MINNEAPOLIS — The outcome was obvious Saturday, as the promising beginning to Shane Baz’s first appearance of the season for the Rays came to a disappointing and premature end.
Now the question is figuring out why.
Baz couldn’t have started better, retiring the first six Twins in order. And he couldn’t have finished much worse, allowing all six he faced in the third inning to reach, and five to score, before being taken out.
That erased a three-run Rays lead, and his mates could never quite catch up, losing 6-5 and dropping to 34-25 as Sunday they will try to avoid being swept.
“Nothing felt different,” Baz said. “It was just, I think, a matter of making a focus on putting the ball in the zone.”
That was definitely the problem.
Baz fell behind each of the first four hitters in the third — allowing a single (followed by a wild pitch), a four-pitch walk, a full-count walk and a grand slam to Luis Arraez — then he walked another and allowed an RBI double.
“I think that he just lost command for whatever reason,” manager Kevin Cash said. “I can’t exactly pinpoint right now why he looked good the first two innings and then just lost the strike zone.”
Cash said he and the Rays staff didn’t notice any changes in Baz’s stuff, that his velocity and other pitch quality indicators were the same as the first two innings, when he set the Twins down on 14 and six pitches.
Nor did it seem that the Twins hitters picked up something on Baz or changed their approach.
“I think they just recognized that I wasn’t around the zone and just started taking more pitches,” Baz said.
Catcher Rene Pinto, who also caught Baz during his rehab assignment at Triple-A Durham, said Baz, 22, was missing inside more to right-handers and may have needed to stay on top of his pitches more, but not much else.
After seeing the 3-0 lead they took off Twins fill-in starter Chi Chi Gonzalez in the first disappear, and having to go five pitchers deep into their bullpen after Baz’s exit, the Rays kept hanging around.
They got a run in the sixth to make it 5-4, then when the Twins came right back to score off Ryan Thompson, the Rays got back to within one again in the seventh, but no closer.
“We were just one big hit away for too many innings,” Cash said.
Baz’s season debut, delayed because he underwent March arthroscopic surgery to remove a loose body from his elbow, created ample anticipation and extreme excitement among the Rays. Also for him, and his family, with dad Raj flying in from Houston.
The buzz was primarily because of what Baz did, and how effortlessly and calmly he did it, during an impressive three-start cameo in September, though his playoff start didn’t go as well.
“It was great seeing him back out there,” centerfielder Kevin Kiermaier said. “We saw what he could do last year and how he elevated our whole team.
“(Saturday) wasn’t how he probably drew it up, but it’s OK. Life goes on. He’s nasty. He’s going to be dominant in this league for years. This game can humble you real quick and I know he’ll bounce back and he’ll be great in five days from now.”
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Explore all your optionsBaz said one positive to take out of Saturday was that his elbow was fine and he felt good physically.
His biggest frustration was letting the inning spiral after the leadoff single and four-pitch walk. “I’ve got to reel it back in after that,” he said.
Also, he said, “I’ve just got to go after guys a little better and get ahead.”
Baz and the Rays seemed confident that he will.
Pitching coach Kyle Snyder will work with Baz during the days until his next start, likely Friday in Baltimore. Baz said he will be ready.
“It’s one game,” he said. “So it sucks that I cost us the game basically giving up the five spot. But all you can do is be better next time.”
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