Rays of Light

The Rays Out-Blow Ernesto

Thursday, August 31st, 2006

August 30th, 2006
Teams	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Tampa Bay	3	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0		4	10	3
Chicago	0	0	0	1	0	0	1	3	x		5	11	0
W - Garland (16-4) L - Meadows (2-5) Homeruns: Baldelli (7) Iguchi (14)

Box Score

Being a native Floridian, word of a potential hurricane heading my way usually makes for a couple days worth of conversation and not much more. I donít condone it, but if a big one were to hit today, my hurricane survival kit consists of an assortment of condiments and my dead-battery storage device, or “flashlight.” So when early projections had tropical storm Ernesto crashing directly into Tampa Bay, it provided me with plenty of ammo for my small-talk filled days at work, but not much more. Thankfully, (I feel inclined to say ìthankfully,î though a part of me always wants a little Category 1 action) it turned out to be a wimpy tropical storm. The best show were the monstrous cumulous clouds lumbering menacingly across the darkened sky, their silhouettes flashing on and off from the lightning behind them. Occasionally there were gusts of wind with sustained maximum winds of 40 MPH near the center; but really just a small ìblowî as the locals call them. Now if you really wanted to see something blow, you had to be in Chicago. Thatís where the Rays were busy blowing scoring opportunities, blowing double plays, blowing routine ground balls, blowing their 48th lead, and blowing there 12th straight game away from home.

This was a true team loss, particularly defensively. Cantu made his second horrific error on a routine ground ball in as many nights, Rocco made a key error on a difficult yet very catch-able fly ball, and Upton joined the error party with one of his own. But Joe Maddon made the biggest error, lifting Tim Corcoran after 5 1-3 solid innings in which he had struck out 7 and allowed just 1 earned run. Corcoran had definitely hit a rough patch in his outing, and was at 105 pitches, but his velocity was still there and should have been allowed to pitch out of it. I am really getting frustrated with Maddon and his reckless use of the Devil Ray blow-pen. Who does he think we have out there?

For one, we have Dan Miceli, who didnít give up a run in 1 and 2-3 innings, but he was replaced by Brian ìERAî Meadows who got the tar knocked out of him, giving up 3 runs and the lead and snuffed out the brief glimmer of hope that flickered in D Ray land. I understand the benefit of letting the ëpen arms get work, but for the love of God Joe, a couple people and I would really like to win one from the defending champs and shut Ozzie Guillen up for a day. These road losses are getting ridiculous.

Delmon Young looked great again; going 2/3 with a double and 2 RBI. It shouldnít be long before he is in the 2 or 3 hole. Maddon has him batting 7th until he proves himself. Well Iím sold. BJ Upton had a couple hits and heís looking much better at the plate. This guy really seems to be catching on quickly.

Despite the purgatory this team has drug us through this second half; it is nice to see the young team taking shape. I have read every angle on the Delmon Young fiasco, and there are very valid arguments from both the pros and the cons. But truth be told, I just want this team to win and heís here now and any more debate is just a waste of time. If he thinks heís bigger than baseball heíll learn soon enough heís not. If heís grown up and ready to let his playing do the talking, great. But now if Maddon keeps going to the bullpen in the 5th inning, that would really blow.

This and That

International MVP
Recent Ray call up Kevin Witt was named International league MVP in a poll of players, managers, coaches and media. Witt had 36 homeruns, 99 RBI and a .291 average. He is the third Rays’ minor leaguer to win the award. The other two were Steve Cox (1999) and Toby Hall (2001). He’s only been here a couple of days and I already like him several dozen times more than Travis Lee.

Cutting Gomes
Jonny Gomes had his season-ending shoulder surgery on Tuesday to repair an impingement and reduce fraying of the rotator cuff. When asked what exactly the problem with his shoulder was, he said, “A bunch of big words.” That’s right Jonny, just worry about hitting the ball.

Norton! Quit Hitting, Start Packing!
Greg Norton hit .397 in August and it looks like he’s on the block for pennant minded teams looking to add a bat before today’s deadline to set postseason rosters. It sounds like who else but the Dodgers are interested. Talk about trading a guy at the right time. Norton just had the best month of his career right before the deadline. I guess sometimes things do work out for the Rays. Maybe we could get Dodger’s lefty Mark Hendrickson for him.

Jae’s Day
It has been reported right-hander Jae Seo will be available to make his September 5th start. Now that we’re putting up some runs, it would not suprise me if Seo were to be the Rays’ winningest pitcher this month.

The Voice of Guillen
White Sox tyranical dictator, or manager, Ozzie Guillen staunchly denied making the call to plunk Delmon Young in Young’s first big league at bat. Freddy Garcia also denied the intent to do so, but of course it was Ozzie who made the ridiculous quote that just baffles me:

“How many times does this kid have to say I’m sorry and apologize? That’s bullcrap. He didn’t kill anybody. He didn’t rape any kids. He just made one mistake. He pays his taxes. There’s a lot worse things that happen in this world to worry about than this kid hitting an umpire.”

So just avoid murder and the raping of children, Delmon, and things should be just fine. Oh, and don’t forget to pay your taxes.

Guillen was not so “supportive” of Young after Young glared into the White Sox dugout during the at bat following his homerun. Take it away, jackass:

“He’s staring into the dugout; you’ve only got two at bats in the big leagues, kid. I don’t know him. If he thinks people hit him he should go and talk to Freddy (Garcia), and maybe Freddy will kick his butt. He’s looking around and I’m saying, “You don’t want to get hit twice.” He’s looking at me like I’m guilty, like I told that guy to hit him. I don’t play that game. I’ve been here long enough. If I’m gonna hit somebody, I’ll hit somebody worth it. This kid has not done anything in the big leagues yet.”

Trust me Ozzie, this kid is going to do more as a player than you ever did. And with your $105,000,000 payroll, I could have managed this team into the wild card race. When will this man stop going out of his way to disgrace himself?

Ozzie Guillen’s career stats

White Sox Player Salaries
1. Jim Thome 14,166,667
2. Paul Konerko 12,000,000
3. Javier Vazquez 12,000,000
4. Jose Contreras 9,500,000
5. Freddy Garcia 9,000,000
6. Mark Buehrle 8,000,000
7. Jon Garland 7,000,000
8. Jermaine Dye 5,000,000
9. A.J. Pierzynski 4,000,000
10. Dustin Hermanson 3,150,000
11. Juan Uribe 3,150,000
12. Joe Crede 2,675,000
13. Tadahito Iguchi 2,475,000
14. Rob Mackowiak 2,250,000
15. Scott Podsednik 2,125,000
16. David Riske 1,800,000
17. Alex Cintron 1,600,000
18. Sandy Alomar Jr. 650,000
19. Pablo Ozuna 500,000
20. Mike MacDougal 430,000
21. Neal Cotts 400,000
22. Matt Thornton 355,000
23. Ross Gload 350,000
24. Bobby Jenks 340,000
25. Brandon McCarthy 332,000
26. Brian Anderson 330,000

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Ho Hum, Another L

Wednesday, August 30th, 2006

Recently, I have acquired a handy tool for blogging. It’s a Dana wireless by AlphaSmart. What it enables me to do is simply sit and blog while i’m watching the game without having a laptop overheating on my crotch. Unfortunately, even though my crotch was not hot from laptop heat, it was in pain from the swift kick it received tonight courtesy of the defending champions. I guess we’re not welcome in Chicago.

It was nice to see announcers that give the Devil Rays a little respect. As the game starts, the White Sox announcers mention the fact that Tampa Bay has played fairly decent at home this year. They also complimented our team speed and exciting youth..

To go along with the normal White Sox trend of chosing a pick to click, I selected Kevin Witt to shine tonight. I already knew this will bring “chuckles” from various critics, but that’s fine. Let them be critical. If blogging negatively about players all the time is what gets you off, more power to you. As for me, i’d actually like to support the team we have on the field at all times. After all, whether they’re good or not, they’re still our team.

Back to the game, Casey Fossum did not look sharp as he faced the first two hitters of the ballgame. He didn’t seem to be locating any of his pitches and was constantly pitching from behind in the count. Against a team like the White Sox, that doesn’t bode well for your chances of a win. Here’s my question though. Where the heck did Jermaine Dye come from? How can Oakland continue to let players like this go and still be competitive each year? Look at just a few of the names they’ve lost over the last decade: Tejada, Giambi, Hudson, Mulder, etc. That’s sick!

In the end, the Rays drop yet another one, but how about Delmon Young homering in his debut and my boy Kevin Witt now up over .300 for his average. Sure is nice to be right.

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Dark Days, D Rays

Monday, August 28th, 2006

August 27th, 2006
Teams	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Tampa Bay	0	0	0	2	1	1	0	0	0		4	13	0
Baltimore	0	0	0	2	0	0	1	1	1		5	13	0
W - Hawkins (2-2), L - McClung (4-12) Homeruns: Witt (1)

Box Score

In order to fend off encroaching insanity as a result of the Devil Rays latest road loss, I have decided to embrace losing. I know it goes against thousands of years of human conditioning, but let us pretend the goal is to lose and the Raysí road record is the envy of all of Major League Baseball. So come on and letís enjoy our 18th post-break road loss! Woo-hoo!

Things looked good from the outset. Scott Kazmir, our only pitcher with a terrible habit of winning, was on the DL. Thankfully, J.P. Howell was there to fill in. Howell came into the game with a sparkling 10.80 ERA, but this wasnít the only thing that impressed me. He had two starts for the Rays this season and did not make it to the 5th inning in either one. It was my hope to tap into the bullpen early, because if we really wanted the Orioles to put up a ton of runs, this is usually our best bet.

Things got off to a shaky start. Howell did not look like the same pitcher who had thrown extended batting practice to the Detroit Tigers back on August 1st. This time he was hitting his location with disturbing consistency. Sometimes it looked as though he were actually trying to get batters out rather than give up runs. Things looked even bleaker when the Rays scored 2 runs in the 4th inning. Thankfully the Orioles answered with 2 of their own in their half of the same inning. Still, with the score only tied at 2 a piece I was starting to get worried. Howell was pitching effectively and with great economy. His soft stuff was working and I was beginning to see a pitcher who could win. He was painting corners, throwing breaking balls for strikes, and developing a dangerously affective rhythm. Yes, I was afraid we may actually win this one. What would we do without Joe Maddon?

Maddon had the foresight to see that a loss was slipping away with each tidy inning Howell pitched. Maddon, not one to take a win lying down, once again showed the brilliance of a manager who has delivered almost 80 losses. After just 6 innings and 81 pitches, Maddon lifted Howell to open up our bull pen for business. And why not? The Rays had a 2 run lead and it looked like it may actually hold. But Joe knew he had a bull pen that could give away a game with the best of them. So our bold skipper brought in Ruddy Lugo, who wasted no time in giving up a run. But that wasnít good enough. After Switzer pitched 1 out, it was time to bring in the big gun.

Enter Dan Miceli. Yes, we could count on Dan ìThe Manî Miceli to flush this game down the toilet. Miceli, a 13 year veteran with no business still participating in organized sport, delivered the way only a career 4.51 ERA could. He was immediately in a fantastic mess with the tying run on 3rd and we were forced to bring in closer-in-training Seth McClung to try and pitch out of it. Could you imagine if we actually let McClung develop into the traditional role of a closer over time? Something like that could force this team to win. I tip my hat to Maddon for trying to destroy the fragile psyche of a closer right out of the gate. It is well known that building confidence will only force winning, so great job Maddon in eliminating that as soon as possible. We all know our bull pen is losing just fine.

While Iím on the subject, I must also say great call, Maddon, on intentionally walking Corey Patterson. For a minute there we had McClung pitching without the bases loaded. Great thinking! Taking McClung out of his rhythm to toss an intentional walk, after striking out the preceding batter, was brilliant. I, along with any sane individual, would have never thought to do this. Itís just a shame Dioner Navarro had to make an outstanding catch to get us out of the inning without giving up a boatload of runs. But donít worry, Maddon. We all know you tried.

So McClung went on to get the loss by giving up a walk off single to Miguel ìGet Me Out of Baltimoreî Tejada and all was well in D Ray land. This was a close one, but thanks to the utter incompetence in the way this game was managed, the Rays were able to lose their league leading 18th road game since the break. I smell postseason.

Now, back to reality. If you needed a good example of Joe Maddonís highly questionable managerial skills, this was it. Howell was in a serious groove and he is not an arm burning power pitcher. To pull him after 81 pitches was just heartbreaking. Jerking a very young finesse pitcher out of a great start prematurely and forcing him to watch his team squander his work does not strike me as the best way to develop this kid. But Joeís right. Leaving the kid in when heís obviously throwing his best stuff will only win you ball games. And we wouldnít want that now, would we Joe?

This and That

Kaz Matters
Scott Kazmir is shooting for September 8th to come off of the disabled list. He went on the DL with what has been announced as ìa sore left shoulder,î but would like to make three or four more starts this season. The Rays need to be more than cautious with this situation. Letís take Mark Prior and Kerry Wood as an example of how NOT to treat a miraculous young arm. I think 145 innings is plenty of work for him this season, especially since he has already been on the DL twice with arm issues. Kazmir is too vital to this rotation to take any chances. Joe Maddonís thoughts:

“I would like to see Kazmir pitch before the end of the season, but if he doesn’t that’s not going to be the end of the world. This guy is way too important, and I just don’t see the upside in pushing him at this point.î

Forget it. This seasonís already a bad memory. Take your time, Kaz, and get back to 100% for ë07.

Cantu Can Not
Jorge Cantu was named the third worst defensive infielder by the San Jose Mercury News. Cantu has all the agility of tortoise and the range of a boulder. The Mexican Slumping Bean had better pull himself together in a hurry. He can only ride 2005ís numbers for so long before his job becomes uncertain.

AL East Second Basemen Fielding/Batting Stats
Jorge Cantu
Brian Roberts/Baltimore Orioles
Robinson Cano/New York Yankees
Mark Loretta/Boston Red Sox
Russ Adams/Toronto Blue Jays

Donít Let the Door Hit You. Or do. I Donít Care.
Thursday night the Rays traded away Russel Branyan to the Padres for minor league hurler Evan Meek. According to Baseball America, Meek ìhas a fastball that has been clocked as high as 97 mph, but still has plenty of work to do with his control and secondary pitches, which include a power curveball.î Meek was picked in the 11th round in 2002 by the Minnesota Twins and word on the street is he couldnít hit the broad side of a barn. Heís a walks machine that has a long road ahead of him. I guess thatís better than having Russel Branyan waste a roster spot. Slap Geoff Blum for me when you get to San Diego, would you Russ?

Gimpy Gomes
Jonny Gomes finds out today if heíll have season ending shoulder surgery that will include shaving down a bone in his shoulder joint. Raysí orthopedic physician Koco Eaton seems to think thatís the best course of action, though Gomesís agent has demanded a second opinion. Translation? Season over. Get well soon, for the love of God.

Groins and Such
Jae Seo is expected to be back in the rotation by September 10th after progressing ahead of schedule on the DL with an aggravated groin. Apparently this guyís work ethic is amazing and he doesnít like sitting out any longer than he has to. Good to here, because this guy is good.

USS Wiggington
Talking about not enjoying missing the action, Ty Wiggington will make a AAA rehab start in Durham this week and barring any setbacks will be back in the lineup by Friday. Wiggington had fractured a bone in his left hand on July 29th and it was questionable whether or not he would be back before mid-September. In typical Wiggington fashion, he exceeded this expectation and his bat will be a very welcome return. Is there a utility player with more productivity than this guy?

Mr. September
In perhaps the biggest non-surprise of September call-ups, Delmon Young could get the nod as soon as Friday to join the Rays for the Seattle series. The Raysí organization has played hardball with Young, whose quick temper had him throw his bat at an umpire on April 26th. But since returning from a 50 day suspension, Young is hitting .318 with 8 homeruns and 57 RBI at Durham. Forgiveness comes very quickly when you put up numbers like that.
Update
Change that headline to Mr. August. It looks as though Young will be in the lineup for the Chicago series beginning tomorrow, 8/29.

2006 Rays’ Minor League Stats

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Road Rage

Sunday, August 27th, 2006

August 26th, 2006
Teams	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Tampa Bay	2	0	1	1	0	0	0	0	0		2	11	0
Baltimore	0	0	0	1	0	0	1	0	1		3	9	0
W - Ray (2-4), L - Camp (6-2) Homeruns: Markakis (12) Conine (9)

Box Score

The Tampa Bay Devil Rays are terrible guests. Theyíre always leaving runners all over the place, they never clean up a thing and constantly make a mess. After todayís loss to the Baltimore Orioles, the Rays are now 1-17 on the road after the break. Thatís no fun. I donít feel like sugar-coating anything. No. I am not going to pick through another frustrating road loss to find the little shiny things. You know who learns how to always find the good aspects of losing? Losers. And I refuse to reduce this team to that. I have too much respect for what the Devil Rays can and are going to be. But letís face it; the team we are currently fielding is courtesy of Dr. Frankenstein: Spare parts held together by spare parts being supported by new parts. Translation? An utter freaking mess.

If today youíre looking for a perspective that sees the glass as half full, look elsewhere. If itís looking like your glass needs a refill in a bad way, you are in the right place. Here are three things that are really getting to me lately.

Gripe #1: Young or old, play the game well.

Okay. So the players are young and the injury bug has been relentless this season. Pedal that excuse elsewhere. Tell the Marlins that they are too young to win. Tell the Mets or Yankees that injuries are an excuse to lose. Yes, I understand the power of the dollar, but that excuse is tired. With all the confidence that is put in our farm system, the crops have been slow to sprout. Everyone knew this was going to be a tough year, but I promise you that no fan, no player, and no one in the front office expected this season to sputter to a nauseating halt in June. Whatever the excuse of the day is, there is a lot of people who simply want this team to score more runs than the other guys.

Gripe #2: A prospect is just a prospect until heís not a prospect.

The Devil Rays are the uncontested team of the future. For nearly ten years it has been ìWait until next year.î The sentiment is so deeply instilled in the fan base that it is becoming more and more common to follow this teamís potential rather than its record. Potential is exciting; but it means nothing if itís never realized. Here is harsh reality: BJ Upton has provided next to nothing offensively and has struck out in 25% of his at bats. Ben Zobrist has 19 hits in 90 at bats and has walked just 4 times. These are the two latest ìnew-whatís-nextís.î Meanwhile, Jonny Gomes is gone for the rest of the season and Jorge Cantu is simply bad. Young or old, I want to see better baseball.

Gripe #3: Whoís the captain of this ship?

I have really been holding off on falling back on the old clichÈ of pointing at the manager, but it is going to take more than a friendly demeanor and big vocabulary to make the fans respect Joe Maddon as a manager. Maddonís undying optimism has really made him appear to be a puppet of the new ownership. In the pre ìMoneyballî era, the manager was the eyes and ears and voice of reason that fans could look to for the facts. Now it seems like many managers are simply “yes sir’s” to the men crunching numbers in the shadows. Is it just me, or does Joe Maddon speak in the submissive tone of a man always trying to say the correct thing? A personal request to our manager: Good news or bad news, Mr. Maddon, I think I speak on behalf of a ton of knowledgeable fans when I ask you to let the undying optimism die. Donít worry, we will still be here if once and a while you say that things may be going a little slower than planned. Stop focusing on what you think ownership wants to here. Letís talk about baseball. Thatís why weíre here.

My apologies for being, well, a Devil Ray fan. This negative sentiment comes and goes, and after coming off a .500 home stand itís tough to get back on the road and see this team continue to throw away very winnable games (Not to mention KAZMIRíS SEASON LOOKS LIKE ITíS OVER.) The bottom line is simple, however. The Rays must start taking advantage of scoring opportunities, or itís always going to be ìWait ëtil next season.î Potential is a poor manís paycheck. Execution on the other hand? That will make you rich.

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Guest Column

Saturday, August 26th, 2006

August 25th, 2006
Teams	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Tampa Bay	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	7	1
Baltimore	0	0	0	0	2	0	1	1	0		4	8	0
W - Cabera (7-8) L - Hammel (0-2)

Box Score

This is a guest column by Jon’s brother.

This one was pretty straightforward. The Orioles have now scored 624 runs this year, the Devil Rays are stuck on 555. That’s good enough to place these teams fourth and fifth in the AL East, respectively. By no coincidence, this is also where they align in the standings. Despite the fact that Tampa Bay is only 5.5 games behind Baltimore, a 69 run differential through 129 games is pretty significant. Adding to this, the Devil Rays were in search of their mere 19th road victory, and only 2nd(!) since the All-Star break. The Orioles had their sights set on their 34th home win. Tonight, Baltimore got theirs. The Devil Rays were shutout 4-0, stymied by the O’s powerful young arm, Daniel Cabrera.

Cabrera was coming off the best start of his career, pitching a complete game shutout against the Toronto Blue Jays. Well, tonight, he didn’t go the distance, but he did dominate. He struck out seven over seven innings. That is not to say that the Devil Rays offense did not threaten nor that Jason Hammel, filling in for the injured Jae Seo, did not pitch well. Tampa managed eight base runners while Cabrera was on the mound, but not-a-one came home. When Cabrera was relieved by LaTroy Hawkins in the eighth, the Devil Rays quickly put two on, only to strand them when the Orioles’ lights-out closer, Chris Ray, came in to spin a perfect five-out save. Jason Hammel pitched well enough to win, had he any run support. Over 5 2/3 innings, he gave up only two runs, both earned. However, his control is still not where it needs to be as he walked four and gave up five hits. Despite this, he did show a good deal of improvement. Over his minute three-game career, this was arguably his best outing. Flashing back to April 11th, Hammel pitched in his first major league game, also against Baltimore. He gave up 7 earned runs over 3 1/3 innings. Quite an improvement, ya see?

I, along with many of you, was eager to see Kevin Witt play in his first Major League game since 2003. He did play some fine defense, but the numbers there are those that glare (as the old adage goes). And those numbers for the 30 year old first baseman are 0 for 4 with one K while leaving 3 men on base. Regardless, I’m still optimistic to have him up here.

It was good to see our one, two, and three hitters combine for 5 hits, 2 walks and 2 stolen bags. Let’s just hope that tomorrow the Devil Rays will capitalize on such productivity.

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RISP-Y Business

Friday, August 25th, 2006

<img src=”http://www.viewfromthebleachers.com/photos/raysloss.gif” align=”right” title=”" border=”0

Box Score

The Devil Raysí team average with Runners In Scoring Position going into Thursdayís game was a sorry .248. In contrast, the New York Yankees, who appear to be on course to win the AL East, bat .275 with RISP. The Devil Rays have won 52 games. The Yankees have won 76. Of all the elements that go into winning a game, only one controls the universe: Scoring more runs than the other guy.

While the Devil Rays did manage to take 3 of 4 from the Rangers, Thursday nightís loss served as a good reminder of the huge offensive gap plaguing this team. The Raysí can threaten with the best of them, but have a terrible habit of leaving runs out to die. The most glaring example from this game came in the bottom of the ninth when the Rays had Texas closer Akinori Otsuka (Pronounced ìLee-roy Bor-o-witz) against the ropes, having already scored 1 run on 3 hits. With Cantu on first and Lee, the potential tying run, on second Russel Branyan worked the count full. Branyan swung at ball 4 to hand Otsuka his 27th save. Had he taken the walk, the bases would have been full for Ben Zobrist. Not that Zobrist is the clutch RBI guy you want up, but it would have been a good test for him.

Corcoran was pitching out of jams all night and the 4 runs he gave up (3 earned) felt like 20. Heís got control issues and was saved by the free swinging Rangers on more than one occasion. The bullpen pitched affectively once again, with Orvella, Meadows and Switzer not allowing a run through 3 innings. Robinson Tejada, the Texas starter, went a career high 7 2-3 innings and was throwing as well as he ever will.

Good News
Russel Branyan has been traded to the San Diego Padres for minor league right hander Evan Meek. The 23 year old is 6-6 through 26 games at Class A Elsinore. So long Russel. You will be missed…okay, Iím just being nice. You will be forgotten right about now.

It looks like Kevin Witt is finally going to get his shot. After shining at Durham (.289/36/99), the Rays finally listened to what all the AAA-holes have been talking about for months. If you needed a reason to start watching again, here it is.

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Texas Toast

Thursday, August 24th, 2006

August 23rd, 2006
Teams	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Texas	0	0	0	0	0	3	0	0	0		3	6	0
Tampa Bay	0	0	1	0	2	1	3	0	0		7	10	3
W - Camp (6-1), L - Millwood (12-9) Homeruns: Cantu (10) Teixeira (21)

Box Score

Kevin ëTexí Millwood makes $7,868,893 a year. That is 230 times more than the average single income household in America. He makes 240 times more than the average Canadian household, 820 times more than the average Mexican household and 19,672 times more than the average Haitian household. He makes 20 times more than the President of the United States, 43 times more than the vice president and 267 times more than the average US Marine. With $7,686,893 Kevin Millwood could buy 811 pounds of gold, 251 Hummer H2’s, or provide the average yearly medical costs for 2,502 US children. With $7,686,893, he could not buy a victory over the Devil Rays on Wednesday night.

It was the best the Devil Rays have looked offensively in a month as they beat Millwood and the Rangers 7-3 behind Casey Fossumís strong 5 2-3 innings and the combined efforts of Sean Camp and Ruddy Lugo, neither of who allowed a run. Fossum had 8 K’s, Camp 1 and Lugo 3. This is the 5th time in the last 7 games that Rays pitching has struck out 10 or more batters. The bats did what they were supposed to do. BJ Upton struck out 3 times, but knocked in a key run in a 3 run 7th inning. Rocco Baldelli, who is hitting .412 in the leadoff spot, doubled in a run. Carl Crawford hit his career high 16th homerun. But it was the Mexican Slumping Bean that stole the show.

Maybe Jorge Cantu should play every third day. After a two game forced vacation, Cantu returned to the lineup Wednesday night to go 3 for 4, hitting his first homerun in almost a month, doubling twice and smacking in 3 runs. He entered the game marred in an infuriating 12-for-82 slide and had watched his average plummet to .236.

Maybe a couple of days off will work a miracle, and that is what Cantu needs. Since returning from his foot injury he has lost his timing, swinging through balls or making ineffective contact. His propensity to hit into double plays has reached critical levels and his play in the field has deteriorated from adequate to cumbersome. Everyone knows what heís capable of, but the jury is still out on this guys ceiling. Personally and unfortunately, I think we have already seen this guyís best in 2005.

Interesting Stuff

Ranger’s Player Salaries
1 Carlos Lee $8,500,000
2 Kevin Millwood $7,868,893
3 Mark Teixeira $6,400,000
4 Adam Eaton $4,650,000
5 Vicente Padilla $4,410,000
6 Kip Wells $4,150,000
7 Brad Wilkerson $3,900,000
8 Rod Barajas $3,200,000
9 Michael Young $3,075,000
10 Hank Blalock $3,050,000
11 Antonio Alfonseca $2,750,000
12 Gary Matthews Jr. $2,387,500
13 Jerry Hairston Jr. $2,300,000
14 Akinori Otsuka $1,750,000
15 Matt Stairs $1,350,000
16 Joaquin Benoit $775,000
17 Eric Young $700,000
18 Mark DeRosa $675,000
19 Adrian Brown $425,000
20 R.A. Dickey $380,000
21 Miguel Ojeda $350,000
22 Kameron Loe $348,770
23 Gerald Laird $332,330
24 Frank Francisco $331,500
25 Marshall McDougall $331,000
26 C.J. Wilson $331,000
27 Scott Feldman $329,000
28 John Koronka $329,000
29 Josh Rupe $328,000
30 Ian Kinsler $327,000

Top 10 Baseball Salaries
1. Alex Rodriguez $25,680,727
2. Derek Jeter $20,600,000
3. Jason Giambi $20,428,571
4. Barry Bonds $20,000,000
5. Jeff Bagwell $19,369,019
6. Mike Mussina $19,000,000
7. Manny Ramirez $18,279,238
8. Todd Helton $16,600,000
9. Andy Pettitte $16,428,416
10. Magglio Ordonez $16,200,000

The First Rays: 1998 Devil Rays Opening Day Lineup
Quinton McCracken, cf
Miguel Cairo, 2b
Wade Boggs, 3b
Fred McGriff, 1b
Mike Kelly, lf
Paul Sorrento, dh
John Flaherty, c
Dave Martinez, rf
Kevin Stocker, ss
Wilson Alvarez,P

The First of a Few Losses
The Devil Rays Played their first game on March 31st, 1998. They lost to the Detroit Tigers 11-6. The did so in front of 45,369 people.

More Rays Stuff

Groin Grounds Seo
Jae Seo was placed on the 15 day disabled list dues to a hurt groin. He is the 16th Devil Ray to be placed on the DL, second only to the gimpy Nationals 19. Seo, a notorious tough guy, accepted the clubs decision without protest. “He was actually good about it, which tells me he’s hurt a little bit,” said Joe Maddon. Great job Joe…I’m glad you could tell he was hurt before you put him on the DL.

DL Contestant #17?
It looks like Jonny Gomes is going to finally let something other than his crashing numbers indicate he is hurt. Pending upcoming tests, Gomes is reportedly considering cutting the season short in order to get that shoulder surgery we have all been telling him to get. He has a right shoulder impingment coupled with a rotator cuff problem. In order to maintain his reputation, he will undergo the arthroscopic surgery without anesthesia of any kind.

About Ty
Ty Wigginton’s fractured left hand is on the mend faster than anyone expected and he has already been cleared to take batting practiced on Friday and could be back in the lineup on September 1st. He has been missed.

Not Normal Norton
Greg Norton leads the majors with a .424 batting average in August. Well I guess I lost that bet.

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Springing Out of St. Petersburg

Wednesday, August 23rd, 2006

The Devil Rays will begin Spring Training in Charlotte county in 2009. Despite playing hardball earlier in negotiations, Charlotte County officials agreed to divert $15 million in tax dollars to renovate the existing stadium. The stadium was formerly spring home to the Texas Rangers, who now do their spring thing in Arizona. The decision is touted as an attempt to expand the Rays’ fan base, though the move to Charlotte County will send them just 80 miles from their current spring home, Al Lang field in St. Petersburg.

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Podcasting

Tuesday, August 22nd, 2006

This week on the Big League Baseball Report we are joined by the Red Hot Mama, who covers the Cincinnati Reds. Her blog can be found at www.red-hot-mama.com. We talked about a good array of topics, including: Boston getting swept by the Yankees, the Tom Glavine injury and Detroit’s attempt to replace Polanco with Neifi Perez.

As you would expect, we talked Reds baseball and played a little word association to close it out at the end.

For information on the podcast visit www.bigleaguebaseballreport.com

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Texas Hold ‘Em

Tuesday, August 22nd, 2006

August 21st, 2006
Teams	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Texas	0	0	2	0	1	0	0	0	0		3	9	1
Tampa Bay	0	2	0	1	1	0	0	0	0		4	14	0
W - Shields (6-6), L - Eaton (3-3) Homeruns: Blalock (12)

Box Score

If I were running for President I would act like I were from Texas and that I loved the state just so I could get their votes. Then when I was in office the first bill I would sign would be the “Elimination of Texas Bill.” Forgive me, I just don’t like the state. Anyone who has ever driven through the thing knows it’s too big, and the Texas Highway Commission thinks it’s funny to put up signs along the highway that say things like ‘Houston, 6,983 Miles.’ As a way of quietly displaying my dislike for the state, I mess with it, forgot the Alamo years ago, and do not like the Texas Rangers.

The Rangers are a rich team (While their payroll is around $70 million, their team value is $326 million according to Forbes.com) that has been mismanaged into the ground for years. First of all, going through the lineup, it appears you can only play for Texas if you look like your nickname could be ‘Tex.’

Michael ‘Tex’ Young
Mark ‘Tex’ Teixeira
Ian ‘Tex’ Kinsler
Gerald ‘Tex’ Laird

Why do you think they traded Alfonso Soriano? Alfonso ‘Tex’ Soriano? No dice. But I bring up a serious point here. If anyone knows why this deep-pocketed franchise would trade Soriano, please tell me. If they still had this guy, they would be the team to beat in the AL West. Instead they acquire Matt ‘Tex’ Stairs to DH? I would love to be in their front office the day someone said, “I think we need Matt Stairs. I realize he is an injury prone has-been, but quite frankly we could call him “Tex.”

See what I mean? Mismanagement. So here they are in late August, in the midst of their annual fade in the standings, on their way to their next big off-season acquisition. And what unlikely heroes are there to help in their descent? James Shields and the Devil Rays’ bullpen! Stand up bullpen and take a bow! Now sit down. You make me uncomfortable.

Shields makes me comfortable. He pitched 6 innings and gave up 3 runs, which are fine numbers pitching to this stacked lineup. He also picked up his second straight win. But it’s not just his numbers, this kid trusts himself. He had a 0-6 run over nine starts and that alone can be enough to get a young pitcher sent down to figure things out. But they seem to be on track to get him ironed out. He had some trouble mixing in that nasty changeup earlier in the year and he got beat up a little. But he seems to have worked through it and it shows. He’s calm on the hill and has let go of the overly formulaic pitch selection. The changeup is now a surprise rather than a gift. He hasn’t been throwing long enough to hang your hat on him, but we may have a good one here. He left the game with a one run lead, and who better to hold a one run lead than…Brian Meadows?

Here, I’ll let him tell you of how he felt after not allowing a run over 2 innings:

“That’s the beauty of being in the bullpen. You have a couple bad outings and you know you’re going to be right back in there and get a chance to have a good one. It felt good to walk off and shake hands for a change.”

What Brian Meadows is referring to as a “couple of bad outings” is 16 runs over his last 10 1-3 innings. I thought they quit making ERA’s that big in the 90’s. But tonight he pitched 2 scoreless innings before handing the ball off to Seth McClung who pitched a confident ninth to pick up his 1st major league save. Go pick him up you fantasy gurus, as this will not be his last.

So we got our first win against Texas this season and we have a chance to really mess with them here. If we take this series, or even take a split, it will likely make their trip out of contention all but inevitable. You heard me, Tex.

Interesting Stuff:

MLB TEAM PAYROLLS (US$)
1. NY Yankees 198,662,180
2. Boston 120,100,524
3. LA Angels 103,625,333
4. Chicago Sox 102,875,667
5. NY Mets 100,901,085
6. LA Dodgers 99,176,950
7. Chicago Cubs 94,841,166
8. Atlanta 92,461,852
9. Houston 92,101,503
10. San Francisco 90,862,064
11. Seattle 87,924,500
12. Philadelphia 87,148,333
13. St. Louis 86,912,217
14. Detroit 82,302,069
15. Baltimore 72,585,712
16. Toronto 71,915,000
17. San Diego 68,897,179
18. Texas 65,129,570
19. Minnesota 63,810,048
20. Washington 63,267,500
21. Oakland 62,322,054
22. Cincinnati 59,162,015
23. Arizona 58,884,226
24. Cleveland 56,795,867
25. Milwaukee 50,540,000
26. Kansas City 47,294,000
27. Pittsburgh 46,867,750
28. Colorado 40,791,000
29. Tampa Bay 35,417,967
30. Florida 14,344,500

Devil Rays Salary Breakdown:
1. Carl Crawford 2,625,000
2. Travis Lee 2,450,000
3. Casey Fossum 2,025,000
4. Rocco Baldelli 2,000,000
5. Travis Harper 850,000
6. Ty Wigginton 675,000
7. Dan Miceli 650,000
8. Brian Meadows 600,000
9. Shinji Mori 500,000
10. Josh Paul 475,000
11. Tyler Walker 387,000
12. Luis Ordaz 375,000
13. Scott Kazmir 371,700
14. Jonny Gomes 355,800
15. Jorge Cantu 355,800
16. Jae Seo 350,000
17. Damon Hollins 346,200
18. Seth McClung 343,000
19. Shawn Camp 335,000
20. Dioner Navarro 332,000
21. Ruddy Lugo 327,000

Remember: A teams payroll is NOT defined as the sum of player salaries. In other words, a “team payroll,” or in the Devil Rays’ case, $35 million, includes the player’s salaries PLUS salaries pertaining to personnel beyond the athletes. Simply put, it is the players salaries plus the rest, i.e. the front office, etc. These are all the player salaries I could track down, and obviously the roster is incomplete.

Total Team Values:

1 New York Yankees 950,000,000
2 Boston Red Sox 563,000,000
3 New York Mets 505,000,000
4 Los Angeles Dodgers 424,000,000
5 Seattle Mariners 415,000,000
6 Chicago Cubs 398,000,000
7 Philadelphia Phillies 392,000,000
8 Atlanta Braves 382,000,000
9 San Francisco Giants 381,000,000
10 St Louis Cardinals 370,000,000
11 Houston Astros 357,000,000
12 Baltimore Orioles 341,000,000
13 San Diego Padres 329,000,000
14 Texas Rangers 326,000,000
15 Cleveland Indians 319,000,000
16 Washington Nationals 310,000,000
17 Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim 294,000,000
18 Colorado Rockies 290,000,000
19 Arizona Diamondbacks 286,000,000
20 Chicago White Sox 262,000,000
21 Cincinnati Reds 255,000,000
22 Detroit Tigers 239,000,000
23 Pittsburgh Pirates 218,000,000
24 Toronto Blue Jays 214,000,000
25 Milwaukee Brewers 208,000,000
26 Florida Marlins 206,000,000
27 Kansas City Royals 187,000,000
28 Oakland Athletics 185,000,000
29 Minnesota Twins 178,000,000
30 Tampa Bay Devil Rays 176,000,000

Buzz:

Sit! Don’t think!
Jorge Cantu, who is hitting .146 since July 24th, will get a few days off NOT to think about it. Joe Maddon was quoted in the St. Pete Times as saying:

“I just want him to turn his brain off a little bit and just try to get back into that reactionary part of your abilities. He’s just thinking way too much right now.”

I don’t think he is thinking too much. All he ever thinks about is hitting into his next double play.

Hammel Time
It’s not looking like Jae Seo’s groin is going to allow him to make his start on Friday so the Devil Rays have made Jason Hammel available to replace him. Hammel is currently 5-9 with a 4.23 ERA down on the farm.

Knuckleheads
Diego Echevarria, a 21 year old knuckleballer from Argentina, has been signed by the Devil Rays. Rays’ management is currently talking to Joe Niekro to help him a long. If he is helped along well enough, Echevarria would be the first Argentinian major leaguer. A knuckleballer from Argentina…just what this team needs.

Witt Does He Have to Do?

Durham’s Kevin Witt won yet another International League batter of the week award. He batted .346 with 3 round trippers and 6 RBI over the span. He is now batting .294 overall, with 36 homeruns and 99 RBI.

Well Al Be
While poking around Spring Training this year, I saw a welcome addition to our bullpen, veteran reliever Al Reyes. It was much better seeing Reyes than our Japanese bust Shinji Mori, even though Mori wasn’t injured at the time and Reyes was. Well the tide has turned and now Mori is the only hurt one:

“Veteran reliever Al Reyes, whom the Rays signed to a minor-league contract with a 2007 option as he rehabbed from October Tommy John surgery, made his first appearance for Durham.” (St. Pete Times)

Reyes could be the bullpen anchor we need.

Stay Rays

The Devil Rays’ efforts to move their Spring Training from St. Petersburg to Charlotte County have all but stalled after the hurricane ravaged area balked at the notion of spending money on baseball. Becky Bovell, the director of the county’s tourism bureau had this to say:

“We are in hurricane recovery mode. We need to step up our marketing efforts to mitigate news coverage. Spending money on the Devil Rays sends the wrong message.”

Something tells me that Becky Bovell and myself will never become friends.

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