Archive for the 'Kenny Lofton' Category

Mar 20

[THE HANGOVER] Edwin Jackson Reminds Us Why He Drives Us Nuts

Andrew Friedman, BJ Upton, Edwin Jackson, Evan Longoria, James Shields, Kenny Lofton, Reid Brignac, Scott Kazmir Cork Gaines 1 Comment »

Tampa Bay Rays (11 days until Opening Day)

Yesterday: Tampa Bay Rays 3, Phillies 1.

The Good: This is why we hate Edwin Jackson. He will pitch like Bob Gibson about once a month and you start thinking man, what if he did this all the time, he could win a Cy Young. But then the next three starts he will get knocked around and he walk the ballpark. Yesterday Jackson retired the first 11 batters before hitting a batter. He worked 5.2 innings, striking out 7 and walking only 1, allowing 1 run on 3 hits. It should be noted that the Phillies were without several of their regulars and there was a very stiff wind blowing in…Troy Percival and Scott Dohmann each added a perfect inning of relief…Evan Longoria drew his 10th walk of the spring.

The Bad: Elliot Johnson came on i the 7th inning. He walked to lead off the inning and then stole second and third base. Bad? He showed his youth and inexperience by stealing third base with two outs. Now. We weren’t there so maybe Johnson was able to get a lead where he was standing 3 feet from third base leaving him no choice. But if that was not the case, we expect Johnson got a little talking to from Joe Maddon in the dugout later on [Ed. note: see comments for explanation]…Edwin Jackson hit two batters…

The Telling: Mike DiFelice got his third start of the spring behind the plate. He now has logged 32 innings behind the plate. By comparison,the likely backup catcher, Shawn Riggans has 5 starts and 35 innings, but Josh Paul only has 1 start and 18 innings. Heck. Hector Gimenez has a start and 23 innings at catcher. Paul is not going to be on the opening day roster. Right now it looks like Riggans unless his hand becomes a nagging situation. In that case, DiFelice is the next option.

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

  • In case you missed it yesterday afternoon. The RAYSHEAD Army is now accepting new members. [Rays Index]
  • To say that Edwin Jackson was “mediocre” in 2007 seems a little soft, right? He was 5-15 with 5.76 ERA with about 5 walks per 9 innings. That is pretty friggin’ bad. [Tampa Bay Rays]
  • Carl Crawford called the situation with Evan Longoria “a sensitive topic” in the clubhouse. The idea is that the team may choose to send The Dirtbag down to the minors to start the season, rather than field the best team possible. Andrew Friedman says Longoria’s arbitration/free agency clock is not an issue, noting that at some point the team will want to work on a long-term deal. This seems dubious at best since even long-term deals prior to arbitration and free agency consider when a player will become arbitration-eligible, although this did not happen with James Shields’ new deal as his salary only jumps from $1.5 million to $2.5 million in his first arbitration year. [Tampa Bay Rays]
  • Several Rays talk about BJ Upton and how he is only going to get better. [Bradenton Herald]

“We haven’t seen him play a full season,” Crawford said. “In years to come, he’s going to get better and better. Last year was just the tip of the iceberg, at least in my mind. I’m just happy I get to play alongside of him. You don’t get to play alongside a guy like that every time. It’s rare. It’s very rare.”

  • Jayson Stark is reporting that the Rays made an offer to Kenny Lofton, that he turned down. We have to assume that the offer was incentive-laden and Lofton may be looking for more guaranteed money or he is waiting until a contender loses an outfielder. [ESPN]
  • Rays of Light isn’t going to lose any sleep over not having Kenny Lofton. We agree. [Rays of Light]
  • No surprise here…James Shields will start on opening day. [Tampa Bay Rays]
  • Joe Maddon was vague in when asked about Scott Kazmir’s schedule. It sounds like they are truly taking this day-to-day. [Tampa Bay Rays]
  • The Bradenton Herald profiles Reid Brignac. [Bradenton Herald]
  • Bill Chastain wonders if the Rays can live up to the hype in 2008. [Tampa Bay Rays]
  • Rays of Light has their latest roster projection. [Rays of Light]
Mar 16

[THE SUNDAY MORNING REVOLUTION] JP Howell Not In Running For Rotation

Andy Sonnanstine, Edwin Jackson, Evan Longoria, Jason Hammel, Jeff Niemann, JP Howell, Kenny Lofton, Kurt Birkins, Scott Kazmir, Shawn Riggans admin 1 Comment »

Tampa Bay Devil Dogs (15 days until opening day)

DRG here again to get you through the weekend…

Yesterday: Tampa Bay Rays 11, Braves 10.

  • The Good: Jason Hammel finally had a good start, throwing 5 scoreless. Is it enough to get his name back in the mix? Elliot Johnson continues his hot spring going 3-5 with 3 RBI. Evan Longoria started at third going 1-3 with 2 walks.
  • The Bad: Scott Dohmann struggled giving up 4 hits and 3 runs in 2 innings in his bid for the last bullpen spot. Reid Brignac committed his second error of the spring.
  • The Telling: Elliot Johnson saw playing time in center field indicating that Joe Maddon may be considering Johnson for the super-utility role in the absence of Ben Zobrist.

Tampa Bay Rays 7, Yankees 2.

  • The Good:Jeff Niemann allowed only 1 run on 6 hits in 4 innings to a stacked Yankees lineup. He struck out 1 and did not walk a batter, getting out of a bases-loaded one-out jam with a ground ball double play. Gary Glover and Dan Wheeler combined for 1 unearned run in 3 innings. Eric Hinske played right field and went 2-4. He is now hitting .480 in the spring. Akinori Iwamura turned two double plays.
  • The Bad: Willy Aybar started at third and committed his second error of the spring. Josh Paul was 0-1 on base stealers.
  • The Telling: Josh Paul started at catcher with Mike DiFelice coming on late. With Shawn Riggans being hit by a pitch in the hand, if he misses any significant time, this may indicate that Paul has the edge to make the team.

DEVIL DOGS WEBTOPIA…

  • The New York Times has their AL East preview up and I absolutely LOVE this quote…”Teams that don’t take Tampa Bay seriously will get their butts kicked.” That was Bill Bavasi, the Mariners GM. [New York Times]
  • Yesterday may have been Jeff Niemann’s best start yet and with Edwin Jackson struggling, Niemann has to start getting some consideration for the 5th spot. The biggest stat: Of 64 pitches, 48 were for strikes. [Tampa Bay Rays]

“I like what he did today because we’ve been talking specifically about keeping the ball down,” Maddon said. “Even the one A-Rod hit over the center fielder’s head, that ball was down low.”

  • Joe Maddon hinted what we were all starting to wonder, that JP Howell may not really be in consideration for the rotation but has a very real shot at being the long-man in the bullpen. [Herald-Tribune]

“He’s come out this spring. He’s pitched extremely well,” Maddon said. “There’s a confidence he has about this role. When you get him one time through the batting order, he can be very effective.”

  • Deep breath. Deep breath…Scott Kazmir won’t pitch today after all. Joe Maddon is holding Kaz back so that he can reestablish his arm strength. I have to assume that there is no way Kazmir is pitching opening day now. [The Heater]
  • Kurt Birkins and Shawn Riggans were both removed from yesterday’s games due to injuries. It is unclear how much time either will miss. [The Heater]
  • The Rays are more likely to make a trade for a 4th outfielder, rather than sign a free agent such as Kenny Lofton. With Jeff Niemann and Andy Sonnanstine pitching well and Edwin Jackson and Jason Hammel out of options, one of the latter two is likely to be included in any deal. [Tampa Tribune]
  • Here is an AL East preview in which the Rays are compared to the movie “Juno”. [The Grand National Championships]

They seem revolutionary, but they’re really not. Although dropping the Devil is like dropping the fact that the screenwriter is a stripper, being a “surprising indie coming of age tale” is a lot like being “the new bandwagon” in baseball.

  • Rays of Light tackles the Evan Longoria debate. [Rays of Light]
Mar 14

[HAPPY HOUR] All-Star Game Could Come To St. Pete As Early As 2014

David Price, Joe Girardi, Joe Maddon, Jonny Gomes, Kenny Lofton, Melky Cabrera is too, New Stadium, Rocco Baldelli, Shelley Duncan is a lil' bitch, Troy Percival Cork Gaines 5 Comments »

Tampa Bay Rays (17 days until Opening Day)

With the Rays proposed stadium starting to feel like it could become a reality, we got to wondering when the new stadium might host a Major League All-Star game. The Rays are one of only three franchises that have never hosted the mid-summer classic, with the other two being the D-Back and the Marlins.

There have been 10 new stadiums opened in MLB since 1999. Of those stadiums, seven have already hosted an all-star game. Of the three new fields not to have hosted an all-star game yet, all three cities (Philly, San Diego, Cincinnati) have hosted the game in the last 20 years.

Including the Nats’ new stadium this year and the Rays’ new park in 2012, there are seven new stadiums scheduled to be opened in the next five years. The Yankees will host the game this year in the final year of Yankee Stadium so it will be a while for their new park. That leaves six parks that appear to be in line to host the all-star game.

According to the Biz of Baseball, the Angels will host in 2010, with the D-Backs following in 2011 and the Royals renovated stadium in 2012. Biz of Baseball is predicting the Mets new park to host in 2013. If this is true, 2014 will be the earliest the other five stadiums can host the game. 2026 seems like a logical year for the Nationals’ which would coincide with the 250th birthday of our nation.

Therefore if the Rays do indeed land a new stadium along the St. Pete waterfront, we can most likely expect the Major League Baseball all-star game to come to St. Pete for the first time as early as 2014 and no later than 2017.

2008-2013: Here’s the locations for the All-Star Game [Biz of Baseball]

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

  • Jonny Gomes, Shirley Duncan and Melky Cabrera were each suspended for their roles in the rest bench-clearing incident. Gomes was hit with a 2-game suspension, while Duncan and Cabrera will sit out the first three games of teh regular season. Cabrera’s suspension comes as a surprise as he was not mentioned in any reports immediately after the incident. Word on the street is that Cabrera hit or punched Evan Longoria in the back of the head. [Fox Sports]
  • Because of the recent bad blood between the Rays and the Yankees, Joe Maddon has altered the team’s travel schedule. Maddon was originally schedule to attend the team’s split-squad game on Saturday in Orlando, but will now go to Tampa where the rest of the squad is facing the Yankees. Jonny Gomes will no longer be part of the group going to Tampa. [Tampa Bay Rays]
  • John Romanoof the St. Pete Times comes down pretty hard on Joe Girardi for being a hypocrite. [St. Pete Times]

The New York manager continues to tap dance his way around questions concerning Shelley Duncan’s spikes-high slide into Rays second baseman Akinori Iwamura…Girardi tried to avoid the topic after Wednesday’s game, and then again 24 hours later. He said he still hasn’t seen a replay, despite video on ESPN, numerous newspaper Web sites and several YouTube posts….What’s disturbing here is that Girardi didn’t feel the need to wait before criticizing Johnson and Rays manager Joe Maddon last week. Back then, he used words like “disheartening” and “scary” and “uncalled for.”

  • Rays of Light debates the merits of signing Kenny Lofton to replace Rocco Baldelli. [Rays of Light]
  • Jayson Stark of ESPN.com looks at how Troy Percival went from semi-retired to signing a 2-year contract with the Rays and becoming their clubhouse leader and mentor to David Price. [ESPN]

…first, you need to understand that this isn’t only a story about Troy Percival, the pitcher. This is just as much about Troy Percival, as unique a member of the human species as you’ll ever run across in this life.

  • St. Pete Times’ writers look closer at a sponsorship agreement the Rays had with a local financier that went bankrupt. The Rays are now suing the group. [St. Pete Times]
Mar 12

[HAPPY HOUR] Rocco Baldelli May Have Played His Last Game For The Rays

Andy Cannizaro, Ben Zobrist, Elliot Johnson, Eric Hinske, Joe Maddon, John Rodriguez, Jon Weber, Jonny Gomes, Justin Ruggiano, Kenny Lofton, Rocco Baldelli Cork Gaines 10 Comments »

Tampa Bay Rays (19 days until Opening Day)

Not the best day in the world to be a Rays fan. We just reported about the cheapshots thrown by the Yankees in the today’s spring games (we apologize, for the excessive profanity). This came after this morning’s press conference to announce that Rocco Baldelli will start the season on the DL with a still unidentified muscle condition.

Baldelli said he had some type of “metabolic, and/or mitochondrial abnormalities, basically along the lines my body isn’t making or producing ATP the right way, and therefore not allowing my muscles to work as they should and recover like they’re supposed to on a day-to-day basis.”

Andrew Friedman noted that the Rays will continue to help Baldelli, but that at this point it is unlikely that the team would pick up his 2009 option ($6 million). Declining the option will cost the Rays a $4 million buyout.

At this point we need to seriously consider the possibility that Rocco has played his last game for the Rays and possibly his last game as a major league baseball player. If this is the case, it will be a sad end to a once promising career.

P.S. Shelley Duncan is still a little bitch.

Baldelli headed to the DL with fatigue [Tampa Bay Rays]

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

  • As far as the Rays in-house options to replace Rocco Baldelli as the Rays’ fourth outfielder, Joe Maddon will have to decide between Jon Weber, whom Maddon says is the better defensive outfielder and John Rodriguez, whom Maddon says is the better offensive option. Both will get considerable playing time in the near future and the decision may be based on who can handle center field better. [The Heater]
  • Outs Per Swing does not like the idea of bringing Kenny Lofton on board, when the Rays have a suitable solution in-house with Justin Ruggiano…We tend to agree. We don’t see Lofton as a difference-maker this year and think Jonny Gomes can handle the everyday right field job with one of several candidates good enough to step-up and be the Rays fourth outfielder (Eric Hinske?). Of course one thing going for Jon Weber is that he has played on a championship team six of the last seven years and just missed his seventh straight last year with the Bulls. [Outs Per Swing]
  • To continue with the injury-news, Andy Cannizaro is being treated for a recurring back problem. With the regular backup shortstop, Ben Zobrist out 4 weeks already, it now appears as though Elliot Johnson’s hot spring has earned him a shot to be the backup shortstop. He will likely get some time at short this week. [Rays Report]
  • Elliot Johnson says he is a hard-nosed player and expressed no regrets for the collision at home plate this past weekend. The Rays hoped that Johnson would enter camp and cut down on trying to hit home runs and lower his strikeout totals. So far it is working and Joe Maddon has taken notice. [Tampa Bay Rays]

“He’s a very good athlete and I think there’s a lot of positions that he could play,” Maddon said. “I want him to become more involved defensively, because this guy is very gifted, you can see that…He’s handled himself extremely well, and I’ve told him so,” Maddon said. “He’s out here playing hardball every day and that’s what he’s all about.”

  • We mentioned previously that the PECOTA projection system predicted a 22-win increase for the Rays in 2008, and now SI.com’s Nate Silver looks at that number and the Rays roster and sees the 1994 Cleveland Indians. [SI.com]

Forget about the ’87 Indians; the relevant team to consider here is the ’94 Tribe, which reversed a string of seven consecutive losing seasons by going 66-47 in a strike-shortened season. Like those Indians, who went on to win five straight division titles behind such rising stars as Manny Ramirez and Jim Thome, the Rays have plenty of young mashers.

  • Somebody else suggested we use THIS JOKE on our site. We think it is a little rough considering we are talking about a guy who has what is apparently a genetic disorder and may never be able to play again. [Hugging Harold Reynolds]
  • CNBC is running a bracket-style tournament to find the best minor league baseball logo. The Montgomery Biscuits were up on DAY 1, while both the Columbus Catfish and the Durham Bulls are in the running on DAY 2. [CNBC]
Mar 11

[HAPPY HOUR] New Stadium Should Have Plenty Of Parking

Ben Zobrist, Jake McGee, Jeff Niemann, Kenny Lofton, New Stadium, Reid Brignac, Wade Davis Cork Gaines 2 Comments »

Tampa Bay Rays (20 days until Opening Day)

Links are coming in fast and furious today, so let’s throw a few more out for your Happy Hour amusement…

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

  • A consultant for the Rays notes that 14,000 off-street parking spots would be available during Rays home games at their proposed stadium, while sellout crowd would only require 11,950. [Tampa Tribune]
  • Jayson Stark of ESPN.com is reporting that the Rays have expressed interest in acquiring Kenny Lofton. According to R.J. Anderson of DRays Bay this is not the first time the Rays have flirted with the veteran outfielder. [DRays Bay]
  • Bill Chastain explores the different possibilities to replace Ben Zobrist on the opening day roster, including Reid Brignac who would be happy to play a backup role for a few weeks. [Tampa Bay Rays]

“Absolutely,” Brignac said. “If that’s what it comes down to, I’ll be very ready for whatever option comes up. I want to play every day. But if they need me to be a utility guy for a couple of weeks, I’d be more than happy to help them out, get my at-bats here and there, be a back up at second and short.”

  • Outs Per Swing is playing catch-up on their “40 Rays 40 Days” feature, throwing a bunch out today tomorrow. Our favorite is Jeff Niemann. Our love for Niemann is thinly veiled on this site. We just feel, that Edwin Jackson and Jason Hammel are known commodities and they are not going to help the Rays over the top. Niemann at least has the possibility to be very good or even great and he has enough minor league innings under his belt that we feel he is ready. [Outs Per Swing]
  • Marc Lancaster takes a look at the parallel careers of Jake McGee and Wade Davis. [Tampa Tribune]
  • The Rays submitted a preliminary project design for their proposed stadium to St. Pete officials. [Tampa Bay Rays]

“This preliminary design consideration document illustrates how the Rays’ new ballpark will respect and enhance the rich history of baseball on the Al Lang site and its dynamic downtown waterfront location; we expect this project will mean as much to downtown St. Petersburg as most of our other projects have meant to their communities,” said Joe Spear, founding senior principal of HOK Sport, in a release by the Rays.

  • FoxSports.com handicaps the rookie of the year races. [FoxSports.com]
Mar 08

[THE SATURDAY MORNING REVOLUTION] Jeff Niemann Refuses To Be An Afterthought

David Price, Jake McGee, Jeff Niemann, JP Howell, Kenny Lofton, Rocco Baldelli, Wade Davis admin 1 Comment »

Tampa Bay Devil Dogs (23 days until opening day)

DRG here again to get you through the weekend…

Yesterday: Tampa Bay Rays 9, Phillies 1. The big news yesterday came from the Rays biggest player, Jeff Niemann. Niemann threw three hitless innings with 2 walks and 2 strikeouts. Ben Zobrist started in center and made three putouts. At the plate he was 0-2 with a walk. Joel Guzman started in left field and went 1-3 with an RBI and a stolen base. Fernando Perez got the start in right field. This is something that Prof brought up earlier when he wondered if Perez might be considered at some point to be the 4th element in the RF/DH “triangle”. Specifically he wondered if Perez would get PT in RF this spring. Elliot Johson continues his strong spring, going 2-2. He is now 4-8 with 2 walks, 2 steals and 7 runs scored. Jason Bartlett was 2-3 with 2 steals.

DEVIL DOGS WEBTOPIA…

  • There is a new Rays blog in the neighborhood and they are looking for a name. How about Ghosts of Adam Sisk (the first Devil Ray) or Free Tim Laker (named in the Mitchell Report). [Sports Indeed]
  • Jeff Niemann was a different pitcher in his second spring start compared to his first. [The Ledger]

“I was a lot more confident out there. I wasn’t searching for things. Wasn’t wondering if my mechanics were right, if my hips were doing the right thing,” Niemann said. “It was more just go out there and pitch. You know what you need to do. Keep the ball down, throw and have fun…But it’s still really early in spring. There’s a lot of games to be played, and there’s a lot of guys in the running,” he said. “There’s no guarantees for any of us that are out there fighting for those two spots. We’ve just got to go out there and play ball.”

  • David Price will make his professional debut today against the Yankees. [Tampa Bay Rays]

“Just get out there, have a good old time and throw strikes,” Maddon said, when asked what he wanted to see from his young hurler. “Just be a Ray and get his pro career going.”

  • Brittany Ghiroli gives us a lesson in geometry with regards to the Rays right field/DH “triangle” which now looks to have more than three sides. [MLB]

With Baldelli’s health progressing slower than the Rays expected and veteran Floyd expressing a desire to maintain the designated hitter slot, the Rays have taken long looks at Gomes, Justin Ruggiano, John Rodriguez, Joel Guzman and Jon Weber to help fill the void.

  • The Rays may also look outside the organization for a replacement for Rocco Baldelli including a free agent such as Kenny Lofton. [Tampa Tribune]
  • Joe Smith takes a look at Wade Davis as Jake McGee take in their first big league spring training as others wonder aloud about their ceilings. [St. Pete Times]

“With prospects, everyone thinks they’ll be the next Hall of Famer, the next Tom Glavine,” veteran reliever Trever Miller said. “But it comes down to three things: work ethic, ability and blessing – a little bit of luck. If (McGee and Davis) can accomplish those three things, they have no ceiling. They’re masters of their own destiny.”

  • Rays Anatomy explores the possible replacements for Rocco Baldelli should he not be on the opening day roster. [Rays Anatomy]
  • The Bradenton Herald profiles JP Howell. [Bradenton Herald]
  • The Love of Sports names the Rays as one of five teams that could surprise in 2008. [The Love of Sports]