Tampa Bay Rays Blogs

If you’re looking for a baseball book that will keep you entertained until Opening Day, check out Dirk Hayhurst’s The Bullpen Gospels: Major League Dreams of a Minor League Veteran

Continue reading "A baseball read to hold you over until Opening Day"

Congratulations to the San Francisco Giants, who are World Champions for the first time since moving to the west coast more than 50 years ago.  Their last title in New York came in 1954, when Willie Mays made “the catch” that will be played on highlight reels forever.  The Giants came unbelievably close to not even making the playoffs this year, but the fans who claimed that watching their team was “torture” are now the happiest fans in baseball.

Continue reading "A new champion is crowned"

Chipper Jones is out for the year with a torn ACL, but let’s hope this isn’t it for the man who has played his entire major league career for manager Bobby Cox.  Chipper has made it known since last season that retirement could be around the corner, but like Baseball Tonight’s Eduardo Perez, I don’t see Chipper calling it quits now that his season has ended unexpectedly.  He wants to go out on his own terms, and these aren’t them.  At 38, his career is nearing the end, but I find it hard to believe that he will be able to say good-bye after watching from the bench as his team battles for the National League crown.

Continue reading "Will Chipper hang 'em up?"

Beltre's bombs were by themselves enough to win the final game of this set. The one he literally hit from one knee was easily in the top 5 most impressive home runs I've seen from a Sox player, ever. It was like he was down on one knee, proposing to Sox Nation, hoping we'll finally accept him as a worthy replacement for our beloved Mike Lowell. Beltre, on behalf of Red Sox Nation, I can happily say, "Yes!"

Continue reading "Sox sweep Rays, NBA Officials should be Ashamed"

Give the Magic credit, they didn't lay down, roll over, or get swept out of Boston.

 J.J. Redick redeemed himself in game 4. Without his three pointers the Magic never would have had a second chance in OT. Jameer Nelson also found his three-point stroke. Howard played to his strengths. He scores more points by being in position for offensive rebounds, and it seemed as though he was there to dunk with authority immediately after every missed shot. Just once I'd like to see Perkins gather a rebound and throw down with that type of authority.

Continue reading "Real men don't need Brooms"

I have folded up the Tom Brady jersey and put it away.  I have set aside the Kevin Garnett jersey until i take it out for the Celtics playoff push.  It is time now to don the jersey of your favorite Red Sox players and get ready for another exciting Major League Baseball season.  Spring is finally here.  I have to hand it to Major League Baseball.  I think that this year they got it right.  They didn't ship the World Series winners overseas to play in Japan or China or somewhere and they didn't open the season with Royals vs Tigers or some other match-up without much appeal.  This year the season began on Easter Sunday with a match-up between the defending World Series champion New York Yankees and their arch rival the Boston Red Sox.  This is, hands down, the best rivalry in sports.  The series didn't go the way I wanted it to, but we did get our first win against the Yankees under our belt and the games were well played for the most part.  Hey, when you think about it last year the Sox won the first 8 games against the Yankees only to lose 9 out of the next 10 so maybe losing 2 out of the first 3 ain't bad.

Continue reading "Sox Begin 2010"

    After two consecutive years of winning the National League Central Division, the Chicago Cubs watched their hated rivals the St. Louis Cardinals win it. In order for this not happen again, the Cubs have some concerns they have to address in order to get back to their winning ways.

Continue reading "The Chicago cubs 2010"

Last week I saw Andy Pettitte throw six and two-thirds innings of perfect baseball at against the Orioles at Camden Yards.  With two outs in the bottom of the seventh, Adam Jones hit a ground ball to third.  Alex Rodriguez was getting the night off, and his replacement at the hot corner, Jerry Hairston, booted it.  Having grown up an Orioles fan and somewhere along the way developing into a Yankee-hater, one might think I would have been rooting for the Birds to end Pettitte’s bid for perfection; however, this was not so.  As a fan of the game, I wanted to witness history.  Sure; I would have preferred seeing an Oriole pitcher throw a perfecto (though even a shutout by one of this year’s starters would have been historic), but I can’t expect miracles.

Continue reading "Nobody’s perfect"

Sunday August 16, 2009 following their 4-3 loss at Texas, is the first time since April 21st that the Red Sox do not have a share of the wild-card or AL East lead.  Does this mean that Red Sox nation should give up hope for the playoffs or a world series birth this year?  Probably not.  However, they should.  Sorry Red Sox fans and band wagoners, your team simply is not going to make the playoffs this year with the emergence of the Rangers pitching staff and the dominance of the Yankees offense.

Continue reading "Boston Red Sox to MISS Playoffs in '09"

You may be wondering how Joba Chamberlain came off the All-Star Break with 2 consecutive victories: 1 against the Tigers and 1 against the A's. Before the break, it just seemed to be no-decision after no-decision. He holds the Major League Record for most No-D's in a season.

Continue reading "How Joba Got His Groove Back"

Moses spent 40 years in the desert before shepherding Israel through the desert enroute to the Promised Land. Michael Jackson grew up in a musical family and became the King of Pop over a span of 50 years. Don Zimmer tops them both. We're talking 61 years in the game and he's still going. Homeboy loves baseball. He was Joe Torre's bench coach when he managed the Yankees to 4 World Series championships. He had left Yankee management over a dispute with the boss George Steinbrenner after the 2003 season. Check out this interview with Kimberly Jones from the YES Network.

Continue reading "Much love for Don Zimmer at Yankee Stadium"

The Tampa Bay Rays will send 4 players to St. Louis for the All-Star game, and possible a 5th. Evan Longoria had the most votes for any third baseman, and for a while, had the most votes of anyone in the AL, until Derek Jeter surpassed him. Jason Bartlett was second among AL shortstops, behind only Derek Jeter and Carl Crawford earned another All-Star bid in the outfield. To add to those three, Joe Maddon (manager of the AL All-Star team by virtue of bringing the Rays to the World Series) chose Ben Zobrist to join the team as well.

Continue reading "Rays send 4 All-Stars to St. Louis, ..."

A day after the Rays do seemingly everything wrong, they come back and do nearly everything right in a 7-1 victory over the Phillies. The second game of the World Series rematch was much more eventful than the previous, with Garza throwing a gem, Burrell homering and Bartlett extending his hit streak to 18 games (ties a franchise record held by the long time Devil Ray great Quinton McCracken).

Continue reading "Burrell goes deep against his former ..."

Pat Burrell had hit 251 home runs up to this year, and obviously hadn't hit any against a team with "Philadelphia" tagged in front of its team name, since drafted 1st overall by the team in 1998. Up until now.

Continue reading "Mistakes Made and Pitching Counts; ..."

I’ve been in Denver all week and was able to attend two Rockies games at Coors Field.

Among the highlights:

I saw Evan Longoria hit home runs – his 15th and 16th - on back-to-back nights.  The first shot got the Rays on the board in the first inning on Tuesday en route to their 12-4 win over the Rockies, whose 11-game winning streak came to an end.

Continue reading "Mile High Baseball"

The Rays put up a dozen runs in the first game of the series, but can only muster three in the second game, as the Rockies hand them their first loss in seven games.

 Apart from his 4 run second inning, which included back to back base hits and a three run homer, David Price's outing last night was decent. He was finally able to go deeper into the game, something he was determined to do after several of his previous starts fell short. He gave up 5 earned in 7 innings of work. Unfortunately for the Rays, the couldn't match that offensively. Solo blasts from Crawford and Longoria and a RBI single by Burrell was the only support Price got, giving him his first loss of the season.

Continue reading "Rockies return the favor, snap the ..."

It wasn't very pretty, but the Rays won the series opener against the Nationals, owners of the league's worst record. It was just the kind of game that the Rays won all last year but have failed to win so far this year. The Rays have been awful in one run games this year and it feels like a turning point.

Continue reading "Rays barely get by the leagues worst team"

Ball players and their fans are very superstitious creatures. Ballplayers will do anything to get a hitting streak going. Pitchers will do anything to get a winning streak going. The fans will go anything to get a rally going if their team is behind during a game. They'll do everything from not washing their socks, to putting tar on their helmets. When a pitcher is throwing a perfect game, the rest of the players stay away from him, thinking that their mere presence is going to mess up his chances to make that milestone. New York Yankees SS Derek Jeter, our beloved captain is very superstitious. If he or his team is approaching some kind of milestone that he is not aware of, he will dog the media and say that they jinxed the team by bringing it to his attention. Case in point: during a post-game interview a couple of days before the Yankees beat the 2006 Boston Red Sox team record for most consecutive games played without committing an error, Kimberly Jones brought it his attention. The first thing that he tells her is, "Why did you tell me that, it's bad karma, " then he answers the questions. In a commercial on the MLB Network, they show fans showing up at the gate to their favorite teams ballparks some of them have face-paint on. Others are dressed like Shamans carrying Voodoo beads. Come on, people. Enough with the superstitions all ready! How about praying for your team? I do it! Whenever the Yankees are behind in a game and they're rallying, I lean forward in my chair and put in my hands together and bring them to my face in a praying position thinking, sometimes saying, "Come on!" I do this because I believe it will bring God into the situation and the Yankees will bring home runs. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. Either way, I praise the Lord because ultimately the game is in His hands. Only He knows the outcome, but I believe prayer does more than just spark up a rally a bring in runs.

Continue reading "Yankee fans for Jesus, arise! Pray for your team!"

Pat Burrell will make one more start at AA Montgomery before making his long awaited return to the big leagues. Out since May 11 with a stiff neck, Burrell will look to make an impact when he again gr

Continue reading "Pat Burrell hopes to make big impact ..."

After their improbable World Series run in 2008, many fans and analysts expected the 2009 Tampa Bay Rays club to be as good or better.

They’re not.

Since the Stuart Sternberg ownership era began in 2006, Cool Hand Stu could do no wrong.  Free parking at home games.  Fans were allowed to bring their own food to games, and tailgating in the parking lot on game day was encouraged.  Ballpark attractions on Left, Center, and Right Field Streets beyond the outfield stands really enhanced the stadium experience for casual fans.  There aren’t many ballparks that let you play baseball video games in a lounge area that looks like the Formans’ basement on “That 70’s Show.” 

Continue reading "2009 Isn't As Great As 2008: Tampa ..."

Tampa Bay Rays @ Cleveland Indians

May 26, 2009

Matt Garza vs. Carl Pavano

Progressive Field

Cleveland, Ohio

Its game two of the series, or better known as the night of Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals. The Indians are looking to build momentum after last night’s incredible comeback. I don’t remember ESPN covering even a Tribe playoff game in ‘07 as intently as they did last night’s game. Opposing hitters are only hitting .199 against Matt Garza, which leads the league, and he picked up a victory over the Tribe a little over a week ago. That being said, Carl Pavano has been the best Indians pitcher not named Cliff Lee. I like Cleveland to win their 15th straight at home vs. Tampa Bay 5-2. I also like the Cavs tonight in a tight one 97-94. We will definitely see what the guys not named Lebron are made of tonight.

Continue reading "Carl Pavano and the Indians win the ..."

This is just not the Celtics' year. Last night's game 7 looked like a game 4 in a 3-0 series. The Celtics came out without their energy, all out of sync. Clearly, they missed KG. Ray Allen, who we needed to step up, finally did, but he was the only one who showed up to play. Meanwhile, Orlando 21-13 from three point land, was just too much to handle and every shot they took led to me biting my nails off and praying for a comeback that never came. This game was a tough one for Boston to handle; we were losing all game and never made the run that they usually can.

Continue reading "The Celtics Lose Game 7 and Boston ..."

“Good evening folks, hope you’ve had a wonderful Mother’s Day.  It’s Sunday evening and we’re playing baseball at Fenway Park.  Get ready folks – this is gonna be a fun one.”

Continue reading "Beckett, the Bullpen, and Bay make us Believe"

I can't get a handle on the Rays this season. They win, they lose, I understand that's how the game goes. But, we'll win 14-5 then lose 4-3 the next night against the same team. It's just kind of stra

Continue reading "What's going on with the Rays?"

Well on Saturday night I was in St. Petersburg, Florida to watch the Boston Red Sox take on their kryptonian-nemesis in recent times, the Tampa Bay Rays. I was fortunate enough to have nabbed 2 front row seats along the third baseline off of StubHub.com and it was worth every penny for the up-close and personal experience. I feel compelled to mention StubHub, despite the fact that Robert Kraft despises them, because my girlfriend and I ran into two other Red Sox couples that were complaining about not being able to get better seats whenever they shop through Ticketmaster. StubHub offers season ticket holders the chance to sell their tickets to games they will not be able to attend at a slight increase over face value. I've been able to get front row seats to Red Sox games and the ACC Championship, as well as luxury box seats to a Bruins game.

Continue reading "A Red Sox Nation pilgrimage to Tropicana Field"

Wednesdays loss was a frustrating one.  Yesterday’s wasn’t as bad.

The Sox put up a good fight yesterday.  Yes, they could have taken advantage over some opportunities (Lowrie in the 8th with runners on second and third…ugh).  But it was different from  Wednesday night where they just couldn’t seem to get anything going.

Continue reading "Rays take their sunshine with them ..."

What's different here? Well, Tampa opted to start David Price in AAA. But he'll be back, don't worry...

5-(Tie) Anaheim Angels: John Lackey, Ervin Santana, Joe Saunders, Jered Weaver, and Dustin Moseley. Wild card: Kelvim Escobar

Continue reading "MLB's Top Five Starting Rotations"

After a J.D. Drew-like stint on the disabled list of blog writing, I, like baseball, have returned. For real this time. Let me begin by expressing my sincerest apologies to my readers whom I promised a return to the spotlight weeks ago only to vanish like a ninja once again. Thanks as always for your support and readership. Without getting too mushy-gushy, welcome to the first of a seven-part series previewing each division, day by day, leading up to an all encompassing culmination piece on opening night next Sunday.

Continue reading "The Sports Don Returns with His 2009 ..."

The sport of Major League Baseball just can't catch a break. The steroids era is very damaging to the game. Not to long ago the fans suffered major disappointment learning of the alleged steroid use of such stars of Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens. Not to long before that Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa cases were presented before us. We all thought what a relief that we still have coveted stars whose names weren't implicated in any of that mess. Well fans... we were all wrong. The games savior Alex Rodriguez admittedly used performance enhancing drugs. I was indeed shocked but I almost expected this. How many more players are there out there who no in doubt cheated the game and all of us? I don't exactly know, but I am beginning not to even care. The fact that drugs have played a part in the game that I love the most, has become reality and there is nothing I can do to change it. I believe in Major League Baseball. I am confidant that the Commissioner and his office, the owners and the players association have taken enough heat to try and get the game back on track. No doubt that there will be more stars that will have there past made public, but after enduring A FRAUD's ignorant publicized apology, I believe we the fans can handle all of the rest that will no doubtedly come.

Continue reading "Are You Serious???"

Francisco Rodriguez just signed a big-money contract with the Mets, who have missed the playoffs the last two seasons.  CC Sabathia chose to become the highest-paid pitcher in baseball history, signing with the Yankees in spite of the fact that they play in what is considered the toughest division in baseball and failed to make the postseason in 2008.  What drew Sabathia to the Bronx and K-Rod to Queens?  It wasn’t a near-guarantee to return to the playoffs, which they could have had with the Angels.  They didn’t grow up in New York dreaming of wearing Yankee Pinstripes and Met blue and orange one day.  There’s only one thing it could be: money – $161 million for seven years of Sabathia and $37 million for three years of Rodriguez.

Continue reading "Greed takes away from the game"

A year after they get good players the Houston Astros are looking to dump salary what a joke. They are the worst organizations in baseball. The mets should get Carlos Lee to play left f

Continue reading "Mlb HotStove Report"

The Orioles still have a huge hole at shortstop, but that doesn’t mean it was a bad idea to trade their highest-paid player last offseason.  Miguel Tejada’s offensive numbers in his first season with the Astros were sub-par and certainly not worthy of the money he is making.  In hitter-friendly Minute Maid Park, a .283/.314/.415 line from one of Houston’s heavy hitters is not going to cut it.  Believe it or not, Miggy’s numbers actually

Continue reading "Looking back on the Tejada trade ..."

The Royals according to the Kansas City Star,  are actively attempting to trade Mark Teahen to the Cleveland Indians for Franklin Gutierrez, Ben Francisco or minor-leaguer Trevor Crowe.  Great!  So essentially the Royals will get Ben Francisco for Carlos Beltran.  The Royals traded Beltran in 2004 for three studs, Mark Teahen, John Buck, and Mike Wood.  With Wood no longer in the Royals, Buck proving he is not a major league catcher, and Teahen potentially heading to Cleveland, the Royals and their fans got stuck with nothing for one of the best center fielders in baseball.  If you recall, the KC was in negotation talks with other teams, including the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees for the Beltran sweepstakes.  The talks with the Red Sox were for acquiring Kevin Youkilis (then a third baseman) and catcher Kelly Shoppach.  The Yankees countered with Robinson Cano and Dioner Navarro.  Instead of cornerstone players like Youkilis and Cano, the Royals get Franklin Gutierrez.  Gutierrez hit .248 last year, an actual downgrade from Teahen (.255).  Mark Teahen hit .285 in 2007 and .290 in 2006.  Yes Dayton Moore, lets trade Teahen at his lowest trade value.  If Mark Teahen has a bad first half in 2009 then trade him at the deadline.  I think we atleast owe that to him, after all we did trade Carlos Beltran for the guy.  Then we can put all our eggs in the Trevor Crow basket.

Continue reading "What Could Have Been Royals"

I am the last person on earth to say that the world series should have been decided by a rain-shortened game, but the turn of events that have lead to a 3.5 inning shootout to determine the winner of game five on Wednesday night is a bit weird to say the least.

Continue reading "World Series Game 5.5: Just Plain Weird"

The tune of “Rain Drops Keep Falling on My Head” must have been going through Cole Hamels mind in the top of the sixth inning of game five of the World Series on Monday night.

 

Continue reading "World Series Game Five Rainout Is a Bit Strange"

After another scary roller coaster ride on Wall Street last week, we at least have the weekend and sports to bring back some sanity to our life. Unless of course your motto is "Go Blue" and you hail from the great state of Northern Ohio or as most of you know it, Michigan.  Who says there's no such thing as karma?

Continue reading "Another Sunday Morning"

I know that the title suggests pure blasphemy for loyal fans, and if you're wondering where I could possibly be going with this, let me be the first to say, I really don't like the Phillies. However, as a loyal and lifelong Cubs fan, I thought I should point out that the Phils are the logical choice to root for in this World Series.

Continue reading "Being a true Cubs fan means rooting ..."

Douglas Adams writes sound advice in his novel (and handbook), The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: "Don't Panic."

Was last night's game against the Tampa Bay (don't call me devil) Rays annoying?  Yes!  Was it frustrating?  Yes!  Am I more annoyed and frustrated because I sat at Fenway Park until after midnight to see a 14th inning loss?  You bet I am!

Continue reading "Don't Panic"

A big thanks to everyone who participated in the "Inbound Link Contest".  We have a winner!  A big congratulations go out to Marija.  Thank you for all your hard work on this.  While we had a lot of people participate, Marija was able to win with only 4 links!  So it wouldn't have taken a lot to win this contest!  We'll be having another contest soon so stay tuned.

Continue reading "Inbound link contest winner announced!"

This is not a misprint, the Tampa Bay Rays have won 71 games this year already which is a franchise best. The team who was supposed to finish dead last in this division again and not even be competing for a playoff spot, much less a division title, has taken control of the AL East right now and continues to play solid baseball in the second half of the season. The Rays played the Seattle Mariners this weekend and took 3 of 4 from them, and they probably should have swept them, but red-hot Raul Ibanez hit a walk off home run in the first game of the series and the M’s won a pitching battle 2-1. Anyways back to the Rays, the Rays have the major’s best record at home with a record of 45-17, however if you look at their road record it shows that they still have some work to do but they seem to be getting on their feet in time. The Rays are 26-29 on the road this year but so far on this 10 game road trip to the West Coast the Rays are already 3-1 and they still have to go to Oakland for three and then over to Texas for three. With a good showing on the road the Rays could show that they belong at the top of the American League. With playoff positioning right around the corner the Rays need to show that they can win on the road because that is critical when it comes down to September where they will have to go to Yankee Stadium, Fenway Park, and to Comerica Park to face the Yankees, Red Sox, and Tigers respectively.

Continue reading "Rays Win Franchise Best 71 games"

    Since when is a four-run, seventh inning lead against a team 17.5 games out of first place not safe?  Since the Mets' bullpen hit rock bottom.

    The Mets' plan for Monday afternoon's makeup game against the Pirates was to get on top early and send Pittsburgh packing quickly.  When David Wright knocked a three-run home run to right center in the first, and Pedro Martinez allowed only one run through six innings, the game seemed to be following how it was scripted.  But then on came the New York bullpen.

Continue reading "Heilman Heads Up Another Bullpen Meltdown"

When the Boston Red Sox signed Short Stop Julio Lugo, I had mix reactions.  So far, I have been feeling those exact feelings still.  He has not done much for the Red Sox in terms of Defense and Offense that a man like Alex Cora could do.    

Continue reading "The SS Problem"

Even if it ended badly for the Mariners, and for Willie Bloomquist in particular, last night's game against first-place Tampa Bay showed that the Mariners still have some fight in them. Though they blew a four-run lead on errors by Jose Lopez and failed to drive home a run in what should have been an easy game-winning situation, Seattle provided some excitement and refused to give up, even with an utterly depleted bench that had them giving up the DH in order to have enough position players. And we got another glimpse of the Mariners' future, at least on the mound.

Continue reading "Rollicking Ride Against the Rays"

The Mariners announced today that Jarrod Washburn has cleared waivers, meaning he can now be freely traded to whatever team wants to take on his massive salary. There's no real surprise here, as it's doubtful any other team would want to take on his bloated $9.85M salary. So the failure of Seattle to deal him before the deadline isn't so awful, except that his value seemed to have peaked at that point for a couple of reasons: (1) he'd pitched really well to that point (4 ER in 19.2 IP in the three starts before the deadline, (2) his value diminishes with each day that passes, since that means less time he can spend with a contending team (e.g., the Yanks) starved for starters, which leads to (3) the team in question being more likely to go in another direction.

Continue reading "Washburn is ready to move"

The Orioles dealt right-handed reliever Chad Bradford to the Rays today, for a player to be named later. This is surprising because Bradford has been very effective this year, and the fact that we dealt him to Tampa means that no one with a worse record than the Rays (everyone in the AL except the Angels) claimed Bradford. Really? Nobody thought this guy who gets ground ball after ground ball, doesnt walk anyone, and has an ERA around 2.50 was worth taking? It's not like he has a huge contract (he is signed next year for 3.5 million), so I am surprised he got to Tampa. Good luck to Chad down there, and I hope he helps the Rays fend off Boston and New York.

Continue reading "Chad Bradford traded to Tampa Bay..."

I don't get to watch nearly as many Red Sox games as I used to, and because the boys in green across town extended their season into June, I found myself way behind the eight ball once I started watching.

Continue reading "Thoughts while watching the game..."

This is one of the times of the year where the General Managers around baseball really make their money. Some have already done their job (Billy Beane), and some still have pieces to sell. Some GM's will do much more work then others over the next 3+ days, but all will probably be fielding or making phone calls this week. Some teams who look to be busy, and the situation they are in:

Continue reading "Whats a GM to do? : Trade Deadline Talks"

    A day after the Mets' bullpen acted out a microcosm of the final 17 games of 2007, Billy Wagner was back on the mound with a three-run lead in the ninth inning on Wednesday, and Mets fans could not be happier.  Wagner's save in the 6-3 victory not only sealed the win and moved the Mets back into a first place tie with the Phillies, but it also put the minds of many a Mets fan at ease, knowing that the true closer is once again available to pitch.  After the game Wagner said he looked better than he felt, but hopefully he continues to feel well enough to pitch 1-2-3 ninth innings.

Continue reading "Billy Wagner Never Looked So Good"

Offensively and defensively, the Yankees have been missing the services of Hideki Matsui since June 27, and Jorge Posada on and off for even longer. Matsui is an integral RBI guy to give ARod and Giambi protection in the five or six hole, and is needed more than ever in left with Johnny Damon's shoulder issues. Posada can hit pretty well, but can't throw, so even when he was in the game, other teams ran rampant--Jose Molina and Chad Moeller are decent defensive replacements, but can't match Jorge's bat.

Continue reading "Two Yankees, Toughing it Out"

The sunshine state has long been a hotbed for college football.  With an abundance of high school talent leaving for college every year, Florida schools have their pick of the litter of some of the nation’s best athletes.  For as long as anyone can remember, at least one of the big three (Florida, Florida State and Miami) has been a factor in the national championship picture.  In the past ten years, all three of these schools have won national titles: Florida State in 1999, Miami in 2001 and Florida in 2006.  During that same time period, however, these three schools have traversed dramatically different paths to arrive at their current circumstance.  Furthermore, in a state where most believed that no other schools could compete in either recruiting or ranking, the Universities of Central and South Florida have both become presences in their own right.

Continue reading "College Football in Florida: A Ten ..."

http://mysportsrumors.com/blog/2008/07/21/the-pittsburgh-swap-mar 

Every playoff contender in baseball seems to be calling the Pittsburgh Pirates, looking for an upgrade for their playoff push. The Pirates have numerous players that interest those contenders, in this article we’re going to talk about five of those guys. Those that have been drawing the most interest are Xavier Nady, Jason Bay, Jack Wilson, John Grabow and Damaso Marte.

Continue reading "The Pittsburgh Swap Market"

To try and motivate our bloggers to get inbound links we're going to have a contest to see which blogger can get the most inbound links to their blog. The contest begins now and ends July 31st, 2008. To be entered in to the contest all you have to do is go out and get as many websites to link to your blog as you can and at the end of the month send us an email listing all those links. All links must be active from August 1st through August 7th when we'll be judging the entries - a winner will be announced on August 7th. All entry emails must be received by Midnight on July 31st, 2008. You can email them to sportsfan@nbabasketballonline.com

Continue reading "Inbound link contest - Win $100!"

I watched the All Star game last night. 15 innings. It was at times boring, at times exciting, and for the most part, it reminded me of the Dodgers. With the exception of great defense and you know, having more than one “honorary” all-star on the team. Pitching, at least on the National League side of things, hasn’t been at a premium the last few years at the game, but this year, the NL pitched like a group of Saitos, Broxtons, and Wades. Runners remained stranded, even though the NL was in constant trouble in the late innings. Both teams hit like the Dodgers, constantly getting on base with nobody out, and then being left exactly where they were. The biggest threat being if an opposing batter ever tried to, I don’t know, not swing at every pitch (where was this Aaron Cook in the world series last year?) thrown in their direction. Dan Uggla (whose name sounds like the reaction you have when you step in something of solid and liquid form) struck out 3 times in 4 at-bats and was the Matt Kemp/Andruw Jones of the game. Russel Martin played the Russell Martin roll, coincidentally, but seemed to play it as if he was amped up on something, with the defensive abilities of a superman out there. It was so noticeable that Tim McCarver and Joe Buck spent a good 20 min “Alyssa Milano-ing” him (verbally of course). The prowess of Russell Martin on his knees was extolled by them for all to hear. I also worry that he was pumped to actually play with good players, and this gave him a taste of what it is like to play with players who are actually quite awesome. Unfortunately, there was nobody old or crotchety, enough to play the Jeff Kent roll, but you take comparisons where you can get them.

Continue reading "IF THE SEASON ENDED TODAY 07.16.08: ..."

Well, basketball is over and Major League Baseball is heading into the All Star break, which means that the real baseball season is about to begin.  I know, I am waaaaaaaaaaayyyyy overdue for this year's first rabid Red Sox post, but honestly I've been a little bit preoccupied with the WORLD CHAMPION BOSTON CELTICS and basketball in general (it has overtaken baseball as my favorite sport, though the Red Sox are and always will be my first love) to really dive into the first three meaningless months of the grueling and arduous MLB season.

Continue reading "Just Hit"

It’s the All-Star Break once again, that mythical halfway point in the season (I say “mythical” because most teams have played 95-96 games, more than the 81 that’s the true midway mark). Traditionally, it’s time for the teams to take a breath, collect themselves and iron out any kinks in their batting stroke or the pitching rotation—several starters made relief appearances or threw out of turn in the past game or two, knowing that three or four days of rest was coming for all of them.

Continue reading "Gimme A Break!"

    Well, my biggest gripe yesterday was that the Mets never win or lose a game that isn't in question until the final out.  I guess they realized I'm almost out of Pepto and gave me the break I was looking for.  Carlos Beltran belted a three-run home run off Giants ace Tim Lincecum in the first inning and Carlos Delagado and Fernando Tatis each homered later in the game to lead the Mets to their fourth straight win.

Continue reading "Pelfrey and the Mets Finally Make It Easy"

As we head into the final week of the unofficial first half of the 2008 season there are a lot of interesting story lines. From the Devil Rays, i mean Rays, and the big moves in the NL Cetral Major League baseball is in a great position.

Continue reading "Good For Baseball"

So can we please talk about Jason Giambi's mustache for a second? First the guy admits to wearing a gold thong when he needs to break out of a slump (it's hard to imagine that's all he's "breaking out of" in that kind of attire). And now he goes ahead and grows a full-out, mid-80s, Magnum PI mustache. Add these two nuggets to the fact that he's one of the 3 sweatiest humans on the planet, and that he's a New York Yankee, and you have the grossest person in America. Ever. Period.

Continue reading "Now playing first base for the New ..."

The 2008 season is halfway over, and there are plenty of stories to follow: the Rays’ newfound success, Josh Hamilton the hitting machine, and Chipper’s quest for .400 have all kept baseball fans watching ESPN and reading the sports section 24-7.  The following are the ones on my mind.

Continue reading "My Midseason Report"

There's a long way to go until October, but the Tampa Bay Rays clearly think they're ready to play with the big boys in the American League East right now.
Tampa's sweep of the defending world champion Boston Red Sox this week was no fluke, a combination of decent starting pitching (by James Shields on Monday), clutch hitting (by seemingly the entire lineup) and solid work from the bullpen (by Grant Balfour, Dan Wheeler and J.P. Howell). The Rays now stand atop the division, comfortably in front of the Red Sox and the New York Yankees, and are showing no signs of fear heading into the season's second half. The questions now are obvious ones -- can Tampa sustain this throughout the rest of the season? Are the Red Sox and Yankees finished?

Continue reading "Rays rip Red Sox apart"

When Terry Francona calls the bullpen these days, he may hear this recording: “Thank you for calling the Red Sox Bullpen.  If you want a pitcher to walk the next batter, press 1.  If you want a pitcher to give up two hits in a row, press 2.  If you want a pitcher to face the next four batters without recording an out, press 3.  If you want a pitcher who can pitch the 8thinning without giving up a run, please hang up and call the General Manager’s office and put in your request.  For guaranteed outs, please call 1-800-Papelbon.” 

Continue reading "Sox bullpen may need support"

So apparently leaving Houston wasn't the cure for what's ailing the Red Sox. All that's happened since they headed to Tampa is back-to-back silent offensive showings (at least through eight innings tonight). In fact, the biggest hit in the series is the one Manny delivered to a club official. Baseball is a funny game. You're going to have stumbles like this during the season, but as a fan they become downright maddening. It's hard to keep perspective that these are just four games out of 162 when JD Drew takes three straight pitches for strikes with a key runner on base in the eighth inning. Swing, JD, swing!

Continue reading "When do we finish Intraleague play?"

Man on third, 2 outs in the 9th, down one run, and Julio Lugo steps to the plate. Julio. Lugo. Hey Francona…can we get a pinch hitter here? No? Well, I guess Lugo did manage to elevate the ball, and hit a soft liner to end the game, instead of a soft ground ball.

Continue reading "Bad way to reach half-way..."

I know that most people consider the All-Star break the mid-season point in the baseball season but it's not so let's get right to it.

(Before I start I should say, other then my mid-season awards, I will not be talking about the NL.  There is not a team in the NL right now that can beat the Red Sox, Rays, Yankees or Angels in the World Series.  I'll get back to you if a team, mainly the Cubs, makes a nice trade to improve their team.)

Continue reading "Mid-Season Report"

All right. Are you ready for this? As the All-Star break approaches, the Tampa Bay Rays have the best record in baseball. That’s right. At 49-32, they’re a half-game ahead of Boston, the Cubs, and Anaheim. Whoa. Is this one of the signs of the apocalypse?

Continue reading "Hold On To Your Hats"

Is it possible the Astros may end up thanking Shawn Chacon for losing his cool and his professionalism?

Or are the 'Stros really just an average team hampered by incompetent management and an owner who seems to make one disastrous decision after another?

Continue reading "Astros 2-1 in post-Chacon era, takes ..."

Sometimes it's hard to remember they're now the Tampa Bay Rays and not the Devil Rays now. Always wondered why they weren't simply just called the Sting Rays to begin with. Oh well, I digress...

Continue reading "Astros edge Rays 3-2 and win rubber game of series"

Neither Manny or Big Papi hit a home run every at bat. I don't expect Theo to hit one every time, either. Still, I groan every time there's a swing at a ball in the dirt, and I groaned at Julio Lugo's signing. For not the first time this season Lugo had another horrible night just throwing the ball. There were times I had to blink and make sure he wasn't still wearing a Devil Rays jersey. Which reminds me. A lot of people are attributing the Rays new found success to the removal of satanic referrence. Well, I suppose if Lugo had horns, it would all make sense.

Continue reading "Without Lugo, we wouldn't have half ..."

Manny helped return normal to Fenway Park this afternoon following the Devil Rays madness & Bartolo Colon's inability to handle the ball Friday night. The Devil Rays are the Sox first AL opponents following 2 weeks of interleague play, beginning Friday night at The Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati.  Manny led off the offensive show with a towering homerun that cleared the Green Monster; JD Drew went 3 for 5 & Coco Crisp 2 for 5 as Wakefield's knuckleball danced in the hot, humid air. After Friday night's lopsided 8-0 loss, this afternoon's scoreboard ended the day with an 11-3 Sox victory.

Continue reading "Manny returns Fenway to normal."

After watching both of Coco Crisp's steals in the 6th and 8th innings of last night's Red Sox/Rays game, I still think Coco was in the wrong.
But before I get to Coco's steal in the 8th, let's look at the steal that started the whole fight. There were 2 outs in the bottom of the 6th. Ellsbury was at the plate. And on a pitch-out, Coco stole 2nd base. Unfortunately Rays short stop Jason Bartlett blocked the bag with his knee. So while Coco was safe, he injured his left thumb on the slide when his hand made contact with Bartlett's knee. (It's now bandaged and we'll have to wait and see how bad the injury is.)

Continue reading "Coco Was in the Wrong"

Mike Piazza announced his retirement on Tuesday, concluding a 16-year major-league career that includes 2,127 hits, a .308 batting average, 427 home runs, 1,335 RBI’s, 12 All-Star teams and one All-Star Game MVP, 10 Silver Slugger awards, a Rookie of the Year award, and one trip to the World Series during which he slugged two homers in the Mets’ five-game series loss to the Yankees.  Though he was known almost exclusively for his offense, Piazza actually caught two no-hitters, including the only one thrown at Coors Field in the thin Colorado air.

Continue reading "A notable retirement, three ’08 ..."

Well Hank Steinbrenner laid down the first of what are probably many ultimatums and for one night, it worked.

The Yankees get a win and yet again, limited offense...but it was enough.

THE GOOD:

Continue reading "Yankees at Rays gm. 3 of 4 POST GAME THOUGHTS"

So the Yanks look to even up the series tonight against the red-hot Tampa Bay Rays...Hopefully the offense can hit Edwin Jackson early.

Right now, I'd like to see the Yankees break even in this series (I can't believe I'm saying that about a Yankees-Rays series) and then focus on the big subway series coming up at the Stadium this weekend.

Continue reading "Yankees at Rays gm. 2 of 4 PRE GAME THOUGHTS"

Papi and Manny are finally working together. Their one, two punch in the seventh helped the Sox score their third shutout of the season and put them 3.5 games over their closest competitors, the Tampa Bay Rays.

Continue reading "Back to Back Keep Red Sox on Top"

I've been a Yankees fan since the early nineties, pre-Showalter, pre-Torre, pre-post-seventies-World-Series-victories days, and it seems to me they're as vulnerable as they've ever been. I like Girardi, I like the New Steinbrenner regime that doesn't look to scour out every single prospect for the possibility of Winning Right Now--but I think they are (dare I say?) approaching those dreaded Rebuilding Years.

Continue reading "Rebuilding the Yankees--A Good Thing?"

Another night of decent pitching went to waste as the Boston bats were nowhere to be found.
Wakefield was in much better form Thursday night as he went seven innings and gave up only six hits.&nb

Continue reading "Pitching vs. Batting"

It's the eighth inning and the Minnesota Twins and Tampa bay rays are locked in a five all tie. The Twins have a runner on third with one out. Mike Lamb hits a fly ball that's tailing into the left field foul area when in a flash speedy Tampa Bay outfielder Carl Crawford comes running from his position and makes a great sliding catch. The only problem is he's in no position to make a throw, and delmon Young easilt tags up and scores the eventual winning run from third base.

Continue reading "Carl Crawford Catches One For The Twins"

Here is part six of my preview of the 2008 season for Major League Baseball. This time I’ll look at the key questions for each team in the American League East.

Baltimore Orioles

Is Adam Jones ready to be a star?

Continue reading "MLB 2008 Season Preview: American Leauge East"

The American League East has been a two horse race for as long as I can remember but I think this year it becomes three-team battle.  The Toronto Blue Jays are as talented as most teams in the league and if they can stay healthy they can definitely contend.  The Rays and Orioles will again bring up the rear of this division but the top should be a fun and wild ride all year long, beginning with the Yankees-Blue Jays to open the season next week.

Continue reading "Part VI: AL East"

Akinori Iwamura's unborn children were in jeopardy Wednesday thanks to the antics of Shelley Duncan.
Duncan's spikes dug into Iwamura's thigh after a diabolical slide into second base, touching off a spring training brawl between the Tampa Bay Rays and the New York Yankees. Rays' right fielder Johnny Gomes charged in from the outfield and crashed into Duncan, sparking some pushing and shoving between the two teams as the benches emptied.

Continue reading "Duncan's dirty play turns Rays devilish"

The New York Yankees try to carry themselves with the belief that they are the classiest team in baseball. Earlier this week manager Joe Girardi took a stance that was not supported by many others in baseball when he harshly criticized a home plate collision in a game earlier this week, calling it dirty and something that you don’t do in Spring Training. If a young player trying to get noticed by his manager his coming into home and the plate is completely blocked, he has every right to barrel over the catcher. If Girardi doesn’t want such a thing to happen, he should tell his catcher not to block the plate in Spring Training. Nonetheless, I can understand Yankees pitcher Heath Phillips throwing at Evan Longoria in retaliation the next time the two teams met, that at least sends a statement to your teammates that you’ve got their backs. However, when Shelley Duncan slid into second base with his spikes high, that is just plain dirty and something that is unacceptable at anytime in the season. The home plate collision was a young kid trying to make a play, done with no malicious intent. Sliding into a base with your spikes in the air can only be seen as trying to injure another player.

Continue reading "Yankees Playing Dirty . . . And Other ..."

For the past decade the order of finish in the American League East has practically been predetermined from day one. The Red Sox and Yankees would battle for first place, Toronto Blue Jays would finish in the middle of the pack, the Orioles would be afterthoughts and the only question with Tampa Bay was whether they would lose more than 100 games or not. This seasons looks like it could be entirely different and the division is experiencing more depth than it has since the mid 1990's when Boston, New York and Baltimore were all contenders.

Continue reading "American League East is a Beast of a Division"

Drop kick the devil cuz the Rays are a'coming.  Corny I know, but so is the new name of "the formerly known as the devils" team.  Hey, what are you gonna do?  The ownership group wanted a fresh start and they've implemented several changes over the past two years to help make fans forget, ahhhhhh, no, don't say his name, Naimoli.  They had free parking for fans over the past two years (sorry folks, no longer this year unless you're carpooling...my suggestion--pull over along Central Avenue and have a couple homeless people roll in with you), they spruced up the Dome with jazzy paint in the tunnels and a whole host of signage inside and they took chances on players like Brandon Phillips, Al Reyes, and Carlos Pena that turned into gold for them. They talked about making major changes in the offseason and upping the team salary a bunchload and they definitely put their money where their mouth was.  And then some.  They traded Delmon Young for Matt Garza and Jason Bartlett.  They signed Troy Percival and Cliff Floyd.  And they announced plans for a waterfront park (please people we need to get this vote passed in November).  All in all, this chapter has a great beginning.  Let's ride the wave and see where it takes us. I was at a luncheon for the Rays today and I've posted an article I wrote for MLB.com.  Check it out... http://tampabay.rays.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20080219&conte

Continue reading "The next chapter of the Rays"

With pitchers and catchers finally reporting to spring training, it marks the start of the 2008 season where anything is can happen.  It is a season where even the Tampa Bay Rays can contend for fourth place.  It is a season where the impossible turns into the possible.  Just listen to Ryan Dempster of the Chicago Cubs make a bold prediction, “I think we are going to win the World Series. I really do.”  Great, just what a Cubs fans need to hear, another prediction. 

Continue reading "Is this the year of Dreams? Think ..."

Today's contestant: The Tampa Bay Devil Rays!

What's that? They got a new logo? Oh, my bad.

Continue reading "It's Time for... Better Know An Obscure ..."

Last week the Cleveland Indians announced that Jacobs Field, their home since 1994, will be renamed Progressive Field.  Does anyone else find it annoying that over the last few years, more than half a dozen ballparks have been renamed disgustingly commercialized names?  While the rotoworld.com writers point out the irony in the fact that the team playing in Progressive Field has a Native American nickname, I can’t get over the ridiculousness of the never-ending changes of the names of baseball parks.  I know it’s about money, but it takes away from the game.  If a name is good enough for the stadium’s first name, it should never need to be replaced (except in the case of Enron Field).

Continue reading "What’s in a name, anyway?"