D-Rays @ Yankees Tidbits

• Since the All-Star break *deep breath*, the Rays have the worst ERA in the Majors (7.04) and the highest oponents batting average (.369) having allowed 170 hits in 10 innings pitched. The bullpen has been even worse with a 7.38 ERA and a .380 opponents batting average.
• To make matters worse, the offense is next to last in batting average since the break (.241) ahead of only the L. A. Dodgers.
• Let’s see…hmmmm?…Can’t get the other team out? Can’t score any runs? O right! That is why the team is 3-10 since the break.
• The Yankees lead the season series 6-2 and are 2-1 at Yankee Stadium.
• Pardon us while we go watch the first 45 minutes of Major League and jot down notes of comparison.

Probable Pitchers
Friday, 7:05 et
Devil Rays Tim Corcoran, RHP (4-1, 3.09)
Yankees Chien-Ming Wang, RHP (11-4, 4.01)

Satuday, 4:05 et
Devil Rays Jae Seo, RHP (2-9, 5.71)
Yankees Randy Johnson, LHP (11-8, 4.80)

Sunday, 1:05 et
Devil Rays James Shields, RHP (4-4, 5.46)
Yankees Mike Mussina, RHP (12-3, 3.44)

The Hangover: Last Night In The AL East

Boston Red Sox. Luckily for the Red Hose, they didn’t play last night and hence didn’t lose any of their small lead to the Evil Empire which remain 1.5 games behind. The focus today over at the Boston Blogs is about the pending trade deadline. Could the Red Sox be back in the Julio Lugo sweepstakes? However, most of the focus is apparently on Corey Lidle to shore up their rotation. Then again maybe the best deal is the one the team doesn’t make.

New York Yankees. Things are a little more subdued in the Yankee Blogosphere. Apparently Chien-ming Wang is a practical joker. ok? And apparently Alex from Bronx Banter went to see a barber in Brooklyn. Really? That’s all you guys got? That is the mentality of a Yankee’s fan. They are 1.5 games out of first and they are acting like they are up 10 games. The young Yankees fan has been so spoiled. They just assume that by the time the dust settles, all order will be restored to the universe and the pinstripes will win the division and the Red Sox will be in second where they belong.

Toronto Blue Jays. The Jays opened a 4-game series in Oakland by dropping the first game 5-2. Toronto has now lost 3 of their last 4 and now stand 6 games back of the Red Sox. The Jays are dangerously close to falling out of the race in the AL East. This could have a profound effect on the D-Rays. The Blue Jays spent a lot of money in the off-season and may feel desperate to make a run a the division leaders. On the other hand, they may start to feel that their is too much ground to make up and decide to cut their losses. The team’s point of view at this time will greatly affect their decision to pursue or not to pursue Julio Lugo.

Baltimore Orioles. The O’s wrapped up a series with the Royals by taking the final game 6-4 and winning 2 of 3. I am sure that winning a series against the Royals and stretching their lead over the Rays will not do much to deter the protest of Peter Angelos.

A Look At The Future…Yesterday On The Farm

Columbus 4, Durham 3. This is getting ridiculous. Kevin Witt hit another home run. That is his 29th on the season and about 27 in the last week. Witt is now hitting .294-29-81 with a .963 OPS. Unfortunately Witt is a victim of a numbers game right now. We doubt there is a Devil Rays’ fan out there that wouldn’t rather see Kevin Witt manning first base for the Devil Rays instead of Travis Lee. However there are a couple of factors that are keeping Witt in Durham for the time being. First and foremost, Witt is not on the 40-man roster. If the team decided to promote Witt, the Rays would have to make room for him by either placing somebody on the disabled list or designating somebody for assignment (DFA). The team may not be ready to cut somebody loose and could be waiting for an opening to occur naturally (injury). The other factor is that Travis Lee is a free agent at the end of the season and the Rays may be auditioning him for contenders before the trading deadline. Lee could potentially be serviceable on another team as late-inning, defensive replacement and veteran pinch-hitter. A player like Lee could be worth a low-level minor ‘B’ prospect…B. J. Upton went 2-4 to raise his average to .270. Ben Zobrist went 3-5 and is now hitting .328. Devil Rays fans everywhere are working vigorously with their Casey Fossum and Jae Seo voodoo dolls as J. P. Howell had yet another strong start. Howell went 6 innings, allowing 6 hits, 3 walks, 1 run. He struck out 4 and now has an ERA of 2.11 in 7 Durham starts.

Jacksonville 2, Montgomery 0. The Biscuits managed only 3 hits and now have 8 hits and 0 runs in their past 2 games combined.

Bakersfield 5, Visalia 3. Two more hits for Evan Longoria who is now hitting .371. He also has a ridiculous 1.161 OPS in 23 games. Catcher John Jaso also went 2-4 and is now hitting .323. Patrick Breen added his 21st home run.

SW Michigan 4, Quad Cities 2. Another big start from one of the Big 3. Mike Wlodarczyk pitched 7 innings, allowing only 2 hits, 4 walks and 1 run. He struck out 4.

Why The Mets Can’t Just Enjoy Their Season

Earlier this season we thanked the Mets for Scott Kazmir and offered our condolensces to Mets fans. There was even a new blog started in honor of the lopsided trade that sent 22-year old All-Star Kid K to the D-Rays in exchange for Victor Zambrano. Zambrano has been shut down for the season and his career may be over after winning 10 games in 39 appearances for the Metropolitans. We knew there would be increased talk about the Kazmir deal as the trade deadline approached, but we didn’t see this coming. Now there is an entire article in Sports Illustrated this week that covers the prils of the trade deadline deal and the article features Scott Kazmir and the trade that brought him to the Devil Rays.

The article starts…

With each fastball that Scott Kazmir throws, a metropolis groans. With each slider that plummets through the strike zone like a tiny jet whose engines have failed, thousands of fans a thousand miles north bemoan their fate.

It must be tough to be a Mets fan right now. What makes the situation worse is that the team could really use another starting pitcher. Even Jose Lima has started games for the Mets this season. Jose Lima? Now that is desperate.

Beware The Deadline Deal. [si.com]
Hey Mets Fans…Thanks For Taking Us To Pleasure Town! [Rays Index]
I don’t blame Duquette. [Why Duquette Why]

Devil Rays To Offer Julio Lugo A Long-Term Contract?

In the latest twist to the Julio Lugo saga, The Tampa Tribune is reporting that the agent for Lugo, is expecting to receive an offer from the Devil Rays front office as early as today.
After months of speculation that the free agent-to-be would be moved before the trading deadline, it now appears that the team will look to see what it would take to keep Lugo in the middle of their infield and at the top of the team’s lineup. Recent talks that have stalled with the Blue Jays and a lack of other obvious suitors, may have team management re-examining their priorities. It is probably still a long shot that Lugo will be in a D-Rays uniform beyond this season. Reports have Lugo seeking a 4-5 year contract worth $8 million per season. We have a hard time imagining that the team will offer anything beyond $6 million per season to a player already in his 30’s. It would also be unlikely that the team would be willing to commit to anything beyond 3 years. This is likely to be a major stumbling block to a deal being reached. Another factor that could be difficult to overcome is any demand by Lugo for a no-trade or limited no-trade clause. The team most likely would not agree to any sort of no-trade and thus limit their options down the road. Another possibility is that this rumored offer, may be a way to get the Blue Jays to up their ante for the one player that they have set their sights on. Without another team with any strong interest in Lugo, the Jays have been happy to sit and wait for the D-Rays to lower there demands. A report that the Rays may not trade the shortstop after all could rattle the Jays cages a little bit.

Despite this latest report, at this point, there is no way to gauge exactly where Julio Lugo will end up next week or next season. The options at this point, trade him, re-sign him, or keep him and lose him to free agency are all still possible options. However, until July 31st comes and goes, we are still leaning towards the idea that the Rays and the Jays will reach an agreement in the next few days.

The Hangover: Yesterday In The AL East

Los Angeles 15, D-Rays 6. That picture to the left is a very fitting picture for this team. That wall could represent the entire second-half of the season. Last night, the Rays gave up 10 runs in an inning for the 86th time this season. OK, maybe it hasn’t been 86 times, but we are afraid to look up the actual number, because it will make us bang our heads on our desks…again. We are starting to think that it might be better for our hearts if we write the D-Rays posts first and then write the more positive sounding Minor League reports afterwards. O well, what is it to be a Tampa Bay sports fan if there is not some suffering involved.

The Good: Julio Lugo returned to the lineup after missing the last couple of games with a bruised fingertip. Rocco Baldelli hit his 5th home run of the season in the first inning. Carl Crawford hit his 11th triple and stole his 33rd base.

The Bad: Jonny Gomes. We have refused to jump on Gomes case so far during this prolonged slump because he is still young and slumps will happen for young players and for power hitters. But this is getting bad. Last night he went 0-4 and is now hitting .222. He only has 3 home runs and 9 RBI since June 11th, and Joe Maddon has dropped him to 8th in the lineup.

The Oh, So Ugly: Casey Fossum couldn’t hold an early 4-2 lead and was pulled with 1 out in the second. His final line…1.1 innings, 6 hits, 1 walk, 7 runs (5 earned) and a season ERA of 5.22.

New York 8, Texas 7. The Spankees pulled within 1.5 games of the Red Sox with a 2-run home run by Jason Giambi in the 8th. And we are telling you right now, if we hear somebody else call Giambi, The Giambino we will personally go to Babe Ruth’s grave and roll him over ourselves. We can’t think of a bigger insult to the Babe.

Oakland 5, Boston 1. Amazing the Red Sox fans. One day they are singing their team praises from atop the Green Monster after pounding out 18 hits and winning the first two games in Oakland. Then the lose one game and the apocalypse is upon them. There is no fan base in all of baseball that is more game-to-game then the Red Sox nation. So for all the the nuevo-members of the Nation let us tell you…You will never be true members. You can’t possibly understand the meaning. We promise.

O yeah, Toronto lost and Baltimore won…blah, blah, blah.

A Look At The Future…Yesterday On The Farm

Durham 16, Columbus 10. Once again, the minor league system is our remaining source of pride as a Devil Rays fan. Of course it is a sad and a bit extreme that we gain a sense of pleasure when our AAA team beats the Yankee’s AAA team. Last night…O Baby! Delmon Young is finally announcing to everyone with his bat (in a good way) that he is ready. Last night Young had his best game of what has been a very good season (statistically, not behaviorally). He went 4-5 with a triple, 2 home runs, 4 RBI and 4 runs scored. The home runs are only his 4th and 5th of the season, but all have come since his return from a 49-game suspension. Not to be outdone, Kevin Witt hit his league-leading 27th and 28th home runs, which is 9 more than anybody else. As for Young, he is now hitting .354 which would be good enough for the league lead if he had enough plate appearances to qualify. B. J. Upton, the man with million dollar talent and a 5-cent throwing arm, went 1-4 with 2 walks and swiped his league leading 42nd base. Unfortunately he continues to struggle at his new position with a throwing error, his 33rd of the year. Wes Bankston hit his first home run since being promoted to Durham two weeks ago. Darnell McDonald added 3 hits to raise his average to .313.

Jacksonville 8, Montgomery 0. Not a whole lot to talk about here. In fact nothing to talk about. Let’s move on.

Bakersfield 5, Visalia 3. Evan Longoria added 2 more hits including his 6th double to raise his average to .371. Patrick Breen hit his 23rd home run which is 2nd in the CL. Reid Brignac was given the night off.

Quad Cities 10, SW Michigan 2. Wade Davis pitched well, if not great before the bullpen imploded. Davis went 6 innings, surrendering 6 hits, 1 walk and 2 runs. He struck out 2.

State College 6, Hudson Valley 4. Josh Hamilton went 1-4 with an RBI single as the team’s DH. He is now hitting .271.

Julio Lugo Remains A D-Ray…For Now

As last season’s trading deadline approached rumors were rampant that a deal was imminent to move Julio Lugo to either the New York Mets or the Boston Red Sox. During the off-season, more rumors came and went. As this season began, it was considered a foregone conclusion that the free agent-to-be would be dealt to somebody before the July 31st trading deadline. After all, the team had one shortstop with a major league-ready bat waiting in the wings at AAA Durham. In addition, Lugo, who makes $4.95 million this season, would certainly command a very lucrative offer in the off-season. The Dodgers gave Rafael Furcal $39 million over 3 years and he is, at best, a similar player to Lugo. In fact, Furcal is Lugo without any power. And while the Dodgers overpaid for Furcal, Lugo will certainly seek a contract in excess of $8 million per season. That price tag is probably too rich for the Tampa Bay brass, given that there are other options in the minor leagues (Upton, Ben Zobrist, Reid Brignac).

So, as we approached this season’s trade deadline, the question was not ‘if’ Lugo would be traded, but ‘to whom’ would he be traded. The problem is…two of the big players in the past appear to no longer have any interest in Lugo. The Mets appear set at second base with the veteran Jose Valentin, and the Red Sox appear to be content with the defensive prowess of Alex Gonzalez (if unspectacular glove) at shortstop. Apparently that leave the Toronto Blue Jays as the only known team to show any real interest in Lugo. The problem is that the Devil Rays apparently have their eyes on 3 pitching prospects of the Blue Jays and Toronto is unwilling to unload any of them. The Toronto Star is reporting that the Jays are offering the team’s 2004 1st round draft pick, David Purcey who has struggled as a professional. Purcey is 2-7 with a 5.40 ERA in 12 starts for AAA Syracuse. The problem for Toronto, is that it appears they have no interest in Lugo past this season.

So it looks like the teams are currently at an impasse. There is still plenty of time to get a deal done before the deadline, but at this point, it is far from imminent. The Devil Rays do have a couple of other options. The first is obviously to try and re-sign Lugo at the end of the season. Lugo has made it clear that he likes playing in Tampa, and he loves playing with his brother Rudy Lugo. But if Lugo is to be a D-Ray past the 2006 season, it would take a very generous “home-town” discount. We can’t see the team offering more than $6 million per season, and they may not be willing to commit more that 3 years to a shortstop that is already in his 30s. The other option is to keep Lugo until the end of the season and let him walk as a free agent. In doing so, the team will be awarded a sandwich pick at the end of the 1st round in the 2007 amateur draft. The Oakland A’s have used this method to stockpile their organization with 1st round talent. At this point, this may be the best option for the Rays. If all the Jays are going to offer is a 1st round bust, then why not wait until next summer, take the extra first round pick and find a player that the team is truly interested in.

Earlier this season we would have never believed that Lugo would still be a Devil Ray past July 31st. Now we think it is at worst a 50/50 scenario between him staying and going.

Devil Ray Blogtopia

• Roberto Hernandez as the Devil Rays’ home town hero? [LiveJournal]
• If the Florida Aquarium is going to work with the Devil Rays and take their charitable donations, the least they could is get the name of the team correct. The Florida Devil Rays? [Aquarium Times]
• Rocco Baldelli is the 5th best baseball player to ever come out of that county masquerading as a state in New England. [A Large Regular]
• Rocco also has one of the best names in baseball. Although can you really go wrong with Manny Ramirez, who’s A-Rod-type nickname would be “ManRam”. Or what about Felix Heredia, who would be “F-Her”. We’re just sayin’. [Anything About Sports]
• According to one person in the Rays’ front office, Mitch Talbot was the key to the Huff deal. [H-Town Sports]
• Even Red Sox fans like to take an occasional shot at the Mets about the Kazmir deal. [Touching All The Bases]
• Apparently the guys over at Hooray, Beer! think that Kazmir needs a few more strong seasons before being considered for the Hall of Fame. Huh? Really? Don’t get us wrong. Kid K is awesome and we love him, but he hasn’t even won more than 10 games in a season yet. [Hooray, Beer!]

A Look At The Future…Yesterday On The Farm

Columbus 9, Durham 1. Delmon Young continues to punish baseballs and opposing pitchers instead of umpires since his return from a 49-game suspension. Last night he went 2-3 with a double to raise his average to .343. Young is approximately 90 plate appearances short of qualifying for the league batting crown, otherwise he would be second in the IL. Darnell McDonald who recently had a 28-game hitting streak snapped, went 2-4 to raise his average to .310, which is good for 7th in the IL. He also has 11 home runs and 20 stolen bases on the season. B. J. Upton went 1-4 with his 8th home run to account for the team’s lone run. Unfortunately, the news of the day was that Upton also committed his 31st and 32nd errors of the season. Both were throwing errors. And this just in Doug Waechter has forgotten how to pitch. Last night? 4.1 innings, 10 hits, 7 runs (2 earned), 0 walks and 4 strike outs. Thanks to Upton and an error of his own, only 2 runs were earned and his ERA actually was lowered to 8.78 since being demoted. In 8 starts at Durham he is now 1-7 and is giving up more than 2 runners per innings.

Montgomery 4, Jacksonville 2. We are worried about Andy Sonnanstine. He gave up 2 runs last night! Sonnanstine, who had pitched 4 shutouts in his previous 7 starts, only worked 6 innings. However, he did pick up his 8th straight win, giving up 6 hits (2 solo home runs) 1 walk and 2 runs. He struck out 5.

Bakersfield 13, Visalia 5. Christopher Mason one of the Rays top pitching prospects in the low minors, was roughed up last night. In 4 innings, he gave 11 hits, 1 walk and 8 runs (7 earned). The loss drops him to 10-6 with a 4.33 ERA. The “Cajun God of Baseball”, Reid Brignac, went 3-5 to raise his average to .315, 7th in the CL. He also has 19 home runs, good for 4th. The “Dirtbag” Evan Longoria, had the night off, presumably to give the other team’s pitchers a night off.

SW Michigan 7, Quad Cities 3. With all the excitement at other levels recently we have not paid much attention to the the Big-3 pitchers for the SW Michigan D-Rays. Last night Jacob McGee did his best to grab our attention again. He struck out 11 in 6 innings, giving up 2 hits, 2 walks and 1 run. On the season he is 6-8 with a 2.71 ERA for a team with little offense, and leads the ML in strikeouts by a wide margin. In 113 innings, he has 140 strikeouts. His teammate Wade Davis (6-8, 3.20) is 2nd with 126 strikeouts in 107 innings. Interestingly, the third part of the trio, Michael Wlodarczyk is also 6-8 (3.33 ERA).