Mar 06
Long before Joe Maddon became the fourth manager in the short history of the Tampa Bay Rays, Lil’ Joe was a bright-eyed two-sport athlete at Lafayette College.
Click on any image to see a larger version…
Maddon attended Lafayette from 1972-1976, where he was originally recruited as a football player. Manager Norm Gigon eventually converted Maddon to catcher.
He would eventually sign with the Angels. He spent two years in the Angels minor league system, where he hit .257-2-23 in 62 career games before giving up the dream to be a major league player in hopes of one day becoming a major league manager.
But let’s face it…we don’t care about his stats. We just love the photos. Nice hair Papa Joe! And love the stirrups. Why can’t we get some of those on the kids these days? And does anybody else see a little Pete Rose in the photo above where Maddon is being congratulated by #19? The smile. The hair. The pudginess. And I am willing to bet that Maddon always ran to first when he received a walk.
In the team photo (below, right), we are not convinced that #22 is Joe Maddon. This is the team photo that was provided by Lefayette College and their archive department. #22 is the number worn by Maddon in the other photos. Notice that the numbers on the front of the uniforms in the team photo are on the right side of the chest, which is the opposite of the other photos. Clearly this is a team photo from a different season. We are not sure if any of the players in the team photo are Maddon.
Special thanks to the Lafayette College Athletic Department for providing the photos.
Mar 06
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: Pinch-hit for Cliff Floyd, and walked in his only plate appearance. He was later replaced by Eric Hinske and did not see action in the field.
Quotes: none reported
Summary: Longoria is officially 2-5 with 4 walks (he was also 0-2 in one rainout). Willy Aybar has 13 plate appearances in the spring to Longoria’s 11. Aybar has played 18 innings in the field while Longoria has logged only 12 innings. This knocks The Dirtbag down one notch and if this pace keeps up for the next couple of days, the odds might fall below 50%.
Mar 06
Tampa Bay Rays (25 days until Opening Day)
Yesterday: Houston 8, Tampa Bay Rays 4. Jason Hammel started. He worked three innings, allowing 2 runs (1 earned) on 4 hits, but did not walk a batter. Reid Brignac made his first spring appearance going 0-2. Scott Dohmann’s shot at a bullpen spot took a hit after allowing 4 runs in 1 inning on 4 hits and a walk. Ben Zobrist started at shot and moved to first base later in the game. He was 2-4 with a walk and a stolen base. Willy Aybar started at third base, with Evan Longoria and Eric Hinske pinch-hitting.
DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…
- In an unusual move for a spring training game, Carl Crawford plowed through the Astros catcher yesterday rather than slide into home where BJ Upton’s bat was still laying. The move was well received in the dugout and the team’s response goes a long ways towards showing that their is a different attitude in the Rays’ dugout these days. Joe Maddon said “It was nice to see Carl come at him hard…I liked it a lot. … It was a good, hard play.” BJ Upton added “We’re just trying to set the tone early…We’re trying to do some things different this year, and I think we’re just kind of letting guys know that we’re serious about the season.” [Tampa Tribune]
- Yesterday we mentioned that Ben Zobrist was being groomed to be the Rays’ Swiss Army Knife (AKA super-utility player). Yesterday, Zobrist received playing time at first base. He has already played every infield position this spring and will see time in the outfield today. All of the extra work in the field has not hurt his bat so far. In 5 games, Zobrist is 6-14 (.429) with 3 walks (.529 OBP). [St. Pete Times]
As strictly a shortstop, Zobrist, wouldn’t make the team with Jason Bartlett aboard. But with the versatility of playing seven positions (and being a switch-hitter), Zobrist appears the odds-on favorite for a spot…”Zoey’s looked good,” Maddon said. “He’s working his butt off. Zoey wants to be on this team, and I’ve really been paying attention to that. He’s going about it right. He’s done a nice job.”
- Scott Kazmir has begun throwing and Joe Maddon said he does not know when Rocco Baldelli will make an appearance in the outfield. [Rays Report]
- Troy Percival will make his spring debut today. Apparently his role as team leader also includes team “policeman”. [Tampa Bay Rays]
“Troy, he’s going to get on guys,” said Brian Anderson, who refers to Percival as the club policeman. “A lot of these guys haven’t pitched through the grind of a [Major League] season.”
- Brian Anderson is not nervous about making his second comeback from Tommy John surgery even though he has not pitched in the majors since 2005. Anderson says if he is not in the majors by July he will retire. But his comeback has progressed faster than anybody thought and Joe Maddon would not rule out Anderson making the roster out of spring training as a reliever or in the rotation…Huh, wha? That seems like a bit of a stretch. [Bradenton Herald]
- Joe Maddon discusses Dioner Navarro’s base running skills…Seriously…Isn’t base”running” a bit of a misnomer with Navi? Shouldn’t it be “Base-Rumbling”? [Tampa Bay Rays]
“He’s a good baserunner, I’m telling you,” said Maddon. “He’s aggressive and he’s not afraid to take the chance.”
- The Bradenton Herald profiles Edwin Jackson. A bowler, Jackson bowls left-handed to save his pitching arm. [Bradenton Herald]
- Rays Anatomy projects the Rays 25-man roster. Only differences from ours is they have Willy Aybar at third and Eric Hinske on the bench (no sign of Joel Guzman). In the ‘pen they give the last spot to Grant Balfour. [Rays Anatomy]
- Troy Tulowitzki, last years runner-up for NL Rookie-of-the-Year is a former teammate of Evan Longoria at Long Beach State. Tulowitzki was so impressed with Longoria, that he is now a big fan, and speculates on how his fellow Dirtbag will adjust to the big leagues. [Denver Post]
“He has a amazing baseball knowledge and maturity, even at a young age,’’ Tulowitzki said today. “He won’t get caught up in the hype.’’ Tulowitzki and Longoria, a third baseman, were teammates for one season at Long Beach State. The Rockies nearly selected Longoria two years ago, but decided the night before the draft to take pitcher Greg Reynolds. Longoria is known for his offensive prowess, impressing scouts with his ability to turn on an inside pitch. “He has some of the quickest hands I’ve ever seen. I have no doubt that he will hit (in the big leagues),’’ Tulowitzki said.
- FoxSports.com has their Rays preview up. [Fox Sports]
- Bugs & Cranks continues their team previews by comparing every team to the Devil Rays in their “Your Team Ain’t $#!t Compared To The Devil Rays” series. They are up to #10 (Nationals; starting with the worst teams) and so far the arguments are believable. How much longer can they keep it up? [Bugs & Cranks]
- Chuck LaMar will attend his first Rays game since being fired by the Rays in 2005, as a scout for the Phillies. LaMar feels that people will start to notice in the next year or two the kind of players that he put together for the Rays and reminisces about giving his “heart and soul” to the Rays for ten years. [Philadelphia Daily News]
- Fantasy Scope Baseball takes a look at recent teams that have shown a significant increase in win-totals from one season to the next and doubts that the Rays can join that group. [Fantasy Scope Baseball]
