"Chooch [Ruiz] was having dry heaves in about the sixth inning," Manuel revealed before last night's game. "He's fine now but somebody said he was coughing and I'd better check him out because he might be really sick."
As it turned out, Ruiz was able to stay in the game. "I don't know what happened," he said. "It's hard to explain. I was feeling something bad in my chest. I felt like I was going to throw up."
Clarification
There still seems to be some confusion about the designated-hitter rule. Some seem to believe that Charlie Manuel could have simply had Chris Coste move to catcher and replaced Ruiz with a new DH. That's not how it works.
Section 6:10, 2 (b) reads: "The Designated Hitter may be used defensively, continuing to bat in the same position of the batting order, but the Pitcher must bat in the place of the substituted defensive player."
Shift insert
The Rays continued to utilize a radical shift against Phillies second baseman Chase Utley last night with third baseman Evan Longoria only a few feet from second and the other three infielders packed on the right side.
That's an alignment most teams use against Ryan Howard, but it's rare to see it employed against Utley.
"It's based on information, all the stuff [scouts] were able to acquire during the course of the year," Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon said. "We're very extensive. If you look at a . . . [spray] chart and notice that balls are not hit in a certain area, why do you cover it?" *
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