                    -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -     -  -  -
TAMPA BAY           3  1  2   4  0  0   5  0  0    15 15  1
TEXAS               0  0  0   1  1  0   0  0  0     2  7  1   (FINAL)

BATTERIES:  TAM - ROLANDO ARROJO, MIKE DUVALL (7TH), CORY LIDLE
                  (9TH) AND MIKE DIFELICE
            TEX - JOHN BURKETT, MIKE MORGAN (3RD), DANNY KOLB
                  (4TH), JEFF FASSERO (7TH), DANNY PATTERSON
                  (7TH), MATT PERISHO (9TH) AND GREGG ZAUN

             WP - ROLANDO ARROJO (6-11)
             LP - JOHN BURKETT (7-8)
           SAVE - NONE

HOME RUNS:  TAM - BUBBA TRAMMELL (12) OFF BURKETT IN THE 1ST, 1 ON
                  FRED MCGRIFF (30) OFF BURKETT IN THE 3RD, 0 ON
                  JOSE GUILLEN (2) OFF MORGAN IN THE 4TH, 1 ON
            TEX - ROYCE CLAYTON (10) OFF ARROJO IN THE 5TH, 0 ON

     TIME:  2:50     ATT:  24,930

PROBABLES:  TAM - WILSON ALVAREZ (9-7, 3.90)
            ANA - CHUCK FINLEY (10-11, 4.45)

            BAL - JASON JOHNSON (6-7, 5.89)
            TEX - ESTEBAN LOAIZA (8-4, 4.85)

Box Score
TAMPA BAY (15) AT TEXAS (2) - FINAL

TAMPA BAY              ab  r  h rbi bb so lob   avg
Graffanino 2b           5  2  2  2   1  0   0  .268
Da Martinez cf          5  1  2  2   0  0   1  .282
 Lowery cf              1  0  0  0   0  1   0  .280
Canseco dh              4  1  0  0   1  2   2  .281
Mcgriff 1b              4  2  2  2   0  1   0  .315
 a-S Cox ph-1b          1  0  1  0   0  0   0 1.000
Trammell lf             5  3  3  4   0  1   2  .289
Guillen rf              3  2  1  2   0  0   1  .254
Difelice c              5  1  2  0   0  2   1  .288
B Smith 3b              5  1  2  2   0  2   0  .179
Lamb ss                 4  2  0  1   1  1   4  .227

Totals                 42 15 15 15   3 10  11

a-doubled for Mcgriff in the 7th.

BATTING: 2B - Graffanino 2 (8, Burkett, Fassero); Da Martinez
(22, Morgan); S Cox (1, Fassero). HR - Trammell (12, 1st inning
off Burkett 1 on, 2 out); Mcgriff (30, 3rd inning off Burkett 0 on,
1 out); Guillen (2, 4th inning off Morgan 1 on, 2 out). RBI -
Mcgriff 2 (95), Trammell 4 (35), Graffanino 2 (14), B Smith 2 (19),
Guillen 2 (12), Lamb (13), Da Martinez 2 (60). 2-out RBI - Mcgriff,
Trammell 4, B Smith, Guillen 2. Runners left in scoring position,
2 out - Lamb 1, Trammell 2. Team LOB - 5.

BASERUNNING: CS - Graffanino (1, 3rd base by Burkett/Zaun).

FIELDING: E - Graffanino (3, throw). DP: 2 (Graffanino-Mcgriff,
Lamb-Graffanino-S Cox).

TEXAS                  ab  r  h rbi bb so lob   avg
T Goodwin cf            4  0  0  0   0  0   2  .248
Mclemore 2b             2  1  0  0   2  0   2  .274
R Palmeiro dh           3  0  1  1   0  0   1  .335
 b-Simms ph             1  0  1  0   0  0   0 1.000
J Gonzalez rf           3  0  0  0   0  0   2  .315
 Sheldon 3b             1  0  0  0   0  0   1  .000
Zeile 3b                2  0  0  0   0  0   1  .295
 a-Sc Green ph-rf-lf    2  0  0  0   0  0   1  .333
L Stevens 1b            4  0  2  0   0  0   1  .286
R Kelly lf-rf           4  0  0  0   0  1   3  .309
Clayton ss              2  1  1  1   0  1   0  .276
 Shave ss               1  0  1  0   0  0   0  .265
Zaun c                  3  0  1  0   0  0   0  .247

Totals                 32  2  7  2   2  2  14

a-popped to second for Zeile in the 7th; b-singled for R Palmeiro
in the 9th.

BATTING: 2B - R Palmeiro (29, Arrojo). HR - Clayton (10, 5th inning
off Arrojo 0 on, 1 out). RBI - R Palmeiro (140), Clayton (45).
Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - L Stevens 1, R Kelly 2.
GIDP - Mclemore. Team LOB - 5.

FIELDING: E - Clayton (21, ground ball).

TAMPA BAY                    ip       h   r  er  bb  so  hr    era
Arrojo (W, 6-11)              6       3   2   2   2   1   1   5.05
Duvall                        2       2   0   0   0   0   0   4.15
Lidle                         1       2   0   0   0   1   0   0.00

TEXAS                        ip       h   r  er  bb  so  hr    era
Burkett (L, 7-8)              2 1/3   4   5   5   2   2   2   6.03
Morgan                        1 1/3   5   5   5   1   0   1   6.29
Kolb                          2 2/3   3   3   3   0   4   0   4.80
Fassero                         1/3   3   2   1   0   1   0   7.43
D Patterson                   1 1/3   0   0   0   0   2   0   5.17
Perisho                       1       0   0   0   0   1   0   9.00

WP - Burkett. HBP - Guillen 2 (by Burkett, by Morgan).
Pitches-strikes: Burkett 56-33; Morgan 40-24; Kolb 32-26;
Fassero 23-18; D Patterson 13-10; Perisho 16-11; Arrojo 69-41;
Duvall 21-11; Lidle 17-9.  Ground balls-fly balls: Burkett 0-4;
Morgan 3-1; Kolb 2-2; Fassero 0-0; D Patterson 2-0; Perisho 1-1;
Arrojo 7-9; Duvall 4-2; Lidle 0-2.  Batters faced: Burkett 13;
Morgan 11; Kolb 11; Fassero 5; D Patterson 4; Perisho 3; Arrojo 22;
Duvall 7; Lidle 5.

UMPIRES: HP--Laz Diaz. 1B--Jim Mckean. 2B--Mike Reilly.
3B--Chuck Meriwether.
T--2:50.  Att--24,930.   Weather: 91 degrees, clear.   Wind: 8 mph,
in from right.

Game Log

Tampa Bay Starting Lineups -- Tony Graffanino 2B, Dave Martinez CF, Jose Canseco DH, Fred Mcgriff 1B, Bubba Trammell LF, Jose Guillen RF, Mike Difelice C, Bobby Smith 3B, David Lamb SS, Rolando Arrojo RHP.

Texas Starting Lineups -- Tom Goodwin CF, Mark Mclemore 2B, Rafael Palmeiro DH, Juan Gonzalez RF, Todd Zeile 3B, Lee Stevens 1B, Roberto Kelly LF, Royce Clayton SS, Gregg Zaun C, John Burkett RHP.

Umpires -- Diaz (HP), Mckean (1B), Reilly (2B), C Meriwether (3B).

Gametime Weather: 91 degrees, Clear, wind in from right at 8 mph.

TAMPA BAY 1ST: Graffanino walked. Graffanino to second on Burkett wild pitch. Da Martinez flied out to shallow center. Canseco fouled out to first. Mcgriff singled to right, Graffanino scored. Trammell homered to right center, Mcgriff scored. Guillen hit by pitch. Difelice struck out looking. (3 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 3, TEXAS 0.

TEXAS 1ST: T Goodwin grounded out to second. Mclemore walked. R Palmeiro lined out to right. J Gonzalez flied out to center. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 3, TEXAS 0.

TAMPA BAY 2ND: B Smith struck out swinging. Lamb walked. Graffanino doubled to left, Lamb scored. Graffanino caught stealing, catcher to third. Da Martinez flied out to shallow left. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 4, TEXAS 0.

TEXAS 2ND: Zeile flied out to center. L Stevens singled to center. R Kelly lined into double play, second to first, L Stevens doubled off first. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 4, TEXAS 0.

TAMPA BAY 3RD: Canseco fouled out to first. Mcgriff homered to right. Mike Morgan relieved John Burkett. Trammell lined out to second. Guillen hit by pitch. Difelice singled to right, Guillen to third. B Smith singled to center, Guillen scored, Difelice to third. Lamb grounded out to second. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 6, TEXAS 0.

TEXAS 3RD: Clayton struck out looking. Zaun grounded out to second. T Goodwin flied out to center. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 6, TEXAS 0.

TAMPA BAY 4TH: Graffanino grounded out to third. Da Martinez doubled to left. Canseco walked. Mcgriff grounded out to first, Da Martinez to third, Canseco to second. Trammell singled to center, Da Martinez and Canseco scored. Guillen homered to right, Trammell scored. Danny Kolb relieved Mike Morgan. Difelice struck out swinging. (4 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 10, TEXAS 0.

TEXAS 4TH: Mclemore walked. R Palmeiro doubled to right, Mclemore scored. J Gonzalez grounded out to shortstop. Zeile grounded out to shortstop. L Stevens flied out to left. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 10, TEXAS 1.

TAMPA BAY 5TH: B Smith grounded out to second. Lamb struck out swinging. Graffanino lined out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 10, TEXAS 1.

TEXAS 5TH: R Kelly flied out to right. Clayton homered to right. Zaun grounded out to first. T Goodwin flied out to center. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 10, TEXAS 2.

TAMPA BAY 6TH: Da Martinez grounded out to second. Canseco struck out swinging. Mcgriff struck out looking. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 10, TEXAS 2.

TEXAS 6TH: Mclemore grounded out to second. R Palmeiro flied out to left. J Gonzalez grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 10, TEXAS 2.

TAMPA BAY 7TH: Trammell singled to left. Guillen fouled out to right. Difelice singled to center, Trammell to second. B Smith singled to center, Trammell scored, Difelice to third. Jeff Fassero relieved Danny Kolb. Lamb safe at first on shortstop Clayton's fielding error, Difelice scored, B Smith to second. Graffanino doubled to left, B Smith scored, Lamb to third. Da Martinez singled to left, Lamb and Graffanino scored. Canseco struck out looking. S Cox hit for Mcgriff. S Cox doubled to right, Da Martinez to third. Danny Patterson relieved Jeff Fassero. Trammell struck out swinging. (5 Runs, 6 Hits, 1 Error) TAMPA BAY 15, TEXAS 2.

TEXAS 7TH: Mike Duvall relieved Rolando Arrojo. S Cox at first. Sc Green hit for Zeile. Sc Green popped out to second. L Stevens grounded out to first. R Kelly grounded out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 15, TEXAS 2.

TAMPA BAY 8TH: Sc Green in right. Sheldon at third. Shave at short. Guillen grounded out to third. Difelice grounded out to third. B Smith struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 15, TEXAS 2.

TEXAS 8TH: Lowery in center. Shave singled to left. Zaun singled to center, Shave to second. T Goodwin flied out to right. Mclemore grounded into double play, shortstop to second to first, Zaun out at second. (0 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 15, TEXAS 2.

TAMPA BAY 9TH: Matt Perisho relieved Danny Patterson. Sc Green in left. R Kelly in right. Lamb grounded out to third. Graffanino flied out to right. Lowery struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 15, TEXAS 2.

TEXAS 9TH: Cory Lidle relieved Mike Duvall. Simms hit for R Palmeiro. Simms singled to center. Sheldon flied out to center. Sc Green flied out to left. L Stevens reached on infield single, Simms to second. Simms to third, L Stevens to second on 2nd baseman Graffanino's throwing error. R Kelly struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 2 Hits, 1 Error) TAMPA BAY 15, TEXAS 2.