Rays Fans – Get a Clue!!
So, Tampa Bay Rays fans – especially the one’s calling in to sports radio stations…get a grip, a reality check, something. At least 80% of the callers were saying and I quote, “I’m done with this team!” Seriously?? I can’t believe I am in the minority here supporting this team, but the Rays 2011 payroll (per USA Today) is $41,053,571 (and this includes the horrible signing of Johnny Damon of $5.25 Million)…2nd lowest in Major League Baseball, only above the useless Kansas City Royals. It is absolutely amazing that this team is only 7.5 games behind the Division leading Boston Red Sox and only 5.5 games behind the wildcard leading New York Yankees. Seriously Rays fans, take a step back and look at things realistically.
The New York Yankees 2011 payroll $202,689,028 – #1 payroll in the Majors
The Boston Red Sox 2011 payroll $161,762,475 – #3 payroll in the majors
Look at that again. The Rays trail the Red Sox by more than $120 Million and the Yankees by more than $160 Million…the Red Sox and Yankees spend 4-5 times the amount the Rays do and they are struggling to eliminate this team from playoff contention. Which fan base do you think should be frustrated and which fan base should be backing their organization 100%??
Fine…you think the Rays should spend more – I agree, but the stadium needs to be filled more than 20k-25,000 a night to make that happen. And please don’t tell me about stadium issues and blah blah blah. To be honest…I have been to The Trop and to be honest – I absolutely enjoyed myself. I wasn’t baking in 100 degree heat, the beer was cold, the dogs tasted great and every Rays player gives 100% every game (except for BJ Upton, of course…but obviously if BJ gives 100% 6o% of the time – that is ok with the organization).
I grew up watching the St. Louis Cardinals and I’m still a die-hard Redbirds fan…and I would give ANYTHING for the Cardinals to have GM Andrew Friedman and Manager Joe Maddon running the Cardinals organization rather than Mozeliak and Larussa.
Another thing Rays fans should be looking at. The Rays best player in franchise history, Carl Crawford, signed with the Boston Red Sox. Yes, that was his choice…but he didn’t HAVE to sign with a division rival…he was offered a huge contract from the Los Angeles Angels as well. The Rays closer from 2010, Rafael Soriano, also signed with a division rival, the New York Yankees. So the Red Sox add the Rays most dynamic player to an already sick lineup and they are still worrying about a team with a $41 Million Dollar payroll in late July.
Next thing that needs to be looked at. How do the Yankees and Red Sox farm system look. With the payroll the Rays have – I would say it is UNBELIEVABLE that they are still in this race. How would you like to be a Yankees fan and know at this point, if you make the playoffs with your $200 Million Dollar + payroll…your starting pitching IN THE PLAYOFFS with THAT PAYROLL after CC Sabathia is AJ Burnett, Freddy Garcia, Bartolo Colon and if he’s healthy, Phil Hughes. That to me, is the most embarrassing thing in Major League Baseball. The team with a $200+ Million Dollar payroll has one legitimate starting pitcher. ONE!!
The Rays have David Price (Ace)…and please don’t tell me he hasn’t been as dominant, blah, blah, blah – did you not see his performance last night? James Shields (Ace) and a hot trade commodity, Jeremy Hellickson (would already be a #2 on most teams in MLB).
Another thing…the Rays record is 52-45 while playing in the AL EAST!! They have to play the Red Sox & Yankees 18 times EACH year! How much better would the Rays record be if they were to play the Oakland A’s & the Seattle Mariners 18 times a year in the AL West or basically any other division in baseball? Are you all forgetting that??? On that note…Rays fans don’t come out and watch the Yankees and Red Sox…can you imagine if they had to play the A’s and Mariners 9 times each year…then how much lower would the Rays payroll have to be. If The Trop is filled – I guarantee the Rays would be in the mix for big time free agents in the offseason, heck, Carl Crawford would probably still be playing here. But, until The Trop is 75-80% filled…no one can complain about payroll. We should be patting this team on the back for even being competitive in the AL East. All anyone talked about at the beginning of 2011 was the Baltimore Orioles – and how are those 39 wins looking right now?? By the way…the O’s payroll – $ 85,304,038 (more than double the Rays).
This team is competitive with Evan Longoria having his worst year, but he is battling through foot issues. What other quality MLB bats are in this lineup that would start for other teams…BJ Upton, Ben Zobrist & maybe Casey Kotchman (who is having a career year). Matt Joyce would start in some places, but like I said – he is the worst All Star selection in the history of the All Star game. You do know Joyce’s average was .377 on June 1st!? He is a roll player that had one of the hottest month’s ever and he still only has 43 RBI’s hitting in an RBI spot in the order. There is a reason he hit .252, .188 & .241 from 2008-2010, respectively and had 25 career homeruns in his 3 seasons in the Majors. Joyce has 6 homeruns and 21 RBI’s outside the month of May. So, like I said, Joyce is a 4th outfielder at BEST on any other team in baseball and he hits 7th for 80% of teams. And no, Damon is too old and does not produce the way a DH needs to – so he is not a factor either.
The Rays are still in the race with their Shortstops being Reid Brignac & Elliot Johnson and they would be in AAA with any other organization. Their Catcher…don’t get me started. Sean Rodriguez is the second baseman. It is unbelievable that this team is within striking distance. But just like from 2008-2010 – I think making the playoffs with this team rather than “BUYING” your way into the playoffs is much more satisfying. From what I heard on sports radio – most fans think the Rays are more than a couple players away from being competitive in this division. Why? I know it won’t happen, but if this team would splurge in the offseason and just add 2 bats, Prince Fielder and Jose Reyes – and you add those sticks with this pitching staff – you don’t think the Rays are a contender for the AL East? You’re crazy? Will it happen – No! But it just shows that this team is not far away at all. And…I will say this – that kind of offseason splash has happened before – the Red Sox added Adrian Gonzalez and Carl Crawford in the same offseason!
So, before you call in to another sports radio station and go off on this team – why not look at the positives at what Friedman and Maddon have done with the resources they have been given, rather than tearing them down and saying I don’t care anymore – the Buccaneers are back anyway!
Rays continue to roll – ON THE ROAD!
After the Tampa Bay Rays beat the New York Yankees in Yankee Stadium last night 5-1…the Rays now are the owners of the best record in MLB on the road at 28-18. The Rays are the only team in the American League with an overall winning record (49-39), but have a record of .500 or below at home (21-21). Plus, as bad as the offense has been – they still have a +39 run differential – 4th best in the AL.
The Rays have now pulled within 3 games of the AL East lead…and after Jeff Niemann’s gem last night…the Rays have their 3 best starters left to finish off the 1st half in Yankee Stadium. Jeremy Hellickson, David Price & James Shields is the best 1-2-3 starting pitching trio in the AL. You don’t think so? The Rays are the only American League team to boast 3 starting pitchers with 100+ innings pitched and at least 8 wins each. The Rays easily have the starting pitching edge in tonight’s and tomorrow’s games…and then Sunday I will say a push (even though Shields has been sick all year and it is unfortunate he doesn’t get to pitch on Tuesday night in the All-Star game). I said it in yesterday’s blog post – it is a MUST that the Rays take 3 out of 4 in New York going into the All-Star break – and they now are set up to sweep.
Come on boys…keep this momentum rolling. Ben Zobrist got this series off with a bang, ironically just missing the cycle by a double (he is tied for the AL lead with 28). Sorry…but Matt Joyce needs to be benched. He has not had a single to left since June 1st and his average has also dropped by 90 points since then as well…Matt was hitting .377 on June 1st – now – .287. Like I have said via Twitter as well…Joyce is one of the worst and most embarrassing All-Star selections in recent memory. One hot month makes him an All-Star – um – obviously not!
Lastly…Any chance The Trop could collapse so this team can play on the road the rest of the way? At least at that point the Rays would get to play in front of some MLB fans and that in my opinion is a HUGE reason why this team plays great on the road!
A HUGE 4 game set starts tonight in New York
The Tampa Bay Rays finish the 1st half in Yankee Stadium with a 4 game set with the New York Yankees. I said about 2 weeks ago – the last 16 games of the first half may be the season and the Rays needed to go 11-5 to really give them a chance to make a run at the wildcard. The Rays now sit 4 games back of the Yankees for the AL East Division lead and the Boston Red Sox are only .5 games out of 1st. The Rays are 7-5 since I wrote that blog post…so if they sweep the Yanks (in Yankee Stadium) they could finish the 1st half on an 11-5 run. And even though the starting pitching matchups are setup perfectly for Tampa to do that – it is highly unrealistic.
The pitching matchups for the series: Tonight the Rays send Jeff Niemann to the mound against Bartolo Colon. On Friday the Rays send Jeremy Hellickson against Yankees starter Freddy Garcia. Saturday afternoon AJ Burnett takes the mound for the Yanks against Rays All-Star David Price and in the finale Sunday…the Rays send their other All-Star starting pitcher James Shields against Yankees ace CC Sabathia.
I would say I like the Rays in every pitching matchup, except for tonight’s…but Niemann is 2-0 versus the Yankees in his last 4 outings with a 3.74 ERA. I think the Rays can go into New York and take 3 out of 4 and still finish the 1st half 10-6. But, they HAVE to find a way to start hitting – it is getting to be critical at this point. Shutout 6 times since June 1st – 6 TIMES!! The Rays have to win this series and not split…because if they don’t – they should think about selling after the break.
Rays need O Sooner than Later
I am going to try to keep this short and sweet – because if I don’t…my frustrations will turn me into a novelist – and I don’t think you all have the time for that. Let me get right to the point. The Tampa Bay Rays need to get some offense into this lineup, well, like yesterday. The Rays sit 4.5 games back of the AL East Division lead, but 6 games back in the loss column of the New York Yankees and 4 games behind the Boston Red Sox in the loss column. The Rays offensive outburst today in Minnesota, a 12-5 Rays victory, helped Tampa avoid being swept by the injury depleted Twins. And now the Rays head to New York – and this last series of the 1st half (a 4 game set) may be the season, literally.
If the Rays go into NY and either get swept or lose 3 out of 4…I hate to say it – but the Rays become sellers on Monday morning. That would put them 9 games back in the loss column and 7.5 back of the Division lead and more than likely 5 or 6 back of the Red Sox for the wildcard. Let’s face it – it is not pitching for the down falls of this team. And look – it is tough to say down falls…the Rays are 48-39, which would lead every other Division in baseball except the NL East. But it is what it is…they are in the AL East for now – no matter how unfair that is – this is the division they are in. Without getting off on a tangent – I will say this – DO NOT mortgage any high level prospects to make a run this year – even if you go into Yankee Stadium and do the unthinkable and pull off the sweep. There is talk of realignment, etc…and if Major League Baseball goes to 2 15 team divisions – the Rays have this organization built to win now and the depth & quality of the farm system puts them ready to be competitive and make the playoffs for the next 10-15 years.
Back to the topic at hand. They need to grab a bat. Los Angeles Dodgers Shortstop Rafael Furcal as mentioned in previous posts would be a good addition to this team and should not have a big price tag. But he can go through LOOOOOOONG stretches of slumps…and that has been the entire Rays offense for the most part the entire season. Yes – he can still be a very good, as long as he is cheap, addition. But at the same time, why not think about gambling on Houston Astros Leftfielder Carlos Lee. Yes, Lee is a bit older, 35, but he can still hit at a better clip than most of the Rays. Lee is hitting .267 with 7 homeruns and 47 RBI’s, but he would be a bat with some thump that is desperately needed. Local sports radio is all over Evan Longoria and his struggles. But he is the ONLY bat in the lineup is feared. If you were on that mound against the Rays – would Johnny Damon, Ben Zobrist, BJ Upton or Casey Kotchman even remotely scare you – ummm NO! So why would any pitcher give Longo anything to hit…they don’t.
But – yeah BUT – isn’t there always a catch!? Lee comes with a $18.5 Million Dollar contract through 2012. Rays GM Andrew Friedman has already come out and said the Rays can add payroll if need be. If you could throw the Astros a couple mid range prospects – maybe you can get them to pay 50% of his 2012 salary. What? You’re saying they won’t do that or something like that? Oh yeah – go ask the Philadelphia Phillies about how much they paid Roy Oswalt after the Astros traded him to the Phils at the trade deadline last year. Exactly! Plus…if you trade BJ Upton and his salary to Washington for a couple mid level prospects…you lose the non hustling player that hurts your franchise more than helps, you dump his salary and gain a couple mid-level prospects back…well…what you get there is a BJ Upton for Carlos Lee trade and both of them free agents at the end of 2012. Raise your hand if you would do that deal! Yeah – I know me too! And then we get Desmond Jennings called up and playing Centerfield immediately.
How much better does your lineup look now?
SS Rafael Furcal
2B Ben Zobrist
3B Evan Longoria
DH Carlos Lee
RF Matt Joyce
1B Casey Kotchman
LF Johnny Damon (please trade him now – so not worth holding Jennings down)
C Does it really matter – Kelly Shoppach or John Jaso
CF Desmond Jennings
This puts zero pressure on rookie phenom Desmond Jennings to perform at the plate. But look at how much better this lineup really is from 1-7 with just those 2 small acquisitions of Furcal and El Caballo. Now this lineup could make a run in the 2nd half of 2011 with the best pitching staff in the AL East and get into the playoffs. And if the Rays can get in – they could easily do some damage with David Price, James Shields & Jeremy Hellickson in a 7 game series. Plus – I’m telling you right now – if this team is in it in September – I expect Matt Moore to have the same impact on the Rays as Price did in 2008.
So what do you think Rays fans – leave us your comments!
Follow me on Twitter @Stelzy! Also, ‘Like’ RaysCentral.com on Facebook and please send any questions or comments you might have via Twitter or FB – I will respond to all!
3 Rays Players picked to Appear in the All-Star Game Next Tuesday
Tampa Bay Rays Starting Pitchers David Price & James Shields & Outfielder Matt Joyce were all selected to the 2011 American League All-Star team yesterday. James Shields (8-5, 2.45 ERA, 17 starts, 14 Quality starts, 127 K’s) was a lock and just as deserving as Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Justin Verlander to be the American League’s All-Star’s Starting Pitcher. But both Shields and Verlander are scheduled to pitch on Sunday, July 10th – 2 days before the All-Star game which is played on Tuesday, July 12th. Major League baseball has a rule that if you pitch 2 days before the All-Star game – that pitcher is not allowed to pitch in the game. David Price was a little bit of a question mark on if he would make it or not. But Price (8-6, 3.43 ERA, 17 starts, 10 QS & 116 K’s) did make it. The guy is absolutely electric and if I could choose any starting pitcher to build my franchise/staff around for the next 10 years…it’s Price.
The biggest surprise to me is Matt Joyce making the All-Star team. Like I said a couple days ago…yes, Joyce is the Rays Offensive MVP for the 1st half…but it is because he had an unreal month of May. Joyce is hitting .300 with 11 homeruns and 40 RBI’s so far in 2011! Really!? A guy on pace for 22 homeruns and 80 RBI’s makes the AL All-Star team?? 80 RBI’s…as an outfielder no less. Look…it’s a bit different if he is a catcher or even a middle infielder….but an outfielder. If anything, at least Ben Zobrist leads the league in doubles (as of Sunday) and can play multiple positions – and one of those is a MI spot…2nd base. And truth is…how do you take Joyce over Paul Konerko? Konerko is hitting .317 with 21 HR’s and 62 RBI’s! And don’t tell me that you have to have 4 reserve outfielders…just for the record, Adrian Gonzalez has played rightfield a few times during interleague play. It is almost embarrassing that Joyce was picked…no – it is. Good for Joyce, but bad for baseball…kind of like Commissioner Bud Selig. Good for him for getting the job…but bad for baseball.
Follow me on Twitter @Stelzy! Also, ‘Like’ RaysCentral.com on Facebook and please send any questions or comments you might have via Twitter or FB – I will respond to all!
