Nov 28
As we speculated this morning, the Astros moved quickly and have already called the Tampa Bay Rays seeking permission to interview Andrew Friedman (via Stacy Long).
The Houston Astros have “made the call” to ask the Tampa Bay Rays for permission to speak with Andrew Friedman about their vacant general manager’s position, according to Jim Bowden on SiriusXM’s Inside Pitch today. Bowden said he didn’t know what the answer was.
The Astros fired general manager Ed Wade last night.
In addition to Friedman, there is speculation that the Astros may go after Gerry Hunsicker, who was the Astros GM from 1995-2004.
Oct 12
- Off-Season (click image for random Wikipedia page)
The GBT – The Good, The Bad and The Telling sandwich, where The Bad is nice and lean and the The Telling is ripe.
Here are a few random links to get you guys caught up.
THE JUNKYARD DOGS WEBTOPIA…
- Theo Epstein is “on the cusp” of leaving the Boston Red Sox for the Chicago Cubs. [Business Insider]
- Robinson Chirinos broke a bone in his hand playing winter ball. He is expected to be sidelined for 4-6 weeks. [The Heater]
- Marc Topkin doesn’t see Gerry Hunsicker leaving the Rays for the Orioles GM position. [TampaBay.com]
- David Ortiz blamed the Red Sox collapse on teammates that didn’t care. [Business Insider]
- Bill Madden thinks contraction is coming for the Rays [NY Daily News]
- Here is an in-depth look at Matt Moore. [Seedlings to Stars]
- Want to watch the Bucs game this weekend? [Joe Bucs Fan]
Oct 11
According to Buster Olney of ESPN.com, Gerry Hunsicker is one of six candidates for the general manager position of the Baltimore Orioles.
It is not known yet if Hunsicker will interview for the position. In the past, Hunsicker, the former GM of the Houston Astros, has resisted overtures from other teams to return to the GM role. But that was when Hunsicker’s wife was suffering from a long-term battle with cancer. Now that she has passed away, Hunsicker may be more willing to become a GM again.
With the Rays, Hunsicker has served as vice president of baseball operations, but is considered one-half of the Rays’ two-headed general manager monster, alongside Andrew Friedman.
Oct 08
The GBT – The Good, The Bad and The Telling sandwich, where The Bad is nice and lean and the The Telling is ripe.
click above image for boxscore
THE GOOD: A Last Goodbye? We may have seen Carl Crawford at the Trop in a Rays uniform for the last time. And that is horribly sad for us and many Rays fans. But a very big hat-tip to those that stood and cheered CC at the end of the game. And an even bigger hat-tip to the bleacher creatures in left field for chanting his name.
THE BAD: Derek Shelton. One of the most overrated coaching jobs in sports is that of hitting coach. But this has to change. And it must start with Derek Shelton. Period…James Shields. Who would have guessed that Shields would be undone by pickoff attempts and a home run. OK, we knew the home run would happen. But Shields may have missed two pickoff opportunities in the third when he held the ball. And when he did throw the ball, it got past Ben Zobrist leading to the first run for the Rangers…Check Swings. The way things are going for the Rays, you just knew that after the umpires missed the check-swing on Michael Young, he was going to get a big hit. That big hit was a home run, figuratively ending the Rays chances and literally ending Joe Maddon’s day (he was ejected).
THE TELLING: Joe Maddon was the first manager to be ejected during a postseason game since 2005 (Tony LaRussa). Ron Gardenhire of the Twins was also ejected last night.
WHERE THEY STAND: The Rays trail the Rangers 2-0 in the best-of-5 series. Game 3 of the series will be at Texas on Saturday, 5pm.
THE JUNKYARD DOGS WEBTOPIA…
- Evan Longoria talks about the Rays bouncing back in Texas (video). [The Heater]
- Carl Crawford on the fans chanting his name: “Today was really special…It was nice for the fans to give me that and I appreciated it.” [The Heater]
- Joe Maddon on Dioner Navarro’s decision Read the rest of this entry »
Oct 04
Back in June we learned that Nolan Ryan and the Rangers had set their sights on Gerry Hunsicker to be their next General Manager. But in a recent interview with The Wall Street Journal, Hunsicker said he is happy with the Rays and doesn’t have a strong desire to be a GM again…
[Hunsicker] told the Wall Street Journal in a phone interview that he “did not have a burning passion” to be a GM again and didn’t think he would pursue any such openings this off-season…”I guess you don’t close the door on anything,” said Mr. Hunsicker, now a senior vice-president with the Tampa Bay Rays. “But to me, it would have to be a very special situation.”
Hunsicker, “Teller” to Andrew Friedman’s “Penn” (or “Silent Bob” to Friedman’s “Jay” for the younger crowd), was formerly the GM of the Astros. He went on to tell WSJ that he is happy where he is, adding that he enjoys not having “the responsibilities and pressures that go with being in the number-one chair.”
For all the credit that is bestowed upon Friedman, we have long felt that Hunsicker doesn’t get nearly as much credit as he deserves. Friedman and Hunsicker compliment each other perfectly. And we worry that the Rays would suffer if Hunsicker ever leaves.
Jul 20
Earlier today, Rays Senior VP of Baseball Operations Gerry Hunsicker appeared with “The B-Team” on Sirius Satellite Radio. Most of it is the usual Rays talking points, but here are a few telling quotes…
On whether the Rays are buyers or sellers this year: This is a year of ramped speculation. There are lots of discussions going on daily. Certainly we are buyers. We are well positioned if something presents itself to Improve the club.
On whether or not he is resigned to idea of losing Carl Crawford to free agency: In our world, when we have talented players, there is going to come a day when we can’t keep those players. And it’s not just Crawford, it is our closer Soriano and our first baseman Pena.
On whether he now just accepts BJ Upton for what he is: Read the rest of this entry »
Jun 29
THE JUNKYARD DOGS WEBTOPIA…
- Nolan Ryan and the Rangers are once again setting their sights on Gerry Hunsicker. They didn’t get him last winter. Will Hunsicker be able to say “no” again? [Houston Chronicle]
- The Red Sox will be without Victor Martinez in this series with the Rays…Dustin Pedroia is also out of the lineup. [Boston Herald]
- Gary Shelton says the Rays need more from BJ Upton than just more effort, although that would be nice. [St. Pete Times]
- Joe Henderson says Evan Longoria has now elevated himself to team leader. [Tampa Tribune]
- Joe Henderson also wonders about BJ Upton’s future with the Rays noting that his production is hurting the Rays just as much as his lack of effort. [Tampa Tribune]
- Evan Longoria’s lead in the all-star voting at third base is safe, but Carl Crawford’s lead is slipping. He is still third among outfielders, but his lead over Nelson Cruz is just 160K. Longoria is third overall in the voting. [The Heater]
- Jonah Keri offers 10 moves that will get the Rays to the playoffs. [JonahKeri.com]
- Mostly behind the “Insider” wall…Buster Olney compares Evan Longoria’s confrontation with BJ Upton to an incident involving a young Derek Jeter. [ESPN]
- Here is a close look at Rays 2009 third-round pick Todd Glaesmann. [MiLB]
DOWN ON THE FARM…
- Check out Rays Prospects for boxscores and more detailed recaps. [Rays Prospects]
- DURHAM: JJ Furmaniak’s 2-run double with 1 out in the bottom of the 9th was the game-winner. He finished 2-5 and drove in all 3 runs…Richard de los Santos pitched 7.1 innings, giving up 2 runs (1 earned)…Desmond Jennings went 3-5 with a double to raise his average to .298…
- MONTGOMERY: David Newmann surrendered 4 runs (3 earned) in 4.1 innings, striking out 5 and walking 2…Matt Sweeney was 1-4 with 3 strikeouts. In 33 games since being promoted, Sweeney is hitting .211-1-18 with a .254 OBP, 38 strikeouts and just 6 walks.
- CHARLOTTE: Chris Andujar gave 3 runs in 5 innings, walking 3 and striking out 3…The Stone Crabs managed just 2 hits, both by Anthony Scelfo…Tim Beckham went 0-4…
- BOWLING GREEN: Jason McEachern picked up his 3 win with 6.1 shutout innings…Five different Hot Rods had 2 hits including Bennett Davis who drove in 3.
- HUDSON VALLEY: Devin Fuller struck out 6 and walked none in 4 innings, but allowed 4 run on 9 hits including a 2-run home run by Cory Vaughn, son of former Devil Ray Greg Vaughn…Robby Price was 3-5 with 2 doubles.
- PRINCETON: Andrew Bellatti, the troubled prospect, made his second start, giving up just 2 unearned runs in 6 innings, striking out 5 and walking none. On the season he has allowed 1 earned run in 11.1 innings with 10 strikeouts and 2 walks…Hector Guevara went 2-4 with a pair of doubles.
May 28
The GBT – The Good, The Bad and The Telling sandwich, where The Bad is nice and lean and the The Telling is ripe.
click above image for boxscore
No GBT today. Feel free to provide your own in the comments.
THE JUNKYARD DOGS WEBTOPIA…
- Jeff Niemann talks about last night’s game (video). [The Heater]
- It looks like Pat Burrell will sign a minor league deal with the Giants. [Twitter]
- Speaking of Twitter, Her Rays has finally joined us at the cool kids table. If she can do it, we must ask, why can’t you? It’s ok, we won’t tell anybody. [Rays Index on Twitter]
- A while back we suggested that BJ Upton’s newfound love of going to the opposite field would cause pitchers to start pitching him inside. And that would allow Bossman to do what he does best, unleash his quick wrists and super-duper fast bat. Well, Steve Slowinski shows that BJ isn’t turning on that inside fastball the way he did in years past. [DRays Bay]
- Meanwhile, Fangraphs suggests that Carlos Pena has gotten too far away from his tendency to pull the ball. [Fangraphs]
- A Clearwater 4th grader got to take Ben Zobrist to school. [10 Connects]
- We thinks the Astros miss Gerry Hunsicker. [Crawfish Boxes]
- Here is an article by Paul White of USA Today about the Rays young starting pitchers. [USA Today]
DOWN ON THE FARM…
- Check out “The Rundown” from Rays Prospects for boxscores and more detailed recaps. [Rays Prospects]
- DURHAM: Aneury Rodriguez held Rochester to 1 unearned run in 5.2 innings. He struck out 4 and walked 2…Desmond Jennings was 0-2 with a pair of walks and Fernando Perez stole his 14th base.
- MONTGOMERY: Jeremy Hall tossed 8 shutout innings on 3 hits and 2 walks. He struck out 5…Nevin Ashley had 3 singles and is now hitting .352 in 25 games.
- CHARLOTTE: Tim Beckham got back to his hitting ways with a single and a double in 4 at bats…Matt Joyce had one hit, but it was a grand slam.
- BOWLING GREEN: Kyle Lobstein gave up 4 runs in 4 innings and dropped to 1-3 with a 5.91 ERA on the year…Dustin Biell had 3 hits including 2 doubles.
Jul 29
[Update] Will Carroll adds that Hunsicker did indeed turn down the offer.
Phil Wood of MASN is reporting that the Washington Nationals have contacted Gerry Hunsicker about being their GM in 2010 (thanks Tyler).
I also told them I’d heard that Gerry Hunsicker, Senior VP of baseball Operations for the Tampa Bay Rays had been contacted about the job. They’d heard the same thing…Hunsicker, formerly the GM of the Houston Astros, has been given a lot of credit for the Rays’ rapid transformation from tailender to contender. He’s largely responsible for establishing Tampa Bay’s presence in the international market…There’s no question that Hunsicker’s a sharp executive, but I’ve also heard that he’s occasionally a handful to work with…Haven’t the Nationals already experienced that in a GM?
Mike Rizzo is currently the Nationals’ “acting” GM.
This is not the first time we have heard Hunsicker’s name associated with other jobs. Last winter it was the Rangers that were said to have interest. Hunsicker, who is “Teller” to Andrew Friedman’s “Penn” (or “Silent Bob” to Friedman’s “Jay” for the younger crowd), is the quiet partner, but by all accounts just as responsible for the product seen on the FieldTurf.
If the Rays do ever lose Hunsicker, it will be a huge loss.
What’s up with Rizzo? [What's up with Rizzo]
Dec 15
Above image is of Stuart Sternberg arriving for the wedding of Florida Governor Charlie Crist (image from FragMob)
Lots o’ goodies today from Marc Topkin, so we are giving him his first-ever Topkintopia (the regular webtopia is below)…
- We reported last week that it appeared Gerry Hunsicker, “Teller” to Andrew Friedman’s “Penn” (or “Silent Bob” to Friedman’s “Jay” for the younger crowd), was staying with the Rays despite reports that other teams were interested in his services. Topkin is now confirming that Hunsicker has signed an extension to stay with the Rays saying “I’m happy here. I like what I’m doing.”
- Many think the Rays will slow-play the free agent market and take whatever is left over. Topkin warns that there is a risk as some teams could enter the market later if they lose out on their higher-priced targets.
- Topkin places odds on who will be the opening day DH for the Rays, declaring Jason Giambi the favorite at 3:1, with Milton Bradley right behind at 5:1. Willy Aybar is the highest ranked player currently in the organization at 10:1 (6th on list).
- Jonah Keri, author of “Baseball Between the Numbers”, has announced that he will write a book about the Rays and their Wall Street approach to baseball. Not surprisingly, Topkin says the Rays, who prefer to keep things close to the vest, are “neither cooperating with the project nor particularly enthused.”…Keri was interviewed recently about the book on Rays Digest.
- Matt Garza had minor foot surgery to correct an old break in his foot. The surgery makes Garza ineligible for the World Baseball Classic. There were some rumblings that Garza was being considered for the Mexican team.
DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…
- Rays Prospects projects the starting rotation for the Rays and each of their minor league affiliates. [Rays Prospects]
- If you are going to write in to the local newspaper and bitch about errors seen in their coverage of the Rays and other sports (in this case the Charlotte Sun) please make sure you don’t have your own error in the very first sentence. [Charlotte Sun]
- Behold! “The Longorious”. [Waivers and Sharks]
- Sometimes, while constructing this list, certain headlines make us do a double-take. [Harnesslink]
- Former Rays pitcher Scott Dohmann, who made 12 appearances with the Rays and 33 appearances with the Durham Bulls in 2008, is expected to sign with the Hiroshima Toyo Carp of the Central League in Japan. [Sponichi; Translated]
- Rays Digest takes a look back at the Rays busy week in Las Vegas. [Winter Meetings Rewind]
- Former Rays catcher Josh Paul will manage the Staten Island Yankees of the short-season New York-Penn League…We will always have a soft-spot for Paul because of his official team photo. Paul appeared in 93 games for the Rays in 2006 and 2007. [NY Baseball Digest]
- Despite the additions of CC Sabathia and AJ Burnett, Richard Justice says the Yankees are still just the third best team in the AL East. [Yahoo! Sports]
- Drays Bay puts together a “Bullpen Matrix” for the Rays relievers…We assume Grant Balfour is Neo and Troy Percival is Morpheus, but who is Trinity? [Drays Bay]
- Mets Fever would like to see the Mets sign Jonny Gomes. [Mets Fever]
- Tyler Hissey spoke with Dayn Perry of FoxSports.com about the Rays. [Rays Digest]
- Nothing new here, but Ken Rosenthal says the Cubs and the Rays are the two teams pursuing Milton Bradley the hardest. Rosenthal says the Rays are a better fit (patient manager, ability to DH) but wonders if the Rays will meet Bradley’s asking price…The better question is: How far down from his asking price would Bradley be willing to go to sign with the Rays? [Fox Sports]
- Rays Prospects has the winter stats updated through Friday for players in the Rays organization. [Rays Prospects]
- Tampa Bay Sports Blog explains why recent moves show that the Rays are smarter than the Yankees. [Tampa Bay Sports Blog]
- David Chalk of Bugs and Cranks keeps chugging along with his Devil Rays Advent Calendar and the all-time greatest Devil Rays. [Bugs and Cranks]
