Last week’s Rays Confidence Graph results.
Below you will see two polls that ask about your confidence in the Tampa Bay Rays. Please take a moment to answer each question. We will present these same polls every Monday. The results will be presented in graphical form on Wednesday, and will be displayed permanently in the sidebar. The goal of the Confidence Graph is to get a feeling of how Rays fans feel about the team and the franchise and track how that level of confidence changes through time. Thanks!
Raysiverse events of the past week that could impact confidence levels…
- Scott Kazmir had to be shut down with shoulder stiffness. Injury does not look serious, but may force Kid K to miss opening day. Suddenly everbody realizes that if somebody like Kaz or James Shields missed any significant time in 2008, the Rays would be in trouble.
- Evan Longoria is relishing the opportunity and taking advantage.
- Joe Maddon promised a shorter leash this year. But didn’t he make the same promise last year?
- Akinori Iwamura appears to progressing well at second base.
- No surprise here…Rocco Baldelli was to have played the outfield but has has been limited to DH and Bench so far.
- BJ Upton graced the cover of ESPN:The Magazine, showing that the Rays may actually be shedding their loser image.
- Edwin Jackson looked solid in his first spring start. Jeff Niemann did not.
1 Comment
As per my comment in the weekend poll regarding Maddon, it is entirely possible to read the quotations last year and this year as referring to different issues. In fact, given the context of his answer to the question this year, I think it definitely is.
Last year, the “shorter leash” referred to comportment and discipline. He was anticipating some maturity on the part of the players and was going to toughen his clubhouse discipline.
This year it refers to playing time and status on the team. While last year he was willing to give players lots of time to prove themselves, accepting failures if he saw progress or attention to correcting problems, this year, with more emphasis on winning now, he will pull players from their roles more quickly. The leash is shorter in terms of results more than conduct.