Jose Caballero puts it all together against the Los Angeles Angels
In the Rays series win over the Los Angeles Angels, shortstop Jose Caballero was starting to put it together with impressive fielding and batting.
The Tampa Bay Rays have started their early west coast trip off on the right foot with two series wins over the Colorado Rockies and now the Los Angeles Angels.
While in Anaheim, the Rays' shortstop Jose Caballero really started to blossom into his own with his new team.
The first game against the Angels was overall quiet for Tampa Bay offensively. In a 7-1 loss, Caballero was able to muster one hit out of the Rays' eight hits, going 1-3. He also tried stealing second, but was gunned down by Angels' catcher Logan O'Hoppe. This was a big blow as base-stealing is a big part of Tampa Bay's small ball play style and Caballero's own play style.
However, the Rays' hitting came alive the middle game of the series in a 6-4 win. Caballero was a major factor going 3-4 with 2 RBI scoring on a single and double. He would also not get caught stealing this time as he was able to steal in this game getting to second which was followed up with Harold Ramirez knocking him in to score, extending Tampa Bay's lead on the way to the win.
The rubber match of the series in Anaheim saw the Rays come out on top once again to earn their second series win of the season. In the 4-2 win, Tampa Bay took advantage of many Los Angeles errors to build up their first lead of the game. Caballero would eventually cash in himself with a massive 423-foot home run which was his first in a Tampa Bay Rays uniform.
Throughout the weekend, the shortstop also made impressive plays in the field as well. He did have an error on a ground ball betweem his legs in the middle game that led to an Angels' run, but he was able to turn a double play in that same game with the help of Curtis Mead and Yandy Diaz.
Caballero also made two impressive diving plays on Sunday in the third game to force groundouts. Ultimately, he made up for his error mistake with many athletic plays in the field to keep Tampa Bay out front.
With the Rays now through their first four series of the season and 13 total games into the season, Caballero is batting a stellar .351 in 37 at-bats. He has an OBP of .375 as well , with five steals. The five steals are within the top ten in steals in the major leagues. He also is the Rays' leader in OPS along with Isaac Paredes at .889 on the season.
Caballero is putting it together at shortstop when Tampa Bay needed it most. The Rays are without Wander Franco, who is on an administrative leave and Taylor Walls, who is currently recovering from hip surgery. This takes a lot of pressure off of the position that has been stretched thin.
The next game for the Rays will be back in Tropicana Field on Friday as they take on the San Fransisco Giants who have Keaton Winn starting on the mound. Tampa Bay has not announced a planned starting pitcher as of yet.
First pitch for the game is at 6:50 p.m. E.T.