Rays Avoid Arbitration with Some, but Not All

by JC De La Torre

The Rays were able to settle with Jason Bartlett and Grant Balfour to avoid arbitration but failed to secure deals for Willie Aybar and All-Star catcher Dioner Navarro. Both will head to arbitration.

Balfour signed a 1-yr deal worth $1.4-million, while Bartlett also signed a 1-yr deal but he went for $1.98 million.

Arbitration for Aybar and Navarro will take place some time next month.

Baldelli defects for Red Sox

By JC De La Torre

Rocco Baldelli grew up near Boston as a Red Sox fan, he dreamed of being with the Red Sox his entire life. That, in addition to a few million other reasons, caused Baldelli to spurn the franchise that stood by him while he dealt with a mysterious illness that robbed him from being able to play a full season of baseball for their most hated rival.

"I'm definitely excited. I think this is a great move for my baseball career," Baldelli said at a Boston presser, "Boston pursued me pretty aggressively, and I appreciated that. In addition to the baseball side of it, they were equally interested in helping me out any way they could medically. I think there were a lot of reasons that this was a very good fit for me. Theo and the Sox, they pursued me not only as a player but also to understand me as a person and to help me out any way they could on the field and off the field."

Baldelli's one year contract is an incentive based with a floor of $500,000 but with escalators based on plate appearances that could go as high as $5.25 million. After signing Pat Burrell to take over the DH roll for big money, the Rays just didn't have the resources to compete with the Sox for Baldelli's services. Baldelli batted .263 with four home runs and 13 RBI in 28 games for the Rays in 2008 regular season while adding 2 home runs and 6 rbi during the playoffs. He's a lifetime .281 hitter with 52 dingers and 234 RBI.

While we're disappointed Tampa Bay couldn't keep Rocco in the fold and we were even more disappointed he went to the hated Red Sox, we wish Rocco the best with his health and success in Beantown.

Rays get Powerful Burrell for DH

By JC De La Torre

Perhaps its the slowing economy or since their success last season, players will take pay cuts to be here - but the Tampa Bay Rays made a huge signing today - getting left fielder Pat Burrell from the World Champion Philadelphia Phillies to take the Rays vacant DH spot. Burrell, 32, signed a 2 year, $16 million dollar contract, a regular bargin for today's power hitter standards. The Phillies Standout banged .250, 33 home runs, 86 rbi, and 102 walks in 157 games for the Phillies. Rays fans remember Burrell for getting a crucial lead off single in bottom of the 7th in Game 5 of the World Series that eventually turned into Philadelphia's winning run that ended the Rays hopes for their first World Championship.

The Rays could be done shopping for this season, as Executive Vice President Andrew Friedman told the St. Petersburg Times, "This signing is a major commitment of our resources and it will dramatically hinder our flexibility going forward." Translation: We're done spending for this year.

"This is a team I had a lot of interest in going to,'' Burrell told the Times, "I think this team is going to be competitive for a long time. ... I'm here to help. Anything and everything I can do to help this team win, I'll do.' '

Tampa Bay still has questions at closer, where oft injured Troy Percival turns 40 and still has back problems, while Dan Wheeler and JP Howell scare no one. It will be interesting to see if the Rays try to help Grant Balfour develop an off speed pitch that may enable him to become a closer.

The Rays is also looking for an answer at right field, although the hope is Tampa native and former Tiger Matt Joyce can fill that hole and also provide some additional punch in the lineup.

Rays Add Bullpen Depth

By JC De La Torre

The St. Petersburg Times is reporting that the Rays have signed 34yd old right handed relief pitcher Joe Nelson to a 1 yr $1.3 million dollar contract. Nelson walked away from some lucrative opportunities with other teams (reported as many as 20 other teams were interested) but felt that being close to home and playing for the American League champs was what he wanted to do.

Nelson pitched 54 innings for the Florida Marlins in 2008, putting up a 3-1 record, 1 save, 2.00 ERA, 60 strikeouts in 59 games.

Tampa Bay Sports News Cavalcade

By JC De La Torre

The local fishwraps were actually worth reading today as they had several interesting stories about our various favorite teams.

Rays

The St. Petersburg Times is highlighting Rays Manager Joe Maddon's "Thankmas" initiative. It's a program Maddon began three years ago to raise awareness of the homeless situation in Tampa Bay. Maddon, along with a couple of dozen Rays employees, spend an afternoon cooking spaghetti, meatballs, sausage and pierogies in the Tropicana Field kitchen, then travel around the bay area for several days delivering meals at homeless shelters.

The Times also reported that Rocco Baldelli's medical condition was misinterpreted as mitochondrial disorder. Doctors at the Cleveland Clinic have reviewed more sophisticated testing that indicates his condition is a channelopathy, which is a treatable condition that involves dysfunction of ion channels for such things as potassium, sodium, chloride and calcium according to medterms.com.

"It's definitely an encouraging development," Baldelli told the Times, "Knowing this is a treatable condition, I feel this is a very positive thing for me and my baseball career. With this less severe diagnosis, I hope to be on the field on a much more regular basis."

Lightning

The Lightning return to the ice tonight against the Colorado Avalanche after a four day layoff and some good may have come out of it. Other than getting some much needed practice time to continue the process of implementing Rick Tocchet's system, Tocchet and team captain Vincent Lecavalier got a chance to get on the same page.

"Tocc is talking to players. He's listening to players," Lecavalier said to the St. Petersburg Times, "He's telling us things and how to be better. It was a good conversation. It's not like we're out of control, but we can be more precise in what we do, It's not only the coaching staff that has to tell guys to be on time, when the bus is, and all the other stuff that surrounds the locker room. It has to be the players. Myself as team captain. I have to do that."

"You've got to be in a situation where you can't let your team be sloppy," Tocchet told the Tampa Tribune, "What I mean by sloppy is sloppy with your sticks on the ice, taking stupid penalties, little trivial things, late for the bus. It has to come from the room. The coach has to mandate it, but it has to come from the room."

Player accountability has been something the Lightning have sorely lacked since Dave Andreychuck's retirement. Let's hope that Lecavalier can grow into and assume that role.

Buccaneers

Head Coach Jon Gruden is confident Jeff Garcia will be available for Sunday's critical game against the San Diego Chargers. Garcia practiced on Wednesday and told the St. Petersburg Times, "I really just have to do my best to block it out, I really just have to take the approach that I'm going to be me and do whatever I have to do in order to be successful and not think about what I'm trying to overcome. And hopefully at that point on Sunday, it won't even be a question mark."

The Tampa Tribune reports that just in case, the Bucs are getting Brian Griese ready to go. The paper also reports that Chris Hovan and Jovan Haye returned to practice, which could be great news for the Bucs run defense that has given up 474 yds in the last two games. Derrick Brooks also appears to be improving with his rib injury. He's still a gametime decision but Gruden told the Trib, ""We did get good news (Wednesday), that doesn't mean Brooks is going to be out there running around (today). But there is at least a better chance that he can play. Knowing Derrick Brooks the way I do and you do, he'll find a way to get to the field. And chances are he'll play one of his best games."

USF Bulls

There's apparently plenty of tickets still available for the inaugural St. Pete Bowl that has the powerhouse matchup of USF vs. Memphis. Yeah, the Bowls are more important to college football...who needs a playoff when you can have USF vs. Memphis in the Magic Jack St. Pete Bowl?

Tampa Bay Storm

The Arena League owners have voted to suspend the league for the 2009 season and hopes to return for 2010, but the AFLPA (who knew they had one?) has rejected the board of directors' move to suspend the 2009 season by voting against it according to an arena league blog called Arenafan.com. Arenafan.com reports a "team representative for the AFLPA told ArenaFan that the Executive Board for the AFLPA has not requested a revote of the owners. The source went on to state that the players are under belief that the vote for the Orlando Predators was not made by the majority owner, and that a minority owner gave their vote to a different team. The vote for suspending the season passed the Board of Directors by just one vote."

Rays Make Their First Move of the Off-season - And it's a Big One!

By JC De La Torre

The Tampa Bay Rays made room in their starting rotation for David Price and filled one of the few holes on their American League Champion squad by trading Starter Edwin Jackson to the Detroit Tigers for Outfielder Matt Joyce, a Tampa-born native, who hit .252 with 12 home runs and 33 rbi in 92 games for the Tigers. The 24yd old Armwood High graduate spent this season bouncing between Toledo of Triple-A and the Tigers and exploded onto the scene with 5 home runs in his first 36 at bats. Strikeouts got the better of him in the big leagues, something he's worked hard on in the Mexican Fall League. Joyce is considered to have promising big league power and excellent range in the outfield.

"We've gotten really good reports on his work ethic, his makeup, on the intangibles that elevate his tools in terms of being a 'baseball player,' and that's kind of the ultimate compliment as we go through looking at guys," Friedman told the St. Petersburg Times.

The Rays gave up a solid pitcher in Jackson, who improved to 14-11 this season. Tampa Bay's depth in the farm system, especially the rise of David Price and Jeff Neimann, made Jackson expendable. Joyce is expected to compete and potentially solidify the right field position for Tampa Bay. The Rays are still in the market for a designated hitter bat with Milton Bradley and Jason Giambi on the radar.

Maddon AL Manager of the Year

By JC De La Torre


Tampa Bay Rays Manager Joe Maddon has won the American League Manager of the Year award given by the Baseball Writers' Association of America. Maddon earned 27 of 28 1st place votes (the other vote went to Twins manager Ron Gardenhire). Maddon, of course, led Tampa Bay to their first American League pennant, winning the rugged American League East in the process and proving to the community, the players, and the rest of baseball that the Rays can compete in the American League East with the likes of the Yankees, Red Sox, and Blue Jays.


Maddon is on his honeymoon in Rome, but took a moment to comment on the award, "It's truly an honor," he said on a conference call with the national media, "To me it means that we did a pretty good job obviously, that things are definitely moving in the right direction. Getting to the playoffs, getting to the World Series - my goodness, nobody thought we'd get to the World Series. To accomplish what we did, for me, personally - the award caps it all off."


The Tampa Bay Sports Blog extends our congrats to Joe Maddon.

JC De La Torre is an author of Science Fiction/Fantasy and other realms of Speculative Fiction - check out his latest works at JC Delatorre.com

Unanimous - Longoria AL's Top Rookie

By JC De La Torre


Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Evan Longoria won the American League Rookie of the Year award, awarded by the Baseball Writers Association of America by a unanimous vote.

The award is just another feat in a season of firsts for Tampa Bay. Longoria was only the 7th rookie to get a unanimous vote for the award. The good news for the Rays is this youngster is locked up until 2016 with a $44 million contract.

"It's so special. It's tough to put into words," Longoria said on a nationwide conference call after the announcement. "Obviously I appreciate every vote - every player who recognized me and every writer who thought I was No. 1."

The Tampa Bay Sports Blog would like to issue our congrats to Evan Longoria.

Stay tuned, as Joe Maddon is next as he is up for Manager of the Year.

JC De La Torre is an author of Science Fiction/Fantasy and other realms of Speculative Fiction - check out his latest works at JC Delatorre.com

Pena wins Rays 1st Gold Glove Award

By JC De La Torre

First Baseman Carlos Pena became the first member of the Tampa Bay Rays to win the American League's highest defensive honor, a gold glove award. Pena led all American League first basemen with a .998 fielding percentage to go along with 991 put outs and two errors.

While Pena celebrated his gold glove, the rest of the Rays stellar defense was left without. Boston's Dustin Pedroia beat out Aki Iwamura at 2nd for the gold glove. Pedroia had a .992 fielding percentage with 6 errors, which was slightly better than Aki's .990 and 7 errors. Adrian Beltre of the Seattle Mariners beat out Evan Longoria at 3rd base. Beltre finished with .964 fielding percentage and committed 14 errors. Longoria had a .963 fielding percentage but only committed 12 errors. Beltre did play 21 more games than Longoria. The Texas Rangers' Michael Young won the gold glove for Short Stop, finishing the season with a .984 fielding percetange and only 12 errors. Jason Bartlett, who was key to shaping up the infield for the Rays defensively, finished with a .970 fielding percentage and committed 16 errors.

You can't really make any arguments that any of the Rays players deserved to win the gold glove over those players who won it this season. Longoria may have had an argument, but Beltre did play more games. I'd say it was a pretty darn good job by MLB on this one.

Here is the complete Gold Glove winners for the American League -
P, Mike Mussina, NYY
C, Joe Mauer, MIN
1B, Carlos Pena, TB
2B, Dustin Pedroia, BOS
3B, Adrian Beltre, SEA
SS, Michael Young, TEX
OF, Torii Hunter, LAA
OF, Grady Sizemore, CLE
OF, Ichiro Suzuki, SEA

God Doesn't Hate Philly After All - Phillies Finish Rays

By JC De La Torre

The Philadelphia Phillies are the 2008 World Series Champions, defeating the Tampa Bay Rays 4-3 in the resumed Game 5 to clinch the World Series, winning 4 games to 1.

Geoff Jenkins let off the bottom of the 6th with a double to deep right center. James Rollins bunted him over to 3rd base. Jayson Werth popped up but Aki Iwamurra couldn't get to the baseball, it fell and Jenkins scored to give Philadelphia the 3-2 lead. JP Howell would come in for the Rays and get Chase Utley and Ryan Howard.

In the top of the 7th, the Rays came right back. After Dioner Navarro struck out, Rocco Baldelli blasted a solo home run to left field, tying the game back up at 3 a piece. Jason Barlett singled to left. JP Howell bunted Barlett to second. Aki Iwamurra hit an infield single to 2nd that Utley appeared to have no play on, but instead of attempting to throw to first Utley intelligently saw that Bartlett was breaking for the plate - and fired home, easily getting Barlett.

In the bottom of the 7th, the Phillies would answer, Pat Burrell doubled to deep left center field, barely missing a home run. Victorino grounded out to 2nd, advancing the pitch runner for Burrell, Bruntlett to 3rd. The light hitting Pedro Feliz came on against Tampa Bay's Chad Bradford. He fired a seeing-eye single past the pitcher and into center field. Bruntlett scored giving the Phillies a 4-3 lead.

On to the top of the 8th we went, Carl Crawford opened the inning with a single to left field. Unfortunately, BJ Upton swung at the first pitch he faced from JC Romero and grounded into an inning killing double play. Carlos Pena would pop out to retire the side.

David Price would work the bottom half of the eighth for Tampa Bay, getting rollins to fly out and striking out Werth. While he did walk Utley, he struck out Ryan Howard to retire the side.

On to the 9th, where there was high drama for Philadelphia. Super reliever Brad Lidge came in and got Evan Longoria to pop out to 2nd base. Dioner Navarro got a broken bat single to get on base. Fernando Perez came in to pinch run and promptly stole 2nd base. The tying run is on 2nd...Ben Zobrist came in to pitch hit for Baldelli (why...I'm not sure, perhaps Rocco's illness forced the change), Zobrist hit the ball well to Right Field but right at Jayson Werth for the 2nd out. One last chance for Tampa Bay and Eric Hinske camed in to pitch hit for Jason Bartlett. Hinske's last pinch hitting performance ended in a homer, so the Rays fans hoped for a big hit. Unfortunately, Lidge was at his best and struck out Hinske, and with that strike out, the Phillies ended 20-plus years of misery for the city of Philadelphia and claimed their first World Series title in 28 years, only their 2nd in 126 yrs of baseball.

So God doesn't hate Philadelphia. But we can still hate Philadelphia fans, who displayed their lack of class when their owner stated on the podium, "Let's congradulate the Tampa Bay Rays on a tremendous season," they booed. Why boo? Your team has beaten Tampa Bay, it was good, competive series that the Phillies deserved to win. Why not honor the Rays for their achievement in winning the American League pennant? Most fans greet that with a light applause. The Philadelphia fans? Boo. That's why you had to wait 28 yrs to win a title, and that's why the rest of America will hope you go another 28 yrs before you get another. Word is their rioting now in Philly...yeah, brilliant.

But you know what, no matter how crappy the fans are, hats off to the Phillies. They outplayed the Rays in every facet of the ball game, they got crucial timely hits, solid pitching from both the starters, the bull pen and overall were just the better baseball team. Cole Hamels and Brad Lidge were dominant. Chase Utley and Ryan Howard were clutch. Just a great, great team.

Congrats to the Philadelphia Phillies, you were a fantastic group of Champions.

In the coming days, we'll reflect on the Rays, the Series, what was accomplished here and what will be coming down the line - but now's not the time. Tonight belongs to the Phillies.

The Much Maligned Tampa Bay Fan

By JC De La Torre

With the Rays run to the World Series, there's been a lot of discussion of national media types and opposing fan bases about the perceived lack of support the Rays have had in the bay area. It's valid, as the Rays were 26th out of 30 teams in attendance this season, for a team that was in 1st place a good portion of the season. They averaged only 22,259 over the course of the 2008 season. 2008 was however, the first season that the Rays were ranked higher than 28th in attendance in the last 7 years. The figure also includes a 3 game series in Orlando, that held a 10,000 seat stadium. Tampa Bay added an extra 6,000 fans in the seats for 2008, a steady, albeit not substantial improvement for a winning product. Of course, the post-season has been a different animal, where every seat of the 36,048 at Tropicana Field has been sold for the playoffs.

So why is the team only now getting support? There are several different factors, but the main issue is the make up of the community. The Tampa Bay area is a transient community made up of several large counties in West Central Florida. The largest city in the Tampa Bay area is of course, the city of Tampa, which has a population of 303,447. The city where Tropicana Field resides is on the Gulf Coast of Pinellas County, the west side of the bay area. St. Petersburg, Florida has a population of 248,232. These are the two major population centers in the area, which in its entirety consists of 7 counties that is home to about 3.8 million people.

As I stated before, the population of the community is a transient community. This means that there is a small percentage of native residents living in the bay area. Most of the folks living here moved to the Tampa Bay area from somewhere else. The largest percentage come from the North Eastern United States, and the metropolitan communities of New York, Philadelphia, and Boston in particular. There are also a significant amount of residents who relocated from the Midwest - Wisconsin, Illinois and Michigan primarily.

Thanks to the wonders of DirecTV, these transplants have the ability to continue to follow their previous hometown teams as if they were still in those locales. Yankee Fans remained Yankee fans, the Red Sox fans remained Sox fans, they had no reason to adopt the Rays as their team. As many of you know and understand, when you've grown up watching a baseball team or football team or any other sports team, its extremely difficult to let that team go.

Common sense would dictate if you are willing to move to a community to live, to work, to pay taxes, to enjoy the fruits of living in the region, you'd also follow the sports teams of your new home town. Common sense typically doesn't win out to emotion. When you lived and died with a team for your entire life and the team playing in your new city sucks - you're not going to have a reason to change allegiances. Further complicating things, was the rich history of Minor League baseball and Spring training baseball in the area. The Yankees, Phillies, Blue Jays, Reds, Pirates, and Tigers all hold their spring training in Tampa Bay and many have for several decades, forming fanbases for their teams here. The Yankees have a minor league team, the Tampa Yankees, that play in a gorgeous open air baseball park directly next to the Tampa Bay Buccaneer's Raymond James Stadium. The Phillies have the Clearwater Threshers and the Blue Jays have the Dunedin Blue Jays. This is the challenge the Rays have faced their entire existence. Not only do the Rays have to compete with the history and heritage of the residents living in the area, their territory is invaded by other Major League teams, splintering their fan base in key demographic areas.

The Rays would get huge crowds for when the Red Sox and Yankees came to town, but when Baltimore came in - Tampa Bay would be lucky to see 7,000 at the Trop. The games against Boston and New York teams would be decidedly partisan, or even worse, Rays fans would be outnumbered by the opposing fans. It was a surreal playing environment for the Tampa Bay players.

Interestingly enough for the Tampa Bay Rays, they knew things would change. The precident was set before.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers were a horrible football team from 1983-1996, where 12 of 13 season they suffered double-digit losses and never had a winning record. The Buccaneers played in the NFC Central division against the Green Bay Packers, the Detroit Lions, the Chicago Bears, and the Minnesota Vikings. Sellouts were few in Tampa Bay during those times - and when they did sell out it would be when they played the Chicago Bears or the Packers and the stadium would be filled with Bears and Packer fans respectively. In 1995, the Glazer family purchased the team from the Culverhouse estate, got a new stadium built, and hired Tony Dungy as the head coach. In 1997, the Buccaneers had their first winning season since 1982 and hosted their first playoff game since 1979, beating the Detroit Lions in the final game at the Old Sombrero. The following season, the Bucs opened Raymond James Stadium - which was filled with Pewter and Red clad Buc fans and began a streak of sellouts that has lasted 10 years. The team put together an impressive run, winning 4 division championships, 1 super bowl title and qualified for the playoffs 6 out of 10 years. Opposing fans still come into Raymond James Stadium, but they are dwarfed in size by the Buccaneer faithful.

The Tampa Bay Lightning had a very similar story to the Rays. After limited success in their first 10 seasons (1 playoff appearance), the Lightning would routinely see jerseys for the Bruins, Rangers, Flyers, Red Wings, Canadians, and Leafs outnumber the Lightning fans. Tampa Bay averaged a measily 14,906 at the St. Pete Times Forum (formerly the Ice Palace) during those years, typically at the bottom of the NHL in attendance. In 2002, the Tampa Bay Lightning made the playoffs for the first time in 7 years, getting knocked out in the 2nd round. The attendance improvement was gradual, as the Lightning put a better product on the ice. When Tampa Bay won the Stanley Cup in 2004, the Lightning finished 2nd in the NHL in attendance in 2005 and 2006. They were 3rd in 2007 and despite finishing with the worst record in the NHL last season, the Lightning were 8th in the league in attendance.

Basically, my friends (thanks, Senator McCain), what it boils down to is the transplants need a reason to give up their allegiances. As long as the Rays were terrible, the Red Sox fans and Yankee fans would rather stay home and watch NESN or YES network on the dish. When the Rays won the AL East and advanced to the ALCS, Yankee and Blue Jay fans had reasons to finally support the home team. They didn't want to be left out of the excitement of a community in the thralls of a playoff run and it had to be much more sastisfying enjoying it in person than watching it by proxy over the idiot box. When the Rays vanquished the Red Sox in that classic 7 game series, the Red Sox fans in the bay area had reasons to defect. They left the Trop in despair, as the community around them - the community in which they lived, erupted in joyous celebration of the team's accomplishments. Tradition was being created. Long suffering Cubs fans, who never saw their team play in the World Series in their lifetime, were seeing their hometown Rays get there in just 11 years.

What's interesting about this community is while Miami and Orlando face similar challenges, after their teams win and then return back to mediocrity, the fanbases seem to go back to their old allegiances. For some reason, that hasn't happened in Tampa Bay. The Bucs, despite some rough years in 2003, 2004, and 2006, still sell out every game. The Lightning, despite having a terrible season last year and a slow start this season, are still in the top half of the NHL in attendance (this despite being over shadowed and in direct competition with the Rays and Buccaneers).

I anticipate a dramatic increase in attendance for the Tampa Bay Rays next year. Not all, but many of those Yankees and Red Sox fans that last came to the Trop wearing their gear, will come wearing Rays gear and supporting the home town team. Its happened with every franchise in Tampa Bay - all the Rays needed to do was give them a reason. Some may categorize this as being "bandwagon fans". Red Sox fans and Phillie fans in particular have lambasted the Tampa Bay fan support, chiding them as "where were you last year?". The answer? Rooting for the Yankess, Red Sox, and/or Phillies because that's where they're from.

Win or lose in Game 5 tonight, the Tampa Bay Rays will have achieved something that may be even more important than a World Series title in Tampa Bay - relevance.

No Baseball Tonight

Game 5 of the World Series will not be continued tonight, per MLB. The game is tenatively scheduled for 8:37pm Wednesday.

God Hates Philadelphia

By JC De La Torre

Last night, I mentioned that the Rays are probably cursing the baseball gods because they had taken momentum in Game 5 by tying the game just moments before a torrential downpour suspended it, allowing the Phillies to escape.

Having had a night to consider all that has transpired, I have come to a completely different conclusion now - God hates Philadelphia. At least Philadelphia sports teams. Consider the evidence if you will, the city of Philadelphia has been without a major sports championship since 1983. The Eagles became the Buffalo Bills of the NFC, losing in three consecutive NFC Championship games to the Rams, Tampa Bay Bucs, and Panthers before finally breaking threw in 2003 to reach the Super Bowl, where they promptly lost to the Patriots. The Flyers last two trips to the Eastern Conference Finals ended in series defeats (to Tampa Bay and Pittsburgh) and they haven't won the Stanley Cup since 1974-75. The 76ers reached the Finals in 2001, only to be beaten by the Lakers in 5 games. They were the last team to win a major sports championship. The Phillies last trip to the World Series was in 1993, when the lost to the Toronto Blue Jays in 6. Before that, their last trip was in 1983, when they lost to the Baltimore Orioles - in fact, the last time they won the World Series was 1980.

So here we are, Game 5 of the 2008 World Series. The Philadelphia Phillies are up 3-1 in the World Series with their best pitcher, Cole Hamels, on the mound. The Philly papers are already discussing parade routes and celebration locations. Not only that, the Phillies had a friend behind the plate with umpire Jeff Kellogg, who drew memories of the Blacksox scandal and NBA referee Tim Donaghy with his very generous strike zone to Phillies pitcher Cole Hamels and his miniscule strike zone for Rays Pitcher Scott Kazmir. The top hitters for the Rays, Evan Longoria and Carlos Pena, had done nothing the entire series. Using those advantages, the Phillies jump to a commanding 2-0 lead in the first inning to take the game by the throat with their best guy on the mound. There's no way the Phils can lose, right? Philadelphia is finally going to get their championship for sure this time, correct?

This is Philadelphia....and God hates them. Carlos Pena finally began to heat up, just barely missing a home run and doubling off the left field wall in the 4th. Up came the ice cold Longoria, who blasted a screaming liner past shortstop James Rollins for his first hit of the series, scoring Pena. Ru-oh, Raggie. Rays new Superstar BJ Upton singled to lead off the 6th, and then in a driving rain storm, stole second to everyone's disbelief. Up came Pena, who smacked a single to left field, Upton wheeled around third and sloshed his way to the plate, tying the score at 2. Then God made his own pitch - drenching the World Series and getting it suspended until...well, who knows? Tonight? Tomorrow night? Thanksgiving?

Had this game occured in 2007, there was an awful rule in Major League Baseball that stated that if a run is score in the top half of an inning to tie the game and the game is called due to weather, the run would be discounted and the victory would go to the team leading before the half inning was played. A simply AWFUL rule that baseball came to their senses and changed. Bad news for the Phillies. Bud "the Liar" Selig says he would have never had a weather-shortened game decide the World Series no matter the score and the entirety of the game would have been played. Suuurrre it would, Bud. Unfortunately for Philadelphia, the Rays tied it before the rain hit.

So, you can see how this is playing out, don't you? Cole Hamels is done for this series - he will not be a factor in the continuation of the game tonight (tomorrow night, thanksgiving?). Longo and Pena are heating up just when the Rays need them...some how, some way, the Rays will find a way to win Game 5 and have everyone scrambling back to St. Petersbugh with no travel day, with Shields and Garza eagerly awaiting for Games 6 and 7. The parades will be cancelled...
Shields will pitch another masterful game at home, allowing the rejuvenated Rays to pull out the victory...and Matt Garza will out pitch the calcified Jamie Moyer for Game 7. Destiny denied once again for Philly.

All because God hates the city of Philadelphia.

Or the Phillies will win tonight (tomorrow, thanksgiving?) and all this is moot...but man, wouldn't it be typical Philly if it did go down like that?

Rays Rally, Rain Ruins Game 5

By JC De La Torre

Considering they are playing the playoff lives, the Tampa Bay Rays may be cursing the baseball gods right now. They rallied from an early 2-0 deficit as the heavens opened and deposited a torrential downpour, delaying the game in the bottom of the 6th inning with the score tied at 2. The momentum was switching to the Rays dugout just as the playing surface became unplayable.

Things started rocky for the Rays, after going down in order in the first, the Phillies jumped on starter Scott Kazmir in the bottom half. After getting James Rollins to fly out, Kazmir walked Werth, then hit Utley with a pitch. He rallied by striking out the red hot Ryan Howard, but walked Burrell to load the bases. Shane Victorino up and he lasers a base hit to left, two runs scored.

In the top of the 4th, Upton began the inning with a ground out. Carlos Pena got his first hit of the series as he doubled off the right field wall. Evan Longoria would follow up with his first hit of the series as well, singled to central, scoring Pena to cut the lead to 2-1.

The game remained a one run ballgame until the top of the 6th. With the heavens opening up so badly that Noah began to whey anchor, Hamels got two quick outs for Philadelphia, then saw BJ Upton reach on an infield single. Upton would slosh his way to second base. Carlos Pena would blast his second hit of the game to left field and the speedy Upton would race around the base paths and slide for the tying score. Longoria would line hard to end the inning and that's when Major League Baseball decided to suspend the game. Weather permitting, the game will be resumed tomorrow at 8pm - where the weather for tommorrow night is expected to be cloudy, slight rain and in the 30's. Whenever the game continues, it will be resumed tied at 2-2 at the bottom of the 6th.

One of the top developments for this is the Rays get Cole Hamels out as a factor in Game 5, escaping with a 2-2 tie with Hamels going a strong 6 innings, allowing 5 hits, 2 runs, 1 walk, and 3 strike outs. Scott Kazmir struggled for the Rays, giving Tampa Bay only 4 innings, allowing 4 hits, 2 runs and 5 strike outs, but he walked 6.

This unbelievable season takes another strange twist.

Dream could be over for Rays - Phils a Win Away

By JC De La Torre

The dream season of the Tampa Bay Rays is almost over and not finishing the way we hoped. The Philadelphia Phillies jumped on a less than sharp Andy Sonnanstine and destroyed Tampa Bay in a 10-2 victory in Game 4 of the World Series. The win by Philadelphia gives them a commanding 3 games to 1 lead and puts them within one win of the World Championship. If Philadelphia wins tomorrow night, it will be the first major sports championship for the city since the Philadelphia 76ers won the NBA title in 1983, when the 76ers swept the LA Lakers. The story for the Rays is the ineffectiveness of their pitching, their defense, and their offense. Basically, through 4 games of the World Series, the Phillies have outplayed them in every phase.


It started rough for Andy Sonnanstine, who is one of the best control pitchers in baseball, as he came out and could not find the strike zone in the first inning. Jimmy Rollins led off the first with a screaming double down the right field line. Jayson Werth would fly out to right, but deep enough to put Rollins on third. That's when Sonnanstine lost his control. He would walk Utley, then Ryan Howard grounded to Sonnanstine - instead of trying to go to 2nd for the double play, Sonnanstine cut off Rollins and got him into a run down, he tossed the ball to 3b Evan Longoria, who appeared to tag Rollins out, but inexplicably, the third base umpire ruled him safe. Then, for the first time in Andy Sonnanstine's career, he would walk in a run, walking Pat Burrell. Sonnanstine would recover, getting Victorino to ground to him, he threw to home plate to get the force on Utley, got Pedro Feliz to fly out. After 1 inning, it was 1-0.

As the Rays bats remained silent, the Phillies would add a run in the bottom of the 3rd, Pedro Feliz would single in a run to extend the lead to 2-0. Tampa Bay would cut into the lead in the top half of the 4th with a solo home run by Carl Crawford. In the bottom half of the 4th, the Phillies blew the game open. An error by Aki Iwamurra (his second of the game), put Rollins on first. Sonnanstine would walk Werth, then struck out Utley. Up to the plate stepped the struggling slugger Ryan Howard - he would struggle no more - blasting a moon shot to left field for a 3 run homer, giving the Phils a commanding 5-1 advantage.


In the top of the 5th Tampa Bay's Eric Hinske, added to the playoff roster due to Cliff Floyd's shoulder injury, came in to pinch hit, and promply homered to deep center field, cutting the advantage to 5-2. Unfortunately for Tampa Bay, Philadelphia Pitcher Joe Blanton, who pitched a sterling performance going 6 innings, allowing 2 runs, on 4 hits, 2 walks and striking out 7, helped himself by sending an Edwin Jackson fast ball into the left field seats for a shocking solo homer, giving the Phils a 6-2 lead. It was the first home run by a pitcher in the World Series since 1974.

From there, the Philadelphia bullpen took over, continuing the rough series for the Rays top two home run threats Carlos Pena and Evan Longoria who are a combined 0-29 with 16 strike outs in the series, while Jayson Werth and Ryan Howard (his 2nd) each added another 2 run blast in the top of the 8th for insurance, wrapping up the crucial game 4 win.


Tampa Bay must win three straight to win the World Series and they open their quest facing the best the Phillies have to offer - Cole Hamels. Needless to say, it will be a tough hill to climb for the Rays, who have had one heck of a season. No one, not even the Rays own fans, could have predicted the Tampa Bay Rays would win the AL Pennant and play in the World Series. While there's hope that the Rays can finish this dream season in a movie style dramatic ending, the odds are against it. So enjoy Game 5 Rays fans, as it may be the end of the road for 2008. The good news, all the Rays young stars are under contract for next season and David Price will be ready to assume his role in the starting rotation, yet another arm for the Rays to use to bolster their battery. They'll also have all season to find a solution for Right Field and a true Closer.

So, fans, root your heart out Monday night, let's hope the Rays can get this thing back to the Trop and spoil the party for Philadelphia. One game at a time, Rays.

Phillies take control of the World Series

By JC De La Torre

Despite 46-year old Jamie Moyer out pitching the young Tampa Bay lion Matt Garza in a long rain delayed Game 3 of the World Series, the Philadelphia Phillies had to rally to defeat the Rays in a thrilling 5-4 victory. Philadelphia takes a 2 games to 1 lead in the series.

Coming in with a double digit ERA in the post season, Moyer was impressive, pitching 6 and 1/3 innings, 3 earned runs on 5 hits, striking out 5.

He was staked to a lead in the 1st inning. Jimmy Robbins got his first hit of the World Series with a single to center field. Rays pitcher Matt Garza was shaky in the early going, and walked Jayson Werth to put two men on with nobody out, then set both men in scoring position on a wild pitch. Chase Utley grounded out to third, but scored Rollins and put Werth on third, Philadelphia led 1-0. Garza would get out trouble with a strike out of Ryan Howard and got Burrell to fly at center.

Tampa Bay would answer in the top of the 2nd inning, as Carl Crawford led off with a double. After Dioner Navarro flied out, Crawford stole third base. Gabe Gross would hit a sacrifice fly to center field to score Crawford and tie the game at 1. Unfortunately for the Rays, the Phillies would take the lead right back in the bottom of the second inning with a blast to left field by Carlos Ruiz to give Philadelphia a 2-1 lead.

It would stay 2-1 for three straight innings as Garza and Moyer entered a pitching war. It would be a battle eventually won by Moyer, as in the bottom half of the sixth inning, back-to-back bombs by Chase Utley and Ryan Howard put the Phillies up with a seemingly insurrmountable 4-1 lead. Tampa Bay would rally in the top of the 7th, as Crawford would reach on a controversial bunt hit. It appeared he was clearly out, but was ruled safe by the first base umpire. Navarro followed with a double to left, setting up men at 2nd and 3rd with no one out. Gabe Gross would get his 2nd sacrifice RBI, as he grounded to first, allowing Crawford to score to cut the lead to 4-2. Bartlett would follow with a grounder to shortstop, but with Navarro going on contact, he scored easily to make it 4-3.

In the 8th, Ryan Madson checked in to pitch to the struggling meat of the Tampa Bay line up. BJ Upton would lead off with an infield hit to short. Carlos Pena struck out. With Longoria approaching the plate, BJ stole second base easily. On the next pitch, BJ tried to steal third, Phillies catcher Carlos Ruiz fired it to third but the throw handcuffed the 3b Shane Victorino, who let it get away, Upton raced home and scored to tie the game at 4. Tampa Bay set a post-season Major League Baseball record for steals by a team, with their 22nd. Longoria would ground out on the next play. In the bottom of the 8th, Chad Bradford walked Jayson Werth to put the leading run on base and powerful Chase Utley and Ryan Howard awaitng their shot. JP Howell would check into the game for Tampa Bay. Werth stole second. Howell struck out Utley, then picked off Werth off of 2nd, and finally struck out Howard to get the Rays out of trouble.

On to the 9th - the Rays went in order. In the bottom half, Howell hit Bruntlett with a pitch to put the winning run on first. In came Balfour to face Victorino. Balfour threw a wild pitch, Navarro recovered but threw the ball into center field and put Bruntlett on third with no one out. Balfour was forced to intentionally walk Victorino and Greg Dobbs to put the bases loaded with nobody out, this was to set up the force play at the plate. In addition, Rays Manager Joe Maddon made the uncoventional play of putting 5 guys in the infield to plug all the holes, facing the hot hitting catcher Carlos Ruiz. Ruiz chopped it to third, Longoria fielded and desperately tossed it home, but it was over Navarro's head - Brunlett scores - Phillies win.

Philadelphia takes a 2 games to 1 lead in the World Series. Big win for Philly, hearbreaking loss for the Rays. Tampa Bay will try again tomorrow...correction TONIGHT. A Phillie victory tonight and this series may be over.

Even - Rays Beat Phils With Small Ball, Tie the Series

By JC De La Torre

The Tampa Bay Rays beat the Philadelphia Phillies playing National League styled small ball and even the World Series at one game a piece with a 4-2 victory at Tropicana Field. "Big Game" James Sheilds continously pitched himself out of trouble as the Phillies continued to struggle to get hits with men in scoring position. Philadelphia is now 1-for-28 with runners at 2nd or 3rd, and for three straight innings in this one they had a runner on third and one out, but couldn't bring home the runs.

The Rays on the other hand, did put the ball in play when the opportunity presented itself. After a 1-2-3 first by Shields in the top frame of the 1st, Tampa Bay opened the bottom half with a flurry. Aki Iwamurra led off with a walk from pitcher Brett Myers. Upton then singled to right field, but Phillies RF Jason Werth to his eye off the ball while trying to spy if Iwamurra was going to third and booted it. Upton and Iwamurra advanced on the error. Pena grounded out to the 2nd baseman, who had no play at the plate or third, Iwamurra scored, Upton advanced to 3rd and the Rays led 1-0. Longoria followed with a hard grounder to shortstop, Upton was running on contact and they had no play at the play, Rays led 2-0 after 1 inning.

In the top of the second, the Phillies got Burrell and Howard on 2nd and 3rd with only one down, but Shields struck out the DH Dobbs and got Pedro Feliz to fly out to get out of the jam. In the bottom half, after a fly out by Cliff Floyd, Navarro singled, Baldelli walked, and Bartlett had an infield single to load the bases with only one away. Aki would pop out to short, but Upton would save the inning with a single to right scoring Navarro. Baldelli also tried to score on the single, but a great throw by Werth had Baldelli dead to rights, Philly catcher Carlos Ruiz held on to the ball and the inning ended with the Rays up 3-0.

Top of the third, another threat from Philadelphia, Ruiz doubled to left and a grounder by James Rollins would advance him to third. Shields began to weave his magic again, striking out Werth and getting Utley to ground out to second to get out of trouble. The Rays would go in order in the bottom half.

The 4th inning provided even more frustration for Philadelphia. Ryan Howard, who was good with the bat tonight, singled to Right. Burrell ground out to third but Howard advanced. Victorino would reach on an infield single, Howard would advance to third with only one out. For the 2nd time, Shields would strike out Dobbs with a runner at 3rd and only 1 down, and then followed that with a ground out to Longoria by Pedro Feliz. In the bottom half, the Rays showed the Phillies how its done, after singles by Cliff Floyd and Dioner Navarro, Baldelli grounded into a force at 2nd, leaving runners on the corner with 1 away. From there, Jason Bartlett executed a safety squeeze perfectly, as he placed the bunt down the first place side, Floyd scored and Baldelli advanced to second, the Rays had a 4-0 lead.

It would stay that way until the top of the 8th, when the PH Brunlett homered of the relief pitcher David Price, who came in to get the final 7 outs. Price remained in for the 9th, allowed to run but got the Rays out of the inning and the game for a 4-2 victory.

Shields went 5 and 2/3, allowing no runs on 7 hits, 2 walks, and he struck out 4. Myers lasted a little longer, going 7 innings, allowing 7 hits, 4 runs (3 earned), with 3 walks and 2 strike outs for Philly.

The stage shifts to Philadelphia, where the Rays will have Matt Garza on the mound for Game 3, the Phillies counter with the 45 yr old veteran, Jamie Moyer.

If the Rays can take 2-3 of three in Philly, the same way they did in Boston, they'll have two chances at the Trop to close out the Phillies.

Phillies Drop Rays in Game One

By JC De La Torre

It was de ja vu all over again for the Rays, just like in Game One of the ALCS, a tremendous pitching performance and just enough hitting by the opponent were enough to allow the Philadelphia Phillies to take Game 1 of the World Series at the Trop, 3-2.

Cole Hamels was spectacular for the Phils, pitching 7 strong innings scattering 5 hits and only two earned runs while styming the Rays 2, 3, and 4 hitters with an 0-12 night (including two double play balls by BJ Upton that ended Ray threats).

Scot Kazmir wasn't quite as effective, but managed to go 6 innings, allowing 6 hits and 3 earned runs, while walking four in his first loss of the post-season.

Things got off on the wrong foot for Kazmir at the beginning of the game. After getting the lead off man Rollins to fly out to right, Kazmir walked Jason Werth. To the plate came Chase Utley and the Rays pulled a large defensive shift (similar to the way they played Boston's pulling slugger David Ortiz). Utley attempted to put down a bunt but pushed it foul. That was unfortunate for Tampa Bay because a couple pitches later, Utley blasted a Kazmir pitch into the right field bleachers to give Philadelphia a quick 2-0 advantage.

It would stay that way until the 4th inning, when Kazmir would get himself into a little trouble again. Victorino would lead off with a single and Pedro Feliz would follow with another single to shallow center. Chris Coste would ground out to Carlos Pena at first, but Pena had no chance at the double play and the runners advanced. Philly Catched Carlos Ruiz would ground to shortstop, but there was no play at the plate and it went over to first, the Rays conceding the run to fall behind 3-0. Kaz would strike out Rollins to get out of the inning, but the damage was done. The Rays woud answer the run by Philadelphia by finally getting on the board with a towering blast to right field by Carl Crawford. The score was 3-1 after 4.

Tampa Bay would get a little closer in the bottom half of the 5th, after two quick outs by Navarro and Zobrist, Jason Bartlett was walked, then promptly stole second. Aki Iwamurra doubled to center, scoring Barlett and cutting the lead to 3-2. Upton would foul out to end the threat.

That would be it for the Rays, though, as Hamels, Ryan Madson, and Brad Lidge would allow only one base runner (who reached on an error) for the last four innings.

Lidge was dominant in his closing fashion, facing the meat of the Tampa Bay order, he struck out Pena and Longoria, then got Crawford to pop out to 3rd. Game over, Game One to Philadelphia.

The Phillies achieved their goal of taking at least one game in St. Pete to swing the home field advantage away from Tampa Bay, even more distressing for the Rays, 10 of the last 11 game one winners have gone on to win the series, and only 39% of the losers of Game One come back to win the series.

The Rays, however, have been bucking trends all season. They've shifted from being the favorite to becoming the underdog - just the way they like it. Conventional wisdom was that Philly needed two victories out of Hamel and some luck with the other pitchers against the Rays offense. Philly got one of the two from Hamels, we'll see if luck is on their side tonight.

Rays Worst-to-First Saga continues tonight in Game 1 of the World Series

By JC De La Torre

The New York Yankees haven't been to the World Series in five years. the Chicago Cubs haven't been there since 1945. The Philadelphia Phillies, Tampa Bay's opponent in the fall classic, haven't been there since 1993. This Rays fans, is something special.

Tonight, the Tampa Bay Rays take on the Philadelphia Phillies in Game One of the World Series. Scott Kazmir is on the hill for Tampa Bay, with the Phillies countering with their ace, Cole Hamels. Tampa Bay broke the major league record for single season improvement, as they have now won 104 games in 2008 (including the playoffs), a 37 game improvement over 2007. This beats the old record of 36+ by 1946 Boston Red Sox. Only one team in Major League Baseball history has gone from being the worst team in baseball to the World Series, the 1991 Atlanta Braves. Unfortunately for the Braves, it didn't end well as they lost the World Series in 7 games to another worst-to-first team, the Minnesota Twins, who were last in their division the previous year. The Twins are the only team in modern MLB history to finish in last the previous year to winning the World Championship.

The team that wins game one of the World Series goes on to win 61% of the time.

One last interesting tidbit - in interleague play this season, the Rays were 12-6 versus the National League, while the Phillies had the worst interleague record in baseball, 4-11.

My prediction? Rays in 6.

TAMPA BAY RAYS GOING TO THE WORLD SERIES!

By JC De La Torre

The Tampa Bay Rays are American League Champions! I write that again - THE TAMPA BAY RAYS ARE AL CHAMPS AND GOING TO THE WORLD SERIES! The Rays shocked the country and maybe even themselves, putting together a tough, gutty performance in Game 7 of the ALCS, beating the Boston Red Sox 3-1 for their first AL Pennant.

After a devastating loss to Boston in Game 5, then a lackluster performance in Game 6, the media and baseball folks around the world thought the Rays were finished. The Rays took that belief and turned the world on its edge, beating the Red Sox and their best pitcher, Jon Lester.

Things started off a little rocky for the Rays as Dustin Pedroia would take a change up and deposit it into the left field bleachers for an early 1-0 lead. That would be the last hit the Red Sox get for several innings on Rays starter Matt Garza. More on that in a second. Sox starter Jon Lester was masterful in the early going, retiring the first 9 batters he faced.

The Rays woud finally get to him in the 4th inning. Aki Iwamurra would get a bloop single to left to get on. After Upton struck out, Pena would ground into a fielder's choice, giving the Rays a man on first and 2 outs with Evan Longoria at the dish. Longoria would blast into the right field gap, doubling and Pena scored all the way from first - the game was tied! Crawford would strike out to end the inning.

The Rays would take the lead in 5th inning. Tampa Bay would get a double from Willie Aybar to give them a man in scoring position. An infield single by Navarro gave the Rays men at 1st and 2nd with no outs. Rocco Baldelli would bloop a single to left field, scoring Aybar and giving the Rays a 2-1 lead. Lester would keep the damage to a mininum by striking out Bartlett and getting ground outs by Aki and Upton.

From there, the pitchers duel would continue. Garza was sensational, allowing no hits for 5 straight innings until the top of the 7th, when he got into a little trouble. After getting Youkis to pop out, he walked JD Drew, then allowed a single to Jason Bay to give the Sox men at first and second. It looked like Joe Maddon was going to pull Garza out of the game, but he allowed him to finish, and Garza rewarded him by Kotsay to fly out and striking out Jason Varitek.

In the bottom of the 7th, Willie Aybar would lead of the inning with a huge home run to left, giving them a 3-1 advantage.

In the 8th, Boston would take their best shot at the Rays. Garza would start the 8th inning, but would leave after Jason Barlett booted a grounder by Cora into center field. Dan Wheeler came in to relieve Garza. Coco Crisp woud single to right, Cora would go to 2nd with no one out and the dangerous Pedroia at te plate. Wheeler would get Pedroia to pop it out to right and Wheeler's work would be done. JP Howell would check in to face David Ortiz. Ortiz would hit a ground ball, but the Rays could ony get Crisp at 2nd, leaving men at 1st and 3rd with no one out. Chad Bradford would check in for the Rays, but walked Youklis to load the bases. Then Rays Manager Joe Maddon, who is one of the most unconventional managers in baseball made a startling move. He put the Rays fortunes in the hands of a rookie...but not just any rookie, the #1 overall pick of the 2007 draft - David Price. Price would strike out Drew to get the Rays out of the inning with no damage done.

After the Rays went 1-2-3 in the 9th, Maddon stuck with Price to finish it. He would walk Jason Bay, then struck out Kotsay and Varitek. Jed Lowrie would come on to pinch hit for Cora and he grounded to Aki on second, Aki touched the bag and the Trop erupted in elation.

THE TAMPA BAY RAYS SHOCKED THE WORLD!

Its on to the Phillies and the World Series, and for Boston and the Red Sox Nation - a stunned finish to a spectacular series. What a just gutty performance by the Rays - no one believed they had chance, yet Matt Garza was sensational and the Rays played small ball to pull ahead against Boston's best pitcher, then perhaps learning something from Game 5 - they finished it off in style, surviving Boston's last push in the 8th and completing the series like the Champions they are.

Tampa Bay wins the American League Championship Series 4 games to 3.

Can you believe it, Rays fans? Oh my! Rays Win! Rays Win! Rays Win the AL Pennant!