Evan Longoria And Reid Brignac Another Step Closer To The Big Leagues

It appears that the Devil Rays front office is starting to let up on the reigns of some of their young prospects. Earlier this week J. P. Howell, Ben Zobrist and B. J. Upton were called up to the majors and made their Devil Rays debut on Tuesday night. Now comes word that Evan Longoria, this years first round pick, along with the Cajun God of Baseball, Reid Brignac and Patrick Breen, have all been promoted from high-A Visalia to AA Montgomery.

Brignac was 4th in the California League with a .326 batting average, 2nd with 83 RBI, tied for 2nd with 21 home runs and 2nd with a .939 OPS. Much like his older counterpart, Upton, Brignac has struggled with the glove, making 27 errors. Breen was also tied for second in the league with 21 home runs while hitting .282. Meanwhile, while some teams are still coming to terms with their top picks, the Rays top pick, Longoria, has already been promoted two times. Longoria started out at single-A Hudson Valley (mainly because of the California League All-Star break), where he hit .424-4-11 in 8 games. He was then promoted to Visalia where he hit .327-8-28 in 28 games.

While Brignac still needs some seasoning, especially with his glove, Longoria is clearly on the fast track to the major leagues. But at what position? Will Longoria be given a chance to win the starting shortstop job next spring? Probably not, but the team will definitely give him a look there next Spring and also in 2007 where he will probably start the season at AAA Durham. Then again, if he keeps hitting the way he has hit so far as a professional, is it really out of the question that we could see Longoria playing at The Pit in September?

What Does The Future Hold For Elijah Dukes And The D-Rays?

So what is next for Elijah Dukes? As we reported earlier this week, Dukes has been suspended indefinitely by the Devil Rays after his latest incident, pending an “investigation”. Late last week, Dukes was ejected for arguing balls-and-strikes. After the ejection, Dukes refused to leave the dugout and was subsequently suspended by the International League for 5 games. This was just the latest of many ejections and suspensions for the talented, yet fiery outfielder. It has long been said that Dukes may be one of the greatest pure athletes in all of professional baseball. A true 5-tool talent, but his intensity and competitive nature have gotten him in trouble many times in his life and in his tenure with the Devil Rays organization. We have lost count, but we believe this is the 5th suspension for Dukes in just the past two seasons…At times we have been critical of Dukes, and at other times we have defended his behavior. Now we no longer no what to think. Yes, we would like to think that not every incident was solely his fault. But there comes a point where even the strongest defenders of Dukes must admit that it can’t just be a coincidence that he is the one common factor in all of these incidents.

We have never met Mr. Dukes. And since we have never met him, we are not going to pass judgement on his personality and character in either a positive or negative way. We simply do not know and probably not many people do. We would like to think that he is just a fiery guy, that has an ultra-competitive streak and his intensity gets him in trouble sometimes. We would like to think that he is just young and does and says stupid things sometimes. Heck, we did plenty of stupid things when we were his age.

So what is the next move for Elijah Dukes? Dukes has stated that he may be “done with baseball”. That he has packed his things and he is heading home. Those comments sounded an awful lot like someone that is upset at the whole situation and there is no way to know at this point how Dukes will feel when he has a chance to reflect on everything. We would be surprised if he truly gave up on baseball. He is still young (he just turned 22) and there is the very real possibility that he may decide to return to football. He turned down a football scholarship to North Carolina State University when he signed with the Rays. It is not outside the realm of possibilities that NC State or another school would offer Dukes a scholarship to play major college football, with the hopes of reaching the NFL. The problem is, that is the longshot. He is so close to making the major leagues, that it would be silly to give up the type of money that can be made playing professional baseball. So we will have to wait and see how Dukes reacts to the results of the D-Rays “investigation” and any further disciplinary action.

So what is the next move for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays? To us, this latest suspension seemed to be a bit of an overreaction. After all the incidents and negative publicity from the prospects down at Durham, the team may have decided that they needed to get tough with this latest round of problems. We are sure that the negative publicity from the recent USA Today article only made the front office even more convinced that they needed to “crack the whip” and try to get things under control. Our best guess is that the team will reinstate Dukes sometime in the next week, when things have blown over and cooler heads have prevailed. Then it will be up to Dukes to decide if he wants to play.

Another factor to consider in all of this is roster situation that will be facing the Devil Rays in the off-season. Dukes will be eligible for the Rule 5 draft at the end of this season unless Tampa adds him to the 40-man roster. If they do not add him to the roster, it is very likely that another organization will draft Dukes and give him a roster spot on their major league team for 2007, with the hopes, that being around major league veterans, as well as an opportunity to play in the majors will bring his emotions in check. If that happens, the Rays will lose Dukes without getting anything in return. If they do protect him on the roster, they may be able to trade him for some other prospects. At this point it is difficult to gauge how much other teams would be willing to give up for Dukes, considering his talent and his history. The Rays may also decide to protect him and keep him, although that seems like the least likely scenario at this point. There does not appear to be an immediate future for him with the parent club. The 2007 lineup is likely to include Carl Crawford, Rocco Baldelli and Delmon Young in the outfield with Jonny Gomes at DH. If the Rays kept Dukes and protected him on the roster, he would most likely spend 2007 at Durham with his only chance of being called up being an injury to one of the aforementioned 4 players.

Maybe the best thing for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and for Elijah Dukes is to have Joe Maddon and Andrew Freidman sitdown with Dukes and have a lengthy discussion about his future. We wonder if Friedman has ever even met Elijah Dukes? Maybe if Dukes had some idea of what the organization had in store, he would be a bit more patient, and less prone to outbursts. But at this point, his future with the organization is clearly in limbo and it would be a shame to lose such a great talent because of personal issues that he may or may not have.

We are pulling for Elijah…We salivate over his potential…But we are also tired of the antics.

More Bad News: Elijah Dukes Suspended Indefinitely [Rays Index]
The Irresponsible Reporting of The Tampa Tribune and The St. Pete Times. [Rays Index]
D-Rays kids set for major promotions. [USA Today]

Seth McClung Returns…With A Different Role

On June 20, Seth McClung was demoted to Durham after going 2-10 with a 6.81 ERA in 15 starts. In Durham, McClung was converted to a reliever and given the chance to be the future closer for the Devil Rays. Seth took to his new role well dominating International League hitters to the tune of 26 strikeouts and only 2 walks in 16.1 innings of work. He converted 5 save opportunities. The performance has earned McClung another opportunity with the Devil Rays only this time he will be in the bullpen. There has been no word yet from Joe Maddon on McClung’s role with the Rays, but Brian Meadows has made it clear that he does not relish his current role as team’s closer. Given that, McClung may be given the opportunity to close games for the rest of this season with an eye on winning the job in 2007. Tyler Walker will not be ready at the start of next season and Shinji Mori will be returning from a serious injury. The closer role for 2007 is very much up in the air, and McClung may be given the first opportunity to grab it.

With Haper hurt, converted McClung returns. [St. Pete Times]

The Hangover: Yesterday In The AL East

Detroit 8, D-Rays 3. A familiar tale, although it was one we had not heard in a while. Recently, it has been the starting pitching and a distinctive lacks of offensive production that has plagued the Devil Rays. Earlier this season, those were both serviceable if not great, but many games were lost in the late innings due to a shaky bullpen. After a shaky start that saw him give up a 2-run home run to Dmitri Young in the 1st inning, Tim Corcoran settled down to retire 14 of the next 15 batters he would face. Joe Maddon took Corky out with 1 out in the 6th having allowed 4 hits and 1 walk. He struck out 3 and left with the score tied 2-2. The Rays would actually take the lead in the bottom of the 6th on a Dioner Navarro RBI single. Then over the course of an inning and a half, Jon Switzer and Rudy Lugo each gave up 3 runs and the game was lost, and once again we see the true weakness of this team, Relief pitching. The starters can be bad, but the talent is there and they have the chance to be very good in the near future, with more consistency. The offense can be great, but again the talent is there. There just is no major league talent in the bullpen. Just a bunch of arms that probably wouldn’t even be in the major leagues if playing for a different organization. So we sit and bang our heads on our collective desks waiting for the next wave of relievers and hope they can do the job better.

New York 7, Toronto 2. The Yanks won their 2nd straight versus Toronto and the Jays lost the 4th straight overall to fall 7.5 games off the pace. The Yankees remain in a virtual tie for first in the division. The 2-6 hitters for New York each had at least 2 hits.

Boston 6, Cleveland 5. Another night and another walk-off win for the Red Devils, only this time it was not Big Papi to the rescue. Rather it was Mark Loretta that delivered the 2-run double in the bottom of the 9th to erase a 1-run deficit and allow the Scarlett Hose to keep pace with the Evil Empire.

A Look At The Future…Yesterday On The Farm

Charlotte 13, Durham 1. The Bulls managed only 5 hits and Chris Seddon got knocked around pretty good last night. Seddon gave up 8 hits and 7 runs (5 earned) in 3 innings. Delmon Young and Kevin Witt each had 1 hit.

Birmingham 6, Montgomery 5. Mitch Talbot, acquired in the Aubrey Huff deal made his 4th start for the Biscuits. He worked 6 innings, allowing 6 hits, 1 walk and 3 runs. He struck out 6.

Visalia 6, Lancaster 1. Reid Brignac and Evan Longoria each had a double and 2 RBI. Brignac went 2-3 and is now hitting .326. Longoria went 1-3 and is now hitting .327.

SW Michigan 5, Kane County 3. Greg Reinhard struck out 8 in 5 innings. He gave up 2 hits, 3 walks and a run.

Hudson Valley 3, Lowell 0. Another strong start for Jeremy Hellickson as he continues to prove the nay-sayers wrong about small right handed pitchers. He pitched 5 scoreless innings, giving up 3 hits and 1 walk. He struck out 6. He now has an ERA of 1.96.

The Hangover: Last Night In The AL East

Detroit 10, D-Rays 4. And so it begins…It is hard to ever be excited for a 10-4 loss, but if ever there was a night, it was last night. B. J. Upton made his first appearance in a Devil Rays uniform since 2004 and showed us exactly how great he can be. He batted 8th and went 2-4 with a double and 2 strikeouts. In his first at bat, he fought off a tough pitch and dumped it into right field for a single. In the 8th inning he hit a line drive double to left and later scored on Carl Crawford’s double. In the field, Upton was flawless at third base. In the second inning, with the bases loaded and 1 out, Upton took a ground ball from Palcido Palanco and made a quick, strong and accurate throw to the plate for the force out. He also handled two other grounders, including a nice play on a slow roller in which Upton had to field the ball heading into foul territory and make a strong throw back across his body to Travis Lee at first base. And for those of you that want to see Kevin Witt playing first base instead of Lee, B. J. Upton is the reason you will have to wait a little longer. Having Lee at first base will do wonders for Upton’s confidence, knowing that he doesn’t have to be perfect on every toss.

The night didn’t goes as well for the other two players making their D-Rays debuts. Shortstop Ben Zobrist, batted in the 9th spot and went 0-4 with a strikeout, but he did handle several ground balls without incident. J. P. Howell, on the other hand, was knocked around pretty good by a good offensive Tigers team. He gave up 9 hits and 6 runs, and failed to get out of the 4th inning. There wa a bit of misfortune in the 2nd inning, when Crawford misplayed a double into a triple on a ball in the left field corner. Howell went 1-2-3 in the first, but began to unravel after that hit. When the dust settled in the second, he had given up 6 hits, 1 walk and 5 runs on 43 pitches.

New York 5, Toronto 1. There are a few things in baseball that are certain. One is that if you are a veteran with some talent but are no longer worth your overpriced contract, you one day play for the Yankees. Bobby Abreu is the latest overpriced addition. The Yankees will have to pay Abreu about $4.5 million for the rest of 2006, and $15 million for 2007. This for a guy that has 8 home runs. 8! Has there ever been a contract that the Yankees didn’t like? And here in lies the problem with baseball. It has been said a million times that the problem is the discrepancy in payroll and that is part of it, but where the Yankees really have an advantage is that they can afford to make mistakes. Let’s say Abreu is a total bust next season at $15 million. That is no big deal to the Yankees, they will go get somebody else. Could another team have afforded Abreu’s contract? sure. Hell, the Devil Rays could afford, but if they did acquire an Abreu and he was bust, then the team is in ruins for 2 years, with so much money tied up in a player that isn’t producing. arrrgggggg. frustrating. As for the game…Abreu went 0-3 with a walk and scored a run. The win put the Yankees in a virtual tie with the Red Sox for first place in the division.

Cleveland 6, Boston 3. No late-inning heroics for Big Papi this time. C. C. Sabathia and his crooked cap (is that what C. C. stands for?) shut down the Sox and now Boston is 1 day away from their rightful place in the division, second place.

Baltimore 2, Seattle 0. After what Angelos pulled the last couple of days, we are done talking about that sorry franchise for a while.

A Look At The Future…Yesterday On The Farm

Durham 5, Rochester 1. The top of the order, Darnell McDonald, Delmon Young and Kevin Witt were a combined 0-11. Catcher Shawn Riggans went 2-4 with 2 runs scored. The story of the night was the 2006 AAA debut of Jim Magrane, the cousin of the Rays television announcer and former major leaguer, Joe Magrane. Magrane, who has split each of the past 4 seasons between AA and AAA, was enjoying his finest statistical season at AA Montgomery. With J. P. Howell promoted to Tampa, Magrane was himself promoted to Durham. His night went a little better than Howell’s. Magrane, 28, who has never pitched in the majors, was 11-8 with a 2.98 ERA for the Biscuits. Last night Magrane gave up a first inning run, but settled down and pitched 8 innings, allowing only 4 hits, and that 1 run. He struck out 10 and only walked 1.

Montgomery 5, Birmingham 4. Jason Pridie went 2-5 and hit his 5th home run, a 3-run shot in the 7th inning that gave the Biscuits the lead for good.

Visalia 9, Lancaster 7. Reid Brignac went 2-4 with his 21st home run of the season. Evan Longoria was given the night off after two consecutive 0-5 nights.

SW Michigan 5, Kane County 4. Mike Wlodarczyk struggled his way though 6 innings. He gave up 5 hits, 3 walks and 3 runs (1 earned). He struck out 5.

More Bad News: Elijah Dukes Suspended Indefinitely

And the hits just keep on comin’…Elijah Dukes who was slated to return from a 5-game suspension tonight has been suspended by the Devil Rays indefinitely, pending an investigation. Dukes had been suspended by the IL after being ejected by an umpire for arguing balls and strikes. In fact a couple of telling quotes in the Baseball America article suggest that Dukes’ days with the Devil Rays organization may be numbered.

I have no idea when or if I’ll be back…I packed up all my stuff and I’m headed home. To be honest, I don’t even know about baseball anymore. Everything is just wearing on me and this year has just been so frustrating. I’m trying to keep my nose clean and keep to myself, but things just keep getting turned around. I’m tired of it. -Elijah Dukes

I just don’t know about baseball anymore…All this stuff keeps following me and now this. I’m tired of it. I don’t know if I’m coming back or what. I don’t know about the Fall League. I don’t know about anything other than I’m going home. -Elijah Dukes

Dukes also now claims that he was misquoted in the USA Today article that has caused such an uproar among Devil Rays’ executives.

Does this mean that Dukes may be considering a return to football? He is only 22, and probably could secure a scholarship from a small school. What it does mean is that the logjam of outfielders in the D-Rays system, may now be thinner by one.

Is Dukes done? [Baseball America]

The Curse Of LaMar-Naimoli Strikes Again

Josh Hamilton’s season may be over with injured knee

With the arrival of B. J. Upton, Ben Zobrist and J. P. Howell tonight, we might hve forgotten for a few fleeting moments, what it is to be a Devil Rays fan. Then we hear this news…

Earlier today we noted in the minor league recap that Josh Hamilton had missed the last two games after being pulled for a pinch-hitter on the 29th of June. We have now been able to confirm from Stacy Morgan, the Communications Director of the Hudson Valley Renegades that Hamilton has injured his knee. He is scheduled to meet with Dr. James Andrews next week. The injury must be serious as players don’t visit Dr. James Andrews when they have a sprain, just like people don’t visit a coroner unless they are dead. In fact, in almost every instance, surgery is required. This news means that Hamilton’s season is likely over. He was hitting .260-0-5 in 15 games since being reinstated by Major League Baseball.

Julio Lugo Traded To The Los Angeles Dodgers

The Julio Lugo saga has finally ended. Early on, it appeared that the Toronto Blue Jays were the only serious bidder for the services of Lugo for the final two months of the season. With the Jays starting to slip in the standings and no other teams interested, the Jays stood pat on their refusal to part with any of their top pitching prospects. This led to an 11th hour attempt by the Devil Rays’ front office to sign Lugo to an extension. Negotiations never reached serious stages as the two sides were just too far apart.

Then something happened to help the Devil Rays trade the free agent-to-be…Peter Angelos bought the Baltimore Orioles. OK, so he bought the team in 1993, 5 years before the Devil Rays would even play an official game. But in the last two days Angelos showed what a terrible owner he is by turning down at least two offers from other teams that would have landed the Orioles top pitchers in addition to other players. As a result, several teams that were looking for a shortstop with a strong bat, turned their attention to Julio Lugo. In the last 24 hours before the trade deadline, the Red Sox and the Astros were rumored to be in negotiations with the Devil Rays. What was clear, was that nobody was going to budge on their top pitching prospects, so the Devil Rays front office turned their attention to the best prospect(s) available. In the last hour before the deadline, the Rays worked out a deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers for two minor leaguers, Joel Guzman and Sergio Pedroza.

We have to admit…we never thought the Rays would be able to get a very strong prospect for Julio Lugo. We would have been happy with a mid-level pitcher with potential and maybe a throw-in position player and hope for the best. In fact the Rays were able to land Guzman, who was rated in the preseason by Baseball America as the Dodgers’ top prospect. Guzman, who is listed at 6-6, 260 (he’s a big boy) has come up through the Dodgers’ system as a shortstop, but this season he had been moved to the outfield in an effort to get his power bat to the majors. He appeared in 8 games for Los Angeles earlier this year, going 4-19 with 3 RBI. First and foremost, Guzman is a hitting prospect. His most likely position with the Devil Rays would be first base, where there is an immediate need in 2007. He could also end up at third base if Upton ultimately moves back to shortstop. Guzman’s strikeout totals in the minor leagues have been high, but his bat is believed to be major league ready or near major league ready. During last night’s game against Detroit, Andrew Friedman stated that Guzman would start with the Durham Bulls, but that there is a good chance he would be in a Devil Rays uniform in September when rosters expand.

The Devil Rays were not able to land a top pitching prospect at the deadline, but they obtained the next best thing. They acquired a top hitting prospect that could ultimately fill a void in the team’s lineup for 2007 and beyond.