DETROIT — Perhaps more than any other issue, the Rays have to do something to improve their defense. Have to. Or else that impressive power hitting and usually quality starting pitching will go for naught.
Manager Kevin Cash has mentioned it regularly, and for good reason. Misplays and missed plays factored heavily in their recent losses. Before Friday's game, which turned out to be a 13-4 flop against the Tigers, the Rays held a players-only meeting to discuss the need to tighten up their defense.
Now it's time to show it's not all talk.
Realistically, improvement in a defense that has made 50 errors, second most in the majors, is more likely to come from within each player, a matter of mental focus as much as anything.
There aren't many positions where the Rays can, or would want to, make a change. They are going to start playing Jesus Sucre more instead of Derek Norris at catcher, in advance of Wilson Ramos returning.
"It was good," first baseman Logan Morrison said of the meeting. "It was more like, we've been playing not great baseball and we've been able to win a lot of games and it's been really impressive, so keep it going and tighten it up a little bit on defense. That's all. That's it."
Easier said than done? Maybe not.
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"It's not for lack of effort or competing," Morrison said. "People are human beings, so you're going to make mistakes.
"I think it's just a matter of being able to absolutely lock it in and be mentally focused for nine innings, every pitch, every single day. And after the game being mentally exhausted and hate having to talk to you after the game, and things like that just because you're out of it, leaving it all on out on the field, competing."
Similarly, rightfielder Steven Souza Jr. said, players should be anticipating situations more and relaxing when they occur.
While insisting some dazzling defense has been played, Cash knows the Rays have to stop making so many mistakes.
"All the plays are a little different. Some of them are mental, and those are the ones we really need to prevent," he said. "The other ones, ideally for our pitchers, we've got to make routine plays behind them and just get outs. … They come up a lot in tight ball games, especially later."
Starter Chris Archer was more succinct: "Championship-caliber teams don't make mistakes like we do, not as frequently."
Morrison suggested further changes, with players going away from some of the data-driven positioning based on instinct: "This game is not played by computers, it's played by human beings."
One position they can definitely improve is catcher.
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With a bigger upgrade coming, potentially next Sunday with Ramos' activation off the DL, Sucre will get more time given that Norris has been among the offending defenders, with six errors and six passed balls, both tops in the league.
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Explore all your optionsMaybe that's to get a better look at Sucre before deciding which one to keep to complement Ramos, or maybe a hint that they've already decided.
"(Sucre) has done a nice job with the pitchers," Cash said. "I know the pitchers like throwing to him. I like the way he goes about it and can shut down a running game. He seems really athletic back there."
Another is shortstop, but with Matt Duffy's return uncertain given ongoing issues in his surgically repaired left heel, Tim Beckham is the best they have. While he has played well overall, he has his moments, such as an errant throw Friday that cost three runs, his eighth error.
There have also been some issues in centerfield, as Mallex Smith's occasional lapses, specifically breaking on balls, highlight the challenge in filling in for injured Kevin Kiermaier, who was having his own problems before getting hurt.
Maybe it will take time for the meeting to sink in, as they still made several mistakes around the field Friday, but it hardly mattered. A 2-1 lead in the fourth disappeared as they allowed 10 runs over the next two innings, Erasmo Ramirez having a bad night, allowing 10 runs on nine hits before leaving in the fifth.
"Not a lot to be said about tonight," Cash said.