July 2009
Tradin’ Post: Rays Edition
I had a few ideas of moves that the Rays should consider before the 4 pm trade deadline hits today. I know that this post has a shelf life (about 6 hours), but I think that talkin’ trades is one of the fun parts of this game we love. I wanted to spend a little time on it.
Of course, NOTHING I write about here is coming true.
But I did a little digging and a little research to see if something out there made sense for my Rays that could get them to the post season again.
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Guys to Get: Catcher
One of the needs the Rays have falls right behind the plate. Our catcher position has been brutal offensively. Dioner Navarro and Michel Hernandez have combined to hit about .228 with 6 home runs and 38 RBIs.
Not the type of production you can live with from ANY position.
In their defense, so to speak, those two guys have played some great defense this year and really called some solid games. That is worth its weight in gold and will probably keep both of them at the Trop for the remainder of the year.
BUT
If the Rays made a move I think that there are two guys who would fit VERY VERY well.
Ryan Doumit
.255 5 HR 20 RBI
Doumit is better known for his offense than his defense. He broke out big time for the Pirates last year (.318/ 15 / 69 / 34 2b). He has had some setbacks with his health this year, missing time several times over the course of the season. However, the production he has been able to put up in spite of only 109 at bats is phenomenal for a catcher.
He’s 28 years old, which means that he is getting ready to enter his prime offensively. I am sure his defense can come along if coached properly.
And keep in mind that the Bucs just trade for Jeff Clement with Seattle. Clement was a highly touted catching prospect for the M’s and just might have made Doumit expendable.
He has a team-friendly contract that puts him under team control until 2013. Hmmmmmm….sound like a Rays-type of player?
Kurt Suzuki
.285 6 HR 47 RBI 1 error
This is the guy I’m most excited about. And it might be a long shot for the A’s to drop him. But he is only 25 years old, has some pop in his bat (26 doubles!), and does not make errors. He calls a good game and, if you’ve watched him play much, is nimble around the plate. He is a tough out and will draw a walk from time to time.
His contract is league-minimum right now and for next year. In 2011 he becomes arbitration eligible–something the Rays should be able to buy out after Pat Burrell’s contract is off the books.
He could bring alot of stability offensively to the catcher position and maintain the defensive prowess behind the plate we have been used to.
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Guys to Get: Reliever
I don’t think that that the Rays have a big hole anywhere on the team right now. Surely, the starting pitcher has been quite inconsistent, but you don’t want to make any trades to shore that up (especially with Cliff Lee gone and Roy Halladay ridiculous). Our other position players have done just fine–offensively and defensively.
I look at the bullpen as a spot where we could improved. Specifically, our 7th and 8th inning guys. I love Grant Balfour and Dan Wheeler, love ‘em. But they have not put together the most consistent seasons this year. And you can’t have guys who are inconsistent come into the game to hold the lead for JP Howell.
It is with this in mind that I nominate the two following guys for acquisition.
Rafael Soriano
1-2 1.88 ERA 65 K 18 BB 15 SV 12.19 K/9 (!!!)
This guy is just a dream, more than likely, because the Rays are probably not going to throw the money he will be scheduled to make next year at him. He should make 6.1 million next season in the final season before he becomes a free agent. He is 29 and is coming off a shakey year in 2008.
He has shuttled from setup guy to closer all year long. But wow. What a drastic difference if you could get hitters looking at Soriano’s 95mph heat in the 8th and Howell’s 85 mph “heat” in the 9th. The Braves don’t mind moving him because they have….
Mike Gonzalez
3-3 3.06 ERA 60 K 20 BB 9 SV 12.06 K/9 (!!!)
He is 31 but seems to be finally hitting his stride with the Bravos. He is a lefty, but he would be a great replacement for either (or both) Randy Choate and Brian Shouse. He has been moved from team to team over the course of his career, playing middle reliever, setup guy, and closer at each stop. The Braves have been pleasantly surprised at his output this year and have alternated between Soriano and him as the closer all season long.
His contract is more manageable for the Rays next year–his final contract year–as he should make 3.45 million. He has a quirky delivery but he can strike anybody out at any time. Not too bad for a setup guy.
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Guys to Go
For reasons mentioned before, I think that the Rays could throw in these guys to any deal just to help sweeten it. I don’t think that any of the players mentioned below will work for one-to-one straight up trades, but they are certainly salary dumps and add-ons that could help any deal go through.
Brian Shouse
His value has taken a hit since his return from the DL. His ERA has balooned to above 5.00 and he is not getting the one guy Maddon allows him to face out.
Dioner Navarro.
He is not recovering from his slump. He is trending in the wrong direction. As a switch hitter he does fine against lefties, but against righties he hits only .190. Not good.
Grant Balfour
I love the guy. He leads the team in holds, but he is not reliable. He’s given up 6 runs in his last 10 appearances. That is not a consistent set up guy. He is a free agent after this year.
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The Red Sox have pulled 4 1/2 games in front of the Rays for second place in the division with the Yankees up 7 games! Time is ticking.
I don’t want the Rays to make any drastic moves that will affect negatively our ability to win next year. That is one of the things that makes me proud of our front office–they do NOT succumb to peer pressure at all. If they think we can make it to October, the deal will be done, but only if it does not hurt us next year or the next two years.
Only 6 hours and counting!!!
Big Mouth in the South: He got the Joba done
Despite the hyper Yankee hurler’s resemblance to a certain fish, tonight it was the Rays who were biting.
They were diving after every (seldom used) breaking pitch Joba Chamberlain threw. They were swinging away at every 89 mph “off speed” pitch that came their way. And they were simply blown out of the water altogether by every 92+ mph fastball.
It wasn’t pretty.
About as pretty as gutting, well, you get the idea.
The Rays managed only 2 runs on 6 hits tonight. None of those runs were charged to Joba and only 3 of those hits were his as he went 8 strong innings, striking out 5 and walking only 2.
It wasn’t the Rays’ night.
It wasn’t the Rays’ series.
Our guys needed a strong showing in this three-game set against the first place Yanks if they wanted to maintain hope at making it two Octobers in a row. While they fought back valiently to take game two of the series 6-2, the offense failed to show up in the rubber game tonight. Again.
The only push the Rays gave the Yankees was in the 9th inning when Carl Crawford tripled and Evan Longoria went yard. The Rays were able to get two on before Mariano Rivera struck out Michel Hernandez to end the game.
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Garza Pitched Well
The Rays wasted a great effort by their ace-in-the-making and devil-in-disguise Matt Garza.
He almost matched Chamberlain pitch for pitch in his 7 innings of work.
He was almost awesome baby!
He was almost a PTP’r!
(note the well-planned and heavily thought out <ahem-lame> espn basketball theme here)
Almost didn’t get us there, though.
He did allow a triple to Derek Jeter in the 1st (who later scored) and a long ball to Robinson Cano (a strange at bat during which Cano fouled a ball off his shin, had to get looked at by the trainer, before launching one to the right field seats).
Other than those two issues Garza pitched almost as well as he did Friday night against Doc Halladay.
Except, you know, this time he lost.
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Where’s the O?
It is getting really old.
Seriously.
It seems that unless a Rays starter holds the opposition to 2 runs or fewer they have a tough time winning the ballgame. God forbid a starter give up <gasp> 3 or 4 runs in a game. If that happens the game is just simply over.
I know our guys have a tendency to come back. However, as I have argued again and again, you have to “come back” in two situations:
1) if your starter gives up too many runs
2) if your offense scores no runs to begin with
It seems that since the All-Star Break the Rays have had plenty of both. Even when they win games one of the two caveats above come into play.
It’s getting tired, guys. It really is.
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Royal Pains (not the tv show)
The Rays can do nothing but look ahead. (As many of us Rays fans will be doing)
The Kansas City Royals come to town for 4 big games. I know it is a little melodramatic to call games against the Royals in late July “big”, but they are.
A sweep here, or taking 3 of 4, will go a long way towards getting the Rays back into the race.
Although they lost a game to the Yankees and currently sit 6 1/2 out, they seem to be on the verge of holding serve against the Red Sox (losing last I checked) which would keep the Rays only 4 back of second place and the wildcard spot.
It’s gotta happen now.
Time’s running out.
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Tradin’ Places (or the most overused title to describe trades in mlb)
Lots of trades today. Some interesting, some we don’t care about, and one that was upsetting a little.
I would argue that all teams involved today made their teams better. Except the Pirates. But then again when did they ever make a move to get better?
I have some ideas on a few moves the Rays should make before Friday’s deadline. I’m teasing it now for tomorrow’s post just in case it happens overnight.
Tradin’ post tomorrow (another overused title to describe trades in mlb–sue me!).
TRayde News: Two Rays Fans Discuss the Possbilities
The MLB trade deadline will hit us this Friday, July 31st.
It is a fun time of year as teams who think they are still in their respective races “buy” what they can while teams that are already looking ahead to 2010 (or 2011, 2012, 2013…) “sell” what they can to prepare.
We have already seen some interesting moves take place early in the trading season what with Matt Holliday moving from the West (A’s) to the Midwest (Cardinals), Rafael Betancourt going from low altitude (Cleveland) to way up in the air (Colorado), and Julio Lugo being lucky to go anywhere (Cardinals).
Other than those deals nothing notable has really happened.
It is with all this in mind that Ginny at The Watercooler and Bob at More Cowbell are putting together the first (of many) co-posts where we will look at certain aspects surrounding our beloved Tampa Bay Rays.
First up, the trade deadline and which Rays players could/should move before Friday.
We are not really debating on whether or not something will happen with each of the players discussed. We are Rays fans. We know NOTHING is going to happen.
What we are doing is looking at the team’s needs, current player performance, and the potential for a move to occur.
It is pure fun.
More Cowbell and The Watercooler are putting on our General Manager’s hats to see if something can be done to help our guys reach October, and the World Series, for the second consecutive year.
So enjoy our hypothetical (and pathetic-al) attempt at doing a job we’re never ever going to have!
The Players
Dioner Navarro C
2009 Stats: .226 13 2B 5 HR 25 RBI 2 SB 266 AB
Keep or Cut?
I am sure Ginny will agree, this is a tough one. Navi is one of the bigger fan favorites at the Trop. He and his family have gone through alot during his time with the Rays and that has kind of bonded fan and catcher together.
Looking at it from a purely baseball point of view, though, I think that Dioner needs to go. The Rays need to look into either moving him or finding somebody (Victor Martinez from the Indians?) to take his place. His stats are some of the worst in the league for a catcher.
Navarro has had a roller coaster career with the Rays. Two years ago he was brutal, hitting just .227 with a .286 OB%. Terrible. Last year he was a big reason why the Rays went to the playoffs, handling the staff well and hitting .295 with a .349 OB%.
If we keep him it will be because he handles the staff’s pitchers deftly. The Rays might also think that he’ll bounce back next year.
CUT
The Gabes: Gross and Kapler RF
Gross 2009 Stats: .271 11 2B 1 3B 5 HR 28 RBI 6 SB 177 AB
Kapler 2009 Stats: .250 13 2B 1 3B 4 HR 23 RBI 3 SB 124 AB
Keep or Cut?
These guys have worked in tandem to create a very effective platoon in right field for the Rays. No doubt, you lose a little bit defensively when Gross is in the lineup, but you gain that much back with his bat. Right now it is just the opposite with Kapler.
I think that the rightfielder of the future for the Rays is already on the team. I just don’t know who exactly that will be. It might be Ben Zobrist, Fernando Perez, Desmond Jennings, or even BJ Upton himself (with one of the latter two taking center). It will not be Gross or Kapler in 2010.
With that in mind, I think that either one is expendable. I wouldn’t trade either one of them now, though, unless putting them in a package deal can land us another starter or a catcher. Gross would probably fetch more on the open market than Kapler would. But since Akinori Iwamura is hurt and Zobrist is playing well at 2B, I would keep them both.
KEEP BOTH (for now)
Randy Choate or Brian Shouse LH Relievers
Choate 2009 Stats: 0-0 2.25 ERA 4 SV 16 IP 15 K 5 BB 1.00 WHIP .198 BAA
Shouse 2009 Stats: 1-1 3.77 ERA 0 SV 14.1 IP 9 K 3 BB 1.40 WHIP .298 BAA
Keep or Cut?
Choate has had an amazing year with the Rays. His stats show how well he’s pitched and watching him in action backs them up. His Batting Average Against is stellar. When he is brought into a game to face a left-handed batter you can pretty much assume that Choate will get the out. Lefties are hitting just .189 against him this year. He is just the kind of guy that Joe Maddon loves.
However, we already have that guy in Brian Shouse. Or do we?
Shouse’s numbers do not stack up with Choate’s at all. He gets lefties out to a .235 clip, but righties are hitting .325 against him. That pretty much means that Shouse is in for one batter and that is it. Choate has made righties hit only .200 this year.
I think that Choate is a keeper, but since we already have JP Howell, Shouse is now expendable. I know that Maddon has said that he is excited about having a “toybox of lefties” in his bullpen, but 3 is a crowd. Choate stays. Shouse goes.
Choate: KEEP Shouse: CUT
Andy Sonnanstine RH Starter (currently at AAA Durham)
2009 Stats: 6-7 6.71 ERA 81.2 IP 50 K 22 BB 1.52 WHIP .305 BAA
Keep or Cut?
Sonny is doing very well with Durham (2-0, 3.35 ERA) since his demotion a few weeks ago. However, as well as he is doing there is just about how horribly he did here. Maddon kept waiting (as did we all) for Sonnanstine to turn it around, to turn into the guy we loved last year. He was a great alternative to the flamethrowers already in the rotation, but when teams are hitting .305 off of you something has to give. It did. Andy’s at AAA.
He needs to stay unless there is some great trade the Rays can pull off of which he is a part. BUT, if the Rays are able to put him in a deal then we still have Wade Davis at AAA who can come up and be the next Sonny.
KEEP, UNLESS THE DEAL IS GOOD THEN CUT
Scott Kazmir LH Starter
2009 Stats: 4-6 6.69 ERA 74 IP 58 K 40 BB 1.72 WHIP .289 BAA
Keep or Cut?
Ahhhh, Kaz. This guy was the golden child when he was acquired from the New York Mets a few years ago for nothing more than our ace at the time, Victor Zambrano. It was such an amazing deal for the Rays and such a terrible deal for the Mets.
It’s still a good deal for Tampa Bay as Kaz developed in the ace for several years and came up big in big games last season. However, he has developed an inability to go past the 5th inning and recently has developed the inability to get guys out. It is not a good sign for the team’s current #2 starter.
He has quite a fan following (I know Ginny at The Watercooler is especially infatuated), but that is no reason to hang on to the guy. When you look at his performance you see that he is improving here in the second half of the season but that his “improvement” is still worse than many #5 starters in the league. Kaz is slotted to make $10 mill next year. He says he signed the contract to give the Rays a “bargain” and ensure that he would be able to play out his contract in Tampa Bay.
I say let him. I know it sounds crazy, but this guy has talent. It is just off a bit. I have ranted and railed at how sick of his ineffectiveness I am, but he could come back next year and become the All Star he was last year. He is one of the guys who got it all started here, and I respect that. He wanted to stay with the Rays before they were good. I doubly respect that. I want nothing more than to see him return to form. I’ll have to hope for that.
KEEP
Wade Davis RH Starter (currently at Durham)
2009 Stats (at Durham): 8-6 3.22 ERA 114.2 IP 103 K 47 BB 1.29 WHIP .229 BAA
Keep or Cut?
I’ll be honest, I don’t know a great deal about the Rays’ top pitching prospect. I know that when the Rays drafted him, Davis was supposed to be part of the new wave of Rays pitchers who would arrive in the majors and dominate. He was supposed to team up with Jeff Nieman and Mitch Talbot to form the best homegrown 1-3 of any rotation in the league. Nieman is here. Talbot is hurt. It’s Davis’ turn.
If the Rays make any deal for a substantial return (Cliff Lee and Victor Martinez anyone?) then Davis is more than likely going to have to be part of the package. My gut says ”do it.” I believe in NOW in alot of ways, and this season is the NOW for the Rays. Contracts are going to start kicking in soon and it won’t be long before the Rays and owner Stuart Sternberg have to dump some salary. We’ve got to do it now. If there is a way to make a deal for people who will get us to October this year, then do it.
I don’t know if that deal really exists. If we get a pitcher, it will be for about 7-8 starts the rest of the season. If we get a catcher, he’ll have to learn the staff and adjust his hitting to our stadium. In the end, a deal for a pitcher and catcher might not help us as much as we might think. And it would be stupid for a team with cash restrictions to give up an uber-talented and VERY cheap pitcher for that.
KEEP
Pitching a Fit: The Suddenly Poor Rays Rotation
I should be posting about the amazing win our guys got yesterday against the Toronto Blue Jays.
I wish I could feel good about how the Rays fought back from being down 8-0 to win the game 10-9 in 12 innings.
I watched it, it was exciting, it was amazing, IT WAS THE BIGGEST COME BACK IN THE FRANCHISE’S HISTORY!
For the second time this season, the Rays were able to stage the biggest comeback in their short history. I’m happy to say I was able to watch both of them. I’m disgusted to say that our friends at that big sports network didn’t lead with the Rays’ win, and, in fact, pushed them to the THIRD game to be discussed out of the AL East–the Yanks were talked about first and the Sox second, of course.
But I’m not going to talk about any of that, because there is something that has been going on the last month or so that is really pushing me over the edge. It is something that is putting the Rays in position where they HAVE to stage comebacks almost every game these days and if they dont, they lose.
Our pitching stinks.
More specifically, our starting pitching stinks.
Ok, maybe “stink” is a strong word, but it ain’t good.
I don’t know what happened to our usually reliable guys, but they have fallen into a pit of despair (or maybe that’s me) that has caused our stalwarts to be rocked and our marginal pitchers to be destroyed. Rookies are both leading and hurting this rotation and veterans are not getting supported.
So consider this post a semi-rant about how our guys need to step up the rest of the year. I’m talking about what they’ve done thus far in the seasons and taking a look at what they’ve done the last month.
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James Shields
Season Stats: 6-6 3.70 ERA 1.28 WHIP 98 K 30 BB 141 IP
Stats the Last Month: 0-1 4.58 ERA 1.35 WHIP 26 K 9 BB 39.1 IP
Breakdown: Shields has been our most reliable starter this season by far. He was the Rays’ opening day guy the last two years and he has earned it. He does not walk alot of batters, making them put the ball in play. He is not a big strikeout guy either, but his changeup is an equalizer, often causing hitters to hit weak groundballs to the infield. He has not gotten much, if any, run support this season, getting more than 3 runs in a game only 9 of his 20 starts this season. No pitcher can succeed with such poor support.
What He Needs To Do: While I would like to argue that he is fine and just needs to do what he’s been doing all season, the numbers say differently. While his walks are pretty much in line with what he’s done all year, his ERA and WHIP are poor as of late. Most of that is a pitcher’s fault. The Rays offense has scuffled as of late, but if “Big Game” James doesn’t work harder at shutting down opposing teams on his own then the Rays will not move on to October.
Scott Kazmir
Season Stats: 4-6 6.69 ERA 1.72 WHIP 58 K 40 BB 74 IP
Stats the Last Month: 0-2 5.08 ERA 1.34 WHIP 23 K 11 BB 28.1 IP
Breakdown: The easy thing to do these days is pile on Kaz for his performance. He has underachieved significantly and rarely puts his team in position to win. He is a guy who usually throws 100+ pitches through 4 2/3 innings and has to struggle just to get out of the 5th. His walks are ridiculous and his strikeouts are well off his career average. Sure, he’s been hurt this year, but nobody comes back to form more slowly than Kaz does. Of course he’s the subject of trade rumors, the Rays cannot afford to pay him his $10 million he is due to earn next year if he continues to perform like this.
What He Needs To Do: Strange as it may seem, Kazmir has been turning it around. In Kazmir terms, anyway. As you can see, his ERA is improving as is his WHIP. He is not letting guys get on base these days and he is working harder at not letting them score. He is still nibbling at the corners, thus accounting for his high walk and low strikeout totals, but he seems more cognizant of pitching instead of throwing. In three consecutive outings he has gone more than 6 innings! You have to go WAY back to find the last time he’s done that. I think that he might be turning it around and if he does, will be a solid contributer the rest of the way.
Jeff Nieman
Season Stats: 9-4 3.61 ERA 1.36 WHIP 59 K 38 BB 99.2 IP
Stats the Last Month: 3-0 1.98 ERA 1.10 WHIP 15 K 5 BB 27.1 IP
Breakdown: As I’ve been saying all year long, Nieman is making Andrew Friedman and Joe Maddon look like geniuses for keeping him over Jason Hammel coming out of spring training. This guy has been BY FAR the Rays’ most dependable and successful starter lately as he leads the rotation in wins and ERA. Throw into the mix his massive 6’9″ frame and he is just plain ol’ intimidating. His strikeouts are a little low and his WHIP is a tough high, but this guy knows how to pitch and could/should get consideration for the AL’s Rookie of the Year award.
What He Needs To Do: As you can see, over the last month Nieman has been dominating. Since his “demotion” in the Texas series by Joe Maddon to the long relief role so that Matt Garza could get an extra start, the big Texan has come out with a vengence. You know that when he toes the mound you are going to get a quality start as he has gone 8, 9, and 7.1 innings in his last three starts. Let’s hope that some of that success rubs off on the other Rays rotation rookie.
David Price
Season Stats: 3-4 5.60 ERA 1.72 WHIP 54 K 32 BB 53 IP
Stats the Last Month: 2-2 7.15 ERA 1.81 WHIP 21 K 13 BB 22.2 IP
Breakdown: I would like to say we have to be careful with this one. That we should just bring him along slowly. And, to a certain extent, we should. You can’t totally compare him to Jeff Nieman because Nieman has had more years in the minors than Price has to get ready for “the show.” But, I don’t think anybody expected these types of performances from Price. His power pitching is showing up splendidly as he strikes out more than a hitter per inning, but his control is terrible. The guy who was supposed to be the ROY in the AL is not even the best rookie in his own team’s rotation.
What He Needs To Do: Well, let’s not jump off bridges here. Despite the negative numbers, he is still a young pitcher who is suffering growing pains. He’ll get there. But probably not this year. The question becomes how long do we continue to throw him to the wolves this season? It is not like he’s showing much improvement. If you look at his numbers from the last month, they are just plain ugly. And he has 3.0 and 1.1 inning stints in two of his last three outings. He might help alot in the bullpen in the playoffs, but right now he is not giving the Rays what they need from him.
Matt Garza
Season Stats: 7-7 3.68 ERA 1.20 WHIP 116 K 50 BB 129.2 IP
Stats the Last Month: 3-2 3.90 ERA 1.33 WHIP 31 K 11 BB 31 .1 IP
Breakdown: Not many teams’ rotations get much better 1-3 than Shields, Garza, and Nieman. Garza has been a stud for this team, putting his guys in position to win every time out. It is rare to see him put forth a bad effort, though his last three outings have been less than adequate. Though he often battles his emotions on the mound, he has come a long way since last season when emotion would push his performance to the breaking point. He is second among starters in ERA, WHIP, wins, Ks, and IP. Not too bad. He is somebody to count on.
What He Needs To Do: Garza has slipped a little bit his last four starts. Granted, Friday night’s 9-inning gem is something that can catapult him to the next level the rest of the season (I hope), but his three previous starts were poor. He seems to fall between Kazmir and Nieman in that he will go out there and throw 5 innings sometimes but will usually give you 7-8 strong innings. If the Rays are to succeed, we are going to have to see more of the latter and less of the former.
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The Rays are built to be a winner. They have a great balance of pitching, fielding, bullpen, and offense. They are the prototypical team, in my opinion. But when one of those elements get out of wack, the team suffers.
I think the team is suffering now.
The starting pitching must step up over the remainder of the season if they want a chance at October. As you could see, their numbers over the last month are brutal. Only Nieman and Garza can be considered as having impressive numbers.
The other three guys have let the team down. Sure, the offense has not been there and that might be why the wins are so low.
However, there is a reason why the Rays have had to come from behind so manytimes in the last few weeks. Their pitchers are letting them fall behind.
The Rays sit at 5 1/2 out. That’s not bad. But they will enter a crucial series with the Yankees tomorrow and a big series with the Red Sox next week. They cannot allow these powerhouse teams to get out in front early.
They are not the types of teams that yield 8 run comeback wins.
They are the types of teams that kick you when you’re down and keep you on the ground.
I’d like to see us get in the first kick over these next couple of games.
Our starters have to be the ones to do it.
Remember how good October felt?
Perfect Follow-Up for the Rays
VS 
The Rays got a hit and a walk in the first inning.
So that drama is over now.
What is more important is that they got a bloop single from Evan Longoria in the 10th inning to drive in two runs and give the Rays the final margin in a 4-2 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays and Roy Halladay.
It was perfect.
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Good Ol’ Fashioned Shootout
Both Halladay and the Rays’ Matt Garza fought hard throughout the game. Their stats were nearly identical, with both guys throwing 9 innings, giving up 2 runs, and only giving up a handful of hits. Garza walked none and struck out 9, earning the win, while Halladay struck out 10 and walked 3 in a no decision.
It was like a shootout at the OK Corral, as Doc Halladay and Garza stared each other down, waiting to see who would blink first. Neither did.
But Scott Downs did. He took the loss after giving up a hit to BJ Upton, walking Carl Crawford, and then allowing a bloop hit to Longoria.
Longo had been worked into a 2-strike count at the time, but he put good wood on the ball to drop it in front of a diving Joe Inglett.
Sometimes I think that Longo literally has ice water in his veins. He does not get rattled. He is one cool cat when it counts.
(This guy is cool)
JP Howell dominated the bottom of the 10th to get his 10th save in his first game as the Rays’ official closer.
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Curtains for the Doc?
The entire game played out as if it were the last for Halladay in a Toronto uniform. He received standing ovations after every inning and the crowd would cheer him on in every big–and medium, for that matter–situation that arose.
While nobody knows the fate of Halladay right now, there was plenty of speculation during the broadcast and plenty on the blogs and websites out there.
Lots of people were holding signs.
Every tv shot of General Manager JP Ricciardi on the phone was met with thoughts of what deal he might be listening to.
To his credit, none of it fazed Halladay. He went out there and threw an amazing ballgame. However, it may very well be these types of ballgames that are the impetus for his desire to leave. How often can you throw 9 innings and strike out 10, giving up only 2 runs the whole time only to walk away with a no decision?
(I hope that you are taking notes on this Rays, ahem James Shields!)
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Where’s the Offense, Guys?
The Rays have been struggling mightily in the run-scoring department.
In the month of July, the Rays have scored more than 3 runs only 7 times in 19 games! That is beyond inept.
During that time the offensive stalwarts of the team have been beyond horrible:
–Evan Longoria has managed to hit only .179 with 3 homers
–Carlos Pena has hit .183 with 30 strikeouts and 2 homers
–BJ has hit .223 with 2 homers
–Jason Bartlett has hit .262 while riding high around .350 and up most of the year
This will not get it done down the stretch, no doubt.
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Final Thoughts
The Rays got a nice win tonight, but so did the Red Sox and the Yankees. That leaves Tampa Bay still 6 1/2 out.
The pressure on our guys will only get worse with every passing game, and if the offense does not get in gear they will find themselves watching the playoffs on tv instead of from the field.
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Next Up:
The Rays play Saturday at 1:00 pm. Early game. Kind of different for our guys.
We will send out David Price, who owned the Blue Jays the last time he saw them.
He will be opposed by Brian Tallet, who was owned by the Rays offense.
Hmmmmm, should be interesting.
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Odds and Ends
–According to MLB.com the Rays may be interested in shipping Scott Kazmir in order to free up their money situation for the acquisition of Indians pitcher Cliff Lee.
–Another rumor has the Rays inquiring on the availability of Indians C Victor Martinez (this deal would make sense considering the extreme lack of offense coming from behind the plate these days–Sorry Tribe Chick).
–The Rays are giving away t-shirts to the first 10,000 fans wearing Rays gear to 5 games during the next home stand. I am really excited for Monday’s game against the Yanks because I need me one of these:
Another Rays Snub By ESPN
(Not an actual portrait)
I was laying around watching Sportscenter this morning, as I can often be found doing most mornings, and found myself feeling nauseous.
No, it wasn’t because of the ubiquitous coverage of White Sox Mark Buehrle’s perfect game yesterday that happened to occur against my beloved Rays. (The coverage was, of course, warranted, by the way…I just am sick of seeing my guys as the team that was no-hit)
No, it wasn’t because of Brett Favre’s constant whining about whether he should come back to play for the Vikings or not (Who isn’t getting sick of that? Geez! I used to like the guy! Now I just want him to go away!)
It was because of a simple poll question the geniuses at the sports network formulated for the fans to vote upon.
In light of the amazing catch that Dewayne Wise made in the top of the 9th inning of Buehrle’s perfect game yesterday (it was quite a catch–dammit!) ESPN decided to give a list of the greatest catches in major league history and ask, “Which of these catches was the best catch?”
Of course I was giddy because I was going to see my guy Carl Crawford honored with a spot on the list because of his exceptional catch in this year’s All-Star Game that helped to preserve the AL’s victory and secure home field advantage of the American League team in the World Series.
It was going to be there and I was going to hear the ESPN (I’m pronouncing it “ess-pin”) anchors gush about how amazing it was.
Catch #1 was Dewayne Wise’s amazing catch.
I threw up a little in my mouth, but was otherwise ok.
Catch #2 was Kirby Puckett’s catch against the wall in the 1991 World Series that they say helped the Twins to win it all that year.
Yawn.
Catch #3 was the black and white filmed Willie Mays World Series catch that we all know and love (and have imitated) way back before anybody can remember.
That’s a good one. I think that is THE best catch ever. I’m ok.
Catch #4 was Torii Hunter’s catch to rob Barry Bonds of a home run in the 2002 All-Star Game.
The game was an exhibition back then, so who cares, but whatever. It was good, I guess.
Catch #5 was Endy Chavez’s catch in the 2006 NLCS against the Cardinals to rob a home run.
A catch that did not save the game because the Mets still lost. So who gives a crap?
And that was it.
I was waiting for Catch #6, Carl Crawford’s game-preserving catch against the NL in the 2009 All-Star game that allowed the AL to clinch home field advantage in the World Series.
Where was Catch #6!? Where was it!?
Not there.
Apparently, the masterminds who create the extremely varied and always fresh shows such as blabfest “First Take,” blabfest “Around the Horn,” blabfest “Pardon the Interruption,” and the blabfest “SportsNation” (what other blabfests have I left out?) forgot that one of the best catches just occurred a few weeks ago!
I was livid!
As a Rays fan you have had to accept certain things over the years.
#1–Your team will be ridiculed as being one of the worst ever.
#2–Your dad will call your team the best AAA team in the majors.
#3–People will not go to the games during the week.
#4–Fans of the opposing team will make up more of the audience at a game than your own team’s fans.
#5–The media will ignore you, except to mention thing #1.
But all that changed with last year’s Rays team. The World Series Rays team. The AL Champion Rays team.
All that changed, right?
Well, all but thing #5.
ESPN has been notorious for allowing the baseball team in Tampa Bay to go without notice. If they play a team in Los Angeles (Dodgers only), New York, Boston, Chicago, or Philadelphia, then they will get plenty of press, but only because of their association with aforementioned team.
But on their own, the Rays are typically pushed to the end of the Sportscenter program. I can remember many a time where the Rays were actually not even mentioned in the show because they ran out of time. I can remember many a time on “Baseball Tonight” the Rays receiving barely a sentence of acknowledgement from the mouth of Karl Ravich before moving on to the more marketable teams.
I was able to overlook much of this over the years because I guess I figured the Rays deserved it a little bit. They were bad for a long time. That’s hard to forget right away.
But boy oh boy ESPN doesn’t care about the success in Tampa Bay, they care about making sure they pander to the fans of the “big five” baseball markets mentioned above. Because God forbid they don’t smooch the backsides of those teams.
So I walked away from the tv. Angry and incredulous, I made a bowl of Cap’n Crunch. The Cap’n makes all the world’s ills disappear.
Then I accidentally turned on Sportscenter exactly 1 hour later than when I saw it the first time and SAW THE SAME STORY AGAIN!!!
So I stormed like a pouting child to my keyboard and punished it by pounding out my feelings into “words.”
The nausea returned and the frustration boiled over. Almost lost the Cap’n!
Carl, I think that many fans in the country know that your catch belonged on a list of best catches well ahead of a catch a guy made in an All-Star Game when nothing counted and a catch a guy made in a playoff game his team lost and nobody remembers.
Who cares that it wasn’t against the biggest steroid user or for the second team in New York?
We in the oft forgotten Tampa Bay area know your catch garnered you the All-Star Game MVP this year and will help the AL team (the Rays) beat the NL team in the World Series.
We remember.
Too bad we aren’t one of the “big 5″ markets ESPN loves so much.
They probably would have pushed Willie off the list if we were–who cares about catches that really matter, right?
Da-da-duh, da-da-BLECH!
Oh No-No: Buehrle Perfect
Just to preface this post to eliminate any confusion, I started typing this while the game was in the 8th inning and things did not look good for my guys. I ran with it until the end of the game. After the game was over, I took some deep breaths, knocked my head against the wall a little bit, and typed the rest of this post. Enjoy?
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The Rays and White Sox have just completed the top of the 8th inning with Sox hurler Mark Buehrle refusing to give up a hit. Or a walk. Or a baserunner.
He has a no-no/perfect game going as they head into the bottom of the 8th and it doesn’t look good for the Rays.
They will sent Gabe Kapler, Michel Hernandez, and Jason Bartlett to the plate in the top of the 9th with the hopes of avoiding being no hit.
If the home plate umpire Eric Cooper continues to give Buehrle 5 inches off the outside part of the plate I don’t see how the Rays will be able to break up this impressive performance by Buehrle.
(Incidently, Cooper also called the no hitter that Buehrle threw against Texas in 2007, so…)
I’ll let you know how the inning progresses when we get there.
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Top of the 9th (“Live”)
Chicago has moved Podsednik to left and put Wise in center to bolster the defense for Buehrle.
I’m nervous. Here we go…
Gabe Kapler–HE GAVE IT A RIDE TO LEFT FIELD!! IT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE A HOME RUN BUT DEWAYNE WISE JUST ROBBED A HOME RUN! OH MY GAWD!!!
Michel Hernandez–just struck out.
Jason Bartlett–Ground out to SS.
Perfect Game is Done!!!!
Much respect to Mark Buehrle on the PERFECT GAME!
(Below: Buehrle with his wife and baby boy)
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Quick Game Recap
Well, now that I’ve had a few minutes to come in off the ledge and get my wits about me, I just have a few things to say about today’s game.
Mark Buehrle deserved the spoils of his labor today. He pitched an amazing game, working both sides of the plate and keeping the Rays hitters off balance. It is tough to give too many kudos to the guy, but he earned his perfect game today.
I would be remiss, however, if I ignored the fact that home plate umpire Eric Cooper was part of helping to keep the Rays off balance today. As I said earlier, Cooper was giving Buehrle (and Kazmir, by the way) 3-5 inches off the outside part of the plate. Many “strikes” were just terrible calls.
BUT
Good pitchers realize that and take advantage of that. Kazmir did not. Buehrle did. I’m not taking anything away from the ChiSox pitcher. He did what a really good pitcher such as him should do.
Good hitters also adjust. The Rays did not. They did not adjust their stances by moving closer to the plate to take away that outside edge nor did they protect against that part of the plate.
Buehrle struck out 6 Rays hitters. What was more frustrating in this game was that he induced ground ball after ground ball to Alexei Ramirez at short, meaning that the pull-happy right handed Rays hitters were trying to pull everything to the left side of the infield.
The Rays had not been no-hit since 2002 when the OTHER Sox did it to them: Boston’s Derek Lowe.
As I said in an earlier post: I HATE LOSING TO THE SOX. WHITE, RED, DOESN’T MATTER!
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Left Out
I might save this for a future post, but it is incredibly upsetting that the Rays thought they had upgraded their offense against left handed pitching in the offseason. It was their Achilles heel last year and really hurt them in the World Series against the Phillies.
So they got Gabe Kapler and Pat Burrell.
Wow, that worked.
The Rays are now 16-21 against lefties this year. Terrible.
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The Road Ain’t Gettin’ Any Easier
Tampa Bay will head to Toronto today to prepare for a weekend series against the Blue Jays. Who’s waiting for them there?
Doc Halladay.
Ordinarily I would go into the series with confidence, considering the Rays are 2-0 against him this year. But coming off a series such as this one, and a perfect game to boot, I am not as thrilled.
Then it will be the New York Yankees for 3 at the start of next week at the Trop. That is going to be a very difficult series as the Yanks have just dominated teams over the last week plus.
But it isn’t supposed to be easy. We’ll see what the Rays have got in the tank the next 6 games.
The AL East, and the Rays’ place in it, will certainly come into more focus over the next week or so.
Let’s hope the Rays won’t be left behind.
Wheels Come Off in 7th
Finally the White Sox had a closer who could end a game with little fanfare. This time it was Matt Thornton. And although the Rays tried to make it more interesting in the bottom of the 9th, they came up one hit/wild pitch short.
C’est la vie.
This time it was not the Rays who mounted a big comeback late in the game. Tonight they got a taste of their own medicine from the Sox.
Yuck.
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“Big Game” Let Down
James Shields deserved better. Once again, he turned in a gem of a performance only to have the offense fail to show up. Shields pitched 6 2/3 innings of 4-hit, 2-run baseball. He struck out 4 and had his changeup working well tonight.
However, as is the case in almost every Shields start, the offense was unable to give James more than 3 runs. He entered the game as one of the least-supported pitchers in the league, he left the game the same way.
In 9 of Shields’ 21 starts this year the Rays have score more than 3 runs. Less than half the time! In 6 of those 9 games the Rays have won and in 4 of those 6 wins the W has gone to Shields.
He has alot to complain about.
A pitcher who is 6-6 with a sub-4.00 ERA getting run support like that might need special help to deal with those issues. Easily Shields could be a 10-game winnner. Instead his record stands at .500.
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A Craptastic 7th Inning
The Rays entered the 7th with a 3-1 lead. They left it down 4-3. What happened? Tough to imagine.
The Rays used 5 pitchers total in the frame, 4 of them in relief of Shields. Three of those 5 pitchers failed to record an out! Yep, you read that right.
THREE GUYS ENTERED THE GAME IN THAT INNING AND DID NOT GET A GUY OUT.
Shields got the first two outs of the inning. Then reliable Randy Choate entered and gave up a fluke hit that All-Star SS Jason Bartlett made worse by throwing the ball into the stands. That put runners at the corners with 2 outs.
No problem, right? Wrong.
Chad Bradford entered the game. He felt a twinge in his back and had to be removed. That brought on Dan Wheeler.
“Wheels” for short.
Wheels got two quick strikes on free-swinging Alexei Ramirez. Then Dan threw strike three on the outside corner. Only problem was the umpire didn’t call it. The Rays dugout was not happy about it and clearly Wheels was rattled.
Next pitch was lined into center.
Right at BJ Upton.
Right over BJ Upton and to the wall.
It was a catchable fly, but BJ turned it into a game-tying triple. Jermaine Dye blooped a single into center to give the Sox the lead and that was how it ended.
Ugh.
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This Was Not Raysball
The Rays did not play their brand of baseball tonight. Among the things they did poorly:
1–The Rays did not hit. The offense mustered 8 hits and scored only 3 runs. Their top hitters let them down all night, culminating on a weak pop out by Evan Longoria to end the game. Pat Burrell did hit a home run, but it was not enough.
2–The Rays did not pitch. The bullpen didn’t anyway. Any time you have to use 4 pitchers to get 1 out, there is a problem.
3–The Rays did not play defense. Bartlett’s poor throw paired with Upton’s misplay spelled doom for the Rays. They gave the Sox 5 outs in a crucial inning–something you cannot do to good teams.
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The Rays will need to regroup to figure out how to score runs and get outs. Every game on this road trip has been decided by 1 or 2 runs. That says that our guys aren’t scoring runs and that it is imperative they stop other teams from scoring them. Especially late in the game.
The Rays will throw Scott Kazmir at the Sox’ Mark Buehrle. Both pitchers have had some recent success, so it is anybody’s game.
One thing is for sure. The Rays will not get the W tomorrow if they fail to show up as they did tonight.
And for a team that is currently 5 1/2 out of first place in the tough AL East, that is unacceptable.
James vs. the Rook: Anybody’s Game
Coming off their big comeback win from last night, the Rays are looking to make it two in a row tonight against the White Sox. I don’t know if I can handle any more excitement, but I’ll try.
(Self portrait as I type this)
The last two games have been amazing. The White Sox took game one 4-3 after Bobby Jenks loaded the bases with Rays and then got out of the jam. Game two was similar in that Bobby Jenks loaded the bases, but the Rays were able to score against him, tying up the series with a 3-2 win.
The Rays will send James Shields to the mound.
Shields’ record belies the solid pitching performances he has been putting forth all season long. He stands at 6-6 with a 3.74 ERA. He was beat up his last start against the Royals in the Rays’ first game after the All-Star Break.
Of course, it didn’t matter much because the Rays fought back to win that one.
The White Sox will throw rookie Carlos Torres tonight.
He is making his major league debut. John Danks was supposed to pitch but developed blisters on his pitching hand that are bothering him. They aren’t supposed to be serious, but he had to miss tonight’s game.
That might be a blessing as the Rays have never done well against Danks. He was 4-1 with a 2.67 ERA in 5 career starts against the Rays.
However, the Rays almost always play down to their opposition. The Texas Rangers threw rookie after rookie against the Rays, and they were dominated each time. The Blue Jays threw a rookie against them and they lost then too. And the Oakland A’s, after figuring out the trend, threw two rookies against the Rays. They lost 2 of 3 to the A’s.
The formula is strange, but not secret anymore.
Hopefully the Rays hitters will be ready.
It seems the Rays have been playing alot of close games lately, so look for that again tonight. If they can get over their fear of rookies, they might be able to put together a blow out.
If the rook scares them, then Shields will have to work extra hard to keep the White Sox offense at bay.
Nieman Was Dealin’; Rays Were Stealin’
This game was OVER.
Until it wasn’t.
Two nights in a row Bobby Jenks let the Rays have hope. That is one night too many. This team is built for the comeback, and boy did they.
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First, the Lineup
What was Joe Maddon thinking?
(I KNOW it’s an old picture, but it fits don’t you think?)
The Rays’ skipper put out a lineup that was missing two of its biggest hitters and filled in with bench players who do not get a whole lot of at bats.
And it worked!
To be honest, the Rays had mustered only 1 run on 4 hits up until the 9th inning. And those Rays he put into the game were able to go only 1/9, the lone hit being a single.
But Joe Dillon, Willy Aybar, and Gabe Kapler (LOVE that guy!) were able to help the defense and Jeff Nieman keep the game close until regulars Carl Crawford, Carlos Pena, and Gabe Gross entered the game in the 9th.
In the 9th, all hell broke loose for the Rays–in a good way.
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The Fateful 9th Inning
Bobby Jenks entered tonight’s game in the 9th in much the same way he entered last night’s game: he had a 1-run lead, but he was starting the inning fresh and clean.
The Rays entered the 9th inning in the same way too–LOOKING TO WIN THE BALL GAME.
He immediately gave up a rocket to Jason Bartlett.
Nice, we have some speed on board.
Jenks then “plunked” Evan Longoria (it grazed his jersey and ended up hitting the umpire with more force than Evan).
Ok, now we’ve got a guy in scoring position.
Ben Zobrist, who was looking to extend his 10-game hitting streak, did just that with a rocket up the middle.
But since it was a liner Bartlett had to stop to make sure it went through. He could not get doubled off in the 9th. So he didn’t score, but
Bags are loaded with Pat “the Bat” Burrell up.
The fans were busy booing their closer when Burrell walked to force in the game tying run.
A dramatic moment that was lost on nobody sitting on my couch (um, me).
Carlos Pena entered the game to hit for Willy Aybar and launched what looked like a patented high fly grand slam to left. Instead, it turned into a sac fly double play (Burrell drew the throw as Longo scored).
WE HAVE THE LEAD!
CC walked and promptly stole second to put runners at 2nd and 3rd.
That was when Jenks had had enough and ended the inning on a weak Gross groundball.
But the damage was done.
In typical Rays style!
Rays up 3-2. Good times!
JP Howell would enter in the bottom of the 9th to close things out. He’s not officially the closer, but he has appeared in that capacity 4 of the last 5 games. What else do we call him?
Our closer entered the game and did what he does best: SHUT. THEM. DOWN.
The White Sox managed only a weak grounder up the middle and that was that. Howell struck out 2 of the 3 batters he retired, all the while making sure pinch hitter Dwayne Wise wasn’t going to try to steal second.
The fans booed.
Let ‘em.
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Nieman the Dealin’ Demon
How’s that for a nickname?
Jeff Nieman was amazing tonight. He went 8 STRONG innings, walking NONE, giving up only 2 runs on 8 hits. He threw only 100 pitches in this outing and earned his team-leading 9th win.
This guy is making Andrew Friedman look like a genius for unloading Jason Hammel instead during spring training.
The tall Texan intimidated batters, blowing them away with his 94+ mph fastball. They couldn’t catch up to it.
Then he baffled the Sox hitters with his ankle-breaking curve. Hitters could not figure him out.
Especially Alexei Ramirez and Scott Podsednik, who both struck out twice against the Rays’ 6’10″ hurler.
This was an outing that helps guys like Nieman get out of the shadow of the other Rays super-rookie (David Price) and garner some attention for himself for Rookie of the Year honors.
He was that good.
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The Rays entered the game 15-19 against left handed pitching.
They shouldn’t have won tonight. Not with their lineup being dominated by Sox Clayton Richard.
They shouldn’t have won tonight. Not with the dominant Bobby Jenks entering the 9th with a 1-run lead (and boy oh boy was he booed tonight–not too classy Sox fans).
They shouldn’t have won tonight. Not with two of their best players gettiing most of the night off.
But the Rays DID win.
It was their best steal of the season.
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