Archive for November 5th, 2008

Nov 05

[2009 TAMPA BAY RAYS] Projected 2009 Tampa Bay Rays 25-Man Roster

25-man Roster Cork Gaines 8 Comments »

25-Man Roster Projection (notes and explanations on the projection can be found following the roster). You can find the 40-man roster and payroll projection HERE…


Notes on the 25-man roster projection

  • Projection is based only on players currently in the organization. The projection will be updated when players are acquired via free agency or trades.
  • Lineup: Unless a player is traded (Carl Crawford?) the only spots up for grabs are right field and DH. Right now, we suspect that there would be a rotation that involves Fernando Perez and Gabe Gross with Willy Aybar and Ben Zobrist seeing time in one or both spots. More likely, one or both spots will be filled through free agency and/or trades. If Crawford is traded, Rays save almost $8 million and Perez would then be the left fielder.
  • Bench: Unless Willy Aybar is traded, he and and Shawn Riggans appear to be locks. Ben Zobrist is pretty close to being a lock as the backup middle infielder. Jonny Gomes is far from secure. The Rays used their final minor league option on Gomes in ’08. This spot seems destined to belong to Rocco Baldelli. If the Rays can’t find a trade partner for Gomes, they will likely decline to offer arbitration.
  • Rotation: Here is where it starts to get messy. The top 3 are locks. The 4th spot belongs to David Price but it might not happen right out of the gate. We give Andy Sonnanstine the nod over Edwin Jackson for the 5th spot, but we would not be surprised if it goes the other way. It could also be Sonny and Jackson with Price in the minors for a couple of weeks. Can anybody make an argument for Jeff Niemann?
  • Bullpen: Four of the spots are locks. A fifth, Troy Percival, is a lock if he does not retire. That leaves two openings. One will go to a long reliever. Edwin Jackson, Jeff Niemann and Jason Hammel are all out of minor league options, and one figures to be the long reliever. The other spot will most likely go to a lefty specialist acquired either through free agency or via trade. At least one trade has to be made this off-season. There are just not enough chairs for when the music stops. Can you argue for Hammel on the roster? Should the Rays keep Sonny and trade Jackson and Niemann and keep Hammel in the ‘pen? Or should the Rays trade Sonnanstine, whose value may never be higher? There are several possibilities here, and a Percival retirement only makes this mess even more muddied.
Nov 05

[2009 TAMPA BAY RAYS] Projected 2009 Tampa Bay Rays 40-Man Roster And Payroll

40-man Roster Cork Gaines 4 Comments »

40-Man Roster Projection (notes and explanations on the projection can be found following the roster). We will be back later today with the 25-man roster projection…


Notes on the 40-man roster projection

  • Ages are as of today
  • Shaded players are projected to be on the 40-man roster, but not on the 25-man roster
  • Italicized players are currently on the 40-man roster but are not projected to be on the roster in ’09
  • Several players in the minors will be eligible for the Rule 5 draft for the first time this winter and either need to be added to the 40-man roster or risk being selected by another organization. This list includes Jake McGee, Wade Davis, Chris Mason, Eddie Morlan, Ryan Royster and Mike Wlodarczyk. McGee, Davis, and Morlan appear to be locks. We can’t see the Rays protecting the others although there are spots available. Most likely, those spots will go to free agents and/or players obtained via trades. Is there anybody in the minors that needs protecting that we are forgetting about? Let us know in the comments.
  • The Rays have 7 players that will be arbitration-eligible following this season. Salaries for 6 of those players are guestimations at this point. Anybody you think we are way off on? We are projecting that the other arbitration-eligible player, Dan Johnson, will not be offered arbitration by the Rays. It also would not surprise us if the Rays decline to offer arbitration to Gomes. The latter is more likely if the Rays resign Rocco Baldelli to an incentive-laden contract.
  • The opening day payroll projects to be $54.5 million, but will certainly go up with free agent signings (right field) and any additional long-term contracts given to young players (Upton, Garza, Navarro). Of course, there are places where the Rays can save money, if they choose to trade a player like Carl Crawford or Scott Kazmir. Keep in mind, it is the Rays M.O. to trade a player a year too early, rather than a year too late.
  • Jason Hammel and Jae Kuk Ryu are also out of minor league options and we do not see a spot for them on the 25-man roster.
Nov 05

[THE HANGOVER] Rays Kicking The Tires On Aaron Heilman

Aaron Heilman, Edwin Jackson, Jonny Gomes Cork Gaines 12 Comments »

DEVIL DOGS WEBTOPIA…

  • Ken Davidoff of Newsday is reporting that the Rays have some interest in the Mets’ Aaron Heilman…Heilman scares us because we think there is still a part of Heilman that wants to be a starting pitcher even though the Mets have kept in the bullpen the last 4 seasons. [MLB Trade Rumors]
  • Mets Fever wonders if the Mets could swing a deal with the Rays in which Aaron Heilman and Edwin Jackson are the main pieces. If the price is too high, they wouldn’t mind Heilman for Jonny Gomes, noting that “Heilman absolutely has to be moved, [they] don’t think he can succeed [with the Mets] and needs a change of scenery.” [Mets Fever]
  • A tale of two fans that roadtripped from Bloomington, Indiana to St. Pete for game 2 of the World Series. [Sixty Feet, Six Inches]
  • Creative Loafing takes a look at the impact of the Rays World Series run on the chances of gaining support for a new stadium. They feel that the increased support for the Rays may actually hurt their chances. [Creative Loafing]