News
Davis excited to make third career start
Tampa Bay (73-73) at Baltimore (60-85), 7:05 p.m. ET
By Bill Chastain / MLB.com
09/16/09 11:51 PM ET
BALTIMORE - Wade Davis heads into his third Major League start Thursday night with a good one and a bad one under his belt.In his debut against the Tigers, Davis struck out nine before leaving with a 3-1 lead after seven innings, only to have the bullpen lose the lead.
Saturday at Fenway Park against the Red Sox, the Major Leagues were not as forgiving for Davis as he allowed eight runs on six hits to take his first big league loss.
"I'm excited," said Davis, 24, of his coming start. "I don't like losing, period. And especially the way that game went down. So it should be a fun start [Thursday]."
The rookie right-hander felt as though he tried to be too fine with his pitches during the Boston outing.
"I don't know if I was pitching away from contact," Davis said. "I'm sure it looked like it, and I probably was to an extent, especially when you fall behind and try to make too good of a pitch.
"I think it will be a different story this time. A little bit of a different attitude this time."
Davis allowed two earned runs or fewer in 19 of his 28 starts for Triple-A Durham this season.
Pitching matchupTB: RHP Wade Davis (0-1, 8.38 ERA)
Davis got off to a good start Saturday night with two scoreless innings against the Red Sox before finding big trouble in the third, when the Red Sox tagged the rookie right-hander for eight runs on six hits to cut his second Major League start to 2 2/3 innings. The 6-foot-5 right-hander had an auspicious beginning in his first start when he struck out nine against the Tigers in seven innings, living up to the hype that has followed him since he was a third-round selection in the 2004 First-Year Player Draft. BAL: LHP Mark Hendrickson (5-4, 4.43 ERA)
The Orioles shut down rookie Brian Matusz because he had reached his innings limit for the season, and when they did, Hendrickson became the natural choice to fill in for him. The southpaw has spent most of his time as a reliever this season but began the year in the rotation. Hendrickson is 1-4 with a 6.35 ERA in seven starts and 4-0 with a 3.44 mark in 43 relief appearances. Tidbits
James Shields, who is scheduled to start Friday night for the Rays, will head home Thursday to ensure he is well rested for his start. ... Rays manager Joe Maddon said Wednesday that Jason Bartlett has more than stated his case to remain the team's leadoff hitter in 2010.
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• Friday: Rays (James Shields, 9-11, 4.03) vs. Blue Jays (Scott Richmond, 6-9, 5.03), 7:38 p.m. ET
• Saturday: Rays (Matt Garza, 7-10, 3.84) vs. Blue Jays (Ricky Romero, 12-8, 4.22), 7:08 p.m. ET
• Sunday: Rays (David Price, 8-7, 4.60) vs. Blue Jays (Roy Halladay, 15-9, 3.03), 1:38 p.m. ET
Bill Chastain is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
