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The Tampa Bay have won seven straight games, all on the road, and match the club’s best winning streak away from Tropicana Field in one season. The Rays last won seven in a row in June of 2004.
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Who was that who said, “Let he who has no sin cast the first stone.”
Oh yeah, that guy!
I’m so glad that the fans can finally start getting over the whole steroid deal. Let this sport breath again, and maybe do some spring cleaning of our own.
Personally, it says a lot about the fans in St. Louis too. Real people! Maybe the rest of baseball should take note.
Lets do the same and move on. Please!
The article below is just one of the many reasons that I pull for the Tampa Bay Rays. The lowest paid team in baseball constantly gets the job done. They are All-Stars playing for peanuts. Well, maybe not peanuts, but playing because they love the game. These guys are a throw back team. This is the way baseball used to be. Playing because you love the game. It’s what made baseball America’s favorite past-time. Day after day they give 100%. These guys always give their fans something to cheer about. The fans always get their money’s worth.
This team is one of the only teams that come close to resembling the Atlanta Braves of the 1990’s. Young, talented, and hungry! Enjoy the Rays this year while you can. Because next year, this team might not be around. Free agency will steal away some of the better players. Then some rich team like the New York Yankees will shell out big bucks, and break up this young ball club. Thankfully they have the best farm system in baseball. So at least their are more young kids waiting for their shot at the big leagues. Just like the Braves used to have. Anyway, go see them while they’re still around. Go Rays!!!
Enjoy the article.
Crawford, Rays commiserate in the poorhouse
The scene, so familiar the past two years, played out again Tuesday night. The Tampa Bay Rays, an unparalleled collection of young baseball-playing talent, hugged and jumped and celebrated together. They won their first game of the season in dramatic fashion, and their whooping included no pretense. They were thrilled for the fans, for each other and for the man in the middle of their makeshift mosh pit.
Carl Crawford, the heart of the Rays, will be a free agent after the season.
His name is Carl Crawford(notes), and he is, very simply, the Tampa Bay Rays. Crawford is a 28-year-old left fielder for the Rays. He has won four American League stolen-base titles, hit .300 or better four times and is generally considered the best defensive player at his position in the major leagues. Crawford remains the lone link between the historically disastrous Rays of the early 2000s and the wildly talented Rays of the new decade – a team that, despite limited resources, fields a lineup with almost every bit the talent of their top American League East foes, the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox.
“I’ve seen it grow from nothing to something, and I’ve been fortunate to be a part of that,” Crawford said. “When something like that happens, it has a special place inside you. So, you know, you remember that.”
Crawford paused. He knew the next sentence needed to escape from his lips. It still pained him to say it.
“And then,” he said, “you do what you have to do.”
Because he epitomizes the Rays, and because the Rays players and executives revere him, they don’t want to think about what he will have to do seven months from now. The World Series will be over, and Crawford will officially be a free agent. Tampa Bay’s payroll clocks in around $70 million this year, and it’s a number for which franchise owner Stuart Sternberg is stretching. It likely won’t stay that high. Crawford will command $15 million a year, minimum, on the open market. Never has a pending divorce been so obvious.
Each side dances around the subject. Crawford wants to stay. Rays general manager Andrew Friedman wants him to stay. Only baseball isn’t a game with a socialistic bent. The sport’s poor get insulted and injured, and everyone goes about their merry, money-making way.
“We expect him to be a big part of it this year – and, hopefully, for many more years to come,” Friedman said. “But we understand the situation.”
Which is that come opening day 2011, Carl Crawford, heart of the Rays, will be just the latest mercenary on a big-money team – and the first in a long line of Rays who could chase green in other pastures. First baseman Carlos Pena(notes) hits free agency next year. Shortstop Jason Bartlett(notes) follows in 2011, center fielder B.J. Upton(notes) and relief ace J.P. Howell(notes) in 2012. Starter Matt Garza(notes) and super utilityman Ben Zobrist(notes) could hit paydirt in 2013.
Even though Friedman maneuvers deftly in almost all respects of his job – he locked up the team’s best player, Evan Longoria(notes), through 2016, circumvents service-time problems with aplomb and built the best farm system in the minor leagues – he alone cannot stop the inevitable. In less than a year, the Rays will bleed talent. To cauterize themselves would take a miracle.
“It’s too bad,” said Scott Kazmir(notes), the former Rays ace whom they traded to the Los Angeles Angels last year. “I really hope they don’t turn into a situation like Oakland, where everyone says, ‘All those guys used to play for them?’ It’s going to, though. All that talent is going to go, and there’s nothing they can do about it.”
As much as Kazmir’s prediction sounds like doomsday, Crawford agreed: “He might have a point.” And as the Rays compete in the best division since baseball realigned in 1994, they face a reality nothing can change.
Well, almost nothing.
Baseball is readying for a labor war next year. The union on Tuesday alluded to a potential collusion claim from the most recent free-agent class. Major League Baseball wants to expand the draft internationally and institute a hard slotting system. The players are tired of the service-time manipulation that keeps them from millions of dollars. The ever-present drug-testing issue lingers. Big-market owners hate subsidizing smaller-market teams which refuse to spend their share of revenue sharing.
And gathering more than any of those issues is MLB commissioner Bud Selig’s suggestion of realignment, which might as well be called The Plan to Rescue the Rays. Selig is not pushing realignment out of any particular affinity for Tampa Bay. More than a decade after the team arrived, it’s still an area masquerading as a big-league city, with tickets remaining for opening day less than a week out and a local radio station airing Yankees games 1,000 miles from the Bronx. Neither Tampa nor St. Petersburg, Fla., seems particularly inclined to publicly fund a new stadium, and without such revenues, the Rays will continue to take the Yankees’ welfare money and troll around baseball’s thrift store.
“We can’t pretend like we’re someone we’re not,” Friedman said. “We have to understand and appreciate our challenges and limitations and operate within them. We’re confident we can do so in a manner that allows us to remain competitive for as long as we can in this division. It’s a big distinction.”
Still, it’s that very act of competing – and, in 2008, prevailing – that serves as the impetus behind Selig’s final big act as the sport’s overlord. He owned the Milwaukee Brewers. He understands the perils of small markets. He realizes the union never will agree to a salary cap, and if there’s anything within his power to balance competitiveness, he’ll do it.
The solutions are thin. Splitting up the Yankees and Red Sox is a non-starter. The floating realignment concept – offered by a panel Selig hand-picked to suggest improvements for the game – is ludicrous, something Selig full well realizes. Adding another wild card increases revenue but doesn’t get rid of an unbalanced schedule that forces the Rays to face teams with budgets two and three times their size – literally – 18 times while other American League teams get the Yankees and Red Sox as few as six times.
Center fielder Desmond Jennings is the top prospect for the Rays and draws comparisons to Crawford.
Everyone in baseball is cognizant of the sport’s flaw: For the Rays to compete, they must overcome themselves and their limitations. They can scout and develop players better than any team in baseball – “It has almost become a cliché at this point,” Friedman said, “but it’s more important to us than any other team in baseball with whom we’re competing against” – but it guarantees them nothing, certainly not a year-in, year-out chance.
One reason Tampa Bay feels comfortable with Crawford’s imminent departure is Desmond Jennings(notes), a 23-year-old who – because he is black and owns a football player’s build – draws immediate comparisons to Crawford. Jennings is the top prospect in a Rays system that is the envy of 29 teams. Wade Davis(notes) made the team as the No. 5 starter; right-hander Jeremy Hellickson(notes) will arrive midsummer at the latest; the Rays love Alex Torres (acquired in the Kazmir deal) as a left-handed specialist; and another wave, led by former No. 1 overall pick Tim Beckham(notes) and minor-league strikeout leader Matt Moore, should arrive by 2013.
It keeps Friedman hopeful that the Rays can survive in the AL East even if realignment fails to place them in a better situation – “better” ever subjective, of course. Howell said the Rays “are who we are because of the Yankees and Red Sox. They make us better. I like going against that money. This organization can actually do that, and it’s rare.”
Still, the implication in the Tampa are and other small markets is stark: Money wins, and baseball ought do to whatever it can to even out finances and reward teams such as the Rays for winning thanks to talent-acquisition acumen that doesn’t involve eight- and nine-digit contracts.
“Anything you do that you feel strongly improves the game, you should be aggressive to do it,” Friedman said. “We’ll debate a lot of different things. If there are things that genuinely have a good chance to improve the game, we should do it. If not, we shouldn’t. I’m very biased on the subject. “I mean, look at us.”
For those who looked at the Rays on Aug. 29, 2009, confusion set in. Kazmir was the pitcher around whom Tampa Bay built its staff, twice an All-Star, four straight years with an ERA below 4.00, and here they were, only 4½ games back of Boston for the wild card, trading him.
The deal, even more than Crawford’s likely exit, typifies the Rays’ existence: When a player does not produce for what they’re paying him – Kazmir was due at least $22.5 million for this year and next – they get rid of him. Friedman, a 33-year-old who worked at Bear Stearns before becoming a baseball executive, forces himself to treat players like commodities because doing otherwise may compromise what little margin of error he is allowed.
“That’s the business part,” Kazmir said. “You have to understand what situation they’re in and what situation you’re in. It took awhile to come to terms with it. You never want to get traded but, at the same time, I couldn’t pick a better situation.”
The Angels were the perfect trading partner for Friedman. They’ve got the financial wherewithal to swallow a contract like Kazmir’s if he bombs out, and they were willing to offer Tampa Bay three prospects, each of whom offers six years before free agency. If even one of them hits – and based on spring training, Sean Rodriguez(notes), a utilityman in the Zobrist mold, looks like a winner, while Rays executives love Torres and third baseman Matt Sweeney as well – the trade was worthwhile.
But Kazmir is right when he alludes to the reload-and-unload philosophy Oakland perfected during its early 2000s heyday. Jason Giambi(notes), Miguel Tejada(notes), Tim Hudson(notes), Mark Mulder(notes), Barry Zito(notes), Dan Haren(notes), Rich Harden(notes), Ted Lilly(notes), Jermaine Dye(notes) and plenty more passed through. The only star left from those teams is third baseman Eric Chavez(notes), whom the A’s chose to sign to a long-term deal, and he has played in 121 games the past three years. Oakland last finished over .500 in 2006.
“We’re not going to become this factory where we nurture these young players and give them away,” Rays manager Joe Maddon said. “I don’t see that. I just don’t see it.”
So he tries to appreciate what he has now. With the Rays trailing 3-2 in the bottom of the ninth inning Tuesday night, with Baltimore Orioles closer Mike Gonzalez(notes) pitching, Crawford ripped a bases-loaded double down the right-field line. The team spilled out of the dugout, mobbed catcher Kelly Shoppach(notes) at home and then made its way to Crawford.
If Longoria is the heart of the Rays going forward, Crawford is at least the blood, the thing that shows up everywhere. The players talk about him privately and lament what November will bring. They think winning will keep the Rays together. They are naïve.
“They can’t get rid of him,” Kazmir said. “They can’t.”
“Everything you see around here,” Howell said, “is a reflection of him.”
“It’s not a comforting thought,” Maddon said, “to think you may lose him.”
Crawford said he won’t talk about his future now that the season has started. His agent, Brian Peters, doesn’t plan on negotiating with the Rays during the season, which ensures Crawford will hit the open market and see the riches that don’t exist in Florida – where, if they even bother with a contract proposal, it will end up near half of his biggest offer.
“You just want to get what you deserve, market value or whatever it is,” Crawford said. “I’m definitely not in a rush to leave. It’s not a guarantee I’ll leave, but it’s the way things are sometimes.
Baseball’s crossroads is quite treacherous. Carl Crawford and the Rays deserve each other, and their relationship is practically forbidden under the current system. Then again, no viable alternative exists, nothing that will help this great team stuck in a meat-grinder division because of its geographical location. Which means Crawford will steal some bases, rap some hits and help the Rays contend this year.
And then he’ll do what he has to do because the sport gives him no other choice.
- Yahoo Sports
Led Zepplin – “Been a Long Time Since I Rock and Rolled”
One of my favorite rock-n-roll songs growing up, still is, and always will be, “It’s Been A Long Time Since I Rock-n- Rolled”, by Led Zeppelin. Yes it has! Well it’s time to “Rock – and – Roll” again. I’ve been away, but now I’m back. It’s time to bring The “Florida Writer Sports Blog” out of the garage, clean it up some, and take it for a ride once again. Lets drive it as fast and furious as possible, and try not get a ticket. Or, for lack of a better another analogy, me not getting hate mail. Well maybe some will be o.k. It keeps me writing, inspires me to respond, and pushes me to be passionate about it as well.
There is no better way to jump start this sports blog, than by firing it up at the beginning of the 2010 Baseball Season. As a native Floridian, I can get excited about baseball for good reason. First of all, it’s still in my opinion, one of America’s favorite past-times. But secondly, is the fact that here in Florida, we have two of the best clubs in the MLB to root for. The Florida Marlins, and the Tampa Bay Rays. Both teams have the capability to make a run at the playoffs again this year, and possibly even further than that.
The way I write, might offend some people at times. All I can say about that,… is good! But let me explain.
If you agree with everything I write all the time, it would become a bore for me and you. Sometimes I write with a hook, to get solicit a response, and that hook is meant to sting some. If you’re curious what I’m talking about, research an article of mine entitled, “Is Dale Earnhardt Jr. becoming another Kyle Petty?” You can read it here actually, if you want. Just search the title. Anyway, it ran, on the Bleacher Report, Fox-Sports.com, ESPN.com simultaneously, and got lots of attention. I pushed a lot of buttons, and loved every minute of it. Ironically, I like Dale Jr.
This is “The Florida Writer Sports Blog” and I’m not writing for anyone else, so I can write how I want. That includes being blatantly obvious that I like this or that team, player, etc. Or what team, player, etc., that I don’t like. For example: The New York Yankees.
When I write for someone else’s publication for profit, most times I must remain neutral. Not so, here on this blog.
Remember, I’m writing about sports, not your Mama. Don’t get offended, if I call you out, after you’ve called me out about my article, team,player, or whatever. Real men don’t punch and run! So lets Rock-n-Roll. Please, no profanity on this site.
Is anyone else excited about the baseball season starting? Who is your team? What are your expectations of that team? Who is your favorite player? Does he use steroids too? And what is your predictions on who will be the next world champion.
Gentlemen, start your engines………………………………………………….
Florida MLB Sites
Tampa Bay Rays Fan Site – http://tampabay.majorleaguebaseballfansite.com
Florida Marlins Fan Site – http://florida.majorleaguebaseballfansite.com
Florida NFL Sites
Jacksonville Jaguar Fan Site – http://www.jacksonvillejaguarsfansite.com
Tampa Bay Bucs Fan Site – http://www.tampabaybuccaneersfansite.com
Florida NBA Sites
Orlando Magic Fan Site – http://orlando.nbabasketballfansite.com
Miami Heat Fan Site – http://miami.nbabasketballfansite.com
Florida NCAA Sites
Florida Gator Fan Site – http://www.floridafansite.com
Florida State Noles Fan Site – http://www.floridastatefansite.com
Miami Hurricane Fan Site – http://www.miamifansite.com
After a long, and hard fought battle on the road, the Tampa Bay Rays came home and the fans were waiting to watch their team play their first home game of 2009. The pregame ceremonies started by raising the 2008 A.L. championship banner. Afterwards, the fans settled in to watch their hometown boys wax the Goliath of baseball, the New York Yankees.
Carlos Pena hit a grand slam and drove in six runs Monday night, helping Scott Kazmir beat Chien-Ming Wang and the New York Yankees 15-5 in the home opener for the AL champions.
“We showed everything,” Carl Crawford said after the young, confident Rays homered three times, amassed 17 hits, stole four bases, made some nice defensive plays and impressed manager Joe Maddon with how well they maintain focus on an emotional night.
It got so bad for the Yankees that first baseman Nick Swisher pitched a scoreless eighth inning, the first New York position player to take the mound since Wade Boggs used his knuckleball in 1997.
“It’s one of those days,” captain Derek Jeter said. “It was their day, an opportunity to celebrate what they did last season, and they had their way.”
The Rays toasted last year’s improbable worst-to-first turnaround by hanging two large blue and white division and league championship banners above the left-field stands during a festive pregame ceremony at sold-out Tropicana Field.
They spent the rest of the night pleasing the crowd of 36,973 by beating up on a division rival that shelled out more than $400 million in offseason acquisitions with hopes of regaining supremacy in the AL East.
Kazmir (2-0) allowed three runs and six hits in 6 2-3 innings, including Swisher’s solo homer in the fourth and Melky Cabrera’s RBI single in the fifth. The left-hander struck out six and walked none.
“Whatever could go wrong tonight went wrong,” Yankees manager Joe Girardi. “It started with starting pitcher. Chien-Ming never got it going. We know he’s much better than he’s pitched so far.”
Earlier in the day, New York’s Alex Rodriguez resumed drills on a baseball field five weeks after hip surgery and said following the workout in Tampa that he eventually hopes to return as “good as new.”
The Yankees could use some help with Jeter—1-for-his-last-20—struggling and Cody Ransom going 2-for-24 with two RBIs as A-Rod’s replacement at third base.
Swisher may have been New York’s most effective pitcher. After giving up a walk and Tampa Bay’s 17th hit, he struck out Gabe Kapler and got Pena and Pat Burrell to fly out.
“I had fun with it. When am I ever going to have a chance to do that again? Probably never,” said Swisher, who hadn’t pitched in a game since he was a freshman in high school. “We know we didn’t play very well. Got to find something to laugh about in that moment. I just happened to be the guy.”
Pena had a two-run double in the first off Wang (0-2), who continued to struggle in his comeback from foot surgery that sidelined him for more than three months last season. The slugger drove in three of the eight runs charged to Wang in one-plus innings with the sixth grand slam of his career off reliever Jonathan Albaladejo in the second.
Burrell and Jason Bartlett also homered for the Rays, who got two more RBIs from hot-hitting Evan Longoria.
Longoria, the 2008 AL rookie of the year, has hit safely in all seven of Tampa Bay’s games and has five homers and 12 RBIs.
“We have good young players coming off a very good season. My biggest concern is how we were going to react to success. And to this point, I’m pleased,” Maddon said. “Gratitude and humility, I really believe in that. And I think our guys have channeled all the success properly to this point.”
With the faltering economy, lingering wars, record gas prices, and all the rest, there wasn’t much to get excited about in 2008. Unless of course you happened to be a Tampa Bay Ray’s fan.
Last year, the ball club made a name for themselves, by going from worst to first in the standings, and then beating the Boston Redsox in the playoffs, enroute to their first World Series.
Ultimately, they lost to the Philadelphia Phillies, but in the process, they proved that money doesn’t always buy championships, and sometimes, willpower defies all odds, by producing remarkable results. The Tampa Bay Rays are a young team. Committed to a common purpose, and motivated by a leader who knows what it means to be an underdog. Using his uncanny leadership skills, Joe Madden will once again find a way to motivate his young ball club to an even higher level in 2009. With their appetites hardly quenched, by the post season treats, the Rays are hungry for even more.
This year, the Rays will be even stronger than last. Here are some of the reasons why…
Now that Carl Crawford is healthy, he’ll resume stealing bases and his average should improve after an injury-riddled 2008. Look for Crawford to hit close to a 300 average, and produce somewhere in the neighborhood of 10 homers. B.J. Upton was also slowed by injuries last year, but underwent off season treatment for his chronic shoulder problems. A healthy Upton will not only steal 40 bases this year, but will bat on average near 280, and will send between 15-20 balls into the seats at the Tropicana.
Next, we have First Baseman, Carlos Pena and last year’s rookie sensation, at 3rd base, Evan Longoria. They are projected to bat third and fourth respectively, and each have 30-HR power. Except Longoria to bat near 280, and but be surprised if Pena tops 250.
Dioner Navarro is one of the better offensive catchers in the A.L., and shortstop Jason Bartlett is a cheap source of steals coming off a season slowed by a knee injury. Now that he is healthy, except him to steal over 25 bases this year.
Matt Joyce, Ben Zobrist, Willy Aybar, and Gabe Gross are all in contention for playing time, and one will play regularly in right field.
Rounding out the offensive weapons, is the huge off season acquisition, of Designated Hitter, Pat Burrell. Burrell hit 33 home runs last year for Philadelphia, and after 9 seasons in MLB, he already has a total of 251. That’s an average of 27 per year.
Finally, the pitching rotation will be lead by the ace of the staff, Scott Kazmir. Followed by James Shields, Matt Garza, Andy Sonnanstne, and big lefty David Price. Price will be entering the 2009 season as candidate for Rookie of the Year. He was impressive in high-pressure situations in the postseason, showing off his strikeout potential. The only downside, is that such a valuable young arm will be limited to somewhere around 150 innings this season.
From the bullpen, look for J.P. Howell, Joe Nelson(previously with the Marlins), and Grant Balfour to flourish as setup pitchers. This year’s closer will once again be Troy Percival. After a hot start in 2008, Percy’s age caught up with him. However, when healthy, he is still Tampa’s first choice to save the game. If Percival’s health does become an issue, J.P. Howell could easily assume the closing spot, while grabbing some vulture wins.
Are you ready for some baseball? Then try and forget about the economy, and let the Tampa Bay Rays take to you on another day dream, that starts in early spring, and lasts throughout the fall. The unforgettable moments, the shocking blows, the random miracles, and the sight of grown ups being kids again. Because that’s what Baseball is all about.
By: Charles J. Asbury
Host of “Chuck and Cody’s Sports Report” and owner of “The Florida Writer”
Everyone seems to be a fan of something. Just ask any Nascar enthusiast who their favorite driver is, and you’ll get an immediate answer. A devotee of college football will proudly wear their favorite colors, and loudly sing the team fight song. But for some, it goes deeper than that. Yes, some appreciate, and even love a particular sport. For me, I proudly wear “The Fan” label for what I believe is still America’s greatest pastime, Baseball. I’m a fan of the game, and these are some of the reasons why.
When I was a little kid, and against my mother’s will, I would listen to the Atlanta Braves’ games underneath the covers with my little AM Radio. With the single ear piece in, I would either listen until the last pitch, or fall asleep trying. Night after night, and many miles away, that little boy would quietly root for his favorite team. Even though my alarm clock never showed me any compassion the next morning at six a.m., it never once stopped my nightly ritual of being “The Fan.”
Staying up until one a.m. to hear your favorite team lose, which in those days wasn’t uncommon, is just one example of being “The Fan.” Matter of fact, that might even be considered borderline fanatic, which in fact is the word in which “Fan” comes from. Sometimes, it’s not cool to be a fanatic, but when it comes to sports, people don’t think twice about it. Who can paint their face, make a total spectacle of themselves, and get away with it? Only “The Fan”.
As a fan of baseball, day after day, I would memorize the sports page, and could zealously quote player statistics at random. Of course, I would save some of my lunch money to buy and collect baseball cards. I would also methodically cut out the box scores, game recaps, and any relevant pictures to make a scrapbook of my favorite team, that started in spring training, and marched on through the entire season.
I played my favorite sport from the age of four, and would walk, talk, and try my best to emulate my favorite player. Many times at dusk, my mother would yell, “supper is ready,” but in the midst of my favorite childhood fantasy, I would throw the baseball up in the air one more time, trying to send it sailing over the azalea plants for the game winning home run. In my mind, I was living a dream that only a few can understand. It’s all about baseball, and I am “The Fan.”
Listening to a game on the radio, watching it on TV, or experiencing it in person were distinctly different, yet each one complete and satisfying in it’s own way. You see, “The Fan”relishes the special enjoyment of each memory, and I’ll leave you with a few of mine.
A long time ago, summertime Saturday afternoons were spent watching the Chicago Cubs play on TV with my grandfather. Old Polaroid pictures remind me of the father and son trip from Florida to Atlanta, to watch the Braves play the Dodgers. Then, while stationed in England, baseball held my attention, time after time, while this proud father rocked his little baby girl to sleep. In the fall of 1991, while stationed in Saudi Arabia, I never thought twice about staying up until three in the morning to watch the Atlanta Braves make their dramatic run from worst to first. And now, I can see the twinkle in my son’s eyes as he opens up a fresh pack of baseball cards.
All of these memories, and many more, are written on the tablature of my heart. Immortal, they move the soul. They deepen my love for the game of baseball, and help define this person that I’ve become, “The Fan.”
By: Charles J Asbury II
“The Florida Writer” www.flawriter.com
