If the Rays make the postseason, they can point to last night’s 4-2 win over the Angels as emblematic of how and why.
They endured:
• An opposing pitcher, Ervin Santana, who was ablaze, and took a no-hitter into the sixth inning.
• A shaky start by starter James Shields; the Angels lineup smacked him around early.
• An absolutely unconscionable call by umpire Jerry Meals at first base that killed a rally. B.J. Upton, who’s had a tough couple of weeks, was the victim.
• The ejection of manager Joe Maddon (after arguing that abysmal call).
• And some other stuff that doesn’t readily come to mind.
For more than two-thirds of the game, it looked as if the Rays would end up putting this one in the loss column — not the end of the world, because the Angels are one of the best teams in baseball — but they kept their composure and gritted out a win. Because:
