THE GOOD: Evan Longoria and Carl Crawford are red hot. Last night they combined for 7-10 with a double, 2 home runs and 4 RBI. For CC, it was his 6th multi-hit game in his last 8 and 3rd home run in the last 3 games. For Dirtbag, he is 10 for his last 16 with 4 doubles and 3 home runs in his last 3 games. He has raised his average 24 points in 3 days to .272…The Pirates TV play-by-play guy on Eric Hinske’s 3-run home run in the 3rd. It was hit so hard, that the announcer called “second 3-run homer hit by a tampa player today” right off the bat and long before the ball landed.

THE BAD: Scott Kazmir lasted only 5 innings, needing 103 pitches. His fastball had no consistency. He was everywhere from 87-93 on the gun…Carl Crawford really is a horrible left-fielder. On Freddy Sanchez’ home run in the 4th, CC zig-zagged all over the place, looked at the wall a half-dozen times and still was afraid to reach for the ball that bounced off the top of the wall. Keep in mind that the wall is only about 7 feet tall. It could have easily been caught. And when he did jump (too late), the pocket of his glove was facing the fans in the stands. the ball would have hit the back of his glove. Good Times…Not to be outdone, BJ Upton misplayed a line drive right at him with 2 outs in the 6th. Instead of getting JP Howell out of the inning, Upton broke in on a ball hit over his head turning an out into an RBI double and getting the Pirates back within 3….PNC Park is apparently now playing the Saturday Night Live Cowbell Skit every night…

THE TELLING: Carlos Pena was back in the lineup for the first time, batting 6th. He was 0-3 with a walk and a sac fly…With Aki Iwamura set to start his suspension, Willy Aybar will get his first start at second base since 2006…The Rays maintain their 4 game lead over the A’s in the wild card race.

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

• Don’t forget to VOTE for Carl Crawford to start the all-star game. If you haven’t voted yet today, go NOW! [MLB All-Star Voting]
• Akinori Iwamura’s suspension was not reduced and Coco Crisp’s suspension was reduced from 7 games to 5…Huh wha?!? Crisp was the one that bowled over Aki. Crisp was the one that charged the mound. And he had his suspension reduced? By two games? Unfortunately Crisp will miss the upcoming Rays-Red Sox series at the Trop. We would love to see that idiot get another ball in the backside. [The Heater]
• Rays the Stakes has a very unique perspective on the Pirates series. [Rays the Stakes]
• Apparently one of the Bugs and Cranks writers hates the Rays Blogosphere. We are confused by the reasoning. [Bugs and Cranks]

Durham 7, Norfolk 3 (gm 1). Jeff Niemann picked up his 5th win in 7 decisions. He allowed 3 runs in 6 innings on only 1 hit, but he did walk 5 and struck out 4…Fernando Perez was 3-4 and scored 2 runs…Justin Ruggiano finished 2-4 with 2 RBI…Reid Brignac and Joel Guzman each went 0-4.

Norfolk 3, Durham 2 (gm2). Mike Prochaska worked 5 innings and allowed 2 runs on 9 hits…Joel Guzman and Reid Brignac were each 0-3 and in the double-header went a combined 0-14…Fernando Perez had a hit in 4 at bats.

Mobile 12, Montgomery 8. To say that Jeremy Hellickson did not have a good double-A debut would be kind. In 4.2 innings, he gave up 8 hits. 5 of those were home runs as he allowed 8 runs in all. He did not walk a batter, but only struck out 1…Rhyne Hughes had 2 doubles in 5 at bats…Chris Nowak and Erold Andrus were each 2-4. Nowak drove in 2…Gaby Martinez was 2-5 with 2 RBI.

Vero Beach 3, Sarasota 1 (13). Ryan Morse held Sarasota to 1 run in 6.2 innings on 7 hits and 2 walks. He struck out 2…Matt Fields’ 13th home run, a solo shot in the 7th tied the game…Desmond Jennings scored on a wild pick-off attempt for the go-ahead run in the 13th…Ryan Royster would later add an RBI single…Rocco Baldelli DH’d and batted second going hitless in 6 at bats. He earned the golden sombrero with 4 strike outs.

Columbus 12, Charleston 3. Jason Ragan gave up 3 runs (2 earned) in 5 innings…Stephen Vogt was 3-4 and drove in 3…Quinn Stewart had 3 hits in 5 at bats.

Staten Island 4, Hudson Valley 3. Tyree Hayes allowed 3 runs in 6 innings on 9 hits and no walks. He struck out 3…This year’s 3rd round pick, Jacob Jefferies, a catcher, was 4-4 with a double and an RBI. He is hitting .345 in his first 2 weeks as a pro.

Princeton 5, Burlington 3. In one of the stranger stat lines you will ever see, Matt Moore the Rays 8th round pick last season gave up 3 runs without allowing a hit in 5 innings. He struck out the side in the first and retired the first 8 batters he faced. However in the 4th inning, 2 errors, a walk, a hit batter and a wild pitch led to 3 unearned runs.

NOTES FROM DOWN ON THE FARM…

• Bus League Baseball runs down the recent debuts of top picks in the amateur draft including a home run by Delmon Young…what a tease. [Bus Leagues Baseball]
• This profile of Fernando Perez originally included the word “smartly” in the title. We have written before on how much it annoys us that every piece on Perez has to revolve around the fact he went to Columbia University, almost as if Perez is somehow overcame a handicap. [MiLB]

FIRST INNING…
Yesterday afternoon the Rays completed a sweep of the Marlins. You keep saying that the Rays are a long-shot to make the playoffs…Did this series do anything to change your perception?

The biggest thing we learned is that the Marlins are a fraud. There is a better chance they will finish in last place than in the playoffs. We knew that they had a number of ex-Devil Rays on the squad but it really puts emphasis on exactly how “not good” that is when seen live and in action. Jorge Cantu, Mark Hendrickson, Doug Waechter. It is like watching the 2006 Devil Rays and that is not a good thing…As for the Rays, what we learned is that they are doing what they need to do. They are beating up on lesser teams. While they still struggle at times with some of the better teams, they are beating the teams they are supposed to beat. That is the first step in proving that the Rays are not a fluke. The Rays are for real. They will be playing meaningful games in September. But we are yet to see that they can win meangingful games against the top teams in the division. There is still a big wall between the Sox-Yanks and the Rays. Taking 2 of 3 from the Sox next week will loosen us up a tad…STILL NOT A PLAYOFF BELIEVER

SECOND INNING…
Yesterday Matt Garza 1-hit the Marlins, allowing only 2 base runners and faced one over the minimum…Has Garza finally turned the corner and how good can he be?

Since his dust-up with Dioner Navarro, Garza has thrown 22 innings and given up 5 earned runs on 11 hits and 4 walks. More importantly, he had 21 strikeouts and he is finally commanding the strike zone and getting ahead of batters. This is the Garza that many thought he could be, but few thought he actually would be. It is still too early to know if this is the Garza we can get used to, but it is nice to know it is possible. As for how good he can be. Jim Hickey compared him to John Smoltz. Sounds good to us. How about the Rays ace in ’09? We have always said that Garza has the best stuff on the staff. If he has figured out how to harness that and his emotions. Garza will be the Rays #1 starter next year…RAYS ACE

THIRD INNING…
Carlos Pena and Jason Bartlett are expected back tonight and the general belief is that Ben Zobrist will be sent back down to make room…Is this the right move?

Let’s ignore the two home runs in the Marlins series. Zobrist is still a liability with the glove (2 errors on Wednesday), but he is also the only true backup shortstop the Rays have. Unfortunately Andrew Friedman and Joe Maddon have their hands tied because of Cliff Floyd. On paper, the Rays do not need Floyd, Eric Hinske and Gabe Gross. However, due to Floyd’s fragile legs and almost certain future trips to the DL, the Rays have to keep Hinske and Gross around. The Rays can’t trade Floyd. The younger players apparently love him and more importantly he is a DH-only at this point and the Rays are not about to trade Floyd to a team in the AL that is also competing for a playoff spot. So for the time being, the Rays have to keep all three. But how long can Papa Joe go with Evan Longoria as the backup at short? Eventually a move has to be made and the logical choice appears to be a trade involving Hinske (and Zobrist?) in which he is moved for a utility infielder that can play short and is considered an upgrade both offensively and defensively over Zobrist…FOR NOW

FOURTH INNING…
The rumors of CC Sabathia coming to the Rays are starting to grow louder…Is there any chance this could actually happen?

This is something the Rays fans need to get used to. Here is the formula: 1) Identify teams out of race; 2) Identify players said teams no longer want or players that are in last year of contract; 3) Identify teams still in race that would consider said player an upgrade; 4) Rank those teams based on prospects that could be traded for said player. The Rays will almost always satisfy these criteria. Just about any available player would be an upgrade over somebody on the current roster. And of course the Rays have a bucket-load of prospects, especially pitchers that could be used in trades. But for all the comparisons to other small-market teams like the A’s and Twins, the team that the Rays act most like is the Angels. Much of that is Joe Maddon’s former ties. But the Angels are also notorious for not making trade deadline deals. Instead they develop players to be kept, not traded. And as a result, they are a contender every season with many players that are home-grown. We just don’t see the Rays making a big splash at the deadline…NOT MUCH

FIFTH INNING…
Jake McGee has a torn ligament in his elbow and will likely need Tommy John surgery…How big of a blow is this for the Rays?

Losing a Jake McGee is always a big blow. This is why it is so important to have this type of depth in the minor leagues. Not because the Rays will have 8 or 9 pitchers with all-star potential competing for 5 spots. The real reason is because not all of those pitchers are going to make it to compete for those spots in the first place. Injuries happen and players dont develop they way we expect. If you follow this site you know we believe that a team needs three things in order to win: Pitching, Pitching, Pitching. And we also regularly say that there is no such thing as too much pitching. The McGee injury hurts, because it takes away some of that depth. Now there is more pressure on Wade Davis and David Price and Jeremy Hellickson. This injury also lessens the chance the Rays will be willing to part with a Davis or Hellickson in a move for Sabathia or another top player. Finally, any chance of the Rays easing up on the reigns of pitching prospects just took a hit. This injury might actually make it less likely that Price makes an appearance for the Rays in ’08…BIG

SIXTH INNING…
Evan Longoria should be the favorite for the Rookie of the Year and some are calling for a gold glove…If the Rays stay in the race, should Longoria also get consideration for MVP?

It is not without precedent. In 1975 Fred Lynn won both awards and then Ichiro won both in 2001. If the Rays stay in the playoff race, the writers will naturally look for an MVP candidate from the Rays, and if not Dirtbag, then who? The Rays don’t have a Carlos Pena this season. And even though he is only hitting .261, Longoria is on pace for more than 30 home runs and 100 RBI. Add to that his defensive ability that can actually impact games and he will certainly receive votes. Probably not any first place votes, but he should finish in the top 10, maybe the top 5 if he can get his batting average up near .300 and the Rays move ahead of the Sox in the standings…YES

SEVENTH INNING (over/unders)…
Home runs for BJ Upton: 20

Upton has already matched his ’07 stolen base total of 22, but he is well off his ’07 home run pace in which he hit 24. This season he has 5 home runs. Certainly he is capable of hitting 15 more home runs this season, but we haven’t seen any sign that it will happen. Interestingly, he should easily surpass his total doubles from a year ago (18 in ’07, 25 in ’08) and he already has more triples (2 vs 1). What is really interesting is Upton does not appear to be struggling. He is still hitting .283 and has a .401 OBP. Eventually, the balls will have to start getting a little more elevation…OVER

Games started by Jake McGee for the Tampa Bay Rays in his career: 0.5

This is all a big mystery right now. Some guys never come back from Tommy John surgery. Some guys actually come back throwing harder. And some guys come back as a completely different pitcher. McGee has going for him that he is a lefty. If he loses a few inches on his fastball he can still be a very effective pitcher, but he might not be that ace-in-waiting we have been waiting for. And then there is the idea that he may be better off moving to the bullpen full-time. And of course, he wasn’t exactly dominating double-A this season. Until we see him back and pitching well, we have to assume that he is a sunk cost at this point…UNDER

Wins for the Rays against the Pirates: 2.5

Apparently the Buccos have suffered some injuries to the rotation and as a result they have a guy making his major league debut tonight who was released by the Astros just last season. And they may have to call up somebody for tomorrow’s contest also. They do have Tom Gorzelanny on Sunday who just beat the Yankees and the Rays will have Edwin Jackson and Andy Sonnanstine throwing in this series (Scott Kazmir goes tonight), and both of those guys have struggled at times recently. Still, we have to think that momentum is on the side of the Rays and Kazmir will keep it going tonight. Papa Joe will want the Rays flying high heading into the Sox series…OVER

EIGHTH INNING…
The Rays next opponent is the Pirates who are 4 games under .500 and 11.5 games back in the NL Central…Is there a chance that the Rays will get caught looking ahead to the Red Sox series that begins on Monday?

The Pirates did just split a pair with the Yankees who were as hot as anybody recently and we can forgive the Rays if they do look ahead to a big intradivisional battle with the Sox, especially after the way things went down the last time the two teams met. But we also know that Joe Maddon is as level-headed as it comes, and after losing 2 of 3 on the road to the Astros, we have a feeling that Papa Joe will have the Rays fired up for this otherwise meaningless series…NO

NINTH INNING (putting out the fire)…
Al Reyes should return in the near future…Who is out on the pitching staff?

Troy Percival will go back on the DL and take two weeks off. When he is ready to come back, Reyes will go back on the DL. That should keep up the rest of the season…NOBODY

Some think that Percival should have been pulled in the 9th inning on Tuesday after giving up 4 walks…Are they right?

He got the save didn’t he? The closer is a position of intimidation. Joe Maddon might as well take Percy’s manhood if he is going to pull him and he didn’t even blow the save. Could you imagine Percival’s reaction? What if the Rays blew that game after pulling Percival. Think there might have been an uproar then?…NO

Most of the city council members came out in support of the waterfront stadium after the Rays decided to delay the proposal until 2010…Does this offer hope for a new stadium in 2014?

We are talking about politicians, right? How convenient that they wait until after…MEANS LITTLE

C’mon, you guys knew this was coming eventually…There is a general sense amongst some of our readers that all we do is bash the Rays media coverage. The truth is we actually admire most of the working media and respect most of their work. We just get a sense that the Rays media coverage can at times be lazy. Just because the Rays were a second-class team for many years doesn’t mean we as fans deserved second-class coverage. So while our frustration can manifest itself at times on this site, we want to know what you guys think of various members of the Rays media coverage. First up…Rays TV play-by-play announcer Dewayne Staats…

Dewayne Staats has been broadcasting baseball games for a long, long time. Over 4,000 games. His voice is distinctive and as a play-by-play guy he seems OK to us. He doesn’t really have a signature call, which is not a terrible thing. Many announcers try too hard with a signature call and end up with something ridunculous, like John Sterling of the Yankees. Every single home run call is “It is high, it is far, it is gone!” even if it is a line drive that just clears the fence. In the end all we can really ask of an announcer is that they not ruin the game for us. If they add to it, that is bonus, but we have never felt the urge to mute a Rays game in which Staats was announcing.

But of course what we really love about Staats is his perfect execution of the man-perm. The “merm”, if you will. Staats has the best man-perm since, oh…we don’t know. David Hasselhoff? The Great American Hero? Nope. We take that back. It is the greatest man-perm ever.

Anyway: Do you like the Dewayne Staats? And let’s hear your reasons in the comments…

Opinion Polls & Market Research

(click on image for larger version)

The above image is of thousands of Cownose Rays migrating off the coast of Mexico…presumably on their way to the Trop.

Now we ask you…What is more intimidating: The above image? Or the sunburst etched into the centerfield turf at the Trop?

Golden Rays photos of amazing mass migration [Telegraph]

Two years ago on Rays Index we told you about the Rays newest acquisitions, Dioner Navarro and Jae Seo.

Hall And Hendrickson Shipped To Dodgers [Rays Index]

THE GOOD: Matt Garza. Nothing we can write will give justice to just how dominating Garza was yesterday. 108 pitches, 76 for strikes. 1 hit, 1 walk. Faced only 1 over the minimum. 7 1-2-3 innings. Garza was strike-one to 19 of 28 batters (68%). On his bad days, that number is around 40% or worse…Also, we don’t won’t to overlook Evan Longoria who homered and doubled twice in his first 3 at bats.

THE BAD: Marc Lancaster deciding to blog about Matt Garza’s attempt at a no-hitter and then having Matt give up the no-hitter and the shutout, on the very next pitch. C’mon Marc. Let’s save the Live-Blogging to the professionals…

THE TELLING: This was the Rays’ 6th sweep of the season and 1st on the road…The Rays still have a 4-game lead over Oakland in the wild card. They are 4.5 up on the Twins and 5 games ahead of the Yankees. It is nice to see a 2-team bumper between the Rays and the Yankees.

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

• Don’t forget to VOTE for Carl Crawford to start the all-star game. If you haven’t voted yet today, go NOW! [MLB All-Star Voting]
• Jim Hickey says that Matt Garza is capable of pitching as he did yesterday, every time he goes to the mound. [The Heater]

“The scary thing is this guy’s capable of doing that time and time again,” Rays pitching coach Jim Hickey said. “This isn’t like some game he pitched way above and beyond what he’s capable of doing. This is something, you hear people throw out (Braves great) John Smoltz and compare him to that, and you watch him do something like that, and it’s not all that farfetched.”

• Both Carlos Pena and Jason Bartlett are expected to be in the lineup tonight. It is expected that Ben Zobrist will be sent back to Durham. [Rays Report]
• Tribe Report believes that the Brewers and the Rays are the front-runners for CC Sabathia and they give the Rays a 40% chance of landing the lefty…Of course, losing Jake McGee to Tommy John surgery is only going to make it that much harder for the Rays to trade one of their pitching prospects. [Tribe Report]
• Bugs and Cranks’ latest power rankings are up and the Rays remain at #2. [Bugs and Cranks]
• Fielder’s Choice Baseball Card Blog has a good write-up about Josh Hamilton that sums up how we have felt about the Rays former prospect…While we root for Hamilton and he is a good story on many levels. There is most certainly a part of us that is still very angry with Hamilton for letting the organization, his potential teammates and the fans down. Say what you will about the Rays not protecting Hamilton (at the time we didn’t think it was necessary), but if you are going to assign blame in this situation, Hamilton deserves far more than the Rays front office. [Fielder's Choice Baseball Blog]

Lehigh Valley 10, Durham 8. Yikes. Chris Mason got pounded for 10 runs on 13 hits and a walk in 3.2 innings. The 13 hits included 3 doubles and 2 home runs…Jon Weber went 4-5 with his 9th home run…Elliot Johnson was 1-3 with a bases-clearing triple in the 5-run 5th.

Montgomery 8, Mobile 2. David Price made his double-A debut last night. He picked up the win after allowing 2 runs in 6 innings. He struck out 7 but did walk 4, gave up 4 hits (all singles) and hit a batter. After cruising through the first 2 innings without allowing a baserunner, Price struggled with multiple baserunners in the 3rd, 4th, and 6th innings…Chris Nowak was 4-5 and drove in 3, including a 2-run home run.

Vero Beach 6, Sarasota 1. Kevin Lynn started but was pulled after just 5 outs and 1 run…John Matulia was 3-5 with 2 runs driven in. He is now hitting .351 on the year…Cesar Suarez and Ryan Royster each added 3 hits.

Charleston 6, Columbus 2 (gm 1). Jason Ragan gave up 5 runs (4 earned) in only 2 innings…Glenn Gibson pitched 4 innings in the continuation of a rain-shortened game from the day before. He allowed only 1 run on 3 hits and 2 walks. He struck out 2.

Columbus 2, Charleston 1 (gm 2). Jesse Darcy started and improved to 4-0 and lowered his ERA to 2.01 with 1 run in 6.1 innings. He struck out 4 and walked none…Maiko Loyola had 1 of the Catfish’ 3 hits and drove in 1 run. He stole his 30th base.

Hudson Valley 3, Staten Island 2.

Princeton 7, Burlington 6. Tim Beckham made his professional debut as the Princeton DH. He batted 2nd and went 1-4 with an infield single in his first at bat. He would eventually score the Rays first run.

NOTES FROM DOWN ON THE FARM…

• Jake McGee is to have Tommy John surgery on his elbow. He will be lost for at least a year and will not be 100% until 2010 at the earliest…We used to say this all the time when the Rays supposedly had too many outfielders. The Rays do not have too many starting pitchers until they have too many at the major league level. Today that supposed depth has taken a major hit. [Biscuits' Batter]
• Let us not forget that the Rays not only got Matt Garza and Jason Bartlett for Delmon Young, but they also received Eddie Morlan. Well, Morlan has been named to the World Squad and will pitch in the Futures Game during the all-star break. [Baseball America]

THE GOOD: The extra-base hits are coming more frequently for Carl Crawford. Last night CC drove in 5 with a pair of home runs. He has 5 extra-base hits in his last 7 games after only having 1 in the 10 previous games. He also has 6 multi-hit games in his last 10…Every member of the Rays batting order scored a run in the Rays’ 10-run 5th inning.

THE BAD: Using headlines like “Rays’ 10-run fifth fuels 15-3 win over Marlins” or “Rays ride power surge” or “Rays’ 10-run 5th fuels easy win over Marlins” one day after the Rays and Marlins played a carbon-neutral game. Not to mention those headlines are just unoriginal…The Rays drew 9 walks but still struck out 10 times. The Rays are 4th in the AL with 551 Ks…With Jason Bartlett away to be with his expecting wife, Ben Zobrist made the start at short, fresh off the IL disabled list. In the first two innings he made 2 errors.

THE TELLING: This was James Shields’ first win in 8 starts. Apparently he just needed a little run support…Has Ben Zobrist changed his stance since we saw him last? He is very upright, with an awkward lean that we don’t recall…The Rays now have a 4 game lead in the Wild Card race over the A’s. Their magic number is 82.

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

• Don’t forget to VOTE for Carl Crawford to start the all-star game. If you haven’t voted yet today, go NOW! [MLB All-Star Voting]
• The Rays Index Live Blog-A-Baloo of the Week will be this afternoon for the final game of the Citrus Series with the Marlins.
• We were a few days late, but we finally updated the Cork-Board in the sidebar. We now have updated rosters/lineups for Hudson Valley and Princeton. [Cork-Board]
• We realize that with so many topics in the “Pepper” feature it may be difficult to discuss just one or two in the comments. So we are now taking a selection of those topics and will start individual discussions on the RAYSHEADS Facebook page. As usual, feel free to comment on the post directly, but keep in mind that we do have the Facebook page if you want a more in depth discussion of just one of the topics. [RAYSHEADS on Facebook]
• Carlos Pena will play in a minor league game tonight for Vero Beach. [Rays Report]
• DRaysBay has an open letter to Joe Maddon questioning his move to leave Troy Percival in the game on Tuesday night…Of course Percy got the save even though he walked 4 batters. What is that old saying? “Hindsight is 20-2,000″?? [DRays Bay]
• Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com has listed Joe Maddon and Andrew Friedman as the first half’s “Best performance by a general manager and manager”. [ESPN]

Maddon creates a productive environment for young players by giving them the freedom to fail, provided their mistakes are aggressive. He’s shown he won’t back down from the Yankees or the Red Sox, no matter how daunting their mystique, and lately it seems he’s had a knack for pushing the right buttons…Friedman is building an impressive body of work with assistance from consigliere Gerry Hunsicker. With the exception of Josh Hamilton’s departure through the Rule 5 draft, it’s hard to find a blemish on his résumé. In the past year alone, Friedman has made moves to fortify the Tampa bullpen (Troy Percival), defense (shortstop Jason Bartlett), starting rotation (Garza) and bench (Gross and Willy Aybar). In Tampa these days, nobody is lamenting the departures of Delmon Young and Elijah Dukes…Three years into his tenure with Tampa Bay, Friedman’s résumé is starting to look like one giant heist fest.

• The Rays and Pirates will wear Negro League throwback unis on Saturday night. The Rays will sport the threads of the Jacksonville Redcaps. [UNIWATCH]
• We are not the only fans that are a miffed by BJ Upton’s play in the outfield recently. Rays the Stakes says Upton is the sole inhabitant of “Lazy-Town”. [Rays the Stakes]
• Bugs and Cranks calls in the experts to analyze the fuzz on Andy Sonnanstine’s face. [Bugs and Cranks]