Archive for the 'Tom Foley' Category

Mar 16

The Rays Combat Coaching Corps

Bobby Ramos, Dave Eiland, Dave Martinez, Derek Shelton, Dirk Hayhurst, Don Zimmer, George Hendrick, Jim Hickey, Joe Maddon, Rocco Baldelli, Scott Cursi, Tom Foley Jordi Scrubbings 8 Comments »

Our correspondent and Afrologist, Jordi Scrubbings, is back with another sensible take on things that drive most of us nuts…

During my time in the military, I could always tell how good a unit was by watching the interaction between the commanding officer and the non-commissioned officers (sergeants and the like) under their command. Good units had tight communication and a well-defined road ahead. Officers dictated their intent and the non-commissioned officers trained and molded the troops to fulfill the vision of their leaders. Less quality units lacked either that overarching guidance or had a commander who suffered from either being too distant, too buried in paperwork, or too full of his own ego to be approachable.

Although football often draws the most war-like comparisons, there are a few baseball-military comparisons that can be made. One could liken Spring Training to a sort of Basic Training, where the basic skills are learned or brushed up on and new recruits learn the philosophy of the organization, although there is hardly the level of intensity in spring baseball that there is in a place like Fort Bragg or Camp LeJune. One could also make the leap that daily batting practice is similar to the daily physical training, where members exercise and work out before the duty day.

My favorite baseball-military analogy Read the rest of this entry »

Aug 13

[THE HANGOVER] The One Where We Discuss Rocco’s Move, Injured Pitchers And The Disparity Between 1st Base And 3rd Base Coaches

Evan Longoria, George Hendrick, Rocco Baldelli, Tom Foley Cork Gaines 12 Comments »

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

WHERE THEY STAND: The Rays are 69-45, 2 games behind the Yankees and 4 games in front of the Red Sox (5 in the loss column). After 114 games in 2008, the Rays were 68-46.

THE JUNKYARD DOGS WEBTOPIA…

  • Rocco Baldelli has been promoted to Durham. [The Heater]
  • The August 29 game against the Red Sox has been moved to ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball. [Rays Report]
  • The Rays have a black first base coach and a white third base coach. That is a growing (and disturbing) trend in Major League Baseball. [New York Times]
  • Well, now we know just how far (or high) Noah Pransky is willing to go for a stadium story. Be sure to check out the video in the right column. Scary stuff. [10 News]
  • The Rays have a lot of pitchers on the DL right now. More than you realize. [Watching Durham Bulls Baseball]
  • We would argue that Carl Crawford has been more valuable, but if Evan Longoria has a huge final 6 weeks, he could sneak into the AL MVP discussion. [St. Pete Times]
  • Joe Smith looks at why the Rays took a chance on Chad Qualls. [St. Pete Times]
  • Tony Fabrizio looks at how the Rays defense has stepped up recently. [Tampa Tribune]
  • Trying to project who will Read the rest of this entry »
Mar 15

Staying Classy On Picture Day: Pat Burrell And Co.

Dave Martinez, Derek Shelton, Don Zimmer, Evan Longoria, Gabe Kapler, Pat Burrell, Tom Foley Cork Gaines 13 Comments »

Every team goes through “Picture Day” during spring training where all the players and coaches get all dolled up in their regular season uniforms and have their pictures taken by the professionals. Here is a link to Getty’s pics of the Rays.

But before you go look at the entire set, let us point out a few of our favorites…

Pat Burrell

Why does Pat Burrell have such a sly grin on his face and why is he touching his crotch with both hands? Maybe it is because the photographer told Pat to grab his bat. Maybe it is because it is the only bat of Pat’s that still works. Or maybe this is the secret behind the nickname, “Pat the Bat.” We vote for “all of the above.”

Gabe Kapler

Is there a reason Gabe Kapler doesn’t have his jersey tucked in? Maybe it is because he is lazy. But more likely it is because the photographer is right-handed.

Dave Martinez -- Derek Shelton -- Tom Foley

Inability to dress one’s self is apparently not limited to Kapler.

Don Zimmer

Look! It’s the mascot. How cute.

Evan Longoria

At least Dirtbag knows how to dress himself.

Nov 03

[THE HANGOVER] Offseason Already In Full Swing For Rays

Andrew Friedman, Carl Crawford, Jason Bartlett, Joe Maddon, Rocco Baldelli, Tom Foley Cork Gaines No Comments »

DEVIL DOGS WEBTOPIA…

  • Rocco Baldelli has filed for free agency. [MLB]
  • Joe Maddon will be getting married on Saturday. [MLB]
  • Eric Hinske has filed for free agency. [MLB]
  • MLB Trade Rumors has posted their annual “offseason lookout” for the Rays, taking a look at the ’09 roster and payroll commitments. [MLB Trade Rumors]
  • The Rays have already held meetings in preparation for the offseason and Andrew Friedman is now in California for the general manager’s meetings. [Tampa Tribune]
  • Rise of the Rays takes a look at many of the options the Rays could choose to bring in to play right field or fill a role in the bullpen. [Rise of the Rays]
  • MLB Trade Rumors has updated their list of 2009 free agents to reflect Type A and Type B free agents. Since the Rays finished in the top-half of the league in terms of final record, they would have to surrender their first round pick to another team should they decide to sign a Type A free agent. [MLB Trade Rumors]
  • Rocco Baldelli addressed his free agency and said that he is “very comfortable” playing with the Rays and sounded like a person that wants to return to the organization in 2009. [Tampa Tribune]
  • Expect to see a lot of stories like this one: “Baldelli Makes Perfect Sense for the Red Sox”…While the Rays and the Rocco Baldelli will try to work on a deal for 2009 and beyond, there is some sentiment that the Rays will only offer a minor league deal. We are not so sure. We think it is actually more likely that Rocco signs an incentive-laden major league deal. Baldelli is appreciated in a Rays uniform and the team and the fans believe in him and know what he can do. We have a feeling that Rocco needs that. And while he is a native New Englander, Baldelli could very easily get lost in the shuffle on the Red Sox bench. [Baseball Talk]
  • David Chalk of Bugs and Cranks answers some fan mail. Hilarity ensues. [Bugs and Cranks]
  • Joe Smith talks to Joe Maddon on his reflections from the season and the World Series and the criticism he has received concerning the use of his bullpen in game 5. [St. Pete Times]
  • The Bradenton Herald remembers many of the great moments from 2008 and wonders if it will ever be that great again. [Bradenton Herald]
  • Rays Digest takes a look at how the Rays fared in the “Fielding Bible Awards.” Carl Crawford was the only winner from the Rays but several others received consideration. [Rays Digest]
  • Sully Baseball is not convinced the Rays are a “dynasty in the works.” There have been a lot of stories written recently built around the premise that the Rays are set up to be good for years to come, but we don’t think anybody is ready to start tossing around the “D-word”. As Rays fans we would be happy to win just one and as baseball fans we know that at best the Rays still have to share the AL East with the Red Sox and Yankees. [Sully Baseball]
  • John Romano takes a look at how tough it will be for the Rays to repeat in 2009. [St. Pete Times]
  • To address a point raised after the World Series, Tom Foley did waive Jason Bartlett home in the 7th inning of game 5. The Fox TV broadcast never showed a replay with Foley and the announcers never addressed the issue. The Rays radio broadcast indicated that Bartlett ran through a stop sign. [St. Pete Times]
  • Rays Prospects has an update on the happenings in the AFL. [Rays Prospects]
Aug 14

[THE HANGOVER] Rays Magic Number For Playoffs Now 38; Yankees Are Roadkill

David Price, Evan Longoria, Jason Bartlett, Joe Maddon, Kyle Lobstein, Tom Foley Cork Gaines 7 Comments »



THE GOOD: Looonnnggggg home run by Carlos Pena in the 1st inning. That is 7 in the last 18 games. Pena’s bat couldn’t have woken up at a better time…Great relay to end the 3rd inning. With a runner on second, a single to left was sent home by Eric Hinske with a perfect relay from Willy Aybar to nail the runner and keep the lead at 2-0. The A’s probably don’t send the runner if there were less than 2 outs, but the Rays still had to make the play, and they did…The 5th inning could have been much worse. A double, single and intentional walk loaded the bases with no outs. A single to Gabe Gross scored 1, again leaving the bases loaded 2, leaving first and third with no outs. Andy Sonnanstine got the next batter on strikes and then delivered the big blow, a 5-4-3 picture-perfect double play to end the inning…Dioner Navarro’s arm. With Troy Percival again struggling with his control and walking the leadoff hitter in the 9th inning of a 1-run game, the A’s used a pinch-runner. Navi threw out Rajai Davis trying to steal for the first out. If Davis gets to second base with no outs, Percival would have very likely blown the save.

THE BAD: Troy Percival again struggled with his control, walking 2 in the 9th including the leadoff hitter. 1-run leads in the 9th are going to be an adventure from here on out…Rays batters struck out 12 times.

THE TELLING: For all the naysayers that think the Rays will fall back to Earth after their recent slew of injuries should note the Rays magic number for a playoff spot is now 38 over the Twins. There now appears to only be 4 teams competing for 3 spots as the Yankees are now 3rd in the wild card standings, 6 games back of the Red Sox. So the important numbers now for the Rays are the 3 game lead in the East and the 5.5 game lead over the Twins. No way Yankees will make up 9 games in 6 weeks. As we said last week, The Yankees are dead. The Yankees are roadkill.

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

  • OK, OK…Fine. We’ll do it. Today marks the long overdue return of the “Rays Index Live Blog-A-Baloo of the Week”. So see you guys back here around 3:30 and we will try to help you through the last couple of hours at work.
  • Joe Maddon would not rule out a return of Jason Bartlett to SS this afternoon, although tomorrow sounds more likely. Bartlett is still battling a “bad bone bruise.” He played catch yesterday and Tom Foley said he looked better than the day before. [MLB]
  • Mike Francesa of “The Fatso and Fruit Loops” “The Mike and the Mad Dog” show, finally admits he was wrong about the Rays…If you have never listened to this NYC radio show, let’s just say it is a rare day when Mikey admits he is wrong about anything. [Mike and the Mad Blog]
  • John Romano of the St. Pete Times takes a look at some recent contenders that also suffered key injuries down the stretch. What we learn is we have no idea what will happen. [St. Pete Times]
  • The only one of the Rays’ top draft picks yet to sign is 2nd round pick Kyle Lobstein. Both sides are expecting a deal to get done by Friday’s deadline. [Tampa Tribune]
  • In case you missed it in the early post, The Immaculate Inning was on hand last night for David Price’s triple-A debut and wrote a detailed account. [The Immaculate Inning]
  • Gerry Fraley thinks Evan Longoria’s trip to the DL could actually help his chances at winning the MVP. [Sporting News]
  • A Brewers fan offers advice to Rays fans on how to cope with this current rough patch…Listen Brewers fans: Keep your ’07 taint as far away from the Rays as possible. Thank You. [The Grand National Championships]
Feb 26

[THE HANGOVER] Signing Barry Bonds Would Go Against Everything The Rays Have Done In Past Two Years

Akinori Iwamura, Barry Bonds, Cliff Floyd, Evan Longoria, Jason Bartlett, Joel Guzman, Jonny Gomes, Reid Brignac, Rocco Baldelli, Tom Foley, Will Carroll, Willy Aybar Cork Gaines No Comments »

Tampa Bay Rays (34 days until Opening Day)

For those that do not follow the comments sections, let us clarify our point on Barry Bonds.

There are reasons to sign Bonds and there are reasons not to sign Bonds. We understand both sides of the argument. In fact, we believe the Rays would be a better baseball team with Bonds. And in all probability the Rays would sell more tickets and make more money with Bonds.

However, our argument has never been about “should they” or “shouldn’t they”. We are just saying the Rays won’t. Signing Bonds would go against everything the Rays front office has done in the past two-plus years. They traded last year’s headaches, Elijah Dukes and Delmon Young. They dropped the term ‘Devil’ because some people reacted negatively. Free agent signings have filled needs, not wants.

But most importantly, the Rays like to speak of their new ‘brand’ (new nickname, logos and colors). The team has gone to great lengths to promote the new brand in a positive light. It doesn’t seem very likely that they are going to want America’s first experience with that brand to be in the form of Barry Bonds.

The Rays have a plan. The plan is working. Now can we please get back to talking about the 2008 Tampa Bay Rays? Yes? Good.

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

  • If you haven’t had a chance to vote in this week’s “Rays Confidence Survey”, you can do so right HERE. [Rays Index]
  • Buster Olney (behind the wall of “ESPN: Insider”) believes that Barry Bonds makes sense for the Rays. There are now 6,345,122 new stories on Bonds to the Rays, good or bad? We did not want to link to any of them, but Buster Olney is very well respected. [ESPN]
  • Of course “the players” would welcome Barry Bonds. That is because nobody thought to ask Cliff Floyd and Jonny Gomes, two players that would stand to lose consider playing time with the addition of Bonds. [Tampa Bay Rays]
  • ESPN takes a satirical look at the Pros and Cons of Barry Bonds playing for each of the 30 teams. [ESPN]
  • Willy Aybar and Joel Guzman had their visa issues resolved and will be in camp today and tomorrow. [St. Pete Times]
  • The Bradenton Herald interview Evan Longoria on how he is approaching this year’s Spring Training. [Bradenton Herald]
  • The Tampa Tribune interviews Reid Brignac and he discusses the key step that helped him turn the corner with regard to his defense at shortstop. [Tampa Tribune]

Beginning in spring training last year, the Rays set about to revamp Brignac’s throwing motion. A tall, rangy shortstop whose build recalls Cal Ripken Jr., Brignac was in the habit of delivering his throws straight over the top. That’s what you want from an outfielder, which Brignac was in high school until his senior season, but not ideal for an infielder.

“You can’t teach hands or anything like that, but they did a great job of getting me where I needed to be to be successful,” Brignac said. “You can either take that and run with it or you can try and do your own thing, and nine times out of 10, if you listen to the advice that has been given to you and the coaching that has gone on and run with it, you learn a lot. You get better.”

Brignac certainly did. He had committed 19 errors, most of them with his arm rather than his glove, in his first 90 games for the Biscuits. He committed only three more miscues in his final 43 games.

  • Joe Maddon will wait until after the first two intrasquad games before deciding how much Rocco Baldelli will play in the early portion of the Spring Training schedule. [Herald-Tribune]
  • Jason Bartlett and infielder coach Tom Foley think that Akinori Iwamura is making great strides in his adjustment to second base. [Tampa Bay Rays]

“He’s going to be fine,” said Jason Bartlett, the Rays’ new shortstop. “Everybody makes a big deal about it, but he’s an athlete. … I don’t think it’s going to be a problem at all.”

“He’s doing great,” Foley said. “There are some little things he has to do to help him out, but as far as fundamentals, he’s doing great.

“Aki’s a great athlete and seems to have a real good grip on second base already,” Foley said. “It’s just a matter of playing games. When you go from one side of the diamond to the other side, and all of a sudden, you get a ball in the gap: What are your responsibilities? Those things have to be reactionary once the season starts.”

  • One More Dying Quail compares the 2008 to the 1969 New York Mets. And as Red Sox fans they are scared. [One More Dying Quail]
  • Joe Maddon has enlisted one player every morning to tell the Joke-of-the-Day prior to workouts. [ESPN]
  • Will Carroll of Baseball Prospectus attended the Tampa Bay Rays’ FanFest. He even took a few pictures. [Baseball Prospectus]
  • One blogger thinks that a new-and-improved Rays could cause havoc in the AL East, which may lead to the AL Wild Card coming from the AL Central. [The Spot Starters]