After Rough Start, Tampa Bay Rays Starting to Catch Fire Against Left-Handed Pitching

Following a difficult start to the season against left-handed pitching, the Tampa Bay Rays are starting to find consistency against their southpaw opponents.

The Rays' 5-1 victory over lefty Kris Bubic and the Kansas City Royals on Tuesday night marked the club's fourth straight win over a left-handed starter. Moreover, Tampa Bay has faced opposing southpaw starters 23 times this season, tied with Baltimore Orioles for most in the American League.

Over the last two weeks, Kevin Cash's team has been heating up against lefties, posting a .326 batting average with 28 hits, 13 RBIs and 11 walks. The Rays are No. 12 in the majors in hits against left-handers with 181 in 70 games. Their .237 average is No. 17.

It's helped that all the right-handed hitters on the Rays' roster have heated up at the same time. Curtis Mead, Danny Jansen, Christopher Morel and switch-hitter Taylor Walls have all been hot since May 20, when the Rays started this hot streak. The Rays are 23-9 since then.

Rays first baseman Jonathan Aranda — who sits in third place among American League first basemen in All-Star voting — is setting the example for Tampa Bay against southpaws. Aranda, who bats left-handed, possesses a .424 on-base percentage against lefties, the eighth-best mark in baseball.

Moreover, Aranda's .321 batting average against said opponents is top-20 in the majors and No. 14 in the American League, ranking him higher than Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani and early MVP candidate Cal Raleigh of the Seattle Mariners.

The Tampa Bay Rays will face right-handed starters over the next five games. The Rays' .264 batting average against right-handers trails only the Dodgers for the best in the league. Tampa Bay's batting order is scheduled to face left-hander Jacob Lopez in the team's series opener against the Athletics on June 30.