Archive for March 5th, 2008

Mar 05

[FERNANDO PEREZ] Rays Prospect Overcomes Handicap

David Eckstein, Fernando Perez, FireJoeMorgan.com Cork Gaines 8 Comments »

For those of you that are regular readers of Fire Joe Morgan, it is apparently impossible for a journalist to write an article about David Eckstein without mentioning that he is only 4’2″ tall. These journalists are also required to mention that despite being so small, Eckstein’s heart is the size of a Winnebago and he has used said heart and grittiness to overcome his dwarfism to will his teams to victory.

Well, if recent articles written by Rays’ journalists are any indication, the Rays may one day have their own “David Eckstein”. That is, a player that is able to overcome a deficiency, beat the odds and become a major league baseball player.

His name is Fernando Perez.

Perez has managed to become one of the Rays’ top prospects, despite being, well, you know…smart. If you are unaware, Perez attended Columbia University, which is enough to automatically label you as one of the smartest people on the planet.

From the St. Pete Times:

For Fernando Perez, the road to pro baseball was paved in an unlikely place.

This is not because there is an absence of smart baseball players. It is because Ivy League universities don’t offer sports scholarships. Not many high school kids and their families are going to turn down a free-ride from other schools which are nearly, if not just as good.

From the Bradenton Herald:

For a seventh-round draft pick with impressive minor league credentials, Perez certainly strayed from the path most taken by minor league prospects while on his way to the Tampa Bay Rays…Columbia is known for churning out American presidents and Supreme Court Justices and Nobel Prize winners. But switch-hitting center fielders?

Maybe not switch-hitting center fielders, but Columbia has just as many hall of fame baseball players (Lou Gehrig, Sandy Koufax) as US Presidents (Franklin Roosevelt, Teddy Roosevelt). Oh yeah, and did you know that Perez strayed from the path most taken by minor league prospects?

From MLB.com:

Labeling Fernando Perez as the Rays’ “erudite outfielder” sounds like stereotyping. Then again, how many players have majored in american cultural studies and creative writing at Columbia University en route to their professional baseball careers?…No, Perez is not your typical ballplayer, or typical person you meet in any walk of life.

Does Bill Chastain stray from the path most taken by other journalists that profile Fernando Perez? Only in the sense that Chastain feels the need to use the word “erudite” to show the readers that his vocabulary is just as big as this stuck-up smart baseball player from an Ivy League school.

That is three articles in the past month for a prospect that has never played a game above AA. If BJ Upton is moved to right field in 2009 or 2010 and Perez becomes the everyday center fielder for the Rays and the Rays are a playoff contender…As Rays fans we need to brace ourselves for what will certainly be 1.6 kazillion million articles telling us how Fernando Perez overcame his abnormally large brain to become a major league baseball player. Hopefully by that time, David Eckstein will have retired and the boys at FJM can refocus their attention to the authors of those journalistic piles of poo.

Mar 05

[RI CONFIDENCE GRAPH] The Rays Index Confidence Graph: 4 Weeks Until Opening Day

Confidence graph Cork Gaines No Comments »

The Rays Confidence Graph will appear every Wednesday and is a look at how much confidence Rays fans have in the Tampa Bay Rays. The graph is designed to give us a look at how our emotional bias as Rays fans fluctuates through time. The “confidence” in the team is an inexact measure of how fans feel about the team’s current strength as well as how much confidence fans have in the franchise for the next 3-4 years. Notes on this weeks agida-level can be found after the graph..

Notes on the RI Confidence Graph…

  • The most common response for “Confidence in 2008 Rays” was 7 (If things break right, they could be in race for playoffs) with 50.5%
  • The most common response for “Confidence in future of franchise” was 9 with 31.9%.
  • Confidence in the 2008 Rays ranged from 3 (Headed for another 90-loss season) to 10 (The Rays are built/playing like a World Series contender)
  • Confidence in the future ranged from 6-10.
  • 72.1% of respondents feel the Rays have a shot at the playoffs in 2008
  • 97.8% of respondents feel the Rays should be at least a .500 team in 2008
Mar 05

[EVAN LONGORIA] Dirtbag-O-Meter: 26 Days Until Opening Day

Dirtbag-O-Meter, Evan Longoria Cork Gaines 1 Comment »

We call him The Dirtbag because of how he plays and because he played college ball at Long Beach State whose baseball team has the coolest mascot in sports…The Dirtbags.

The biggest question mark for the Tampa Bay Rays in Spring Training is whether or not Evan Longoria will be named the opening day third baseman. Manager Joe Maddon has repeatedly stated that the decision will be based less on his stats, and more on how the 22-year old handles himself on a day-to-day basis and how well The Dirtbag adjusts to everyday life as a major leaguer. From now until the Rays announce a decision on Longoria’s fate, we will track The Dirtbag’s progress through his numbers, our own observations and quotes from Maddon and Andrew Friedman…

Notes on the Dirtbag-O-Meter…

Yesterday at the plate: DNP.

Quotes: “It’s important that we get it right, he’s a very important part of our nucleus going forward and we’ll figure it out.” – Andrew Friedman. “You know, I guess it’s a good kind of pressure. You know, a lot of us, pretty much all of the professional baseball players who thrive on that kind of environment and that kind of pressure so it helps out a little bit.” – Evan Longoria.

Summary: Two straight DNPs after yesterdays rainout and he is not in the starting lineup today. Longoria has not started three of last four games. That takes The Dirtbag down one notch.

Mar 05

[THE HANGOVER] Joe Maddon Sees A Different Edwin Jackson This Spring

Andy Sonnanstine, Ben Zobrist, Brian Anderson, David Price, Edwin Jackson, Jason Hammel, Joe Maddon, Reid Brignac, Shawn Riggans, Willy Aybar Cork Gaines No Comments »

Tampa Bay Rays (26 days until Opening Day)

Yesterday: Tampa Bay Rays vs Twins. Canceled due to rain. Prior to being called, Edwin Jackson pitched three scoreless innings, allowing 3 hits, striking out 1 and walking none. Jackson has now pitched 5 scoreless innings and has yet to walk a batter. Rocco Baldelli DH’s (again) going 0-2 with two flyouts.

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

  • Joe Maddon admits that good starts in the spring are not unusual for Edwin Jackson, but he feels that Jackson is different this time. At this point it is going to take a lot for anybody to wrestle the rotation openings from Jackson and Andy Sonnanstine. [USA Today]

“Edwin’s normally had good springs. I just think the difference for me is just his demeanor on the mound. The word ‘composed’ stands out right now,” Maddon said. “We talk a lot about when a guy feels he belongs somewhere. I think he’s arriving at that point. Even the way he’s carrying himself in the clubhouse, to me, has gotten better. … I’d like to see him continue to mature in that way because this guy’s got a very, very good arm.”

  • Reid Brignac was scheduled to make his spring debut yesterday. David Price and Brian Anderson are scheduled to make their first appearances on Saturday. [Rays Report]
  • Andy Sonnanstine is battling an ear infection. [The Heater]
  • When the Rays traded for Willy Aybar, the local media thought he was the super-utility player the Rays were seeking. At the time we questioned that assumption as Aybar, a third baseman, had only limited experience at second base and had never played elsewhere. Well, it turns out the Rays super-duper-utility guy was in-house all along. Joe Maddon thinks Ben Zobrist can be that guy. [Tampa Bay Rays]

“We’re kind of breeding one with Zoey,” Maddon said. “He likes it and has embraced it. We’ll see how that goes.”

  • Shawn Riggans is hungry to get back to the big leagues. Joe Maddon sees a different more confident Riggans this spring. [Bradenton Herald]

“He’s a lot more comfortable in his own skin,” Maddon said. “He’s calmed down a little bit. I think he’s arriving at the stage where he thinks he belongs. I don’t know if he would admit this, but I think last year he was just happy to be here and in that survival mode.”

  • Jason Hammel will make the start today. Evan Longoria and Rocco Baldelli are both not in the lineup. [Rays Report]