FIRST INNING (A look back)…
Matt Joyce has been named to the opening day roster as a replacement for BJ Upton…Can Joyce impress enough to stay with the Rays, or is he automatically on his way to Durham when Upton returns from the DL?
The biggest question with Joyce is whether or not he is ready to handle left-handed pitching. If he is not, the Rays want him in the minor leagues to work on that aspect of his game. So we will know the Rays intentions the first time the Rays face a left-handed starter. If Joyce is in the lineup, the Rays at least want to see if he can handle the everyday duties. But if Joyce is on the bench and Ben Zobrist is in center field, then we know the Rays do not yet have the confidence in Joyce’s ability to hit lefties and he will be on the first flight to Durham the day Upton makes his 2009 debut…..WE’LL FIND OUT SOON
SECOND INNING (Headlines)…
The Rays appear to have three arms for two spots with Jeff Niemann, Jason Hammel and Lance Cormier…Are the Rays in a bad negotiating position with other teams knowing they have to trade one of those guys or lose one for nothing?
Yes and no. On the one hand, the Rays could just dump Cormier and keep Niemann and Hammel. But Cormier has been great this spring and the Rays are not going to want to lose Cormier and his salary for nothing in return. And other teams know that. On the other hand, there might only be two starting pitchers on the market right now and the Rays have both. And with 6-7 teams looking for an extra arm, that puts the Rays in a good position. So at this point, it depends on how well Andrew Friedman plays his cards, and dude knows how to play cards…..THE SITUATION IS DELICATE
THIRD INNING (Headlines)…
Spring training is now over…What was the most pleasant surprise of the spring?
This is a toss-up between Jason Bartlett and Carlos Hernandez. Bartlett got on base, stole bases, played great D. With questions being raised as to what the Rays can expect from Reid Brignac down the road, it would be nice to see Bartlett step his game up to a new level and help solidify the bottom of the order. As for Hernandez, we knew he looked good late last season, but that was at single-A. We figured he might not be ready to even think about jumping back to the big leagues until after the all-star break. But we wonder if he is ready to help out in the bullpen right now…..BARTLETT AND HERNANDEZ
On this date three years ago, a biology professor that was hiding from his students during office hours on opening day of the baseball season, started a blog. That Professor had little idea what he was doing as is clearly evident in his first-ever post, a post that included a Jonny Gomes home run.
But he started to find his stride later that day when he wrote about a journalist that predicted the Devil Rays to win the World Series…in 2006! That post got a lot of play on the interwebs, and there was no looking back from what was originally intended to be a practice run for a Bucs blog.
So, Happy Birthday to us!
DEVIL DOGS WEBTOPIA…
Joe Smith is reporting that BJ Upton, Jason Isringhausen, Chad Bradford and Fernando Perez will all be placed on the DL Sunday, and will be eligible to come off on April 11. There is no indication that the Rays will place Bradford or Perez on the 60-day DL at this time. Doing so, would open a spot on the 40-man roster should it be needed. [The Heater]
Troy Renck of the Denver Post says the Rockies pursuit of a starting pitcher may be focusing on Jason Hammel. [Denver Post]
Joe Henderson says the Rays have the advantage when it comes to making a deal involving Jeff Niemann or Jason Hammel. Henderson predicts Andrew Friedman will target a right-handed power bat that will be able to enter the lineup in 2-3 years…That may happen, but we don’t see World B. Friedman specifically targeting that. When it comes to the future, the Rays know that that nobody can predict what they will need in 2-3 years (same way they approach the draft). So the Rays are more likely to accept the best package regardless of what positions the player(s) play. [Tampa Tribune]
A former American Idol contestant, Antonella Barba, will sing the national anthem at the Charlotte Stone Crabs first game ever. [Antonella Barba Picture]
Ken Davidoff predicts the Rays to be one team that will be worse this year. He also looked at every AL pitcher that has started a world series game since 2004 and pitched in the AL the following season. Almost every one had a worse season the next year. Uh oh. [Newsday]
Bill Chuck of the Boston Globe has a pretty cool list of 100 random facts about the Red Sox, Yankees and the defending AL Champs, Tampa Bay Rays. [Boston Globe]
Jon Heyman offers up a few reasons why the Rays won’t “fall down” this season. [SI.com]
Yahoo! Sports has released their initial power rankings and the Rays come in at…drum roll please…#1. Red Sox are #2 and the Yankees round out the top 3. [Yahoo! Sports]
View so different from top, Maddon forced to change prescription on Clark Kent knockoffs.
We participated in a two-part round table previewing the 2009 season for the Rays over at The Rays Party. [PART 1] [PART 2]
Big League Stew previews the AL East as “The division race to end all division races.”…Seriously, last year was sweet and maybe nothing will ever be better, but man, wouldn’t it be sweet to win the AL East this season considering how much money the Yankees spent? Will people finally take the Rays seriously? Is it even possible to shut up Red Sox Nation? We are as giddy as a school girl right now. [Big League Stew]
Her Rays previews the 2009 Rays with the delicate touch of a woman. [Her Rays]
Fire Brand of the American League offers a preview of the Rays from the point of view of a Red Sox fan. [Fire Brand of the American League]
Rays of Light gets some love at the Boston Globe website. [Rays of Light]
The Rays have three pitchers competing for 2 spots. One of those spots is long reliever. Joe Smith looks at how important that role is for the Rays. [St. Pete Times]
The Associated Press contrasts the different paths Evan Longoria and BJ Upton have taken to stardom. [Fox Sports]
And once again we end with some bonus video coverage as provided by Stacy Long of the Montgomery Advertiser. This time Wade Davis is the subject (Stacy, can we get you down to Port Charlotte a little earlier next year? Who do we have to pester with emails?). [Montgomery Advertiser]
FIRST INNING (A look back)…
