Oct 04
Archive for the 'Julianna Zobrist' Category
Feb 20
Feb 13
[THE HANGOVER] The One Where We Discuss The Zobrists (Again), Dirtbag On Zim And Some New Spring Invites
Angel Chavez, Ben Zobrist, Don Zimmer, Evan Longoria, JJ Furmaniak, Julianna Zobrist 1 Comment »
Ben Zobrist and his wife Julianna are on Twitter (@TheZobrists), although it appears that most (all?) of the tweets are from Julianna. So now you can follow the real-life Jimmy and Milly. And yes, that pic to the right is from their Twitter account. Poor child.
DEVIL DOGS WEBTOPIA…
- BJ Upton had his arbitration hearing yesterday. A decision is expected today.
- Here is a recap from the dinner that honored Don Zimmer last night. In the piece, Evan Longoria talks about his relationship with Zim. [TheDay.com]
- The Rays signed infielders Angel Chavez and JJ Furmaniak to minor league deals and invited them to spring training. Chavez spent the last three years in triple-A for three different organizations and played 10 games with the Giants in 2005. Most recently he was in the Red Sox system, where he hit .253/.282/.333 in 127 games. While mostly a SS, he has also played 3B and 2B. Furmaniak, another SS that has seen time at 2B and 3B was with the Phillies triple-A club last year where he hit .230/.276/.333. He played 13 games with the Pirates in 2005 and 16 games with the A’s in 2007. He spent the 2008 season in Japan.
- In addition, the Rays have also invited Craig Albernaz, Nevin Ashley, Tim Beckham and Heath Rollins to Spring Training with the big boys.
- Roger Mooney has the Rays spring radio schedule which includes 19 of the Rays 32 spring games. We assume that these games will also be available through MLB.tv. [Rays Report]
- Roger Mooney also has all the info you need for next weekend’s FanFest. [Rays Report]
Feb 12
Ben And Julianna Zobrist Talk About Their 2010 Goals (Video)
Ben Zobrist, Bull Durham, Julianna Zobrist 7 Comments »After his recent Wiffle Ball outing, Ben Zobrist sat down with his wife Julianna for an interview.
It is hard to watch this video and not think Ben and Julianna are the real-life version of Jimmy and Milly from “Bull Durham.” More importantly, fast forward to the 3:00 mark where Zorilla talks about long-term deals and spending the rest of his career with the Rays.
Jul 10
[THE HANGOVER] The One Where We Discuss Price’s Rebound, Balfour’s Rebound And Hoping Halladay Stays In The East
Akinori Iwamura, Carl Crawford, Carlos Pena, David Price, Julianna Zobrist 27 Comments »
Time to bring back 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: David Price. After the worst start of his career, he rebounded with maybe his best, striking out 7 and walking just 1, outdueling one of the best…Grant Balfour. The Mad Australian rebounded from his worst outing of the past 2 months to record one of his best. Balfour came in and closed the door on the Jays in the 7th, entering with the bases loaded and just 1 out. He got a line out and a flyout to get out of it…‘Los! He may not be an all-star, but he had the biggest hit yesterday, a 2-run double in the 5th to give the Rays the lead…Hallawho? Doc Halladay is now 10-3 on the year, but he is 0-2 against the Rays. Maybe we shouldn’t be worried about him being traded to the Red Sox or Yankees…Carl Crawford. We don’t care how well Dan Wheeler is pitching (only given up a run in 1 of his last 24 outings), we will always be nervous when he comes into the game in the 9th with the game on the line. And yesterday he would have put the leadoff hitter on second base, but Carl Crawford ran down the flyball to save Dan’s heiny.
THE BAD: Pat the Bat? Every starter got a basehit for the Rays except *drumroll please* Pat Burrell! Who also left 5 runners on base.
THE TELLING: Gabe Gross batted 7th, which means the 3rd leading hitter in the AL, Jason Bartlett was batting 8th. That my friends, is a deep and balanced lineup…Yesterday’s game was delayed for 20 minutes in the 7th inning after lightning strike in the area caused some of the lights to go out…Carl Crawford is just the 4th player in big league history with 100 hits and 40 steals prior to the All-Star break.
SUNBURST PLAYER OF THE GAME: David Price
DEVIL DOGS WEBTOPIA…
- Carlos Pena will not be joining his 4 teammates in St. Louis for the All-Star game, finishing 4th in the final vote. [The Heater]
- Aki Iwamura was on the field before the game playing catch. [Tampa Tribune]
- David Price did not look at any scouting reports prior to the game. He went back to the basics and it worked. [Tampa Tribune]
- The Rays Party breaks down David Price’s latest start. [The Rays Party]
- John Romano discusses the power of the stolen base and the efficiency of the Rays on the base paths. [The Point After]
- The Rays, er Devil Rays, hold the record for largest signing bonus ever given to an international free agent. That would be the $7 million they gave Rolando Arrojo. Peter Gammons also reports that he once possessed Cuban baseball cards that listed a much different age for Arrojo than the one listed with MLB. [ESPN]
- Gabe Kapler is feast or famine, but when he hits the ball, he gets his money’s worth. [The Rays Party]
- Trop Talk wonders if it is time for Scott Kazmir to go. [Trop Talk]
- Rise of the Rays takes a look at what Jonny Gomes has been up to. [Rise of the Rays]
- David Chalk is slowly inching his way to the top of his Top 177 Devil Rays ever list. This week it is #72-69. [Bugs and Cranks]
- Michelle Bearden writes about Julianna Zobrist’s recent appearance at The Trop. [Tampa Tribune]
Jun 25
[THE HANGOVER] The One Where We Discuss Hustle, Lollygagging And Dirtbag’s Hammy
Evan Longoria, Jason Bartlett, Julianna Zobrist, Pat Burrell 16 Comments »
Time to bring back 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: Matt Garza. He walked 3 and hit a batter, but didn’t allow a hit until the 5th and lasted 8 innings (117 pitches), giving the bullpen the night off…Pat Burrell. They say Pat Burrell is streaky. He hit his second home run of the season to start the scoring. Let’s see if he gets hot…Hustle. With the bases loaded and 2 outs inthe 8th and the score 2-1, Jimmy Rollins sat back and waited for a routine groundball and Ben Zobrist beat the throw to second base, allowing a run to score and extending an inning in which the Rays would score 5.
THE BAD: Upton Is Fast? How does BJ Upton get thrown out at home by Matt Stairs. We don’t care if Stairs caught the ball standing on second base and there was a Mack truck blocking home plate. No way BJ should ever be thrown out at home with his speed…Lollygagging. Carl Crawford was out at third going for a triple after not running hard between home and first and later BJ Upton was lucky to make it to second on a double after doing the same thing…Joe Blanton? After Pat Burrell’s home run, Joe Blanton retired 11 of the next 13 and at one point struck out 5 of 6 batters. Twice in the game, Blanton struck out the side, and finished the game with 10. It was only the second time this season Blanton struck out more than 7…Longo’s Hammy. Evan Longoria was pulled from the game in the 8th after feeling a “twinge” in the same hamstring that sidelined him a couple of weeks ago.
THE TELLING: Jason Bartlett tied the Rays team record by extending his hitting streak to 18 games…The Phillies closer, Brad Lidge, is expected to come off the DL in time for tonight’s game.
SUNBURST PLAYER OF THE GAME: Pat Burrell. If The Bat gets hot, the Rays could be unstoppable offensively.
DEVIL DOGS WEBTOPIA…
- Evan Longoria says the hamstring issue is not as bad as it was earlier this month and hopes to play today. He also notes that his hamstring hasn’t been 100% since coming back…We would be surprised if Dirtbag is in the lineup today, and it wouldn’t surprise us to see the Rays shut him down for a handful of games to make sure the hammy heals completely this time. [The Heater]
- Jon Heyman says the Rays are indeed interested in trading for a closer but that they cannot add payroll, calling it a “tough task.” [SI.com]
- Marc Topkin looks at the different options the Rays have with the rotation with a decision looming. [St. Pete Times]
- Rob Neyer asks a good question: Why were the Devil Rays able to draw so many fans in 1998 (7th in attendance) and 1999 (10th) but can’t in 2009 (24th)? In other words, why was the novelty of a new team more attractive than the defending AL Champs and with all of the excuses being tossed about, why were fans able to overcome those back then? [ESPN]
- The Rays Party offers a simple solution: Lower the ticket prices…The problem with that is that it alienates the Rays most important fans, the season ticket holders that have already paid a certain amount for the same seats. Those people would demand a refund. [The Rays Party]
- The Rays Party addresses whether Ben Zobrist is more valuable as a utility player…We are still waiting for somebody to explain what the difference is between a utility player and a super utility player. [The Rays Party]
- Julianna Zobrist was sing the national anthem tonight. [MLB]
Feb 14
ZZ TopThat enormous head belongs to Zion Benjamin Zobrist, the first child of Ben Zobrist and his Christian singer wife Julianna. Rather than sell photos of baby Zion to People Magazine for millions of dollars, the Zobrists supplied the first public photo to Celebrity Baby Blog. Seriously (thanks Laura).
Christian singer Julianna Zobrist has shared with CBB that she and her husband, Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Ben Zobrist, are proud parents after welcoming son Zion Benjamin Zobrist at 2:23 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 1st. He weighed in at 8 lbs., 15 oz and was 21 ¾ inches long. The 24-year-old tells that Zion’s “birth was amazing. I was able to deliver him completely naturally and it was by far the most intense and spectacular experience I have ever been able to be a part of.”
Most spectacular experience? That’s because she has never seen her husband play shortstop. What? Oh. Never mind.
And is it too early to nickname the kid ZZ Top?
Ben and Julianna Zobrist Welcome Son Zion Benjamin [Celebrity Baby Blog]
Dec 29
[THE HANGOVER] There Is Nothing ‘Utility’ About Julianna Zobrist
Ben Zobrist, Bud Selig, Joe Maddon, Joe Nelson, Julianna Zobrist, Rocco Baldelli, Troy Percival 1 Comment »
We are still waiting on an official announcement from the Rays that they have signed reliever Joe Nelson. Nelson announced on December 24 that he had agreed to a one-year, $1.3 million contract with the Rays. As per most deals, the contract requires the player to pass a physical and the holidays may be holding up that part of the process.
Rays agree to terms with reliever Joe Nelson [The Heater]
DEVIL DOGS WEBTOPIA…
- Ben Zobrist’s wife, Julianna Zobrist, has released her new album, “The Tree.” Ben and Julianna are also expecting their first child in January [Ed note: you can find pre-pregnancy photos of Julianna HERE] [Iowa City Press-Citizen]
- Buster Olney says the Rays and A’s are in a bidding war of sorts over the remaining DH/corner outfielders. Olney says both teams are willing to spend money but neither wants to go first, preferring to wait until the other team is out of the market, which in turn could drive the price down on the remaining players. [ESPN]
- We already talked about how defense is the Rays’ “Moneyball”. Well, Bleeding Blue and Teal is jealous and wants the Mariners to duplicate. [Bleeding Blue and Teal]
- We have been trying to temper people’s emotions on Troy Percival, noting that he was effective when healthy in 2008. Now Drays Bay backs that up with more numbers…Of course, staying healthy is something else indeed. [Drays Bay]
- One team that was said to be interested in signing Rocco Baldelli, the Reds, have signed Willy Taveras to play center field. However, they are supposedly still looking into the medical condition of Baldelli. [MLB Trade Rumors]
- The Rays were included as part of the New York Times’ “2008 Year in Review.” [New York Times]
- Joe Maddon was voted the top story of 2008 by his hometown paper. [Hazleton Standard-Speaker]
- Bud Selig points to the 2008 success of the Rays as the culmination of 9 years of efforts to bring competitive balance to baseball. [Yahoo! Sports]
- Joe Smith reports on how much the Rays’ overseas scouting has grown, with over 70 international free agents signed in the last three years. [St. Pete Times]
- The Rays Party of America has updated their 25-man roster projection…With Gabe Gross and Matt Joyce offering a similar skillset, we don’t see them both on the roster. [The Rays Party of America]
