The Heater

Reminder: Tom Jones chat today at noon

Want to talk about the Rays-Blue Jays series? Bucs OTAs? The NHL or NBA playoffs? Join Times sports columnist Tom Jones for a live chat today, from noon to 1 p.m.

Video: Cobb on 5th win

Rays RHP Alex Cobb talks about pitching into the 7th against Toronto for his fifth win of the season.

Maddon on replay rule: "I was wrong, apparently"

Getty Images

Rays manager Joe Maddon argues with umpires Sunday in Baltimore.

Rays manager Joe Maddon said that after some research by executive VP Andrew Friedman, he now understands the umpires ruled correctly in their use of the replay rule on Sunday in Baltimore.

"I was wrong, apparently,'' he said.

However, Maddon said he did not agree with the procedure that allows umpires to look at the replay for the purpose of determining if a ball was a home run but then be able to decide if it was foul when that wasn't the original call.

Maddon said he felt that opened a "Pandora's Box" and gave exaggerated examples of managers asking for home run reviews on all kinds of plays, such as the blown call in the near-perfect game by Detroit a few years ago.

Maddon now says of Escobar: "He did nothing wrong"

Getty Images

Yunel Escobar celebrates his two-run home run in the ninth inning of Monday's game in Toronto.

UPDATE, 6:23: Speaking briefly with reporters in English and Spanish, Escobar said he didn't understand why this was such a big deal since he had made a similar gesture after other home runs and no one said anything about it. As he talked, and MLB Network segment on the issue played on the clubhouse TVs, and players turned down the music to listen.

UPDATE, 6:18: Here is more from Maddon on the Escobar matter: …

For starters: Rays at Jays, with Cobb pitching

JAMES BORCHUCK | Times

Alex Cobb, who has been the Rays' second best starter, will be on the mound against Toronto reclamation project Ramon Ortiz.

UPDATE, 3:29: A couple of early notes: The Rays will keep their rotation in order through Thursday's off-day, so that means RHP Roberto Hernandez (the new one), LHP Matt Moore and RHP Jake Odorizzi will face the Yankees. ... RHP Roberto Hernandez (the first one) will represent the Rays at the June 6 draft; three other former Rays will be there - Fred McGriff for the Jays, Jim Mecir for the A's, Andy Cannizaro for the Yankees. ... The Rays ERA is 4.41, it's highest since June 2009. ... The Rays are the only AL team to be at .500 or above on this date the last six years.

DEVELOPING: After letting Monday's matinee get away, and the momentum from their three-game sweep of the Orioles in the process, the Rays will take on the Blue Jays again tonight.

RHP Alex Cobb, who has been their second best starter behind LHP Matt Moore, will be on the mound against Toronto reclamation project RHP Ramon Ortiz, a 39-year-old who last faced the Rays in 2007.

Rays 3B Evan Longoria comes into the game on a career-best 14-game hitting streak.

Two items of potential interest today: …

Wednesday: Chat with the Times' Tom Jones

Times files

Tom Jones will chat Wednesday, from noon to 1 p.m.

Want to talk about the Rays-Blue Jays series? Bucs OTAs? The NHL or NBA playoffs? Join Times sports columnist Tom Jones for a live chat Wednesday, May 22, from noon to 1 p.m.

Rays going camo again Monday - on the field

mlb.com

A look at the jersey the Rays will wear Monday.

UPDATE, 3:01: Further word from MLB on the plans for Monday:

*   MLB will donate 100% of its net proceeds from sales of the camouflage caps and jerseys to Welcome Back Veterans as part of its contribution to the program.

*  MLB will also participate in a National Moment of Remembrance where all games during Memorial Day weekend will include a moment of silence in honor of members of the military who lost their lives serving their country, a program the league has participated in since 1997.

DEVELOPING: The camo dress-up theme for the trip from St. Petersburg to Balti

The jerseys and caps - with hat-tips to uni-watch.com and raysindex.com - are already available for sale through each team's online store, for the Rays via raysbaseball.com or mlb.com. Imagine that.

The design, according to the post, utilizes the USMC trademarked Digital Camo pattern.

Video: Lueke on losing game

Reliever Josh Lueke talks about his difficulties in trying to get through the seventh inning Monday, which cost the Rays the game.

Video: Odorizzi on first Rays start

RHP Jake Odorizzi talks about his first start for the Rays, going 5 innings with a no-decision vs. Toronto.

Escobar's home run reaction concerns Maddon

After being booed throughout the afternoon in his first game back in Toronto, Rays SS Yunel Escobar got his say with a two-out homer in the ninth inning.

But Escobar may have gone too far when, after a slow trot around the bases, he slashed his arms - in an exaggerated "safe" gesture - as he crossed home plate.

Rays manager Joe Maddon didn't like it - and said he would talk to Escobar to make sure it didn't happen again.

"I'm sure that was an emotional moment for him,'' Maddon said. "The booing probably promoted the reaction that he had and I'm going to talk to him about that tomorrow. I loved the fact that he competed like he did. We've been talking about how well he's been doing. He's been doing great. I love him on this team, I love him in the clubhouse, I love everything about this young man. But I still want to talk to him about the reaction after the home run. And I'm certain you're not going to see that again.'

Escobar said, however, the gesture was not special for today and he has done it before. …

Lueke falters as Rays drop Odorizzi's debut, 7-5

TORONTO - Jake Odorizzi overcame a shaky beginning to give the Rays a decent first start, but reliever Josh Lueke couldn't do his part as the Rays ended up losing to the Jays 7-5 in a Victoria Day holiday matinee in Toronto.

 The Rays, who had won three straight in Baltimore, dropped to 23-21.

Odorizzi gave up two runs in a 29-pitch first inning and then another in the second, but settled down and retired 10 of his last 11 hitters in working five innings total. The 23-year-old, called up to take the place of injured David Price, allowed three runs on five hits, walking one and striking out six. He was pulled after 92 pitches.

The Rays tied with some hustle and muscle, Sam Fuld beating out a potential double-play to score Evan Longoria in the second, and then Longoria - who already had extended his career-best hitting streak to 14 games, doubling in Matt Joyce and Ben Zobrist.

The score was 3-3 until the seventh when the Rays turned to Lueke, who had been impressive since his call-up. But he was not sharp today, walking the bases loaded - around a sac bunt and a hard line out toleft - and then giving up a smash into the leftfield corner by Edwin Encarnacion that scored three runs.

The Jays tacked on another run vs. Kyle Farnsworth in the eighth.

The Rays closed the gap from 7-3 to 7-5 when former Jay Yunel Escobar, booed throughout the day by the Rogers Centre fans, hit a two-run homer with two outs in the ninth. He took a slow trot around the bases and slashed his arms - like an exaggerated safe sign - when he crossed the plate.

The Rays got two more on but Ben Zobrist struck out to end it.

The Rays play the second game of their series with the Jays on Tuesday night, with RHP Alex Cobb taking on veteran RHP Ramon Ortiz.

Maddon: Umps were wrong, it's 'baseball anarchy' to 'make stuff up'

Getty Images

Joe Maddon said had the umps changed the call to foul afer the review, he would have played the game under protest.

Rays manager Joe Maddon insisted Monday he was right — and the umpires were wrong — in their interpretation of the replay rules on Sunday and called it "baseball anarchy" and "sandlot" for crew chief Gerry Davis to "make stuff up on the field."

Maddon said he it waiting for clarification from MLB officials but is confident that his position was correct, that the umps could only use replay to determine if Matt Joyce's drive was a home run or, as called, a double, and not to determine if it was foul, as O's manager Buck Showalter argued.

Davis told a pool reporter after the game that, "If we go to replay, whatever we ascertain from the replay is the call we make. So a foul ball is a possibility in that situation."

Maddon said Monday, "I disagree because that would be just a rule that is made up on the spot. Doubles are not reviewable as a boundary call. Home runs are."

Maddon said had the umps changed the call to foul afer the review, he would have played the game under protest.

"Regardless of what they say, that rule is not in the book where you can change a double to a foul ball, as far as I know," he said. …

For starters: Rays at Jays, on Victoria Day

JAMES BORCHUCK | Times

Jake Odorizzi makes his debut for the Rays after being acquired in December from the Royals.

UPDATE, 12:27: Maddon said he got a good vibe from seeing Odorizzi last night and this morning in the hotel lobby and the clubhouse. ... C Jose Molina ran today and is feeling better. Maddon said Molina, who left Saturday game with left hamsting tightness, is available today and "hopefully he can play tomorrow.'' ... Maddon said wished it hadn't rained in New York on Sunday, leading the Jays to push knuckleballer R.A. Dickey back to today's start.

Jays lineup:
Cabrera lf
Bautista rf
Encarnacion 1b
Lind dh
Lawrie 3b
Rasmus cf
Bonifacio 2b
Blanco c
Kawasaki ss
Dickey p

DEVELOPING: Coming off an impressive three-game sweep of the Orioles, the Rays have a holiday matinee date with the Jays today on Victoria Day.

It will be a special day for RHP Jake Odorizzi as well, as he makes his debut for the Rays after being acquired in the December trade - with that Wil Myers guy - for James Shields.

Odorizzi will be only the 17th starter used by the Rays since the start of the '08 season, three fewer than any other team (Giants 20) and eight fewer than any AL team (Twins 25). The Jays have used 35 in that stretch. …

Morning after, more on Moore

There are multiple ways to quantify and compare what Rays LHP Matt Moore has done in starting the season 8-0. Here's a pretty good breakdown from the Rays:

* He leads the majors in wins.

* At 23, he is the youngest pitcher with 8 wins on this date since CLE Greg Swindell had 8 wins in 1988.

* His 8 wins are as many wins as the entire starting staff of the Marlins.

* He is the youngest pitcher to start the season 8-0 exclusively as a starter since LAA Jered Weaver started the season 9-0 in 2006.

* Is the first lefty to start the season 8-0 exclusively as a starter since BAL Jimmy Key in 1997 (8-0).

* He is the youngest AL lefty to start the season 8-0 exclusively as a starter since BOS Babe Ruth began the 1917 season 8-0 at age 22.

Video: Odorizzi on starting Monday

Rays RHP Jake Odorizzi talks about getting called up to replace injured David Price and starting Monday in Toronto.