Latest news with #JoseCaballero
Reuters
3 days ago
- General
- Reuters
Yainer Diaz slams walk-off homer as Astros edge Rays
May 31 - Yainer Diaz socked an opposite-field, walk-off home run with two outs in the ninth inning to lift the Houston Astros to a 2-1 victory over the visiting Tampa Bay Rays on Friday. Diaz clubbed his seventh home run off Rays' left-handed reliever Garrett Cleavinger (0-1), who struck out the first two batters of the ninth. Diaz drilled a first-pitch slider to right for the victory. Trailing 1-0 entering the bottom of the eighth inning, the Astros rallied to draw even. Jake Meyers opened the frame with a double to left-center field off Rays' reliever Kevin Kelly and scored when Zach Dezenzo followed with an infield single. The grounder was fielded by second baseman Curtis Mead, who attempted a challenging jump throw that eluded first baseman Jonathan Aranda and allowed Meyers to round third base and score the tying run. The Rays grabbed a 1-0 lead on the second pitch of the game when Jose Caballero smacked his second home run of the season 383 feet to left field off Astros left-hander Framber Valdez (5-4). That was the extent of the damage surrendered by Valdez, who retired 12 consecutive batters following the Caballero homer. Aranda opened the fifth with a single, but Valdez erased him by getting Mead to hit into a double play. Valdez then retired the Rays in order in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings. Valdez allowed a one-out single to Taylor Walls in the ninth, who advanced to second base on a wild pitch. After a walk to Caballero, Diaz cut down Walls as he attempted to steal third base. Valdez completed the ninth by getting Yandy Diaz to ground out to short. He allowed one run on three hits, with one walk and nine strikeouts. He threw only 83 pitches. Rays right-hander Ryan Pepiot was brilliant in producing his fifth consecutive quality start. Pepiot faced the minimum through four innings, thanks in large part to a base-running gaffe by Meyers in the bottom of the third. Meyers dumped a single into shallow left field to open that frame, and with one out, broke for second base on a pitch to Mauricio Dubon, who sent a line drive to Caballero in right field. Meyers hesitated a beat as Caballero made the catch and was doubled off first base to end the threat. Pepiot cruised from there, retiring the Astros in order in the fourth and sixth and working around a two-out walk to Cam Smith in the fifth. He set down Isaac Paredes and Jose Altuve to open the seventh but departed when Christian Walker slapped a single to center field. Pepiot allowed two hits and one walk while recording four strikeouts over 6 2/3 scoreless innings. He tossed 93 pitches, 61 for strikes, in his second consecutive scoreless appearance. --Field Level Media
Forbes
27-05-2025
- Sport
- Forbes
Jose Caballero Gives Rays Plenty Of Options In Lineup, Field
SAN DIEGO: Jose Caballero of the Tampa Bay Rays throws to first base during the fourth inning ... More against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park on April 26, 2025 in San Diego, California. (Photo by) It is unlikely Jose Caballero will appear at all nine positions in a single game as Bert Campaneris did for the Kansas City A's in 1965. The Rays' all-purpose player, though, has twice played three positions this season. In both instances, at San Diego on April 26 and versus Philadelphia on May 8, one of the positions was right field, which has been a new spot for him this season. An exceptional infielder, Caballero started 83 games at short, 20 at third and 20 at second for the Rays in 2024. He has added all three outfield spots to his resume this year, has played six positions and started at five. His performance at times has been of the highlight-reel variety, including robbing the Yankees' Ben Rice of a home run in April. (Playing at short the following day, Caballero effectively hiked the baseball to Brandon Lowe in turning a 6-4-3.) 'I am trying to be in the lineup and help the team win in any way possible,' said the 28-year-old Caballero, noting the primary adjustment he has had to make in the outfield is tracking a ball in the air versus on the ground. Caballero, who was drafted by the Diamondbacks in the seventh round in 2017 out of Chipola College in the Florida Panhandle, played left field a handful of times in the Arizona Fall League in 2019 when he was in the Seattle system and a couple of innings at the position with the Mariners during his rookie season of 2023. It wasn't until spring training this year that Tampa Bay manager Kevin Cash turned to Caballero to become at least a somewhat a familiar face in the outfield. Having signed shortstop Ha-Seong Kim, who is nearing a return from a shoulder injury that prematurely ended his 2024 season and required surgery, and with Taylor Walls able to superbly play multiple infield spots, Caballero was a prime candidate to spend some time in the outfield. 'We got him reps in outfield during spring training because of how valuable he can be,' said Cash, whose team defeated the Twins on Monday evening for its sixth straight win. 'It's pretty remarkable how a guy that doesn't have many reps in the outfield has really grown to look very comfortable out there. He's getting good jumps, good reads on the ball, his arm strength is well above average. He plays defense with a lot of confidence.' Caballero is confident on the base paths. A native of Panama who arrived at Chipola in the fall of 2015 not knowing a word of English – 'It was kind of hard for me to understand the coaches and my teammates. I made the effort to learn and understand what they were saying.' -- was joking with reporters prior to the start of the past weekend's three-game series against the Blue Jays that he has yet to receive a gift from MLB for leading the junior circuit in stolen bases last season. The 5-foot-11 and 190-pounder swiped 44 bags last season to edge Cleveland's Jose Ramirez, who had 41. It was a nice accomplishment, for sure, but Caballero was not overly impressed with his effort because he fell short of his goal. 'I set my goals and if I reach them, then I am happy with that,' he said. 'If I lead the American League, it's great. But I am trying to be the best version of myself and I wasn't too happy with myself because I did not reach my goal.' That goal? 'The goal is 50,' he said. 'I have to reach 50. We will see.' Caballero heads into play Tuesday third in the AL with 15 steals. What has stood out about his offensive performance this season is that he is getting on base at a much better rate than 2024, his first season with the Rays after being acquired from Seattle for outfielder Luke Raley. Like all good base stealers, Caballero's presence on the basepaths can create an unsettled feeling with the defense. 'Obviously, I want to (steal a base), but if I can't I still want (the pitcher) to be thinking about me instead of the hitter,' he said. 'Even if I don't get the steal, I feel like we can steal a win because pitchers are focusing on something besides the hitter.' Caballero has shown much improvement at the plate this season and with his name appearing in six different spots in the lineup – second and fifth through ninth. 'I guess everybody wants to be in the top of the lineup,' said Caballero, who started at least one game in seven different spots in the order last season and even had an at-bat in the cleanup spot after entering a game late. 'I am trying to do the little things to help the team. That is pretty much how I see it.' Through Monday evening's victory at Steinbrenner Field, he was hitting .242 with 14 walks and a .319 OBP in 135 plate appearances. In 2024, those numbers were .227/27/.283 OBP in 483 PAs. 'Trying to be more selective, trying to get my pitch,' he said of his improvement with a bat in his hands. 'I want to control the zone overall and try to get on base, which is a key part of my game because of my speed and how much pressure I put on the pitchers.'
