Did you really expect the Tampa Bay Rays to run the table in this postseason?
In case you're wondering, only four teams swept their first-ever postseason series. They are the 1914 Boston Braves (swept the Philadelphia A's in the World Series), 1966 Baltimore Orioles (swept the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series), the 1969 New York Mets (3-0 vs. the Atlanta Braves on the NLCS) and the 1997 Florida Marlins (3-0 over the San Francisco Giants in the ALDS).
The Orioles won their first 14 postseason games, having followed the World Series sweep of the Dodgers with three-game sweeps in the ALCS in 1969, 1970 and 1971. They also won the first game if the 1972 ALCS against the Oakland A's.
Stat of the day
0: Hits by the Rays' fourth, fifth and sixth hitters in Sunday's 5-3 loss to the White Sox. Evan Longoria (below) was 0-for-3 with a walk, and Carl Crawford and Willy Aybar both went 0-for-4.
Good scouting
It seems the White Sox have found a way to pitch to Longoria.
Since going 3-for-3 with two home runs and an RBI single in his first three at-bats in Game 1, Longoria has gone 1-for-7 with two walks and a single during the next two games. He's also struck out three times.
Comeback kids
The Rays are the first team in major league history to win their first two games by overcoming deficits of at least two runs in both. That tidbit is brought to you by the folks at the Elias Sports Bureau.
The Rays won 28 times during the regular season when trailing by at least two runs.
He said it
"I am a big believer in that. It's got to begin somewhere. I've read over this past season a book about Branch Rickey. If you look at the St. Louis Cardinals in 1950 or so they were thought of less than the St. Louis Browns at that particular time. They could not get people to the ballpark. They didn't win their first World Series till I think '23 or '24 and eventually became the St. Louis Cardinals you know today. So you have to build tradition at some point. When I was reading that book I was thinking about us."
Rays manager Joe Maddon in the Rays building a winning tradition.
ALDS schedule
RAYS VS. WHITE SOX
Game 1, Thursday
Rays 6, White Sox 4
Game 2, Friday
Rays 6, White Sox 2
Game 3, Sunday
White Sox 5, Rays 3
Game 4, Today
Rays (Sonnanstine 13-9) at White Sox (Floyd 17-8), 5:07 p.m. or 8:07 p.m.
Game 5, Wednesday
White Sox at Rays, if necessary, 6:07 p.m. or 8:37 p.m.
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