Just a Few Thoughts...

As I mentioned in my last post, since I moved to New York I've been following the Mets in addition to our beloved Rays. That's why the 2009 season has been so much fun for me so far.
In case you hadn't noticed, the Mets are the Rays' only competition so far for Most Inexplicably Lousy Team. How irritating are the Mets this year? Well, aside from this, this, this, this, and this, there's also their tendency to waste good, even great starts by the team's only reliable starting pitcher. Seriously, how does a team bring in two--count 'em!--two closers over the off season, while simultaneously deciding that Pelfrey, Perez, and Maine are the names they want to see up on that big new megatron week in and week out?

Everything Navarro is doing, he's doing badly. Witness, among other things, his .456 OPS. Or how 'bout this "wild pitch" last night. Sure, it was off line, but if Navi gets off his haunches to block it instead of trying to glove the thing, he at least saves a run. I hope somebody out there knows what's wrong with the guy. Remember back before the beginning of last year, when we wondered whether Navarro would regress to pre-2007-all-star-break-2007 levels (OPS .491, OPS+ 33) or build on his post-2007-all-star-break success (OPS .815, OPS+ 110)? Back then, many of us argued that his poor first-half numbers early on were, at least in part, caused by bad luck: you know, hitting lots of line drives right at gloves and the like. Well, this year there is no such comforting excuse. He just looks lost. Since this has been pointed out correctly here and elsewhere, I will simply say that Navi's numbers so far this year look a lot like how farts smell. .095 against LHP? Arg! Maybe he's not used to his new, svelte frame. Maybe something at home is keeping his head out of the game. Whatever it is, it's gotta get figured out soon, right?

I've agreed to avoid profanity in my posts for this blog (a totally reasonable rule, by the way; the blogosphere has a tendency to get a bit too ugly too often), so I can't write exactly what I think when I read Madden's post-game optimism. I mean, I like the guy--he did lead the Rays to their first-ever winning season, post-season, AL Championship, etc, en route to winning his first ever Manager of the Year award--and there's a part of me that appreciates his calm. But there's another part of me that reacts to Madden's nonchallance kind of like how Mr. Lebowski reacts to The Dude's. You know the scene I'm talking about, more or less directly after the line "Hey, careful man. There's a beverage here."

Remember how well the Rays played for pretty much all of last year? Remember how they played against the Red Sox in the ALCS? Now remember how flat and emotionless they looked in the World Series. That's kinda how they look now, right? I don't know. I hope Madden's right, that he displays his managerial prowess, and that he gets this team back on track. I hope the Rays go on a serious tear, and I hope they do it soon. I know it's still "too early to panic." But I'm afraid that the plane has crashed into the mountain.

- Dustin

1st Annual Rays Trade Pool

Our friends over at Rays Index have decided to have a contest including fellow Rays' blogs as well as the opinions of their followers, you know what, I'll let Prof explain it in his own words:

"Welcome to the 1st Annual Tampa Bay Rays Trade Pool where we determine who is the best at predicting which members of the Rays organization will be traded this season (this contest is based loosely on the "Dead Pool").

We have invited all members of the Tampa Bay Rays Blogosphere as well as a couple of outside bloggers.

The Rules:

• Each blogger submitted a list of 5 players they believe have the greatest chance to be traded this season. All players in the organization are eligible.
  
• The bloggers ranked those 5 players, giving the highest rank (#1) to the player they think is most likely to be traded.
  
• If one of the players they chose is traded prior to the end of the season, that blogger will receive points based on where the blogger ranked the player. If Aki Iwamura is traded and a blogger has Aki ranked first, they will receive 5 points. If they have Aki ranked second, they will receive 4 points and so on.
  
• The blogger with the most points at the end of the season wins…"
  

Thankfully, Prof included us in the contest, and of course I was more than willing to put-in my 2 cents. Below you'll find my list followed by a brief summary as to why they were my choices. After you've read through them make sure you head over to Rays Index to see all the "pros" lists and chime in with picks of your own.

My List:

1. Chad Bradford
   
2. Gabe Kapler
   
3. Gabe Gross
   
4. Chad Orvella
   
5. Carl Crawford
   

Why:

Bradford: Chad Bradford can be a valuable asset for a team that is gearing-up for a stretch run. His post-season numbers are excellent (this is where a good writer would site those numbers, but I never said I was good). The way I see it he's gone after this season regardless, so they might as well acquire a few prospects in return.

Kapler: Kapler was brought-in in order to help reinforce the RF platoon, but he is expendable thanks to the hitting prowess of Zobrist as well as the impending call-up of Matt Joyce.

Gross: Gross is a nice player to have, but the log-jam in RF isn't going to hold forever. With the Joyce promotion on the horizon and Fernando Perez working toward being healthy coupled with Zobrist showing that he's a viable option as well the opportunities for Gross in St Pete are running low.

Orvella: Orvella has shown that he's not a bust, but the memory remains. The beauty of this move would be that most teams either never actually saw how shaky he was in the Bigs or they've forgotten, so they'll be more apt to lean on his minor league numbers when offering compensation. I think the Rays could get a real good fielding prospect in return with maybe a low-A pitcher thrown in for good measure.

Crawford: CC is a fan favorite and rightfully so, and any Devil Rays/Rays fan should shed a tear and spill a beer when he goes because of the sacrifices this kid made early in his career in order to help a dismal and despicable organization. When anyone with talent was begging to get out of town Crawford agreed to be the face of the organization. That being said, the marriage is coming to an end. CC doesn't like playing on field turf, his legs are rarely healthy, and he's due to make what would be about 1/6th of the Rays target payroll next season. That's too rich for the Rays, especially with other talented players waiting in the wings. The sun is setting on the career of the player that, up until this point, should be considered the best Tampa Bay player in the franchise's short history.

 

Now, run over to Rays Index and add your 2 cents.

CHEESE & WHINE: Hold the Cheese.

RAYS: 3
TWINS: 8


CHEESE:

• Being Smart. I was all set to apologize because for the first time that I can remember I turned off a Rays game at the midway point (5th inning), but it seems that everyone had the same reaction. Turns out that even my favorite blogger (Cork, aka Prof) from Rays Index made the same decision. Just walk away, son. Walk away. It was the smart decision -a sporting event should not infuriate me so. These kids just don't want to win.

WHINE:

• Jason Bartlett. Its not his fault, but he got hurt. One of only a few bright spots on the roster right now and he comes up with a sore hammy halfway through the game, adding injury to insult.
• Kazmir. Remember the "good ol' days" when Kaz was good for at least 8 K's per outing? It's becoming more and more of a distant memory. Last night: 8 runs on 9 hits in 4 innings, walking 4 and striking out 4... Ladies and gentleman, please put your hands together for Edwin Jackson.
• 1 for 12. Rays hitters were 1 for 12 with runners in scoring position. Believe it or not, the Rays actually had several chances to get back into this game, but of course they didn't take advantage- that's not how the 2009 Devil Rays roll.

CRACKERS:

• Right now the Rays suck. There, I said it. And if they don't start playing like men I'll say it again. And if one of the coaches or veterans doesn't say it to the team soon it'll be a big mistake. These guys need to be reminded that they look like a bunch of little leaguers out there and that they're proving the world right, that they actually were a fluke (i don't believe that BTW, but i guarantee you anyone outside of a serious fan either thinks it or is leaning that way).

Sunburst Player of the Game

Just a quick post to remind everyone to get over to Rays Index to pick your Sunburst Player of The Game.
Click on the logo below to make your pick.



FYI: I'm going with Kid K today. Trust me on this one. Kazmir is way overdue for a gem, and several hitters are due as well, so he should get some run support.

Eternal Optimism of a Simple Mind

Everyone knows that I always lean toward the pessimistic side, but today I've turned over a new leaf. Today I present to you the most optimistic outcome of the upcoming 2 weeks that I can possibly fathom while staying within the realm of reality.

I've gone through the schedules for Boston, New York, and of course Tampa for a span of the next 14 games and worked out what I believe could be the possible outcome of each game and have calculated to see where the pieces fall as of May 14th.

TAMPA BAY

Boston	W
Boston	W
Boston	L
Boston	W
Baltimore	W
Baltimore	W
@New York	L
@New York	W
@Boston	W
@Boston	L
@Boston	L
@Baltimore	W
@Baltimore	L
Cleveland	W
Record from 4/30- 5/14	9-5
Overall Record as of May 14th	17-18

BOSTON

@Tampa Bay	L
@Tampa Bay	L
@Tampa Bay	W
@Tampa Bay	L
@New York	W
@New York	L
Cleveland	W
Cleveland	L
Tampa Bay	L
Tampa Bay	W
Tampa Bay	W
LAA	W
LAA	L
LAA	L
Record from 4/30- 5/14	6-8
Overall Record as of May 14th	19-15

NEW YORK

LAA	W
LAA	L
LAA	W
LAA	L
Boston	L
Boston	W
Tampa Bay	L
Tampa Bay	W
@Baltimore	L
@Baltimore	W
@Baltimore	W
@Toronto	L
@Toronto	W
@Toronto	L
Record from 4/30- 5/14	7-7
Overall Record as of May 14th	18-16*

If this were to hold true then 2 weeks from tomorrow the Rays would only trail the Red Sox by 3.5 games, while trailing the Yankees by 1.5 games.

So, despite all the pessimism and uproar of the first 3 weeks of the season, if this highly plausible outcome were to actually occur the Rays would find themselves right back in the hunt as they headed into the end of May. Of course if the Rays continue their inconsistent play and only win 4 or 5 of those 14 games then they might as well start shaking things up in the lineup because their hopes will be fading fast. Carl Crawford fast, no Usain Bolt fast.

*The May 3rd Yankees v. Angels game (which I predicted as a NY loss) was postponed, so I've adjusted their record accordingly by taking away one loss from my projected standings as of May 14th.

CHEESE & WHINE: Another Day Another L

RAYS: 3
TWINS: 4


CHEESE:

• Ben Zobrist. Pinch hit homer off the first pitch from top-notch closer Joe Nathan to lead off the 9th. This kid impresses me more every day.
• Ummm... That's it.

WHINE:

• Willy Freakin' Aybar. It could easily be said that Aybar cost the Rays the game with his poor decision-making on the basepaths. In the top of the 5th Aybar was at 3rd with 1 out when Navarro hit a soft grounder through the infield. Instead of taking off for the plate immediately, for some unknown reason, Aybar hesitated before heading for home where he was easily gunned down. Huge mistake on many levels; obviously that 1 run was the difference in the game, and Navi (or anyone for that matter) finally comes through with an opportunity to make a productive out just to have it nullified by Sleepy McGee over at 3rd. Here's a piece of advice Willy: don't take baserunning tips from Melvin Upton (I know, I know he had 2 steals last night... woo-freakin-hoo)
• James Shields. The Rays "ace" looked more like the joker last night (again). Shields surrendered 7 hits and 3 runs in 6 and 2/3 innings, recording 4 K's while issuing 4 walks. Oh, and let's not forget the hit-batter with the bases loaded that gave the Twins the 3-2 lead. Beauty, eh? Give yourself a pat on the back Shieldsy, way to build on the momentum of last night's win by coming out strong in the 1st and shutting them down.
• The Rays were 2 for 11 with RISP.

CRACKERS:

• The Rays have now gone 14 games since winning 2 in a row, when they won the final game of the Baltimore series followed by the first game of the Yankee series, and are now 6.5 games behind Toronto.

The Devil (Ray) Made Me Do It.

I hate to do it to someone who has contributed a lot to the team over the last 2 seasons, but with a dreadful start at the plate (BA .188, OBP .200), a new lackadaisical attitude behind it, and the fact that he's blown more chances to make productive outs than Elijah Dukes has arrests (weird, two Elijah Dukes references in one day- seeing Delmon Young Yesterday must've put me back into a bad place), has earned Rays' starting catcher Dioner Navarro the honor of being the first ever starting player to make his way into the Rays the Stakes doghouse, better known as being "On-Notice" (see sidebar).

Dioner Navarro: You are officially On-Notice!

**Pay attention Melvin Upton, if you don't get your crap together soon you're next!

Hot Start for Bart

Jason Bartlett was brought to the 2008 Rays to fix a gaping hole in the defense, but could he be the spark that the 2009 Rays need on offense?

I will be the first to admit, when Jason Bartlett was named team MVP last season, I just looked up and said “really?” I then looked at the team as a whole, and realized that Jason Bartlett truly is the anchor of this team. He plays selfless, team baseball with solid fundamentals. His defense allows pitchers to throw more balls that can be hit in play, and allows pitchers to trust the defense, a key to winning baseball. Without Jason Bartlett in the field, the 2008 Rays do not make the World Series, or maybe even the playoffs.

However, in 2008 I saw Bartlett as the perfect 9 hitter. He would make contact, steal some bases (thanks again Jason for the free taco when you stole a base in the World Series), and get productive outs. He had a batting average of .286, an on base percentage of .329, and added 1 homerun. He looked like a contact hitter who could get singles, but only had warning track power.

In 2009, we have seen a different Jason Bartlett at the plate. Although the season is still very early, there are some stats that really stand out. First off, Bartlett’s batting average is up to .371, and his on base percentage is up to .413. Although I expect his batting average to drop to the mid .300’s as the season goes on, Bartlett will take more walks and his on base percentage could easily stay close to where it is. He is also striking out a lot less this season. Last season, Bartlett struck out once in every 6.57 at bats. This season, Bartlett has struck out once in every 8.57 at bats. And of course, the most glaring increase of all comes in the form of homeruns. Bartlett has tripled his homerun total from last season, and we are still in April. Prior to this season, Bartlett had 11 career homeruns. He is right now on pace for about 24 this year. Additionally, I would like to point out that Bartlett currently has 3 times as many homeruns as Pat the Patient.

So why is it that Bartlett has improved so much at the plate so far this season? For starters, he is a year older and a year wiser. Jason is a very smart guy, so as he gets older he will be continuously learning these pitchers even better. Over time, it is inevitable that Bartlett will be able to predict pitches better, hit the pitches he wants, and make better contact. This also relates to the reason that he is striking out less. Bartlett is picking the pitches he wants and waiting on pitchers to make a mistake. He is finding pitches he can drive, rather than just trying to put the ball in play. The second, and most important reason, is that Jason seems hungrier. Last year, the Rays played in the World Series. Success will get to some players’ heads, where it will drive other players want it more. Bartlett clearly wants to lead the Rays back to the Fall Classic. You can tell how hard he worked this offseason to be ready for 2009. You can see in his eyes when he steps up to the plate just how focused he is. You can just tell that Jason wants the Rays to win.

If Jason Bartlett can keep up this hot pace, he will have a big hand in turning this team around and leading the Rays back to October. Jason Bartlett is proving why he was the team MVP in 2008 and why he is already the lead candidate in my mind to be the team MVP in 2009. It does not take a rocket scientist to see this.

-the rocket scientist

Rank The Rays

Our friends over at The Rays Party have begun a fun new weekly segment which they're calling Rank The Rays, where they have asked several Rays blogs to chime in each week with their personal "power ranking" of the Rays.

It was an honor to be included as one of the blogs which are participating, and the first week's results are in. (Rank the Rays)

Turns out that I, Mr. DirtbagFan H. Pessimist III, gave the Rays the highest ranking of the bunch.

It should be a lot of fun to follow along as we "pundits" try to power rank the Rays. The results will be posted every Monday night over at The Rays Party.

CHEESE & WHINE: Win Big or Lose Trying

RAYS: 7
TWINS: 1


CHEESE:

• Jeff Niemann. I know, it wasn't pretty, but here's the thing; remember last season when start after start we'd complain about Sonny being so darn hittable, but then Rays Index would remind us that all Sonny does is go out and win games, remember that? Well, its starting to look like Jeff Niemann is following the same path. You can't help but see the potentially nasty stuff he's got and thinking to yourself, "Man, he's close, real close", but the beauty of it is that while he's certainly not "there" he's still winning games. I'll take wins anyway I can gt them. Last night Jeff threw 94 pitches through 5 and 2/3 innings, giving up one run (a solo homer in the 6th) on 3 hits while striking-out 4 and walking 4.
• Joe Nelson. This cat isn't getting enough love. Nelson, a righty, came in to do the lefty specialist work and performed beautifully after inheriting 2 runners from Niemann; working 1 and 1/3 inning, striking-out 1 and allowing zero hits. That's an ideal hold (although I think it technically isn't a hold because the lead was more than 3 runs).
• Dan Wheeler. While I'm gushing love for the 'pen I better include Big Daddy Dan, who reminded me why exactly he was so valuable last season. Nothing spectacular, but his "stuff" looked real good while he worked 2/3's of an inning, striking-out 1.
• Jason Bartlett. JB continues to be an offensive force. Against his former team JB went 2 for 4 from the plate with a solo homer and 2 RBI.

WHINE:

• BJ Upton. How can this guy look like a gazelle while roaming CF, but look like a bull in a china cabinet when he's running the bases? I'm amazed at how unaware he looks on the basepaths. Upton ended a long hitless streak by hitting a single to RF only to be picked-off at first. He finished the day 1 for 5, and his average slipped to .160. Until further notice I'm calling you by your real name. Got it Melvin? Speaking of "notice", you're one more crappy game from hitting the "on-notice" list (see sidebar).
• Dioner Navarro. This kid better get his head in the game. Now! The story with a catcher is typically this: if you are good behind the plate then anything you produce offensively is just a bonus. I agree, but the problem is that Navi suddenly looks very lazy behind the plate and hasn't been good by any stretch of the imagination, so there's no way to justify his hitting .188 so far this season. I never thought I'd be sitting here wondering if Shawn Riggans was going to be ready to come back anytime soon, but apparently Navi needs a push.
• Last Season. Everyone is making comparisons to the slow start last season and pointing to the fact that this is the time that they got hot last year, so not to fret. Guess what, an eighth of the season has already been played, the Red Sox have won 723 consecutive games, and somehow, someway the Blue Jays are still leading the freakin' division while the Rays are sitting around whistling Dixie, so stick your "it happened this way last year" crap into your old Elijah Dukes bobble-head that you converted into a bowl and smoke it! I've heard enough.

CRACKERS:

• Carlos Pena leads the league in HR's with 9 and RBI with 24.
• Tonight the Rays face Francisco Liriano, a lefty who is 0-4 this season. The Rays have only managed 1 win v. LHP's so far this season.

The 2009 Rays Look a Lot Like…The Indians?

First off, I never introduced myself. I am The Rocket Scientist. Why do I call myself that? Well, it’s because I am a rocket scientist. Beyond being a rocket scientist though, sports are my passion. I am a die hard fan of any professional team that plays in the Tampa Bay area (Rays, Bucs, Lightning, Storm, and I will admit I even went to a Mutiny game once). I grew up in Clearwater. The Devil Rays started playing games during my freshman year of high school, and I became a fan immediately. I went to the University of Michigan for college (go blue) and came back to the University of Florida for graduate school (go gators as well). Both of my degrees are in Aerospace Engineering, thus actually being a rocket scientist. After finishing graduate school, I moved to Los Angeles for my job. I quickly discovered how amazing the DirecTV MLB Extra Innings package is, and I wonder how I ever lived without Extra Innings and NFL Sunday Ticket. Every day after work I race home to watch the Rays play, and have loved attending Rays-Angels games the last 2 seasons. It is an honor to be able to write about one of the teams that I love, and I am really happy to be a part of the RaysTheStakes team. Feel the heat!

Now on with our regularly scheduled program…

I think we can all admit that this team has been struggling. I will be the first one to say that I haven’t pressed the panic button, but after this weekend I broke the glass to get to the panic button. Things just are not clicking on a consistent basis. Hitters aren’t hitting, pitchers are walking batters, and fielders are making mental mistakes. This is not the same Rays team that we all saw on the field last season.

I have seen comparisons to the Rockies of last year, or even that this team shows shades of the 2007 Rays, but this morning I realized who the 2009 Rays look like.

The 2009 Rays look exactly like the Cleveland Indians in "Major League 2."

In "Major League," the Indians took the American League by storm in the second half of the season. They won enough games to tie the Yankees for the division lead, and then edged their rivals out in a playoff. In the sequel, they showed up to spring training completely full of themselves and with a lost passion for the game. The team was just going through the motions day after day. They would win a game here or there, but would lose series after series. There were mental mistakes, excuses, and no desire to win.
There are also player comparisons that I have noticed. They are as follows:

Pat Burrell as Jack Parkman – Jack Parkman was the high priced free agent and homerun hitter. “When he does his little shimmy, it drives all the girls crazy.” In his first home game, he hits a solo homerun. After that, he isn’t shown hitting another homerun for the Indians. Although Pat Burrell has been a solid team player, he isn’t hitting up to his potential. He is still stuck on 1 homerun for the season, a solo shot that he hit in a blowout. Now, to be fair, it is not like pitchers have to fear players hitting behind him, players such as Zobrist, Gross, Kapler, or Navarro. Burrell has taken his fair share of walks and is getting on base. However, he needs to find his pop. He was brought in to help the Rays beat left handed starters. The Rays are 0 for the season against lefties so far.

Dionner Navarro as Rube Baker – Rube Baker was the catcher who couldn’t accurately throw the ball back to the pitcher. Although this seems like a trivial task, Rube had the inability to focus. Although I have seen some improvement over Navarro since I wrote the piece about him last week, I still do not think his head is where it needs to be. His passed ball yesterday was an example of this, and Brian Anderson did a very good job calling Navi out on this. I think the team needs to get Navi some magazines (if you have seen the movie, you know what magazines I am talking about) to read so he can start catching and hitting up to his potential.

Evan Longoria as Pedro Cerrano – Pedro Cerrano was the power hitter who couldn’t hit a curve ball. When he was hot, he would crush the ball. When he was cold, he would strikeout every time he got to the plate. Evan started off the season as the hottest hitter in baseball. There was a death in his family, and since his return, his bat has gone colder. He has zero homeruns since his return to the team. Although Evan hasn’t been ice-cold and he does have a few big hits in the Rays few wins, he is not hitting to his potential and is hitting into untimely double plays and strikeouts in the Rays losses. The Rays would be doing a lot better if Evan were to “find his marbles.”

BJ Upton as Willie Mays Hayes – Willie Mays Hayes was the speedy leadoff hitter and centerfielder who decided he wanted to learn how to hit for power in between the first and second movies. In the first game of the season, Willie calls his shot 3 times, hits all 3 balls to the warning track, where they are caught. Willie also had a nagging “leg injury” that he would use an excuse for everything. BJ Upton is the Rays leadoff hitter who is swinging too hard, and thus went 0 for the weekend. He has been hitting the ball a bit more solid, but still not getting on base. As a leadoff hitter, it is his role to work the count, find a way to get on base, and put the team in a position to score a run early in the ballgame. He did this quite well in the first game against the Yankees, but since he seems to be swinging too hard for the fences and not just trying to get himself on base.

Matt Garza as Rick “Wild Thing” Vaughn – Rick Vaughn was the starting pitcher who was downright nasty in the first movie. His fastball was unhittable. In the sequel, Vaughn took a few mph off his fastball and started thinking long term about his career. He tried to mix more pitches with his so called “terminator” and they all get crushed out of the park. Matt Garza is having the same problems. He has lost some velocity and control. His pitches are getting smashed regularly. If his arm is still dead from working late into last season, he needs to rest and be ready for later in this season. If his arm is alive, he needs to have better control and keep the ball in the park.

Joe Maddon as Lou Brown – Lou Brown was the coach of the Indians. He had fire to him, but never really got mad. He had the inspirational idea in the original Major League of winning it all to spite the owner. In the sequel, he finally got mad at the team, leading to a heart attack. Well, Joe hasn’t blown a gasket yet. He may need to soon though to light a fire under this team.

The Crowd at Tropicana Field as Randy Quaid, Rabid Fan – Randy Quaid plays a crazy fan with season tickets who believe the Indians will win the World Series before opening day. Once the season starts and the Indians lose their first game, he immediately turns on the team, telling the team how much they suck (among other insults not suitable for posting). Well, I know how fans in the Tampa Bay area can get. If the Rays start losing often, then we may see the return of 10,000 people a night.

I know this comparison makes it look like I am really down on the Rays. That couldn’t be further from the truth. Like I said earlier, I haven’t pressed the panic button yet. There is a silver lining to the Rays being like the Indians in "Major League 2." After manager Lou Brown has his heart attack and the old owner buys back the team, the team finds their passion for the game. Parkman gets traded, Rube can throw the ball to the pitcher, Willie gets on base and steals 2nd, 3rd, and home, Vaughn comes out of the bullpen to strike Parkman out, and even Randy Quaid gets back behind the team. But beyond these few players turning it around, the thing that keeps my hopes up is the end result. The Indians make it back to the World Series.

Something needs to change. This change needs to happen before it’s too late. Maybe it’s time that Joe Maddon has a very serious talk with the Rays about getting on the right track, hopefully without having a heart attack. The other option is for Vince Naimoli to buy the team back. I don’t think it takes a rocket scientist to figure out which option is better.

-the rocket scientist

Cheese & Wine: Oakland pt 3

SMALL TALK

Since this is my first post on this site, and since today's game was just this side of miserable, I thought I'd begin with a few words of introduction. My name is Dustin, and I'm a long-time Rays fan (or, one might say, Rayshead). I grew up in Southwest Florida, went to college in Sarasota, grad school in Gainesville, and currently live in Brooklyn, NY.

I moved up here last summer, which was, as you might imagine, a little bit frustrating. Though it was amazing to watch the Rays tear up the league, it was a bummer to have to see it from a distance. As a consolation prize, however, I did get to spend many a summer evening as the only guy in a Rays hat, smirking at all the frustrated Yankee fans. Another consolation prize: becoming a bit of a Mets fan.

Now, before anybody gets mad at me for liking the Mets, here are some arguments in their favor: (1) They play in the same division as the Phillies; (2) It is good to be reminded that money can't buy you happiness or a real baseball team; (3) It's nice to see Casey Fossum again--he debuted out of the bullpen a few days ago and promptly displayed his prowess by walking in a run on four pitches; (4) I also get to watch Brian Stokes, who actually looks like a real pitcher up here; and, finally (5) let's not forget the new stadium (which shall continue to be known as Shea).

With that out of the way, let's turn to today's stinker of a game. I'll keep to the "Cheese, Wine, and Crackers" formatt, but, since I watched this game at a bar while listening to the radio broadcast, which was sponsored by a certain beer company, I'll call this segment "Tastes Great, Less (ful)Filling, and Pub Grub."

TASTES GREAT:

Well, it's difficult to find anything nice to say, but here goes:

Safety Squeeze. What do you do when a player's not hitting? See if you can get him to put down a bunt to at least make a productive out. Navi put down a very nice bunt to score Pat the Un-Nicknamed, thereby giving the Rays the lead in the top of the second.

Carl Crawford. C.C. went 2-4 today, which is not particularly spectacular, but he accounted for half the Rays' offense today. I thought his 2-strike bloop in the 6th was particularly good. It showed that he was waiting for the right pitch and not trying to do too much. It was also the third and final time a Rays leadoff hitter reached base all game.

Strike 'em out, throw 'em out. I was thinking about putting Navarro's passed ball in the negative category, but since I like the guy, and since he's gotten pleanty of well-deserved criticism of late, I'll try to stay positive. After the passed ball, where Navi lazily stabbed his glove at a ball he could easily have blocked, the defense improved. Not only did Navi do a better job of blocking balls in the dirt and whatnot, he made a good, quick throw to get Travis Buck trying to steal 2nd. At this point, it seemed as if the Rays might still make a game of it, so the play could have been important. As it turns out, though...

LESS (Ful)FILLING:

0-5 with RISP. What can I say. The Rays, when they're hitting at all, are simply not hitting when it matters. The 0-5 doesn't tell the whole story of how bad the Rays' offense was, as they were only on base seven times in the game (four singles and three walks). In the 5th, for example, Bartlett looked like he was swinging for the fences (and the fact that he nearly made it doesn't change my point) when he ought to have been focused simply on getting on base to bring up the top of the order. Sure, I know they're not hitting (especially B.J.), but it's the principle of the thing.

The Shift Giveth; the Shift Taketh Away. Much ado has been made of "aggressive" use of defensive shifts by the Rays. I could focus on the shift working against Holliday in the 7th, but I was already nice to Navi. In the 5th, when Sonny fell apart and the game slipped away, Cust bounced what ought to have been an easy double play, but because of the shift, nobody was around to cover 2nd base. Thus, Bartlett's only play was the force at first. An intentional walk to Nomah, an unintentional walk to Kurt Suzuki, and the game is 7-1 Oakland. I understand using the shifts for some hitters, but c'mon now. The Rays are, or ought to be, a very good defensive team. The A's, on the other hand, are not a very good offensive team (except when facing the Rays on weekends, apparently). I'm all for being innovative and aggressive, but I do wonder whether Madden ought to simply trust his players to do their jobs the old fashioned way more often.

Big Innings. Sonny was not sharp at any point today, with the possible exception of his strike out of Nomar Garciaparra in the 3rd, but he really fell apart in the 5th. His breaking pitches were utterly flat, and the only reason he didn't get thoroughly shelled is the fact that he was pitching against the A's, who, apparently, don't dig the longball. I'm not sure what, if anything, could have been done about this, as the bullpen's been busy lately anyway. Given the way things were going, however, it was somewhat surprising how long it took Madden to get the pen working. This was the point at which the game got totally out of hand.

Pat the What? Though he walked in the second and came around to score the Rays' only run, he also struck out twice and grounded into a double play. His second K came in the 9th, a mighty whiff on a ball way out of the zone, and his GIDP came in the 6th, killing off what looked to be a twitch of life from the Rays' offense. The guy's a streaky hitter (as I know only too well from having had him on fantasy teams), and he's still adjusting to DH, but c'mon. When your only job on the team is to swing the bat, you are expected to take advantage of the opportunity to do so.

1-2-3 Innings. The Rays had five today. This is not a good way to win baseball games.

PUB GRUB:

The Rays are now 1-8 against LHP, are 0-11 when trailing after the 6th, and this is the fifth series the Rays have dropped this year. Though Upton was 0-4 today, he made solid contact in the process of recording at least one of those outs. He was robbed of a single by Orlando Cabrerra in the . Perhaps his bat is beginning to come around? Rays fans hope so. Wills and Freed made a good point about the Rays bullpen: they have not really been tested yet this year. The bullpen has not had to protect a small lead, as the Rays have either (a) been losing when starting pitching departed or (b) blown out the competition. Rays relievers, like the Rays in general, have been inconsistent, but they have not gotten much work in the kinds of situations in which we want them working.

I hate Dana Eveland's soul patch almost as much as I hate Josh Beckett's goatee. Also, in a uni-related observation (I feel a bit embarassed for caring, but I must admit to it), I noticed that Dan Wheeler had a black belt on today. Given the absence of any black at all in the Rays uniforms, this struck me as odd. I couldn't tell whether or not it's a team-wide phenomenon or just a Wheeler thing. Anybody know?

Finally, anybody know of a good sports bar in NYC, preferably in North Brooklyn or eastern Manhattan anywhere below Central Park? I've yet to find a consistently pleasant place to watch the Rays, and though I like the radio broadcasts, I'd rather see the games on TV. Doing so with other Rays fans, well, that'd really be something.

Thanks for reading this first post, and thanks to the DirtbagFan for letting me write it. It's a pleasure to be joining the RaystheStakes team! Also, welcome to the other new posters, particularly my fellow Gator, Alex.

GO RAYS!!

- Dustin "Steam-Powered Penny-Farthing" Fridkin

P.S. I apologize in advance if the formatting's a bit screwy. I'm new to this whole blogging thing, and it might take me awhile to get used to it.

Cheese & Wine: Oakland pt 2

RAYS: 2

A's: 5 

CHEESE:

·         RISP hitting. The Rays went 3-8 hitting with runners in scoring position. That’s a pretty good percentage, but unfortunately only two of the hits knocked in a runner, and none were extra base hits.

·         Akinori Iwamura. He only went 2-4 today, but when he came up with a runner in scoring position he delivered, driving in Gabe Kapler from second.

·         Grant Balfour’s fastball. In the bottom of the sixth, Garza had started the inning with two straight strikeouts, but then gave up a first-pitch single to Nomar Garciaparra and walked Travis Buck on four pitches. He had thrown 107 pitches and Joe Maddon had decided to bring in the Aussie flamethrower. Balfour threw three straight sliders, all outside of the strikezone (although he did get a swinging strike). His next two pitches were fastballs that just missed. So with the bases loaded, Grant Balfour proceeded to pitch 5 straight fastballs and strike out Landon Powell. That helped keep the game close.

WHINE:

·         4th inning walks. Matt Garza gave up walks to three of the first four batters he faced in the inning, loading the bases for Nomar Garciaparra’s 3-run double. The Rays were only down one run when the inning started, and were in a much deeper 4 run hole when it finished.

·         B.J. Upton. Bossman continues to struggle at the plate. He was 0-4 with a walk and a strikeout on the night, his bases on balls somewhat redeeming the fact that he has two extra base hits in 37 plate appearances this season. If the Rays are going to contend this season, they need B.J. to get himself on track.

·         Gabe Gross. Pinch-hitting in the top of the sixth with the bases loaded, you need to do better than get struck-out on 4 pitches.

·         Jason Bartlett. 0-4 is bad, but failing to get on base to start two innings is worse. Perhaps the biggest disappointment from Bartlett today was his at bat when the bases were loaded in the 8^th. The Rays were down by three and Bartlett grounded out to end the inning.

·         No TV. Saturday games are always blacked out if they start before 7 o’clock eastern, and after 1:40, unless they’re the FOX game of the week. That meant nobody in either Bay area got to see the game televised. Not even on MLB.tv, unless you live out of market.

CRACKERS:

·         Yankees and Red Sox starters. Most Rays fans just hope that these games end in benches-clearing brawls with lots of suspensions, but in Saturday night’s matchup two big names were having a lot of trouble:

Pitcher	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR
A Burnett	5.0	8	8	8	3	3	2
J Beckett	5.0	10	8	8	4	3	2

I’m okay with their pitchers getting lit up.

·         Introductions. Just wanted to introduce myself briefly, as I’ll be joining the Rays the Stakes’ writing staff. I was born in St. Pete but currently live in Gainesville studying telecommunications at UF. I’m hoping to contribute a lot to the site.

-Alex