Page 4 - He Rays News Today

Two years after losing 102 games, the resilient Texas Rangers are savoring a journey that's transformed them into a playoff team. The Rangers rode a rollercoaster of emotions while losing three of four games at Seattle and letting the AL West division title slip away on the final day of the regular season. Instead of returning home with a first-round playoff bye, Texas was rewarded with a cross-country flight to Florida.

The Tampa Bay Rays and Texas Rangers both looked like they might be the best teams in baseball for significant stretches of a long season in which they now find themselves facing each other in an AL Wild Card Series. The Rays got off to a historic 13-0 start and led the American League East by as many as 6½ games before a horrendous July left them playing catch-up the rest of the season to eventual division champion Baltimore. Texas, meanwhile, is back in the playoffs two years after losi...

It's the most glorious time of the year for baseball fans.

Backed by Jordan Montgomery’s strong pitching outing and poor Tampa Bay defense, Rangers won opener of best-of-three series.

Jonathan Aranda hit his first career grand slam and drove in six runs, Tampa Bay homered three times to set a single-season team record and the Rays roughed up the Toronto Blue Jays 12-8 on the final day of the regular season Sunday, helping to set up a wild card meeting with the Texas Rangers. Toronto’s loss and Houston’s win at Arizona means the Rays will host the Rangers while the Blue Jays visit Minnesota in the AL wild card series beginning Tuesday.

The Toronto Blue Jays remained on the brink of a playoff spot after they lost 7-5 to Taylor Walls and the Tampa Bay Rays in 10 innings. Toronto (89-72) could still manage to back into a playoff berth on Saturday. A loss for Seattle against Texas would secure a wild card for the Blue Jays.

Tyler Glasnow pitched five scoreless innings in his final start before the postseason, combining with four relievers on a three-hitter and leading the Tampa Bay Rays to a 5-0 victory over the Boston Red Sox on Wednesday night. “I’m glad I could end on a good note, and I’m ready for the playoffs,” said Glasnow, who struck out nine and retired the last 10 batters he faced to end a personal two-game losing streak. Josh Lowe had three hits, including a home run, and Isa...

Champagne sprayed, cigar smoke wafted through the air and the Tampa Bay Rays passed around a fancy glass decanter of liquor while hip hop music blared from the speakers in the visitor's clubhouse at Fenway Park. The Rays donned ski goggles, covered their lockers with plastic and danced a victory dance for the traditional party that comes when a baseball team clinches a spot in the postseason. There was just one minor quibble: They didn't clinch anything at all by beating the Boston R...

Wander Franco remains away from the Tampa Bay Rays as they prepare for the postseason, leaving the team without one of its most dynamic young players amid investigations into an alleged relationship between Franco and a minor. The 22-year-old has been sidelined since mid-August, when he agreed to a one-week stay on the restricted list and later was shifted to administrative leave while Major League Baseball and authorities in Franco’s native Dominican Republic investigate. Here’s...

Kim Klement Neitzel-USA TODAY Sports)