The Rays should really be in the market for a lefty reliever to team with 34-year old Randy Choate. Choate should only be pitching to lefty hitters which is when he is most effective. But because he’s the only lefty in the pen he has been used against some righty swingers this year. Choate has pitched in 30 games (0 starts) for the Rays so far this season and he is 0-2 with a 6.00 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP as he has 16 whiffs in only 15 innings showing that the stuff is still there to succeed. Choate was solid for the Rays last season working in 61 games (0 starts) in which he was 1-0 with 5 saves, a 3.47 ERA and a 1.07 WHIP. Hopefully Choate can get into a groove and start pitching like he did last year.

I know, it’s early in the season but that doesn’t mask how poorly lefty Randy Choate and righty Mike Ekstrom are pitching out of the pen so far this year. With J.P. Howell out of action due to injury Choate is the only lefty in the pen so they need him to step up. He has pitched in 4 games this season for the Rays and he is 0-1 with a 23.14 ERA and a 3.43 WHIP. He has given up a stunning 8 hits (1 homer) in only 2 1/3 innings so far this season. The Rays desperately need Choate to turn things around soon. Ekstrom has been really awful for the Rays this season. In 3 games, Ekstrom is 0-1 with a 19.29 ERA and a 3.86 WHIP. He has given up 4 hits and walked 5 batters in only 2 1/3 innings this season which is pathetic. With the way Joaquin Benoit is pitching in AAA, Ekstrom better start pitching better soon or he won’t be in the majors much longer.

New closer Rafael Soriano has a win and a save in his two games this season but nothing has come easy to him. He has pitched in 2 games for the Rays this season and he is 1-0 with 1 save, a 4.50 ERA and a 2.50 WHIP. Soriano has allowed 4 hits and walked a batter in only 2 innings this season so far for the Rays. Personally, I think he just had a case of the jitters as his stuff still looked good in his first two outings. Look for him to shape up soon and start dominating for the Rays.

24-year old lefty starting pitcher David Price has not had the season everyone predicted him to have. He has started 21 games for the Rays this season and he is 9-7 with a 4.41 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP. He has allowed 111 hits in 116 1/3 innings this season and he has whiffed 93 batters so the stuff is there. But, he has also allowed 16 homers and walked 50 batters so he needs to learn how to pitch. Price still has a bright future for the Rays but he has some work to do if he wants to develop into a All-Star type of pitcher that many predicted he would be.

The Rays are wasting time in letting Andy Sonnanstine start games for them. He has pitched in 18 games (17 starts) for the Rays this season and he is 6-9 with a 7.15 ERA and a 1.63 WHIP. He has allowed a whopping 117 hits (18 of them homers) in only 89 1/3 innings so far this season. In three years with the Rays, Sonnanstine has pitched in 72 games (71 starts) in which he is 25-28 with a 5.44 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP. Sonnanstine’s only real skill is that he doesn’t walk batters. Only 92 batters have walked against Sonnanstine in 413 1/3 innings for the Rays but he has allowed 480 hits. The Rays would be smart to trade Sonnanstine over the winter and let prospects like Wade Davis and Jeremy Hellickson duke it out for the #5 spot in the rotation next spring.