Robbie Ray continues recent improvement with excellent outing vs. Orioles

Robbie Ray has been showing signs lately of returning to last year’s Cy Young form, highlighted on Tuesday night with seven strong innings against Baltimore.

When the Mariners signed Robbie Ray during the offseason for five years and $115 million, it was accompanied by high expectations. After all, he was coming off a career-best season which saw him take home the AL Cy Young award.

Following an outstanding debut for the Mariners however, Ray had struggled to find his scintillating from from last year. After an outing earlier this month versus Houston — when he allowed eight hits and four runs (three earned) in 5.0 innings — his ERA was at a season-worst 4.97.

However, this low point turned out to represent the metaphorical equivalent of him hitting rock bottom, as since then the 30-year-old has turned things around. In his previous three starts heading into Tuesday night, he had allowed just 10 hits, two earned runs and four walks in 20.0 combined innings, while also striking out 20.

It got even better against the Orioles, when Ray delivered his best outing of the season to date. He gave up just one hit and no runs in seven excellent innings, while also notching eight strikeouts in what was ultimately a 2-0 win for Seattle.

As a result, the 2017 All-Star now has an outstanding 0.67 ERA in his last four starts combined. While it will be a challenge for the Mariners to get back into the wild card race, his recent form can only help with whatever chance the ball club has.

Despite his performance on Tuesday night, it speaks volumes about Ray and his competitive mindset that he still thinks he has room for improvement. In particular, he wasn’t happy about walking three batters.

Overall though, the Brentwood, Tennessee native acknowledged he had a good outing. Speaking to members of the media following the game, he said:

“I feel like my focus was there all night. Every single at bat, I felt like I was one pitch away. Tonight, it felt like everything was flowing really well. I was mixing it up well, and (even) getting behind 3-1 or 2-1 on a guy, I was still in the at-bat.”

Ray also discussed how expanding his pitching arsenal had contributed significantly to his recent improvement in form. He said:

“Everything is going good. The introduction of the two-seam has been huge for me. It’s just opened up the entire plate. It’s made my four-seam, my slider, everything, better.”

Manager Scott Servais was understandably very complimentary about Ray. Speaking to the media, he said:

“He’s got great stuff and he’s a pretty good athlete to be able to make those adjustments that quickly and take them right in the game. So it says a ton about not just the competitor he is, but the athlete, the pitcher he is. He’s a pretty special dude. Glad we got him.”

This is certainly a sentiment teammates and fans alike will agree with. Ray is next scheduled to start in the series finale versus the Oakland Athletics on Sunday, July 2.

Are you convinced Robbie Ray is now over his struggles and ready to lead the Mariners for the remainder of the season? Or are you concerned he may suffer another spell of poor form? Let us know in the comments section below.