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Roger Mooney

Roger Mooney covers the Tampa Bay Rays for The Tampa Tribune, TBO.com and News Channel 8. He has covered the Rays since their first season in 1998, including 11 years for the Bradenton Herald. Roger has also covered Florida, South Florida and Florida State football, the Bucs and the Lightning.

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Not much pitching after Shields, Garza

Posted Mar 3, 2010 by Tribune Sports

Updated Mar 3, 2010 at 05:26 PM

SARASOTA – The Rays opened spring today by pitching batting practice to the newly relocated Baltimore Orioles.

Front-line pitchers James Shields and Matt Garza fared well – which is really what matters – but Garza and four other Tampa Bay pitchers combined to serve up six home runs in a 12-2 loss to the Orioles before 5,328 fans..

The Orioles, who’ve replaced the Cincinnati Reds at aging Ed Smith Stadium, pounded out 14 hits on a windy day that was downright cold in the shade.

Former Rays minor leaguer Rhyne Hughes and Josh Bell, a third baseman prospect whom the Orioles acquired from the Dodgers for closer George Sherrill, each hit two home runs. Nick Markakis and Scott Moore each hit one.

Shields, who is slotted as the Rays’ opening day starter, pitched only one inning and got through it unscathed. He walked one and struck out one.

“First time out, I held my own for my one inning,” Shields said. “It’s great to be out here. It’s great to have that baseball atmosphere. You walk in the bullpen, and you hear the crowd yelling my name. It feels pretty good to get back in it.”

Shields walked leadoff batter Adam Jones and had him picked off, except the first base umpire ruled that first baseman Ryan Shealy dropped the throw.

“He was out,” Shields said. “Shealy told me he kind of came up and showed the umpire the ball and the ball kind of popped out of his mitt.”

Garza, the Rays’ No. 2 starter, pitched the second and third inning and allowed one run on a solo home run to Bell in the third.

He sounded satisfied with his outing.

“I had that nervousness kick in; that’s’ when you know you’re alive,” Garza said. “It wasn’t an adrenaline rush. It was just nerves.  I even told (pitching coach Jim) Hickey, once those things are gone, you might as well just pack it up and go home. Nervous today, but felt good. We’ll go on from here.”

Garza took over in the bottom of the second and issued a walk before getting out of the inning with a double play.

“I just threw fastballs,” Garza said. “I threw one changeup, and that was it. It was a situation where I could have thrown a slider and put a guy away, but we face the Orioles 18 times during the year, so there was no reason to show them anything right now. These numbers don’t count as long as I get my work in.”

The rest of the Rays pitchers – none of whom is projected to make the opening-day roster – had a rough time.

Lefties Heath Phillips and Jason Cromer combined to give up five home runs and eight runs in three innings. Dale Thayer, who is on the 40-man roster and pitched in 11 games for the Rays last year, allowed two runs and four hits in an inning.

Richard de Los Santos was the sixth pitcher to take the mound for Tampa Bay, and he gave up a run in an inning.

The Rays managed only five hits, but one was a solo home run in the seventh by Sean Rodriguez, who is competing for platoon job at second base and/or utility role. Earlier, a Reid Brignac single scored Kelly Shoppach.

Bell, a switch-hitter, homered from both sides of the plate. Hughes is the player the Rays gave up after claiming catcher Gregg Zaun on waivers last summer..