Archive for September 24th, 2008

Sep 24

[HAPPY HOUR] Crawford Admits First Round Is ‘Iffy’

Carl Crawford, Fernando Perez, Heath Rollins, Jason Bartlett, Jeremy Hellickson, Matt Silverman, Mitch Talbot, Stuart Sternberg, Terry Francona, Victor Zambrano Cork Gaines 3 Comments »

[UPDATE: 11:32] The Red Sox beat the Indians, but the Rays overcame a first inning that saw the O’s score 5 runs before an out, to get the win. With the victory, the Rays magic number to win the division is now 1. The Angels are currently losing in the 5th inning, 4-2. An Angels loss and the Rays be 1 game behind for the best record in the AL. The Rays won the season-series with the Angels 6-3.

As we get closer to the playoffs, the links are going to start coming fast and furious…On certain days we will provide a late afternoon “Happy Hour” to try and keep the pace…

DEVIL DOGS WEBTOPIA…

  • Marc Lancaster has a quote from Terry Francona that suggests the Red Sox will concede the division. [Rays Report]
  • Carl Crawford is now ceding that he probably will not be ready for the first round of the playoffs…If there was any doubt, this should solidify Fernando Perez’ spot on the roster for the ALDS. [Rays Report]
  • Curious as to who will throw out the first pitch in the Rays home playoff games? Well, it won’t be any former members of the organization according to Matt Silverman. “MLB asked us who it’d be. We realized nobody in the history of the franchise had done anything to be worthy of the honor.”…Ouch. The truth hurts. [Washington Post]
  • Deadspin suggests Victor Zambrano. [Deadspin]
  • Outs Per Swing has an exhaustive list of candidates. [Outs Per Swing]
  • Bugs and Cranks offers 5 suggestions…We like the idea of Mr. T. [Bugs and Cranks]
  • Jason Bartlett should hire Brittany Ghiroli as his publicist. Ghiroli breaks down exactly how valuable Bartlett has been to the Rays and she does it much better than we did. [MLB]
  • MLB Trade Rumors breaks down all of playoff teams/contenders to see which teams have benefited the most from their own first-round picks. The Rays come in 4th behind the Mets, Brewers and Phillies. [MLB Trade Rumors]
  • Tampa Bay Rays Prospects has compiled a nice list of the organization’s top strikeout-to-walk ratios from this past season. The top two players are from the Venezuelan and Dominican Summer Leagues which is even below rookie league, so don’t put too much weight in those numbers. The truly impressive numbers are from Jeremy Hellickson (8.1 at high-A and AA), Heath Rollins (4.2 at high-A and AA) and Mitch Talbot (4.0 at AAA). [Tampa Bay Rays Prospects]
  • Joe Bucs Fan is not happy with Stu Sternberg for leaving the tarps on the upper deck for the first two rounds of the playoffs…For the record, MLB has final say in the World Series. If the Rays make it that far, MLB has already told the Rays to have the tarp removed. [Joe Bucs Fan]
Sep 24

[THE EVIL EMPIRE] Playing In The AL East Is Too Hard For The Yankees

Other teams envious of Rays payroll, Payroll Cork Gaines 4 Comments »

Now that the 2008 New York Yankees are officially Roadkill, Hank Steinbrenner wants everybody to know unfair baseball is.

“The biggest problem is the divisional setup in Major League Baseball,” Steinbrenner wrote. “I didn’t like it in the 1970s, and I hate it now. Baseball went to a multi-division setup to create more races, rivalries and excitement. But it isn’t fair…You see it this season, with plenty of people in the media pointing out that Joe Torre and the Dodgers are going to the playoffs while we’re not. This is by no means a knock on Torre — let me make that clear — but look at the division they’re in. If L.A. were in the AL East, it wouldn’t be in the playoff discussion. The AL East is never weak.”

Oh, where to start…

We have no idea how anybody can compare the records of two teams from different leagues. This is just idiocy. Outside of 18 interleague games, the Yankees and the Dodgers do not play the same teams. Who is to say the Dodgers wouldn’t win 110 games playing in the AL East? Or that the Yankees wouldn’t still suck if they played in the NL West?

And we are having trouble remembering the time Hank came to the defense of the Rays or the Jays or the Orioles 10 of the last 11 years when the Yankees and Red Sox, two of the biggest payrolls in baseball, were finishing 1-2 in the AL East.

Steinbrenner later pisses all over the championship won by the Cardinals in 2006.

“St. Louis winning the World Series — that was ridiculous,” Steinbrenner said. “The Cardinals won their division with 83 wins — two fewer than the Phillies, who missed the postseason…”People will say the Cardinals were the best team because they won the World Series. Well, no, they weren’t. They just got hot at the right time. They didn’t even belong in the playoffs. And neither does a team from the NL West this season.”

Apparently Steinbrenner has forgotten the Yankees 2000 World Series Championship squad that finished the regular season 87-74, 3 games behind Cleveland, who missed the postseason.

Regardless of how you feel about the divisional lineup in baseball or the unbalanced schedule, Steinbrenner should not be your voice of reason. This is the equivalent of somebody buying a $1 million Ferrari Enzo and then complaining about gas prices.

Luckily for Yankees fans, it is actually Hal Steinbrenner that runs the franchise. Hank just talks a lot.

Other things in baseball that are not fair:

  • Not getting a free pass to the playoffs with a $200 million payroll.
  • Seeing the Rays’ $44 million payroll and wondering where the extra $156 million went.
  • Having to spend $400 million of your own money on a $1.3 billion stadium.
  • Having to play the Jays, O’s and Rays 57 times each season over the last 10 years.
  • Having to trade for a $13 million player (Bobby Abreu) when another $13 million player (Gary Sheffield) goes on the DL.
  • Having to spend millions on unproven top-10 talents through international free agency (ie. Alfonso Soriano) when nobody will let you pick in the top 10 of the amateur draft.
  • Wasting $40 million on Carl Pavano and still making the playoffs 3 times.

Steinbrenner questions divisional setup [MLB]

Sep 24

[ANTI-PENNANT RACE] 3rd Annual David Price Sweepstakes

San Diego Padres, Seattle Mariners, The Anti-Pennant Race, The David Price Sweepstakes, Washington Nationals Cork Gaines No Comments »

It is time for one of our favorite annual features, the Anti-Pennant Race, the race for the worst record in baseball. The reward for the “winner” is the first pick in next year’s amateur draft. This year is extra special as it marks the first time the Tampa Bay Rays are not a contender. In fact, last season the Rays became the first team to ever be awarded with the top pick in consecutive seasons (until recently, the top pick alternated between leagues), winning the Anti-Pennant in 2006 and 2007.

In the first year of this feature (2006), David Price was the clear favorite to be the top pick. Last year, without an obvious favorite for the top pick of the 2008 draft, we decided to name this feature after the inaugural namesake.

Without further ado, we present the 3rd Annual David Price Sweepstakes and the race for the top pick in the 2008 draft!

Notes on the Anti-Pennant Race…

  • Seattle won for the first time in 13 games, but the Nationals were unable to capitalize and remain 1 game back. San Diego’s loss keeps them on life-support.
  • Only 3 teams are still alive, but right now it appears to be a 2-team race between Seattle and Washington. We just assume the top pick go to the NL, so we are rooting for Washington. Seattle is doing their best tank-job, losers of 11 straight.
  • Obviously a lot can happen between now and next season (a player could sign with Scott Boras or lose a limb or Michael Phelps could declare for the baseball draft) but here is a list of potential top picks. Back in February, Baseball America projected Kyle Gibson from Missouri to be the top pick next summer.
Sep 24

[THE HANGOVER] Rays Sweep; Yankees Are Officially Roadkill

Brian Anderson, Carl Crawford, David Price, Evan Longoria, Joe Maddon, Troy Percival Cork Gaines 3 Comments »


Click on above images to be taken to full standings, boxscores or schedule…

THE GOOD: No doubt wins. Game 1 of the double-header was just one of those ho-hum never-in-doubt wins. Even when the Rays fell behind 2-0 the game never seemed in doubt. The Rays have had a few of those this season. Not a lot, but certainly more than the first 10 years combined. In the second game of the double-header the Rays struggled for the first 7 innings with a triple-A lineup. But then Joe Maddon went into the clubhouse and woke some of the regulars, and rallied to score 6 in the 8th for the first-ever sweep of a double-header in franchise history. It should be noted that baseball no longer schedules double-headers and rainouts at the Trop are rare. We are assuming that every double-header in franchise history has been on the road [Ed. note: See comments]…According to Baseball Prospectus the odds of winning the division are now 95.5%.

THE BAD: The Red Sox beat the Indians and Cliff Lee to clinch at least a wild card. Of course, the win also eliminate the New York Yankees.

THE TELLING: The Twins beat the White Sox last night in the first game of 3 head-to-head. The win pulls the Twins within 1.5 (2 in the loss column). The Twins most likely need to win the final 2 games to have a shot at winning the division and facing the Rays in the first round…The first two games of the ALDS have sold out. Somehow, some writer is still going to find a way to criticize Rays fans…If the Rays win their final 5 games, they will finish with 100 wins.

DEVIL DOGS WEBTOPIA…

  • We have been told by the Rays that opening the Trop for road playoff games and broadcasting road playoff games on the jumbotron is “being considered.”…We suspect that they are trying to first gauge fan interest. So if you would want to watch any of the road playoff games at the Trop, we suggest contacting the team.
  • At this point it sounds like Joe Maddon is leaning towards keeping Troy Percival off the post-season roster, for at least the first round…Percival is expected to rejoin the club Thursday in Detroit. [Tampa Tribune]

“We’ll just have to make sure that he is healthy,” Maddon said. “The big thing with the role that he would play would be that he would be able to come back on back-to-back days, and he and I have already talked about that.”…The manager also said he and Percival already have had a heart-to-heart discussion about the pitcher’s status and Percival is well aware of the situation.

  • David Price’s position on the post-season roster may also depend on whether Joe Maddon believes he can pitch on back-to-back days. [St. Pete Times]
  • Carl Crawford swung a bat for the first time since surgery on his finger, hitting off a tee. He reported no pain, but admitted he will be a “little nervous” the first time he tries to swing hard. Joe Maddon says he will wait to get a full report from the trainers before predicting when CC might return. [MLB]
  • Marc Lancaster lays out a couple of scenarios for the playoff rotation that we had not previously considered…Our question: Is it really important to Joe Maddon that the pitchers stay on normal 4-days rest, or will Maddon take the opportunity to give his young arms an extra day or two before their first playoff start? [Rays Report]
  • Brian Anderson came to Spring Training hoping to revive his pitching career. Instead he blew out his elbow and retired. Now, Joe Maddon says Anderson has been “invaluable” to the team this season and is going to make a good pitching coach someday. [USA Today]
  • Evan Longoria made the Twins pitching staff his bitch, and Oh, it’s THOSE GIRLS have t-shirts to prove it. [Oh. it's THOSE GIRLS]