<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/szach-eflin-rays-first-place-orioles');   ga('set', 'title', '‘So much fun’: Zach Eflin fired up after powering Rays to first-place tie with big game vs. Orioles');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Zach-Eflin-fired-up-after-powering-Rays-to-first-place-tie-with-big-game-vs.-Orioles.jpg"></figure><h1>‘So much fun’: Zach Eflin fired up after powering Rays to first-place tie with big game vs. Orioles</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-09-16T07:49:58-07:00">September 16th, 7:49am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-09-16T07:49:58-07:00">September 16th, 7:49am</time><address><a>Anthony Riccobono</a>Anthony Riccobono has been a sports reporter for over a decade. He primarily covers the NFL, MLB and NBA.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">MLB</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/rays-player-must-step-up-tampa-bay-al-east-race-orioles" rel="noopener">Tampa Bay Rays have climbed</a> back to the top of the AL East, putting themselves in a virtual tie with the Baltimore Orioles. The Rays were a game behind the Orioles for first place Friday before beating Baltimore 7-1. Tampa Bay is only percentage points behind Baltimore after Zach Eflin’s sterling effort.</p><p>With first place on the line, Zach Eflin had his best start with the Rays. The right-hander threw seven innings of one-hit ball. Heston Kjerstad hit a solo home run off Eflin in the sixth inning when Tampa Bay already had a 7-0 lead. Eflin struck out eight Orioles in the victory.</p><p>Following the Rays-Orioles game, Eflin was fired up <a href="https://www.tampabay.com/sports/rays/2023/09/15/zach-eflin-harold-ramirez-orioles-brandon-lowe-jack-flaherty/">to have contributed</a> to such an important win.</p><p>“It’s nice to come into a division leader and take the first two and tie it up and see what happens in the next couple of games and the rest of the season,” Eflin said, via The Tampa Bay Times.. “This is what you play for. This is so much fun to go out there and have a packed stadium and to be able to get a W in the win column. So we just had a lot of fun (Friday).”</p><p>The Rays have taken the first two games<a href="https://clutchpoints.com/orioles-1-impact-player-al-east-race-rays" rel="noopener"> from the Orioles</a> in their four-game series. Baltimore will send Grayson Rodriguez to the mound Saturday night against Tyler Glasnow. It’s the final series between the two teams, and it very well might determine the AL East champion.</p><p>There’s more than just the AL East title on the line. The Ray and Orioles are both 8.5 games ahead of the Houston Astros for the best record in the AL. The AL East champion will almost certainly earn home-field advantage until the 2023 World Series.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

‘So much fun’: Zach Eflin fired up after powering Rays to first-place tie with big game vs. Orioles

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/rays-news-zach-eflin-pitcher-marlins');   ga('set', 'title', 'The concerning reason Rays pitcher Zach Eflin exited Marlins start early');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/eflin.jpg"></figure><h1>The concerning reason Rays pitcher Zach Eflin exited Marlins start early</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-07-26T12:54:49-07:00">July 26th, 12:54pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-07-26T12:54:49-07:00">July 26th, 12:54pm</time><address><a>Trevor Booth</a>Trevor Booth is a beat writer covering the Phoenix Suns, in addition to working as an associate editor. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in sports journalism from Arizona State University in 2021. Booth is passionate about his faith, video games, sports with friends and making the most of his time with his girlfriend when he's not working.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">MLB</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Zach Eflin <a href="https://twitter.com/TBTimes_Rays/status/1684254945409736705" rel="noopener">left</a> his start Wednesday against the Florida Marlins due to left knee discomfort, according to the Tampa Bay Rays’ Marc Topkin. Eflin <a href="https://twitter.com/TriciaWhitaker/status/1684274016440180748?s=20" rel="noopener">went</a> to get an MRI after his exit, according to Bally Sports Tampa Bay’s Tricia Whitaker.</p><p>Eflin left after he allowed seven hits and five earned runs in the Rays’ 7-1 loss. His record dropped to 11-6 this season.</p><p>“He came out, said he was sore,” Rays manager Kevin Cash <a href="https://twitter.com/TriciaWhitaker/status/1684271744654139392" rel="noopener">said</a>, via Whitaker. “We will get some imaging done.</p><p>There is currently no update on Eflin’s <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/tampa-bay-rays-news-taylor-walls-injured-list-oblique-strain-orioles" rel="noopener">injury from the Rays</a>. Whitaker said reporters could hear more Friday.</p><p>Eflin is tied with pitcher Shane McClanahan for the most wins on Tampa Bay’s team (11). He has pitched 120.1 innings this season, the most on the Rays’ staff.</p><p>He and McClanahan will be relied on heavily for the rest of the season. Tampa Bay is the AL Wild Card leader and still has a chance to win the AL East division.</p><p>Eflin had posted a 2-2 record in July. He had arguably his best start of the season July 21 versus the Baltimore Orioles. He allowed just two hits in seven innings and struck out 10 batters in the Rays’ 3-0 win.</p><p>The Tampa Bay Rays are two games behind the Orioles in the AL East standings. The Rays have played four more games than Baltimore, which has a 62-39 record.</p><p>Tampa Bay <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/2023-mlb-odds-american-league-winner-prediction-and-pick" rel="noopener">has to fend off</a> the Toronto Blue Jays, who have a 56-46 record, Boston Red Sox (54-47) and New York Yankees (53-48) in the AL East, which is the best division in baseball.</p><p>The Rays will play in Baltimore in a four-game series from Sept. 14 through Sept. 17. They have two more series each against the Blue Jays, Red Sox and Yankees.</p><p> </p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

The concerning reason Rays pitcher Zach Eflin exited Marlins start early

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/rays-news-zach-eflin-true-feelings-about-losing-duel-against-aaron-nola-phillies');   ga('set', 'title', '‘It sucks’: Rays’ Zach Eflin shares true feelings about losing duel against Aaron Nola, Phillies');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/it-sucks-zach-eflin-shares-true-feelings-about-losing-duel-against-aaron-nola-phillies.jpg"></figure><h1>‘It sucks’: Rays’ Zach Eflin shares true feelings about losing duel against Aaron Nola, Phillies</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-07-04T20:49:53-07:00">July 4th, 8:49pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-07-04T20:50:34-07:00">July 4th, 8:50pm</time><address><a>Alex House</a></address><h3 class="op-kicker">MLB</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Revenge games do not always go exactly how a player envisions. While Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Zach Eflin surely wanted to defeat his former team, Philadelphia Phillies’ Aaron Nola ruined his plans with a gem of his own in a 3-1 win, Tuesday.</p><p>Eflin, who wanted to stay in Philadelphia before signing a three-year, $40 million contract in free agency, was obviously disappointed about how things went. Though, the righty could not <a href="https://www.tampabay.com/sports/rays/2023/07/04/rays-phillies-zach-eflin-aaron-nola/" rel="noopener">help but recall</a> all of the good times he had with his former teammates, whom with he shared an unforgettable World Series trip last year.</p><p>“It sucks to have lost that game, obviously, to the Phillies,” Eflin said, according to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. “But I’ll tell you what, I enjoyed every single day I had competing with those guys, and it was fun to kind of throw it back and compete against them”</p><p>The mixed emotions and humble response perfectly sum up the classiness that <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/rays-tampa-bay-veterans-message-wander-franco-benching" rel="noopener">Eflin consistently exudes</a>. He is fully embracing his time with the Rays and is currently posting a 3.24 ERA. The Rays boast the American League’s best record at 57-31, so the 29-year-old has a chance to be a part of another special group this season. Still, he has nothing but love for that 2022 Phillies squad, especially the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/phillies-news-aaron-nola-facing-brother-zach-eflin-striking-out-12-rays" rel="noopener">guy who beat him</a> on the mound.</p><p>“There’s just a bunch of tremendous people over there, and on top of that, I got to pitch against my best friend. So as good as he did, it would have been nice to win the game. But I’m super happy for him and looking forward to trying to get the series right (Wednesday).”</p><p>Aaron Nola was in top form, striking out 12 batters while allowing just one run in just over seven innings of work. If he can deal at that level on a regular basis, Philadelphia could replicate the same magic that culminated in an improbable pennant run. But the team would probably be feeling a tad more confident if Zach Eflin was still there.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

‘It sucks’: Rays’ Zach Eflin shares true feelings about losing duel against Aaron Nola, Phillies

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/phillies-news-aaron-nola-facing-brother-zach-eflin-striking-out-12-rays');   ga('set', 'title', 'Phillies’ Aaron Nola gets real on facing ‘brother’ Zach Eflin after striking out 12 Rays');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/NolaEflin.jpeg"></figure><h1>Phillies’ Aaron Nola gets real on facing ‘brother’ Zach Eflin after striking out 12 Rays</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-07-04T18:13:31-07:00">July 4th, 6:13pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-07-04T18:13:31-07:00">July 4th, 6:13pm</time><address><a>Peter Alexis</a></address><h3 class="op-kicker">MLB</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Philadelphia Phillies ace Aaron Nola dominated the Tampa Bay Rays on Independence Day, and he had a blast doing it against his former teammate Zach Eflin.</p><p>Nola and Eflin were teammates in Philadelphia for seven seasons, and have <a href="https://twitter.com/nbcsphilly/status/1676368270469787648?s=12&amp;t=bm8qRt18zuhlXFzV7rKRAQ" rel="noopener">built a great bond</a> over the years. It meant extra for Nola to defeat his former teammate, after 7.1 innings of one run baseball and a 3-1 victory for the Phils.</p><p>“Honestly it kind of felt like when I faced my brother. The emotion, the nerves — it was awesome.”</p><p>Nola faced his older brother Austin of the San Diego Padres last fall in the divisional round of the playoffs. The event made headline news, as it was the first sibling pair to ever face each other in the playoffs, and his older brother got the best of him. Austin tallied an RBI single off of Aaron, and helped the Padres to a victory in the matchup.</p><p>The two friends were <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/phillies-starting-rotation-aaron-nola-zack-wheeler-showing-signs-of-life" rel="noopener">dueling on the bump</a> on the July 4th holiday, both going seven innings each and only allowing a combined three runs.</p><p>“It was fun facing Ef out there, we were with each other for so long, and he was nasty tonight too,” Nola remarked.</p><p>The Phillies have been on fire as of late, going 18-8 in the month of June, and winning seven of their last 10. They are competing in a heavy NL East division, and will need more strong performances out of Aaron Nola to <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/phillies-news-why-philly-wont-sell-at-2023-mlb-trade-deadline-per-team-president" rel="noopener">propel them into the playoffs</a>.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Phillies’ Aaron Nola gets real on facing ‘brother’ Zach Eflin after striking out 12 Rays

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/rays-news-zach-eflin-shockingly-forced-remove-wedding-ring-face-ejection-pirates');   ga('set', 'title', 'Rays SP Zach Eflin shockingly forced to remove wedding ring or face ejection vs. Pirates');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Rays-news-Tampa-SP-Zach-Eflin-shockingly-forced-to-remove-wedding-ring-or-face-ejection-vs.-Pirates.jpg"></figure><h1>Rays SP Zach Eflin shockingly forced to remove wedding ring or face ejection vs. Pirates</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-05-05T06:09:12-07:00">May 5th, 6:09am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-05-05T06:10:01-07:00">May 5th, 6:10am</time><address><a>Matthan Burton</a></address><h3 class="op-kicker">MLB</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>In a peculiar turn of events, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/rays-news-mlb-best-tampa-bay-strengthens-bullpen-with-brewers-trade" rel="noopener">Tampa Bay Rays</a> pitcher <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/rays-news-tampa-bay-agrees-with-zach-eflin-on-shocking-40-million-deal" rel="noopener">Zach Eflin</a> found himself unexpectedly confronted by umpire Adrian Johnson during a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates. The umpire insisted that Eflin remove his wedding ring from his glove hand or risk ejection from the game. This seemingly odd directive can be attributed to the MLB’s ongoing efforts to eliminate the use of banned “sticky substances.”</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Umpires during today's Rays-Pirates game made Zach Eflin take off his rubber wedding ring.   </p><p>If Eflin refused to take it off, then he would have been ejected from the game.</p><p>(via <a href="https://twitter.com/BallyRays?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BallyRays</a>)<a href="https://t.co/uqUZd8Vzz0">pic.twitter.com/uqUZd8Vzz0</a></p><p>— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) <a href="https://twitter.com/MLBONFOX/status/1654235158109884416?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 4, 2023</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>Compliantly, Eflin removed his ring without much protest, and the game resumed as normal. This situation has sparked some confusion and debate among the baseball community, as one insightful fan tweeted, “I don’t see the big deal. It was on his left hand which is under his glove. Seems like that would be uncomfortable, but it’s his decision.”</p><p>Eflin himself revealed that this was the first time an umpire has made such a request, and that most have allowed him to continue wearing the ring. The pitcher, who married his longtime girlfriend Lauren Dennen in December 2020, considers the ring an important symbol.</p><p>Entering the season, Zach Eflin sported a 4.49 ERA during his seven-year tenure with the Philadelphia Phillies. Since joining the Rays, he has demonstrated a marked improvement, boasting a 2.25 ERA while allowing only seven earned runs in 28 innings. The pitcher’s arsenal includes a fastball with good life, a quality slider, a decent changeup, and an occasional cutter. With Eflin’s help, the Rays currently lead all MLB teams with an amazing 26-6 record, positioning themselves for a potential World Series appearance.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

2024 SEASON STATS
IP	ERA	K	WHIP	WINS
166	2.60	47	1.12	5

2024 SEASON STATS
IP	ERA	K	WHIP	WINS
166	2.60	47	1.12	5

Zach Eflin

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Rays SP Zach Eflin shockingly forced to remove wedding ring or face ejection vs. Pirates

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