Mar 03
Archive for the 'Carlos Pena' Category
Jan 30
[THE HANGOVER] The One Where We Discuss Maddon’s Deal, Joyce At First, And Rocco Being Happy
Carlos Pena, Jeremy Hellickson, Joe Maddon, Matt Joyce, Rocco Baldelli 7 Comments »
- Off-Season (click image for random Wikipedia page)
In the latest, “Joe Maddon will sign an extension soon, we swear” story, Marc Topkin reports that the two sides are closing in on a three-year extension.
THE JUNKYARD DOGS WEBTOPIA…
- Carlos Pena turned down an $8 million offer from the Indians (he took a $7.25M deal with the Rays). [Cleveland.com]
- JB Long interviewed Matt Joyce recently for Bay News 9. Admits he was not looking forward to playing first base, so he was happy the team signed Carlos Pena. [Video]
- Rocco Baldelli is happy and comfortable with the way his career ended. [HeraldNews.com]
- Here are some pics from a recent fundraising event Jeremy Hellickson attended at his high school. [Des Moines Register]
- BRaysBall Talk looks at how to survive FanFest. [BRaysBall Talk]
- Rays Colored Glasses takes a look at the history of professional baseball in the Bay Area prior to the Rays. [Part 1, Part 2]
Jan 25
[THE HANGOVER] The One Where We Discuss Pena’s Presser, Moving Ruggy, And Dickie V’s Bay Area Emotions
Carlos Pena, Dick Vitale, Ryan Theriot, Tim Beckham No Comments »
- Off-Season (click image for random Wikipedia page)
The Rays officially announced the signing of Carlos Pena [video of the press conference via Tampa Bay Times is below]. And the Rays posted billboards throughout the area welcoming El Gato back to the team.
But more importantly, as we have been speculating for weeks, Justin Ruggiano has been designated for assignment.
THE JUNKYARD DOGS WEBTOPIA…
- Ryan Theriot, whom we mentioned yesterday, would prefer to remain in the NL unless he can find a starting job in the AL. He would get occasional starts with the Rays, but he would likely have to share middle infield duties with others. [Fox Sports]
- Our old friend Dick Vitale is “crushed” by what is happening with the Bucs head coaching search. [BI Sports]
- So when Dickie V reads this, he is not going to be happy. [Joe Bucs Fan]
- New Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine commented on facing Matt Moore. [Biscuit Crumbs]
- We might have linked to this before, but here is a Q&A with Tim Beckham, who is suddenly back on the prospect radar. [MiLB]
Jan 20
According to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com, the Rays have brought back Carlos Pena on a 1-year, $7.25 million deal.
Jan 16
[THE HANGOVER] The One Where We Discuss Damon In Pinstripes, A New Bat, And Dealing For Lee
Carlos Lee, Carlos Pena, Joe Maddon, Johnny Damon 26 Comments »
- Off-Season (click image for random Wikipedia page)
Another former Rays player may be heading to a division rival. This time it is Johnny Damon. According to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports, the Yankees have spoken with Damon about being their DH.
It is interesting that Damon wasn’t even good enough to get an offer from the Rays but now he could end up with the Yankees. But it is even more telling that the Yankees newfound payroll constraints are limiting is forcing them to now look at a DH that even the Rays wouldn’t take.
THE JUNKYARD DOGS WEBTOPIA…
- Rays FanFest will be held on February 18.
- Andrew Friedman said the Rays are still looking for a bat, but that player doesn’t necessarily have to play first base. [TampaBay.com]
- Marc Topkin says an extension for Joe Maddon may not happen until the end of January because the skipper just left for a European vacation. [TampaBay.com]
- The Yankees are also reportedly interested in Read the rest of this entry »
Jan 13
[THE HANGOVER] The One Where We Discuss Maddon’s Next Deal, First Base, And Naughty Aybar
Carlos Pena, Casey Kotchman, Joe Maddon, Willy Aybar 7 Comments »
- Off-Season (click image for random Wikipedia page)
According to Marc Topkin, Joe Maddon’s contract talks are “progressing.”
Maddon is in the final year of a contract that will pay him approximately $1.3 million in 2012. And like the Rays key players, Maddon is due for a significant raise.
We have speculated previously that Maddon’s next deal will probably be similar to Joe Girardi’s 3-year, $9 million deal, which is still well-below the 10-year, $50 million contract Mike Scioscia signed with the Angels.
THE JUNKYARD DOGS WEBTOPIA…
- Jon Heyman speculates that the Rays and Indians may be competing for Carlos Pena and/or Casey Kotchman. [@JonHeymanCBS]
- Willy Aybar has finally been released from jail in the Dominican Republic after his latest arrest for domestic assault. [Dominican Today]
- We’re not sure how 15 of the 30 teams can be “winter winners,” but the Rays are one of them. [CBS Sports]
Dec 26
If you have been hanging around these parts for a while, you know that the model for this site is to tell you what the Rays have done, what they are doing and try to project what they will do based on what we have learned. Think of RI as “Tampa Bay Rays 101.”
However, for the next 12 days we will step away from the standard, and we present to you 12 “presents” the Tampa Bay Rays should give to their fans. Looking back at last year’s 12 Days of Raysmas, we see that many of our wishes came true. Many did not. If we can get a couple of more this year, the Rays might just win it all.
Without further ado…
On the first day of Raysmas, the Tampa Bay Rays gave to us, ONE $8 million bat…
Last week we heard the Rays were one of a handful of teams that was considered a serious bidder for Carlos Beltran. OK, the Rays probably weren’t even in the same ballpark as the Cardinals, who eventually signed Beltran to a two-year, $26 million deal. But it does show the Rays were willing to write a sizable check for one big bat in the lineup.
This is just a guess, but the Ray offer must have been at least Read the rest of this entry »
Dec 20
[THE HANGOVER] The One Where We Discuss Sternberg’s Comments, Pena’s Letter And The 2011 Roster
Adam Russell, Carl Crawford, Carlos Pena, Elliot Johnson, Stuart Sternberg 22 Comments »
Stuart Sternberg spoke on a number of topics including Carl Crawford (“thrilled we and he were able to put him in a position to take care of his family for generations to come”), big money in free agency this year (“it’s discouraging”) and next year’s payroll (“It’s really a question of what’s out there”).
THE JUNKYARD DOGS WEBTOPIA…
- Carlos Pena had a letter thanking Rays fans published in today’s St. Pete Times. [The Heater]
- No surprise here, but Andrew Friedman says Reid Brignac, Sean Rodriguez and Elliot Johnson will share middle-infield duties. [Twitter]
- Adam Russell, one of the relievers Read the rest of this entry »
Dec 13
How Good Are The Rays At Signing “Under-The-Radar” Free Agents?
Andrew Friedman, Carlos Pena, Pat Burrell, Troy Percival 15 Comments »Andrew Friedman and Co. are neck deep in their sixth hot stove season. We know the Rays are great at making trades. And we have a sense that they are pretty good at drafting. But how good are they at free agency?
The Rays are well-known for picking up hidden gems like Carlos Pena and Joaquin Benoit. But they have also missed terribly with guys like Pat Burrell and Troy Percival.
So let’s see if we can quantify how World B. Friedman has fared with his free agent picks.
We already saw last week, that in 2010, the Rays only received $7.1 million in production from their free agents, despite paying those players $23.8 million in salary. This was the second-straight year the Rays overpaid their free agents.
After the jump, let’s look at the totals for 2006-2010 by breaking it by every free agent signed by Friedman that spent time on the Rays active roster (plus Shinji Mori). The “Value” for each player is measured as the difference between how well they played and how much the Rays paid that player.
Dec 09
[THE HANGOVER] The One Where We Discuss Screwing The Fans, Ignorant Chicago Media And Keeping Garza
Carl Crawford, Carlos Pena, Jason Bartlett, Matt Garza 15 Comments »In case you missed it late last night, Carl Crawford agreed to a seven-year, $142 million contract with the Boston Red Sox. Yes, the Red Sox.
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Why did the Rays raise the ticket prices for an entire section by 65 percent? Was it because that section is filled with season-ticket holders who are not likely to give up their seats? If so, that is a hell of a way to treat their most loyal customers.
“Hey guys, sorry, but next season there will be no Crawford, no Pena, no Soriano, no Balfour, no Benoit and no Bartlett. Oh and by the way, we just raised your ticket prices 65%. Thanks for being a fan.”
Sometimes you have to wonder if the Rays even want fans to show up at the Trop.
Geez, it is like they are trying to get out of their lease.
THE JUNKYARD DOGS WEBTOPIA…
- Even thought Jason Bartlett confirmed the trade, there was some speculation that the trade had hit a snag. But now it is being reported as official, again. [MLB Trade Rumors]
- So somebody in the Chicago media was surprised that Carlos Pena “speaks English perfectly.” Sad. [Business Insider]
- Carlos Pena says he was disappointed Read the rest of this entry »
