Well then it's a good thing that they have the 4th best ERA for starters in all of baseball and are top 3 in AVG, R, and OBP despite missing Ortiz for the last month. Okajima isn't pitching well so they need an 8th inning reliever. That's the one weakness they have, and it's something that can be traded for. Or filled internally by putting Masterson in the bullpen as has been discussed.
i must say, living in the tampa bay area myself, i find myself rooting for the rays, the mets are my favorite team, in baseball i can do that, but as far as the jets go, its them and them only, no 'second favorite team shit' the bucs can go fuck themselves
Same way with me. I bet you moved to Tampa Bay area BEFORE the Rays, and after the Bucs... Thats why this Rays team is OUR team. Jets, Knicks and Rays baby! Talk about tough luck
22 games above .500! 4 games above Boston. Our 4th starting pitcher just recorded his 10th win of the season. (Andy Sonnanstine) Two more games against the Royals, going for the Sweep baby! R-A-Y-S-Rays, Rays, Rays!
Fans like yourself has been saying garbage like "It's only April", or "It's only May", how about "It's only June"? or how about... "No way this Rays team can win with that BRUTAL schedule of June"? Well they did. And now we have people saying "It's only July", are you kidding me? Just to let you know, this Rays team has the best record in baseball: Since the start of the season, this Rays team has also went up against the #1 Ranked SOS., Thats more than impressive. (Weather you admit it or not) That's funny. Well it's a good thing you atleast know the date, because you have no clue about the Rays. Well enjoy the next Rays article from Sporting news, the title is: Rays could be even better in the second half. Enjoy!
Posted: July 3, 2008 The Tampa Bay Rays are saving you a seat on their bandwagon. Yes, there's still time to get on. They're baseball's story of the year, and before this thing is over, they may be the best story ever: going from worst to first, going from laughingstock to model team. If you can't get excited about the Rays, you have a hard heart. Have you checked them out? Have you seen the emotion and the attitude? Have you seen those young arms and that airtight defense? Yes, they're the real deal. They're why we love sports. They've been down so long that no one ever expected them to be doing this, to be sporting the best record in the game and leading the American League East by 3 1/2 games. They're on a pace to win over 100 games. They're a near-perfect blend of youth and experience. Their manager is bursting with positive energy and has been able to push every right button on the field and in the clubhouse. Sure, they're young and they'll hit a bump or two along the way. Don't count on them going away, though. They have a certain magic about them. And they have pitching. They rallied from a 4-1 deficit with six runs in the seventh inning Wednesday night to win 7-6 and complete a sweep of the Red Sox in front of a sellout crowd at Tropicana Field. That was third baseman Evan Longoria delivering a two-run double. He's your American League Rookie of the Year. He was the third pick of the 2006 draft and one of the enduring symbols of how the Rays have gotten it right. Shortstop Jason Bartlett's single scored the Rays' final two runs. Ever heard of him? He's a first-rate defensive player, one of the players responsible for this amazing season. He was thought to be a throw-in in the Matt Garza-for-Delmon Young deal. Turns out, he's way more than that. Maybe they're doing more than counting down the days until the Bucs open training camp in Tampa Bay. Home attendance was up 41 percent over last year for the first 45 games of the season, and while it's still near the bottom of the American League, fans are starting to believe. The Rays are 35-13 at home. Their merchandise suddenly is popular. If Hank Steinbrenner is counting on the Rays going away, he may be disappointed. Maybe Terry Francona is right when he says they don't really have one standout player who deserves to be in the All-Star Game. Maybe David Ortiz is right that their inexperience will catch up with them. Maybe all the people that forgot Tampa Bay had baseball eventually will be proved right. After all, this is the franchise that averaged 97 losses in its first 10 seasons, that played in front of baseball's smallest crowds, that did one wrong thing after another. So we'll keep this our little secret. We won't tell them how good general manager Andrew Friedman is. We won't tell them how attacked his roster the old-fashioned way. He upgraded the defense and the bullpen, added depth to the rotation and sprinkled veterans like Troy Percival, Eric Hinske, Cliff Floyd and Dan Wheeler throughout the clubhouse. If it's OK with you, we'll just pretend the Rays aren't the club almost everyone inside the game is rooting for. Don't tell a soul how good they really are. And the truth is, they're really, really good. The front of the rotation -- Scott Kazmir, Matt Garza and James Shields -- is as good as any. The bullpen and defense are outstanding. Even with closer Percival back on the disabled list with that cranky hamstring, manager Joe Maddon has enough pieces to mix and match. Somehow the pieces fit. (Grant Balfour) Here's the scary part. They might just get better in the second half of the season. Carl Crawford hasn't gotten really hot yet, and he's good enough to carry a team. Here's the other scary part. If the Rays are, say, one piece away at the trading deadline, they have enough prospects to outbid anyone. How do you like the idea of C.C. Sabathia winning a game for the Rays at Fenway Park in September? Or the Rays could simply give the ball to David Price. He was the first pick of the 2007 draft, and he's dazzling hitters in the minor leagues. Anyway, the Rays just swept the Red Sox for the second time this season, and now they finish the first half of the season with 8 of 10 games against teams with losing records. Oh sure, the Yankees are still going to make headlines. Steinbrenner keeps making a fool out of himself, and now with A-Rod and Madonna apparently an item, the Yankees are still great theater. That's all they are. They're an old, mediocre team, and they seem to be sleepwalking through this season. Look closely at these Rays, at B.J. Upton in center and Longoria at third, at Kazmir and Garza and all those relievers, and they might just remind you of those early Joe Torre teams in New York. They're excitable and have no idea how good they can be. All they know is that they're having the time of their life. Some people will focus on the low payroll and think it can't be done. These people failed to get the memo that succeeding in baseball is no longer about spending the most money. Baseball's three biggest spenders -- Yankees, Mets and Tigers -- could all miss the playoffs while the bottom three -- A's, Rays and Marlins -- could be in. Maybe it'll be different for the Rays in the second half of the season. Maybe opponents will focus a little more energy on them. Maybe some of their holes will look bigger. That's exactly what Ortiz predicted during a chat with reporters before Wednesday's game. "I'm not saying that they will drop, but if you go by the numbers, that's normally what happens in baseball," he said. "It's always the guys with more experience and the guys used to being in the same spot at the end of the year that take over. "It (would) be good to watch those kids come through and watch them in the playoffs. It would be good for baseball. It would be good for people to believe that it doesn't matter how much money you pay or how big your payroll is, (that) those teams still have a chance to be in the playoffs and make a difference. But at the same time, you know how it is. You guys know better." When St. Petersburg Times columnist John Romano relayed those words to Percival, he got a quick answer. "He's right. History backs him up," Percival said. "But it's not going to happen to us. If we don't win this thing, it's not going to be because we fall. They will have to come and take it from us. There's a difference." Indeed there's a different. After a decade of wandering in the desert, it feels like baseball finally has arrived in Tampa Bay. Get your ticket now. Richard Justice is a columnist for the Houston Chronicle and a regular contributor to Sporting News.
yes i moved here in december of 83, im a jets, mets, magic fan, the rays and knicks are both my second favorite teams in the nba and mlb, but like i said before, in the nfl its the jets and the jets only! we are in july and i havent seen any slowing down for the rays, they finally look like a TEAM, still a lot of baseball left, but they would have to have a collapse like my poor mets did last year not to make the playoffs, red sox fans will say there missing big papi, but you know what every team has injuries
Yea, the Red Sox have no right to complain about Ortiz...Just look at their payroll, it's insane. With that payroll, they should be able to overcome any injury to any player. Plus, the Rays have had far more injurys to the lineup in 08 with our small market payroll...
That's great, I never said the Rays aren't a legitimate team. You sound like a fucking tool being this excited before the trade deadline. Things happen. People get traded, people get injured, and people get healthy again from injuries suffered in the first half. The real season doesn't start until August.
"The real season doesn't start until August" Are you kidding me man? If anyone knows what it takes to try and compete it's Tampa Bay fans man. We have always been 15-20 games out of 1st by August, for 10 years in a row. That's insane what you just said. The season always starts in April, you MUST win in April, May, June, July and August to EVEN HAVE a chance @ September baseball. Yankee fans and Red Sox fans may not remember that, but Rays fans KNOW that winning each and every game is important. Right now we are 23 games above .500 with an away record of .500. The Red Sox are 4.5 games back as of right now and will simply be playing for 4 games or 5 games behind the Rays. That's all the Red Sox will be playing for tonight against the Yankees... A chance to be either 4 or 5 games back, and thats all. Nothing more. As far as injuries go.... Our allstar pitcher:Kazmir started the year off on the DL. Our allstar catcher: Navarro also spent time on the DL. Carlos Pena, our best overall hitter and best defensive 1st basemen has been on the DL. Cliff Floyd, our everyday DH has been on the DL. Matt Garza, ur # 3 pitcher has also been on the DL. Percival, who has been a great closer this year has been on the DL, back on the DL. Al Reyes, has been our veteran leader out of the bullpen is also on the DL. I can really go on and on about injuries. The have had the 4th most players on the DL in the Majors. All have been HUGE players to this Rays team. Our lineup is finially back to 100%, the Rays are only missing Percival and Reyes. Evan Longoria missed the 1st 10 games of the season because he was still in the Minors. Carl Crawford, Aki Iwimura, Jonny Gomes and James Shields all missed time because of the suspensions due to the Red Sox brawl. This Rays team has overcame a lot more than what casual fans around baseball really know. Baseball tonight never explains this kind of stuff. And you wanna talk about the trade deadline? The Rays are in talks with the Rockies for Holliday! We would be giving up Jeff Niemann and Brignac for the man. That would be AMAZING. Aki Crawford B.J Upton Holliday Carlos Pena Longoria Navarro Hinske Bartlett With the pitching we have, we can really go far.
well since youve only been posting in the baseball forum for a month now, you would have no idea what fans in here have been sayin now do you? if you had been talking about the rays back during the offseason or spring training, maybe you wouldnt look like the bangwagon tool that you are.
You wanna know why I "have not posted on this site since before last month"? I've actually been banned from here since the Jets offseason for posting "Fake news" it was just a joke right before we signed Calvin Pace. I was banned until June 2nd. Maybe thats whyyyyyy I wasnt posing on this site? Maybe... Just maybe? Ya think? P.S... I been on the official Rays message board for yeard now. :=) Think twice before you call someone a "banwagon tool" Moron
if you can find a word other than tool that accurately describes this guy ill be happy to use that instead.
Entirely unnecessary. Silliness has a strange way of identifying itself loudly and then burning out quietly. Dierking has a pretty good perspective on this one.
tampabayjetsfan85, look i dont have any problems w/you, but you should probaly have one thread and one thread only about the rays. this is a NY fan site, we post about the jets,mets,yankees, knicks e.c.t the rays need only one thread, and anytime anybody feels like commenting on them they can just go to that thread, it would make things so much easier, btw, if the yankees win tonight, the rays will be 5.5 up, wow
