Archive for the 'Marc Topkin' Category

Jan 04

Will Rays New Reliever Be Bitter Towards Rays Media For His 2009 Suspension?

Fernando Rodney, Marc Topkin Cork Gaines 4 Comments »

In 2009, following a Tigers win at Tropicana Field, Fernando Rodney “celebrated” his save by firing the ball from the field into the stands. That ball went into the press box and “bounced near several working writers.”

We wrote about the incident in 2009 > “Fernando Rodney Fires Ball At Reporters, Jim Leyland Figures They Wanted A Souvenir“

And now Rodney will sign with the Rays today or tomorrow, pending his physical.

Rodney was eventually suspended for three games for the 2009 incident, and some in the Tigers organization believed at the time that the suspension was brought about in large part because of an email sent to the league office by Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times.

[Tigers President Dave] Dombrowski said he was told a “very strong” influence for the suspension was a letter from St. Petersburg Times reporter Marc Topkin, president of the Tampa Bay chapter of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America…”I think a lot of it was driven by the letter that was written by the president of the association in Tampa,” Dombrowski said. “Afterwards, he didn’t think that Rodney was at all sorry or remorseful. … I know he was remorseful when I spoke to him. He was very, very sorry.”

Topkin at the time responded to the assertion that he was responsible for the suspension…

“[Topkin said the email] wasn’t intended to prompt punishment but to make sure they were aware of the incident. Even without the email, It wasn’t as if this would’ve gone unnoticed…I said in the email that he did not apologize afterward…nor did he show any remorse that somebody might’ve been hurt, which was a very real possibility…I’m surprised that the issue of the Tampa Bay chapter of the Baseball Writers’ Association talking with Major League Baseball is part of the story. Clearly, Fernando Rodney threw the ball into the press box. Clearly, Major League Baseball was concerned enough to suspend him.”

Will Rodney still be upset about this three years later? We don’t know. But some people would be. And you can be sure that it will be awkward.

Jul 06

Is Peter Gammons Planting B.J. Upton Rumors?

BJ Upton, Marc Topkin, Peter Gammons, Uncategorized Joe Rays Fan 9 Comments »
Peter Gammons

Peter Gammons

Interesting nugget of information from Marc Topkin prior to the Rays game Tuesday with the Red Sux. Speaking on the Rays Radio Network, Topkin, a Rays beat writer for the St. Petersburg Times, was asked about the rumors of embattled Rays centerfielder B.J. Upton being swapped to Seattle for southpaw ace Cliff Lee as Twittered by noted baseball scribe Andrew Jackson Peter Gammons earlier Tuesday.

Topkin floated the possibility that Gammons, who also works for NESN, the TV broadcast partner of the Red Sux, planted that rumor via Twitter purposely to distract Upton and perhaps the Rays in this critical series played at the Fruitdome this week.

Now call Joe naive, but Joe doesn’t totally buy that. Then again, it wouldn’t be the first time Gammons spread rank misinformation, which smelled to high heaven of a dubious plant at the time it was so outrageous.

If in fact it can be proven that Gammons indeed planted a fake rumor via a social media forum to create a ruckus, it’s beyond an ethical breach of any respected journalist and Gammons should have his credentials yanked by MLB Advanced Media as a result.

Sep 09

[THE HANGOVER] The One Where We Discuss Ill-Tempered Sea Bass, An Ill-Reasoned Tigers GM And The Help Wanted Sign In Durham

Andy Sonnanstine, Evan Longoria, Marc Topkin, Wade Davis Cork Gaines 11 Comments »

Rays Yankees Baseball

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 TELLING: You know, We had one simple request. And that was to have relief pitchers with frickin’ laser beams attached to their heads! Now evidently that cannot be done. Ah, would you remind us what Stuart Sternberg pays Andrew Friedman for, honestly? Throw us a bone here! What do we have? We have ill-tempered, soft-tossing sea bass…Oh yeah, and when you have a drink tonight. Let’s toast great baserunning and all of the excellent fundamentals the Rays have shown during this 7-game losing streak, their longest since an 11-game skid in 2007.

SUNBURST PLAYER OF THE GAME: Jason Bartlett

DEVIL DOGS WEBTOPIA…

  • We apologize if it seems we are being overly brief in the Hangovers and other coverage here at RI. We promise we are not abandoning you or the Rays in this time of sucktitude. We are currently on the road and tending to some matters that have been on the docket for months. Everything should return to normal shortly. Thank you for your patience.
  • Yesterday we told you about Fernando Rodney being suspended for throwing a ball into the press box at The Trop. Afterwards, Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski laid most of the blame for the suspension at the feet of Marc Topkin of the St. Pete Times for a letter Topkin wrote to MLB. Marc Lancaster does an excellent job of ripping Dombrowski for his ridiculous comments. Also of note was the pounding Andy Freed and Dave Wills dished out on Dombrowski during the radio broadcast last night. They noted, among other things, that there is precedent for the suspension. The player’s name slips our memory, but there was apparently a very similar incident in which a player also received a 3-game suspension. We could be wrong, but we are pretty sure MLB did not cower to the pressure of Marc Topkin in this other incident. [Rays Report]
  • Evan Longoria was named the AL co-player of the week, the same week the Rays went 2-5. Go figure…Also, Dale Thayer has been promoted from Durham. If you are in the Durham area and have a heartbeat, you might want to give the Durham Bulls a call. Just about their entire roster is in New York with the Rays and the Bulls start the playoffs tonight. They could probably use some warm bodies. [St. Pete Times]
  • In a move even Joe Maddon couldn’t overthink, Wade Davis will remain in the rotation and make his next start against the Red Sox, while Andy Sonnanstine will move to the bullpen. [Tampa Tribune]
  • Noah Pransky debunks the myth that the Rays play in a “small market.” [10 Connects]
  • Joe Henderson takes a look at the 2010 Rays and what can be done to get back into contention. [Tampa Tribune]
Mar 19

MVP! MVP! MVP! Marc Topkin Once Again Stirs The Pot

Jason Bartlett, Jason Bartlett is looking for glove, Marc Topkin Cork Gaines 12 Comments »

The local basbeall writers took a lot of heat when Jason Bartlett was voted the team MVP last season (we actually kinda supported the idea). And Marc Topkin took a lot of grief when he wrote Jason Bartlett’s name on his AL MVP ballot as the fifth most valuable American Leaguer in 2008.

Well, Topkin is back in 2009 and he brought his fastball. He once again addresses the issue of Bartlett’s MVPness, but this time he brought more than a laptop. He brought the big gun, Joe Maddon.

For any of the Internet bloggers or hundreds of message board posters who had issues with shortstop Jason Bartlett’s selection as the Rays’ most valuable player last season, manager Joe Maddon has a few choice words of his own.

“We don’t win last year without him playing shortstop. Period,” Maddon said Wednesday. “It’s pretty simple — it just doesn’t happen.”

And he brought the Cat Carlos Pena.

“You can’t always go to a number,” first baseman Carlos Peña said. “I go on plays made. And he changes the game. Instead of a base hit, it’s an out. Instead of a double, it’s a single. Things like that are huge for the success of the team, and with his defense he contributes in such a substantial way. So he’s crucial to our success.”

So there you have it. Topkin just brought some big guns to a knife fight. Your turn internet bloggers. Whatcha got?

Tampa Bay Rays say shortstop Bartlett has value that is hard to measure [St. Pete Times]

Aug 27

[TAMPA BAY RAYS MEDIA] Media Approval Ratings: Results

Andy Freed, Dave Wills, Dwayne Staats, Joe Magrane, John Romano, Marc Lancaster, Marc Topkin, Martin Fennelly, Media Approval Ratings, Todd Kalas Cork Gaines 8 Comments »

We still have several of these to go through, but thought we would show how the various Rays media members are faring so far…


In general, Rays fans are happy with the on-air media with all scoring above 90%. As for the print media, the fans are more supportive of the writers from the St. Pete Times. Could this be an anti-Tampa Tribune bias? Or maybe this is a reflection of the Yankees love-fest that regularly occurs at the Tribune?

Aug 08

[TAMPA BAY RAYS MEDIA] Media Approval Ratings: Marc Topkin

Marc Topkin, Media Approval Ratings Cork Gaines 7 Comments »


C’mon, you guys knew this was coming eventually…There is a general sense amongst some of our readers that all we do is bash the Rays media coverage. The truth is we actually admire most of the working media and respect most of their work. We just get a sense that the Rays media coverage can at times be lazy. Just because the Rays were a second-class team for many years doesn’t mean we as fans deserved second-class coverage. So while our frustration can manifest itself at times on this site, we want to know what you guys think of various members of the Rays media coverage. Next up…St. Pete Times beat writer Marc Topkin…

[Ed. Note: The above image came up under Google Image Search when we entered "Marc Topkin". It does have some resemblance to his byline pic. If it so happens to NOT be Topkin, please don't tell us. We like the image of Topkin giggling like a schoolgirl while groping two steroid-infused pro wrestlers.]

While Lancaster lost points for being a UGA grad, Topkin is a Drake University graduate. Don’t know where Drake is? That would be Des Moines, Iowa. The hometown of Jeremy Hellickson and about 90 minutes west of where we did our undergrad work (that’s 90 min by car. 4 hours by tractor).

Like his counterpart at the Tampa Tribune, Marc Lancaster, we have at times been pretty hard hard on Topkin. We love it when he shills for the Rays. But our favorite is when he called a game in Mid-May “something of a must-win game” or the time Jason Hammel gave up 2 runs in 6 innings and Topkin called it a “gem”. We should just be grateful he is not the Rays GM…We haven’t always been so negative. We have seen glimpses of what could be.

And of course there was the Barry Bonds rumors this past Spring that were almost single-handedly started by Topkin. We should give him a pass for that cluster-f*** as that story certainly drove a lot of attention to Topkin and the Times. So, even if the story was greatly exaggerated, it was a smart business move. It is just too bad that we as Rays fans had to pay.

There are some people that like his work: (From Topkin’s St. Pete Times bio)

Marc has won numerous state writing awards for his news coverage and a national award for investigative reporting. He is also heavily involved in the St. Petersburg community, speaking to classes and coaching youth sports teams. In 2006, Marc won a Green Eyeshade Award from the Society of Prefoessional Journalists for his series “What Went Wrong: 10 Years of Devil Rays.”

Of course, Topkin was only runner-up for the “Pink Eyeshade Award.”

So: Do you like Marc Topkin? And let’s hear your reasons in the comments…

May 20

[THE HANGOVER] Dirtbag Home Run In 13th Gets Rays Back On Winning Track

Bobby Valentine, Evan Longoria, Joe Maddon, Joe Torre, Marc Topkin, Scott Kazmir Cork Gaines 3 Comments »



THE GOOD: Evan Longoria. The kid was the man last night going 3-6, driving in 3, including 2 on a go-ahead home run in the top of the 13th. We may have seen a different side to the Dirtbag in that 13th inning at bat. With Carlos Pena on first and no outs, the first pitch was a slider down and away. On the second pitch, Chad Gaudin quick-pitched a fastball right down the middle. Normally a pitcher would do this to keep a runner at first base, but Pena wasn’t a threat to steal. Rather, Gaudin caught Longoria napping at the plate. He wasn’t ready and ended up taking a BP fastball right down the middle. There was a clear look of frustration/disgust/anger on Dirtbag’s face. Gaudin came back with another slider down and off the plate. Longoria laid off. Now 2-1, Gaudin tried once again to go slider low and away, only he wanted to catch the corner hoping Longoria would lay off again. But Gaudin hung the slider about letter-high, on the inside half of the plate. The absolute textbook definition of a hanging slider and why we call those 400-foot strikes. Longoria turned on the hanger and hit a no-doubt-about-it shot to left that proved to be the game-winner. Was there a little extra oomph on the swing because of the quick-pitch? We like to think so…The Bullpen. Outside of the late run allowed by Troy Percival in which it looked like he let up a tad with 2 outs in the 13th, the bullpen shut down the A’s. In 5.1 innings, the ‘pen allowed only that one run. In particular, JP Howell did a great job surviving the 9th and the mystery-man, Jason Hammel worked 3 scoreless innings.

THE BAD: Occasionally James Shields is susceptible to the long ball and last night was one of those nights, giving up 4 of the runs on 3 home runs...

THE TELLING: Eric Hinske talked his way into the starting lineup despite 1-15 career versus Joe Blanton. Hinske delivered with a 2-3 night including a 2-run home run… Al Reyes and Dan Wheeler must not have been available last night. With a 1-run lead in the 8th inning, JP Howell and Gary Glover were warming up. Both would come into the game eventually.

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

  • Don’t forget to VOTE for Carl Crawford to start the all-star game. If you haven’t voted yet today, go NOW! [MLB All-Star Voting]
  • Don’t forget…this week’s Rays Index Live Blog-A-Baloo will be tomorrow afternoon for the series finale in Oakland and will be held right here.
  • Prior to last night’s game, Marc Topkin called the match-up “something of a must-win game”. Little extreme, no? What if the Rays had lost last night? They would have still been in the lead for the wild card and still in 2nd place in the AL East. And what if the Rays lost last night and then went on to win the next 8 in a row? Would last night’s “loss” have really mattered? It is a little early to start with the hyperbole. There are still 117 games remaining in the season. [The Heater]
  • The old baseball cliche is that a pitcher doesn’t learn how to pitch until he gets hurt…Scott Kazmir has struggled with his mechanics since coming off the DL and he is a better pitcher for it. [St. Pete Times]

“It seems like it’s gonna make me a lot better pitcher, just not having close to the stuff that I want and still getting hitters out,” Kazmir said. “I think it’s going to be really good for accuracy because right now I’ve mainly got to hit spots. I fall in and out once in awhile, but for the most part, it feels like I’m throwing the ball where I want to.”

  • Evan Longoria has done an outstanding job of keeping his head on straight in the field even while struggling at the plate. [Tampa Tribune]

“There’s a period of time where, if I have a bad at-bat and I’m the last out of the inning or I’m on the bench and there’s two outs, I won’t take my batting gloves off until I’ve let my at-bat go,” said Longoria. “Or, I won’t go out onto the field until I’ve said whatever I needed to say, maybe slammed something or whatever – got it out of my system. Then, as soon as I go out onto the field, everything’s gone and it’s time to play defense.”

  • Tom Verducci says that the Rays are perfect example of why the 2008 season has been the year of “The Bizarro Supermen”. [SI.com]
  • We were waiting for David Chalk to chime in on the “Who’s better? Yanks or Rays?” debate. And now we have it, in typical Chalkian-style. [Bugs & Cranks]
  • For all the craptastic managers in baseball these days, it amazes us that Bobby Valentine is managing in Japan. And now is word that he thinks Joe Maddon has a better job than Joe Torre. [Bugs & Cranks]
  • Oy! A “Power Rankings” with the Rays at #4?!? Somebody get Satan a jacket. [Yahoo! Sports]
  • Are the Rays [screwing] everything up in the AL East?…This would actually be a cool topic if it were serious. [Spoiled Sports]
Apr 03

[RAYS INDEX] Sweet Fancy Moses! Rays Index Turns Two Today

Marc Lancaster, Marc Topkin, Rays Index Store, Ron Burgandy is the balls, Wes Mantooth Cork Gaines 8 Comments »

Today Rays Index turns two years old, having somehow survived two complete revolutions around the Sun. And my, how things have changed in those two years. HERE is our first-ever post. It was a title we loved so much we brought it back on our One-Year Anniversary, which was actually a really bizarre coincidence that we just realized a few moments ago.

In fact, we were unaware it was our anniversary until we received an email this morning from the two Marcs*, Topkin and Lancaster, with the following video…

And while there are more than a few people that probably wish Wes Mantooth would push our ladder, we wanted to take a second and thank the rest of the RAYSHEADS for sticking with us as our readership has more than doubled in the last year.

Sooooooo…

Happy Birthday to us, Happy Birthday to us…

*Might have actually been from DRG pretending to be the two Marcs

Feb 26

[RAYS MEDIA] Why The Rays Columnists Suck: Marc Topkin

Barry Bonds, Marc Topkin Cork Gaines 17 Comments »

Two in two days? It just wouldn’t be fair if we didn’t honor Marc Topkin after his performance yesterday…

Marc Topkin sucks because of THIS GOOGLE WEB SEARCH…THIS GOOGLE BLOG SEARCH…and THIS GOOGLE NEWS SEARCH.

And he especially sucks for those “Barry Bonds Ringtone” ads that now litter this site. What the hell would a “Barry Bonds Ringtone sound like anyway?

For the record. Marc Topkin did not write anything that wasn’t true. The Tampa Bay Rays did discuss Barry Bonds.

Hey! This just in…SO DID EVERY OTHER TEAM IN BASEBALL.

It was a non-story and either Marc Topkin knew that and he worded his story just right in order to get the national media juices flowing OR Marc Topkin is an idiot. Last week everybody was talking about how good the Rays could be in 2008. This week we have 6,432 headlines that are all of the variety “The Rays Look To Put The Devil Back In Tampa Bay”.

Rays ponder Bonds pursuit [St. Pete Times]

Feb 25

[BARRY BONDS] Marc Topkin Wants You To Believe That It Is Possible For Barry Bonds To Sign With The Rays

Barry Bonds, Marc Topkin Cork Gaines 12 Comments »

We will throw a tiny little party during office-hours when Barry Bonds signs someplace, even if it is Japan. Because, when he does finally sign-on to play in 2008, we can stop bringing up the absolutely ludicrous possibility of Bonds playing for the Tampa Bay Rays.

This morning Marc Topkin of the St. Pete Times once again broached the subject by reporting that the Rays had internal discussions concerning the possibility of signing Bonds.

There has been no formal offer, actual wooing or even public displays of affection. But the Rays seem to have at least an eye on Barry Bonds, and team officials have recently talked internally about the all-time home run king who has been at the center of the steroids controversy.

This is a non-story and we are sick and tired of talking about it.

Of course the Rays discussed Bonds. He is a free agent. Is there somebody out there that actually thought it was a possibility that nobody ever brought up Bonds’ name in a team meeting? Of course they did. They discussed him just as they did every other free agent that is available. WHO CARES?!?!

Let’s ignore for a second that there are plenty of reasons that signing Bonds makes no sense for the Rays…At no point is there any indication that the Rays’ brass are actually considering signing the all-time home run king.

The Rays reiterated this point through a spokesman this morning.

According to Rays officials, there is nothing to today’s published report that the team may have interest in signing Barry Bonds.

‘’It’s a non-story,’’ executive vice president Andrew Friedman said through team apokesman Rick Vaughn.

One more time for the cheap seats, or whichever seats Marc Topkin is sitting in: BARRY BONDS WILL NOT SIGN WITH THE RAYS.

Bonds’ Agent: Japan Is An Option [MLB Trade Rumors]
Rays ponder Bonds pursuit [St. Pete Times]
Bonds? No. [Rays Report]

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