By Marc Topkin, Times Staff Writer

In Print: Wednesday, October 26, 2011

ST. PETERSBURG — Dave Eiland liked working again for his hometown Rays as a scout and minor-league instructor. But what he really wanted was to be a major-league pitching coach again, and he got that opportunity with the Royals, agreeing to a two-year deal announced Tuesday.

“I’m very happy; it’s what I do,” Eiland said. “I wouldn’t have left Tampa Bay for any pitching coach job. It had to be the right fit, and Kansas City felt like a very good fit.”

Eiland, 45, grew up in Zephyrhills and pitched parts of 10 seasons in the majors, the last three with the Rays. He then went into coaching, working his way up to be the Yankees pitching coach in 2008-10. He spent last season as a special assistant with the Rays and would have returned if he hadn’t gotten a big-league job.

“In 25 years in the game, those were some of the smartest, brightest, sharpest baseball people I’ve been around,” Eiland said. “It’s really hard to leave.”

Also, director of baseball operations Dan Feinstein left the Rays to return to the A’s as director of professional scouting and baseball development. Feinstein, a native of Lafayette, Calif., worked for Oakland from 1994-2004. With the Rays, he assisted executive VP Andrew Friedman with contracts, arbitration, trades, rules and budgets.

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ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP)—The Tampa Bay Rays have momentum heading into a
week of important division games.

Jeff Niemann(notes) won his sixth consecutive decision, Ben Zobrist(notes) had a two-run
triple and the Rays completed a four-game sweep with a 4-1 victory over the
Kansas City Royals on Thursday.

Tampa Bay starts a key six-game road trip against New York and Boston on
Friday night at Yankee Stadium. The Rays started the day 8 1/2 games behind the AL
wild-card leading Yankees and trail AL East-leading Boston by 9 1/2 games.

“Playing in our division is always a gas, and going up there to do it makes
it even more fun,” Rays manager Joe Maddon said. “Another good test for us.
We’re trying to climb back in this thing one step at a time. It’s up to us.”

Rays left-hander David Price(notes) (9-10) will face Yankees’ ace CC Sabathia(notes)
(16-6) in a matchup of All-Stars in the opener of a three-game series.

“Everybody here still has that playoff mindset,” Price said.

Niemann (7-4) allowed one run and nine hits over 6 1-3 innings. The
right-hander is 6-0 in nine starts since returning from a strained lower back.

“Things weren’t coming as easily as they have been the past few games,”
Niemann said. “You’re going to have starts when you’re not as sharp.”

The Rays’ first four-game home sweep since July 28-31, 2005—also against
Kansas City—included an 8-7 win Wednesday night in which Tampa Bay scored five
times in the ninth.

After Joel Peralta(notes) threw 1 2-3 scoreless innings for Tampa Bay, Kyle
Farnsworth(notes) pitched the ninth for his 21st save.

Rookie left-hander Danny Duffy(notes) (3-6) gave up three runs and five hits over
seven innings.

The Royals had 11 hits, but ended up 1 for 9 with runners in scoring
position,

“It gets real frustrating when, quite frankly, in four games and we were
one hit or one pitch away from going 4-0,” Kansas City manager Ned Yost said.
“Three of the four runs today came on two-outs, nobody-on rallies.”

Kansas City has the youngest 25-man roster in the majors.

“This is the most painful part,” Yost said. “This is where it hurts. We
start to really show some improvement, but you can’t get over the hump in
winning games. You’re really close. The hardest part is maintaining your
patience and maintaining your sense of reality. Exactly what you’re trying to
accomplish and how you’re going to get there.”

Tampa Bay took a 2-1 lead when Zobrist drove in two runs on a third-inning
triple. Desmond Jennings(notes) tripled and scored to make it 3-1 on Evan Longoria’s(notes)
fifth-inning sacrifice fly.

Sean Rodriguez(notes) extended the advantage to 4-1 on an eighth-inning RBI single.

The Royals had runners on second and third with no outs in the first, but
scored just one run on Eric Hosmer’s(notes) grounder. Kansas City was hitless in five
at-bats with runners in scoring position through two innings.

Hosmer was retired on a grounder with two on and two outs in the fifth.
Niemann struck out Alex Gordon(notes) with two outs and the bases loaded one inning
later.

Niemann retired 10 in a row after Alcides Escobar(notes) had an infield single with
one out in the second. He is 4-0 in six games, including five starts, against
Kansas City.

Rays designated hitter Johnny Damon(notes) singled during the first and moved past
George Davis into 65th place on the all-time hits list with 2,684.

NOTES: Yost did not talk with his team about Wednesday’s tough loss.
“They’re resilient,” he said. “They’re fine.” … Longoria has a season-high
eight-game hitting streak. … Royals LHP Bruce Chen(notes) (6-5) will go against
Chicago White Sox RHP Zach Stewart(notes) (1-0) on Friday night. Chen is 1-3 with a
3.66 ERA in 12 games, including seven starts, against the White Sox. … Royals
CF Melky Cabrera(notes) had three hits in his 49th multihit game of the season.

Tampa Bay starts a key six-game road trip against New York and Boston on Friday night at Yankee Stadium. The Rays started the day 8½ games behind the AL wild-card leading Yankees and trail AL East-leading Boston by 9½ games.

“Playing in our division is always a gas, and going up there to do it makes it even more fun,” Rays manager Joe Maddon said. “Another good test for us. We’re trying to climb back in this thing one step at a time. It’s up to us.”

Rays left-hander David Price (9-10) will face Yankees’ ace CC Sabathia (16-6) in a matchup of All-Stars in the opener of a three-game series.

“Everybody here still has that playoff mindset,” Price said.

Niemann (7-4) allowed one run and nine hits over 6 1-3 innings. The right-hander is 6-0 in nine starts since returning from a strained lower back.

“Things weren’t coming as easily as they have been the past few games,” Niemann said. “You’re going to have starts when you’re not as sharp.”

The Rays’ first four-game home sweep since July 28-31, 2005 — also against Kansas City — included an 8-7 win Wednesday night in which Tampa Bay scored five times in the ninth.

After Joel Peralta threw 1 2-3 scoreless innings for Tampa Bay, Kyle Farnsworth pitched the ninth for his 21st save.

Rookie left-hander Danny Duffy (3-6) gave up three runs and five hits over seven innings.

The Royals had 11 hits, but ended up 1 for 9 with runners in scoring position,

“It gets real frustrating when, quite frankly, in four games and we were one hit or one pitch away from going 4-0,” Kansas City manager Ned Yost said. “Three of the four runs today came on two-outs, nobody-on rallies.”

Kansas City has the youngest 25-man roster in the majors.

“This is the most painful part,” Yost said. “This is where it hurts. We start to really show some improvement, but you can’t get over the hump in winning games. You’re really close. The hardest part is maintaining your patience and maintaining your sense of reality. Exactly what you’re trying to accomplish and how you’re going to get there.”

Tampa Bay took a 2-1 lead when Zobrist drove in two runs on a third-inning triple. Desmond Jennings tripled and scored to make it 3-1 on Evan Longoria’s fifth-inning sacrifice fly.

Sean Rodriguez extended the advantage to 4-1 on an eighth-inning RBI single.

The Royals had runners on second and third with no outs in the first, but scored just one run on Eric Hosmer’s grounder. Kansas City was hitless in five at-bats with runners in scoring position through two innings.

Hosmer was retired on a grounder with two on and two outs in the fifth. Niemann struck out Alex Gordon with two outs and the bases loaded one inning later.

Niemann retired 10 in a row after Alcides Escobar had an infield single with one out in the second. He is 4-0 in six games, including five starts, against Kansas City.

Rays designated hitter Johnny Damon singled during the first and moved past George Davis into 65th place on the all-time hits list with 2,684.

NOTES: Yost did not talk with his team about Wednesday’s tough loss. “They’re resilient,” he said. “They’re fine.” … Longoria has a season-high eight-game hitting streak. … Royals LHP Bruce Chen (6-5) will go against Chicago White Sox RHP Zach Stewart (1-0) on Friday night. Chen is 1-3 with a 3.66 ERA in 12 games, including seven starts, against the White Sox. … Royals CF Melky Cabrera had three hits in his 49th multihit game of the season.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

CBSSports.com wire reports
Aug. 11, 2011

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Rays have momentum heading into a week of important division games.

Jeff Niemann won his sixth consecutive decision, Ben Zobrist had a two-run triple and the Rays completed a four-game sweep with a 4-1 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Thursday.

Tampa Bay starts a key six-game road trip against New York and Boston on Friday night at Yankee Stadium. The Rays started the day 8½ games behind the AL wild-card leading Yankees and trail AL East-leading Boston by 9½ games.

“Playing in our division is always a gas, and going up there to do it makes it even more fun,” Rays manager Joe Maddon said. “Another good test for us. We’re trying to climb back in this thing one step at a time. It’s up to us.”

Rays left-hander David Price (9-10) will face Yankees’ ace CC Sabathia (16-6) in a matchup of All-Stars in the opener of a three-game series.

“Everybody here still has that playoff mindset,” Price said.

Niemann (7-4) allowed one run and nine hits over 6 1-3 innings. The right-hander is 6-0 in nine starts since returning from a strained lower back.

“Things weren’t coming as easily as they have been the past few games,” Niemann said. “You’re going to have starts when you’re not as sharp.”

The Rays’ first four-game home sweep since July 28-31, 2005 — also against Kansas City — included an 8-7 win Wednesday night in which Tampa Bay scored five times in the ninth.

After Joel Peralta threw 1 2/3 scoreless innings for Tampa Bay, Kyle Farnsworth pitched the ninth for his 21st save.

Rookie left-hander Danny Duffy (3-6) gave up three runs and five hits over seven innings.

The Royals had 11 hits, but ended up 1 for 9 with runners in scoring position,

“It gets real frustrating when, quite frankly, in four games and we were one hit or one pitch away from going 4-0,” Kansas City manager Ned Yost said. “Three of the four runs today came on two-outs, nobody-on rallies.”

Kansas City has the youngest 25-man roster in the majors.

“This is the most painful part,” Yost said. “This is where it hurts. We start to really show some improvement, but you can’t get over the hump in winning games. You’re really close. The hardest part is maintaining your patience and maintaining your sense of reality. Exactly what you’re trying to accomplish and how you’re going to get there.”

Tampa Bay took a 2-1 lead when Zobrist drove in two runs on a third-inning triple. Desmond Jennings tripled and scored to make it 3-1 on Evan Longoria’s fifth-inning sacrifice fly.

Sean Rodriguez extended the advantage to 4-1 on an eighth-inning RBI single.

The Royals had runners on second and third with no outs in the first, but scored just one run on Eric Hosmer’s grounder. Kansas City was hitless in five at-bats with runners in scoring position through two innings.

Hosmer was retired on a grounder with two on and two outs in the fifth. Niemann struck out Alex Gordon with two outs and the bases loaded one inning later.

Niemann retired 10 in a row after Alcides Escobar had an infield single with one out in the second. He is 4-0 in six games, including five starts, against Kansas City.

Rays designated hitter Johnny Damon singled during the first and moved past George Davis into 65th place on the all-time hits list with 2,684.

Notes

• Yost did not talk with his team about Wednesday’s tough loss. “They’re resilient,” he said. “They’re fine.”
• Longoria has a season-high eight-game hitting streak.
• Royals LHP Bruce Chen (6-5) will go against White Sox RHP Zach Stewart (1-0) on Friday night. Chen is 1-3 with a 3.66 ERA in 12 games, including seven starts, against the White Sox.
• Royals CF Melky Cabrera had three hits in his 49th multihit game of the season.

James Shields(notes) has been a model of inconsistency over the last month for the
Tampa Bay Rays.

The All-Star right-hander hopes to snap that trend and win consecutive
starts for the first time in more than six weeks Tuesday night against the
Kansas City Royals at Tropicana Field.

Shields (10-9, 2.95 ERA) is 2-3 with a 4.91 ERA in his last five starts, a
stretch that began when he allowed an unearned run in a complete-game 1-0 loss
at Yankee Stadium on July 10.

He returned from the All-Star break to give up six runs in six innings of a
loss to Boston on July 16, but followed that by beating the Yankees with 7 2-3
strong innings in a 2-1 win five days later.

Shields was unable to build on that performance and yielded a season-high 10
runs in four innings of a 13-4 loss at Oakland on July 27, but bounced back to
limit Toronto to one run and three hits in 7 1-3 innings of a 9-1 win Wednesday.

The Rays (60-54) have totaled just six runs over their last three games, but
Shields hopes for another offensive barrage from his teammates as he tries to
win back-to-back starts for the first time since a three-game run June 14-24.

“I’ll tell you what, whenever I have a lead or any pitcher on our staff has
a lead, we tend to feel a little more comfortable out there,” Shields told the
Rays’ official website. “We can attack the zone a little bit more. And really
focus on making our pitches.”

Shields often led during his first five career starts against the Royals,
going 5-0 with a 2.50 ERA, but he’s 0-2 with a 7.13 ERA in the last three
meetings. He allowed seven runs and 12 hits in five-plus innings of a 7-0 loss
at Kansas City on Oct. 1.

The Rays didn’t lead in Monday’s 2-1 win until Casey Kotchman’s(notes) tiebreaking
homer in the ninth helped them avoid a third consecutive defeat.

“Just happy to get the ‘W,’” said Kotchman, who had his second straight
three-hit game and drove in both runs.

Among the major league leaders with a career-best .341 average, Kotchman is
16 for 32 with three home runs and six RBIs in his last eight games.

“How about Casey?” manager Joe Maddon said. “Kotch has been hitting like
that all year. It’s fun to watch.”

Kotchman is 5 for 14 in his last three versus Kansas City (49-66), which has
dropped three of four after winning five of seven.

Despite dealing with a sprained ankle, Melky Cabrera(notes) was 2 for 4 on Monday,
but the Royals went 2 for 12 with runners in scoring position. Cabrera is 6 for
17 against the Rays this season but just 4 for 19 in his career versus Shields.

Scheduled starter Jeff Francis(notes) (4-11, 4.48) allowed three runs and struck
out six in five innings of the Royals’ 5-4, 10-inning win July 23 in his first
career appearance versus Tampa Bay.

After giving up four hits in eight innings of a 12-0 victory at Cleveland on
July 29 for his first win in eight starts, the left-hander yielded four runs and
10 hits in five innings Thursday and did not factor in the decision of a 9-4
victory over Baltimore.

Kansas City rookie Eric Hosmer(notes) went 1 for 3 with an RBI in his first major
league game in his home state Monday.

Hochevar allowed one run and five hits, keeping Tampa Bay off-balance for most of the game. The right-hander, who had won his previous three starts, had seven strikeouts and two walks.

“I went out and tried to execute quality pitches,” Hochevar said. “We played quality defense again tonight.”

Kotchman drove the first pitch from Blake Wood (5-1) over the center field fence. He also knocked in the other Tampa Bay run with a run-scoring single that tied it in the seventh.

“I thought it was going to be caught,” Kotchman said of his third homer over the last six games.

Rays rookie Jeremy Hellickson, 3-0 in four starts during July, gave up one run and six hits in 7 1-3 innings. He struck out seven and walked three.

“It was a great game,” Kansas City manager Ned Yost said. “There was outstanding pitching from both starters. Hochevar was spectacular and Hellickson was spectacular.”

Eric Hosmer put the Royals ahead 1-0 on a first-inning RBI single. Alex Gordon, who had been hitless in his first 37 at-bats at Tropicana Field, hit a leadoff double and later scored on Hosmer’s opposite-field hit to left.

Kansas City had a runner in scoring position in four of the first six innings, but went 2 for 10 in those situations. The Royals also failed to take advantage after getting two on with one out during the eighth.

“Hellickson’s change up was as good as we’ve seen all year long,” Yost said. “He had great arm speed and we just never picked it up.”

Rays closer Kyle Farnsworth (4-1) pitched a perfect ninth to earn the win.

Tampa Bay tied it at 1 in the seventh when Ben Zobrist drew a one-out walk, went to second on a wild pitch and scored on Kotchman’s single.

Tampa Bay had two on and one out in the second, but failed to score when Matt Joyce and Robinson Chirinos both struck out.

Hochevar induced double-play grounders in both the fourth and fifth innings.

“He threw well,” Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon said. “He had everything going.”

Kansas City center fielder Melky Cabrera was in the lineup after not starting Sunday’s game because of a sprained left ankle. He went 2 for 4, including a double, and has 47 multihit games this year.

Notes: Tampa Bay RHP James Shields (10-9), Tuesday’s scheduled starter, has seven complete games in 23 starts this season. “That was one of my main goals this year, throw some complete games,” Shields said. “They’re all in the first half so far, so I’m hoping to get a couple more in the second half.” … Kansas City LHP Jeff Francis (4-11) will be making his first career appearance at Tropicana Field in his start Tuesday. … Yost said C Matt Treanor (concussion) is making progress, but will likely be out at least a few more days. … Kansas City has played four straight one-run games, losing three of them. … Hochevar and Hellickson combined for 13 strikeouts through three innings.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., Aug. 8 (UPI) — Casey Kotchman’s homer in the bottom of the ninth inning Monday delivered the Tampa Bay Rays a 2-1 win over the Kansas City Royals.

The score was tied 1-1 in the ninth when Blake Wood (5-1) tossed a first-pitch fastball that Kotchman blasted over the ball over the wall in center for the walk-off game-winner.

Kotchman finished the night 3-for-4 with two RBI for the Rays, who took the opener of a four-game series against the Royals.

Kyle Farnsworth (4-1) tossed a perfect ninth to pick up the win while Tampa Bay starter Jeremy Hellickson yielded one run on six hits over 7 1/3 innings.

Eric Hosmer contributed the Royals’ only RBI.