The Tampa Bay Rays continue to ride the rollercoaster of momentum that helped them jolt past the Boston Red Sox on the final day of the season-- a whirlwhind that has sent each respective franchise in drastically different directions since the events that took place Thursday.
While the Red Sox have parted ways with manager Terry Francona and are calling for a makeover of the roster after a historic collapse, the Rays fate has brought them to the postseason after trailing Boston by more than eight games in the standings in early September.
ALDS GAME 1 Recap: Tampa Bay 9 Texas 0
Pitted against the defending champion Texas Rangers in Game 1 of the ALDS, Tampa turned to a home grown prospect named Matt Moore, who had just one major league start under his belt entering his inagural postseason.
Manager Joe Maddon must have known the kid was ready as Moore silenced the thunderous Ranger bats over seven innings of two-hit ball, not allowing a run and striking out six en route to a 9-0 Tampa Bay victory.
The Rays were fueled on offense by catcher Kelly Shoppach's career day, providing more than enough run support for the rookie left-hander with a pair of homeruns and five RBIs (3-for-5).
Johnny Damon also added two hits and three RBIs, homering off of Texas starting pitcher C.J. Wilson in the second inning to get Tampa Bay on the scoreboard early.
After Damon's blast in the second put the Rays up 2-0 , it was smooth sailing for Moore who was relieved in the eighth inning after blanking one of the league's best offenses in his postseason debut.
Shoppach tacked on with homeruns in the third and fifth inning, both coming off of Wilson who allowed eight runs (six earned) in five innings pitched.
Moore's impressive debut gives Tampa Bay another arm to use along with David Price, James Shields, Jeremy Hellickson and Jeff Neimman--making the Rays pitching rotation one of the deepest and most talented in the postseason.
ALDS GAME 2 Recap: Texas 8 Tampa Bay 6
Having lost Game 1 at home to a rookie pitcher making his postseason debut, Texas needed a victory to avoid digging a series defecit that few teams are able to overcome.
The Rangers called on Derek Holland who won 15 games during the regular season in Game 2, matching him against James Shields of the Rays who threw more complete games than any other pitcher in the big leagues in 2011.
Holland responded, helping the Rangers even the series at one game apiece by limiting the Rays to three runs, just one earned, in five innings pitched.
He left the game with a comfortable 7-3 lead, but the Rays would make things interesting with a three-run homerun by Evan Longoria in the seventh off of Texas reliever Koji Uehara.
Longoria's homer trimmed the lead to 7-6 and put momentum in the Rays favor, but the back-end of the Rangers bullpen was able to hold the lead and help secure the 8-6 victory.
Relievers Darren Oliver, Mike Adams and closer Neftali Feliz closed the door on the Rays comeback, each pitching a scoreless innning late in the game to styme further heroics from Tampa Bay.
More importantly, the win evens the series at one game apiece as the Rangers leave the friendly hitting confines of their ballpark in Arlington to play two games under the dome in Tampa Bay.
Game 3 is slated for Monday, as Texas will send last year's postseason star Colby Lewis to the mound to face David Price of the Rays, just a year after Lewis went 3-0 with a 1.71 ERA during the 2010 playoffs to help catapult the Rangers to the World Series.
Game 3 Forecast: Prediction--Rays 6 Rangers 4
Colby Lewis found lightning in a bottle during the Rangers postseason run a year ago, but the Rays may bring him back down to earth in 2011 considering how well they are swinging the bats as a team.
Couple their offensive success with a young, deep and talented pitching rotation, and you have a team that is build to make a run in October.
Look for David Price to continue his success at home in Game 3 and for the Rays offense to knock Lewis around a bit on their way to a 2-1 ALDS lead.
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