Slam solidifies Luplow's ALDS roster spot

ST. PETERSBURG -- The Rays decided to leave outfielder Brett Phillips off the American League Division Series roster because they prioritized matchups. And with a plethora of lefties slated to pitch for Boston, Tampa Bay knew right-handed hitters were going to be key.

Enter Jordan Luplow.

Luplow was a bit of a question mark. The team knew his reputation was that he could mash left-handed pitching, but his numbers this year told a different story. Maybe the Rays took a slight risk in handing a coveted playoff roster spot to Luplow, hoping he’d settle in and turn into the hitter they believed they'd acquired from Cleveland at the Trade Deadline. Though they lost Game 2 of the ALDS, 14-6, to the Red Sox at Tropicana Field on Friday, the Rays at least got their answer on Luplow.

After falling into a two-run deficit in the top of the first, the Rays answered with a quick run before Luplow stepped to the plate with the bases loaded. He fell behind Red Sox starter Chris Sale, 0-2, before launching a 94.2 mph heater high out of the zone over the left-field wall for his first career grand slam -- in the regular season or postseason. It was just the third grand slam on an 0-2 count recorded in the postseason since pitch tracking started in 1988.

“It was huge,” Rays backstop Mike Zunino said of the slam. “Obviously, off a pitcher of Sale's caliber, and Luplow and all the guys in front of him coming up with great at-bats.”

The blast marked Tampa Bay’s second postseason grand slam in franchise history -- the other coming from Hunter Renfroe in the 2020 Wild Card Series against Toronto. Luplow was removed before he had a chance to have a second at-bat after right-hander Tanner Houck entered the game, but he still became just the fifth player in club history to record at least four RBIs in a postseason game. It was the first time Sale surrendered a postseason home run with a man on base.

Luplow hasn’t had much experience against Sale in his career. Entering Friday night, he had two hits against the southpaw in just six at-bats -- all of them since the start of September. But his first career big league Spring Training at-bat in the Pirates’ organization came against Sale on March 16, 2017, when he was asked to step in for an injured player and logged a double.

There aren’t many hitters who can say they’ve gotten a hold of Sale quite like Luplow has in a short period of time. The Statcast-projected 387-foot blast that stayed just inside the left-field foul pole marked the first grand slam Sale has allowed in more than six years. The last came on Sept. 18, 2015, by Luplow’s former Cleveland teammate, Carlos Santana.

“That was huge,” Rays manager Kevin Cash said. “You're facing one of the game's best left-handers of our decade here in Sale, and that's why [Luplow] was acquired, to do that.”

At the time, it was an enormous momentum shift for the Rays, causing them to jump ahead to a three-run lead. Luplow took a moment to watch the ball land as he slowly took a few steps out of the batter’s box. As he picked up his pace toward first, he turned to his dugout, waving his hands to fire up his teammates. Luplow became just the seventh player to hit a grand slam in the first inning of a postseason game, joining Max Muncy (2020), Ryan Roberts (2011), J.D. Drew (2007), Aramis Ramirez (2003), Bobby Richardson (1960) and Elmer Smith (1920). The Rays, however, are the first team in postseason history to hit a first-inning grand slam and lose the game.

This isn’t anything new for Luplow, who forced his way onto the Rays’ roster because of his drastic splits. In his career, Luplow has posted an .899 OPS with 23 homers against southpaws, as opposed to a .660 OPS and 11 homers against righties. But his numbers against lefties haven’t been as encouraging this year, having hit just .167 with a .690 OPS, while batting .247 with an .893 OPS against righties.

But the Rays, who struggled against lefties earlier this season, were determined to have Luplow help fill that void. And even though it took a little time, Luplow was ready to prove his bat belonged on the postseason roster.

“It is nice when it kind of works that way,” Cash said. “We were happy for Loop. He energized us in that moment, the crowd and certainly our dugout. We just weren't able to hold [the Red Sox] off.”