[THE HANGOVER] In The End, Even Old Yeller Had To Be Shot

Yankees 7, Devil Rays 6.
The Devil Rays lost three of four games to the Yankees, but for the first time in almost a month, the Rays were competitive. The starting pitching was better, but they still don’t put in enough time on the mound. And the bullpen is…well the bullpen is what it is. In the four games, the bullpen threw 11.2 innings and gave up 10 hits, 7 walks and 8 runs. The key number is 11.2, as Andy Sonnanstine was the only starting pitcher to work into the 7th inning. To expect any bullpen, especially the Devil Rays, who are missing their only two decent relievers (Al Reyes and Juan Salas), to hold the Yankees lineup scoreless for three innings is asking too much.

Manager Joe Maddon was up to his usual Pollyannaisms this weekend.

[After Sunday’s loss] We played a hard-fought game and they got it in the end and we didn’t…But our day will come. [tampabay.com]

[After Saturday’s loss] I’m looking at the effort. I’m looking at us doing the little things better. Good pitching tonight from our perspective. [devilrays.com]

For the record we do not have a problem with maintaining a positive attitude in the face of yet another last place season. Our problem is that as fans, we want the players and the coaches to be held accountable. When all we ever hear from Joe Maddon is how he sees so many “good things” it gives the appearance that he doesn’t see the “bad things” and that losing is an acceptable outcome. Nobody is expecting a winning ball club in 2007, but we would like to see signs that this team can be a winning ball club soon. Despite losing 3 of 4 to the Yankees, the competitiveness of the team was better, but in the end they still lost 3 of 4.

We envision little Joey Maddon as one of those children whose mother would always turn a movie off before the sad ending. Unfortunately we have yet to learn to turn the TV off before the 7th inning.

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

• Saturday night and Sunday afternoon’s games were the 6th and 7th sellouts in Devil Rays history. Four of the previous five sellouts were on opening day. The only other non-opening day sellout was also against the Yankees on July 19, 2004. [tampabay.com]
• On Friday night, Scott Kazmir’s pitch count was once again too high forcing him from the game before the 7th inning. Still, Kid K seemed to have regained some of his confidence that has been lost most of the year. [tbo.com]

“I’ve been through a tough stretch where I’m trying to figure out what’s going on,” he said. “I’m switching sides of the rubber and changing my mechanics a little bit, but now I’m just going back to what I did last year and the year before. I’m just going to attack the strike zone and not worry about how I get the ball to where I want it, but just toe it up and throw it there.”

• Jonny Gomes brought a “good luck rooster” to the clubhouse before Friday night’s win. [DevilRays.com]

After Friday night’s win, Rays manager Joe Maddon sounded like he was ready to ride the rooster: “The rooster is a permanent part of the environment now.”

• James Shields leads Major League Baseball with 7.14 innings pitched per start. At the other end of the spectrum, Edwin Jackson averages the second fewest innings pitched per start (4.64). [Roto Authority]
• Carl Crawford has had an up-and-down season and thinks taking more walks will be the key to finding consistency. [DevilRays.com]
• Carl Crawford likes his women with a good left jab. [St. Pete Times]
• Marc Lancaster discusses several players that could be traded. [TBO]
• So far, signing bonuses for players from this year’s amateur draft are down approximately 10% from last year. Major League Baseball has made a concerted effort to curb signing bonuses. With a very early deadline for signing draft picks (August 15), it will interesting to see if more players will decide to re-enter the draft in 2008 and whether this will have an effect on whether the Devil Rays can sign David Price. [Sports Agent Blog]
• The Devil Rays recent 11-game losing streak is a rare achievement. Since the Devil Rays inaugural season in 1998, only 17 major league teams have experienced a 10-game losing streak. The New York Yankees have not lost 10 in a row since 1913. [SFGate.com]

Down On The Farm: Jeff Niemann And Chris Mason Pick Up League-Leading Victories

Durham 5, Buffalo 4. JK Ryu struck out 7 but allowed 4 runs in 5 innings.

Mississippi 12, Montgomery 2. Jonathon Barratt gave up 6 runs (5 earned) in 3 innings. Two of the runs came as a result of bases loaded balks in the second inning. Fernando Perez was 3-5 with 2 doubles and an RBI. He is hitting .285. Reid Brignac and Evan Longoria were both 1-4 with 2 strikeouts apiece.

Ft. Myers 4, Vero Beach 3. Mike Kamrath struck out 8 in 6.1 innings, allowing 2 runs. Shortstop Aaron Sisk was 1-4 with a solo home run in the second to start the scoring. Sisk now has 6 home runs in the past 6 games and is hitting .292 with 11 home runs on the season.

Columbus 8, Rome 1. Heath Rollins moved to 4-0 in his last 5 starts and 10-3 on the season. He struck out 7 and only allowed 1 run on three hits and 1 walk. Cesar Suarez was 2-4 with a 3-run home run, his 8th. He had 6 RBI on the night. Desmond Jennings was 1-3, scored 3 runs and stole his 40th base of the year.

Hudson Valley 7, Williamsport 1.

Greenville 5, Princeton 4.

NOTES FROM DOWN ON THE FARM…

• Mike Potter has a Q&A session with Jeff Niemann. [Durham Herald-Sun]
• Matt Fields was named the South Atlantic League player of the week. [The Raw Feed]
• Jae Kuk Ryu experienced a very difficult transition coming to America from Korea at the age of 18. [The News and Observer]

Ryu signed at age 18 and came to the United States straight out of high school in Korea, not speaking a word of English. One of three Koreans on Major League Baseball opening-day rosters, his experience was far different than that of Japanese players, who benefit from a well-developed major league system and often are heavily recruited by American big league clubs.

• On Friday night, Mitch Talbot struck out 8 in 5 innings and allowed only one run. Chad Orvella blew a 3-1 lead in the 9th by allowing 3 runs. The Bulls rallied with a run in the bottom of the 9th on a Ben Zobrist sac fly, but lost the game in the 11th when Jeff Ridgway relieved Seth McClung and gave up the go-ahead RBI single. [MiLB]
• On Saturday night, Jeff Niemann picked up his league-leading 10th win despite allowing 5 runs (4 earned) in 5 innings. He did strike out 8. [MiLB]
• On Friday night, Chris Mason picked up his league-leading 11th victory. Reid Brignac was 2-4 with his 12th home run. It was his 4th home run in 6 games. Evan Longoria was 2-4 with 2 RBI. [MiLB]

The Hangover: BJ Upton Is Back In The Lineup Tonight

Yankees 7, Devil Rays 3.
Sorry. Just Webtopia today. Feel free to throw poop at us in the comments.

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

• BJ Upton will be in the lineup tonight after missing 29 games. [TampaBay.com]
• Marc Lancaster has what he considers the biggest story lines of the second half for the Devil Rays. To which we will add Will Joe Maddon realize that the team is not “moving in the right direction”? [tbo.com]
• Al Reyes threw a bullpen session and it looks like he will rejoin the team on Wednesday when he is eligible to come off the DL. [tbo.com]
• Let’s see. Should the Devil Rays trade Carl Crawford to the Angels for Ervin Santana (5-10, 5.97), Reggie Willits (.312/.408/.368) and some no-name average AA relief pitcher? We know…We know…we are laughing also. Listen people. These trades may work in fantasy baseball, but just because you want to trade away an underachieving pitcher for a superstar, doesn’t mean it is going to happen by just adding in more and more mediocre players to try and “even out the numbers”. Come back to us when you want to include Francisco Rodriguez with Santana. [Halo’s Heaven]
• Tampa Bay Sports Fanatic has a list of changes that the Rays need to make in the second half. [Tampa Bay Sports Fanatic]
• Chris Rahill has his midseason progress report for the Devil Rays. It’s like reading an obituary. [The Sports Network]
• Speaking of midseason progress reports, we wrote one for Sports Projections. It is a little longer than what we usually post on this site, but it is written for the typical non-Devil Rays fan. If you don’t have the time, we will sum it up in two sentences from the article…

We knew the bullpen was going to be a problem before the season began. It was like taking a perfectly good team and smearing it with feces.

• This is just dumb, dumb, dumb, and reading the article took 2 minutes from my life that I will never get back. [TV Squad]

Down On The Farm: BJ Upton Makes Final Rehab Start For Vero Beach

Buffalo 3, Durham 1. JP Howell made a spot-start for Durham with Joe Maddon deciding to skip him the first time through the rotation. He struck out 5 and walked none while allowing 2 runs in 5 innings. Michel Hernandez hit a solo home run to drive in the only run for the Bulls.

Mississippi 1, Montgomery 0. James Houser struck out 9 in 6 innings. He was only touched for 2 hits, but one was a second inning solo home run that proved to be the game winner. The Biscuits only managed six hits. Reid Brignac and Evan Longoria were both 1-4. Longoria had a double, his 17th.

Dunedin 6, Vero Beach 4. Doug Waechter made his first rehab start with Vero Beach after making 2 with Hudson Valley. He gave up 9 hits an 5 runs in 4 innings including 1 home run. Rhyne Hughes was 2-4 with his 12th home run. He is now hitting .333. BJ Upton was 1-3 with a walk. He played center field and batter third. Shawn Riggans, who is also on a rehab assignment with Vero Beach was 2-4 as the Rays DH.

Charleston 3, Columbus 0. Wade Townsend dropped to 5-8 on the season, giving up 2 runs in 6 innings. He struck out 3 and walked 3. The Catfish managed only a single hit, a first inning single by Cesar Suarez. Only one other batter would reach base, in the 4th inning when Suarez was hit by a pitch.

Hudson Valley 9, Jamestown 5.

Elizabethton 5, Princeton 4.

NOTES FROM DOWN ON THE FARM…

• Baseball America’s list of top 100 prospects for 2008 will not come out until March, but Evan Longoria will have a very good shot at being #1. [Tulare Advance-Register]

“I think they’ll both [Evan Longoria and Justin Upton] be in the top five,” Baseball America executive editor Jim Callis said. “When you talk about the best players [in the minor leagues], Upton, Longoria, [Detroit Tigers prospect] Cameron Maybin and [Cincinnati Reds prospect] Jay Bruce are going to be included, and you could make an argument to put those players in any order.”

The Hangover: Devil Rays Seek Relevancy

The Devil Rays open the second half with a four-game set against the New York Yankees at Tropicana Field. In baseball, momentum is only as good tomorrow’s starting pitcher which doesn’t usually bode too well for the Rays, but this series is huge for both Tampa Bay and New York. The Yankees need to get off to a good start with three or four wins against a last place ball club if they have any hopes of making a playoff run this season. On the other hand, the Rays, losers of 13 of 14 before the break need to two or three wins in this series to gain any confidence for success in the second half.

Losing this series would be a demoralizing blow to the young club and could make the second half of the season irrelevant to Devil Rays fans, or at least until Jeff Niemann and Evan Longoria make their major league debuts. In the meantime we will be forced to unveil our Tampa Bay Devil Rays Drinking Game as a way of coping with another 100-loss season, which will be followed shortly thereafter by a second half full of The Justin Smoak Sweepstakes posts and soiled underwear.

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

• If the Devil Rays finish with the worst record in baseball (again), they will once again make history for all the wrong reasons. The Rays would become the first team in major league history to have the top pick in the amateur draft two consecutive years. Until recently, the top pick alternated between the AL and the NL. The top pick is now “awarded” to the team with the worst overall record regardless of league affiliation. It will also mark the fourth time the Devil Rays would pick #1 overall, leaving them one shy of the Padres and the Mets for most top selections in the history of the draft.
• Was the home run in the All-Star game Carl Crawford’s “coming-out party”? Personally, we would have rather seen Crawford hit one of his trademark triples and steal second and third after a single. Only then would the rest of baseball have seen the C.C. that we have grown up with…On a side note, is anybody else annoyed by the idea that Crawford’s home run may have helped the Red Sox win the world series this year by giving the AL home field advantage? It has been two days and we still can’t truly enjoy Crawford’s home run. Thanks Fox and Bud Selig. Next time why don’t you just take a dump in our Wheaties. [tbo.com]
• JP Howell was optioned to AAA Durham but will be back for his next scheduled start. Joe Maddon decided to skip Howell the first time through the rotation with the off-day on Monday. Rather than use Howell out of the bullpen, he will make a spot-start for the Bulls. We assume that BJ Upton will take Howell’s spot on the roster. Of course, Maddon may decide to ad an extra arm to the bullpen for the first week of the second half in which case somebody else will need to be demoted. [St. Pete Times]
• David Price had a chat session yesterday at Baseball America. Among the topics that Price covers is modeling his game after Dontrelle Willis, and the adjustments he needs to make in order to jump from AA to the Majors. We may be reading too much into the last quote, but it does seem likely that Price will make a few low-A starts this season (when signed) and will begin the 2008 campaign at AA Montgomery. [Baseball America]
• The bullpen is what it is, and they could get a lot of help of if the rest of the rotation can take James Shields’ lead and work later into games. [DevilRays.com]
• Bill Chastain hands in his midterm report, naming James Shields the first half MVP. [DevilRays.com]
• Delmon Young is not worried about his numbers, but he is quietly building a rookie-of-the-year resume. [Florida Times-Union]
• Kevin brings us “The ‘Top’ 10 Moments in Devil Rays History”. It is demoralizing to think that someone thinks that new uniforms and winning 70 games are two of the top 10 moments in the history of a franchise. It is a kick to the groin when we realize that he is probably right. [MySpace]

Down On The Farm: Reid Brignac And His Bat Are Waking Up

Montgomery 8, Mississippi 7. With two outs in the bottom of the 9th, Reid Brignac hit a walk-off solo home run to give the Biscuits the win. He was 0-4 before the final at bat, but 13 hits and 3 home runs in his last 6 games. He did commit his 18th error, his first in over 2 weeks. Evan Longoria was 2-3 and scored 2 runs. He has his average up to .304. Wade Davis struck out 5 in 5.2 innings, but was charged with 6 runs (3 earned) on 7 hits and 5 walks.

Dunedin 3, Vero Beach 2. Mike Wlodarczyk pitched 5 shutout innings. He struck out 5 and gave up 6 hits and 2 walks. Greg Dupas gave up a walk-off 3-run home run with 1-out i the 9th. It was his 5th blown save of the year. BJ Upton went 1-3 in what may have been his final rehab game. He is 6-21 with 2 home runs in 8 games.

Charleston 3, Columbus 1. Nevin Ashley had 1 of the Catfish’s 3 hits and drove in the only run.

Jamestown 5, Hudson Valley 0.

Elizabethton 15, Princeton 1.

NOTES FROM DOWN ON THE FARM…

• Justin Ruggiano pinch-hit in the 9th inning of last night’s AAA All-Star game. He flied out to center field. [MiLB]
• Reid Brignac recently lost a close friend. [Montgomery Advertiser]

The Hangover: Which Came First, The Crappy Pitching Or The Inept Defense?

Devil Rays (All-Star Break)
The Devil Rays defense is a lot worse than we originally thought. Yesterday we linked to Vegas Watch which blames a lot of the team’s pitching woes on the team defense. We thought that was a bit of an anomaly and assumed the defense had at least been better in 2007.

Not the case.

From Yesterday’s comments, the Devil Rays rank last in Defensive Efficiency according to Baseball Prospectus. Defensive Efficiency is based on BABIP (DE=1-BABIP) which we have referred to a few times on this site, and is the rate at which a team converts batted balls into outs. The Rays only convert 66.1% of batted balls into outs. The New York Mets lead the majors with 72.7%. In other words, opposing hitters are hitting .339 when they hit the ball fair, while Mets opposing hitters are only hitting .273. The league average is approximately .300. In other words, when teams face the Devil Rays they are transformed from an average offensive team into a lineup full of all-stars.

On the year, 35 batters have gotten on base as a direct result of an error. That number is only tied for 10 highest in baseball. The only reasoning we can think of for the discrepancy in the numbers is that the Devil Rays infield has no range. They are committing errors. In fact the Rays are last in baseball with a .977 fielding percentage and are tied with the Marlins with the most errors in baseball (73). But low number of batters reaching first base as a result of an error and the high BABIP indicates that the defense is just not getting to balls once they are put in play.

What makes this even more perplexing is that we would have expected this on the old Tropicana Field turf, but not on the new FieldTurf II, which is supposed to slow the ball down. As a result we would have expected the infielders to get to more batted balls and make more plays in 2007 compared to 2006. In fact the number has gotten worse this season. In 2006 the Rays had a defensive efficiency of .680. That was still good for 29th in baseball, but about 20 points better than this year. And that number came with the Rays using Aubrey Huff and BJ Upton at third base and a considerable amount of playing time for Jorge Cantu who often played second base like he had his feet in cement.

On paper, the defense is better in 2007, but the numbers suggest otherwise. One possibility is that the pitching has been so bad that when batters make contact they hit the ball really hard more often than against other teams and more often than they did in 2006. Seeing The Axis of Evil make 36 starts this season, it is a concept that is not hard to believe. In fact the rotation has been filled this season with pitchers that will not overpower a hitter. Casey Fossum, Jae Seo, JP Howell and Andy Sonnanstine are all pitchers that are dependent on missing the sweet part of a bat. When they fail to do that, a batter is going to hit the ball real hard and the ball is more likely to find a hole in the defense. Edwin Jackson has a great fastball, but no pitches to compliment it. When a batter faces Jackson, they just sit back and wait for the fastball and a major league hitter can hit a major league fastball when they know it is coming. As for the bullpen…we all know how bad the bullpen is.

And Scott Kazmir? Well, that is just a mystery wrapped up in an enigma.

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

• Carl Crawford went 1-2 for the AL All-Star squad and hit the first All-Star home run in the history of the Devil Rays organization. [TBO.com]

Down On The Farm: Justin Ruggiano In AAA All-Star Game Tonight

Bristol 10, Princeton 5.

NOTES FROM DOWN ON THE FARM…

• On Monday night, three Montgomery Biscuits participated in the Southern League All-Star game. Catcher John Jaso had two singles in two at bats but was also charged with 2 passed balls. Pitcher Chris Mason struck out 2 and walked 1 in 1.1 innings. Closer Dale Thayer was charged with 3 unearned runs in the 9th inning. [Montgomery Advertiser]
• Jae Seo was named the IL’s pitcher-of-the-week. He is the fourth Bull to win the award this season. [Durham Bulls]
• Chris Mason loves him so Karaoke, ping-pong and changing his hair color when he is pitching poorly. [Montgomery Advertiser]
• Tonight is the AAA All-Star game in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Justin Ruggiano will represent the Durham Bulls. [Durham Herald-Sun]
• On June 26, Aaron Walker of the Vero Beach Devil Rays, was struck in the face with a portion of a broken bat. His orbital bone and nose were broken and he required 30 stitches in his cheek. There will be no long-term damage to his eyesight, but Walker’s season is over. [The Review]
• Chris Nowak will miss 4-6 weeks after dislocating his shoulder on Saturday. [Montgomery Advertiser]
• During the July 9 double-header, the Vero Beach Devil Rays held “Silent Night”. We understand fans dressing like a mime or a golfer…but a nun tennis player? [MiLB.com]

The Hangover: Ben Franklin Thinks Joe Maddon Is Insane

Benjamin Franklin said that the definition of insanity is “doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.” Today we introduce exhibit #1 that Joe Maddon and the Devil Rays front office are insane…

If we don’t come back after the break better in the bullpen, we’re not. … I’m not saying it has to be new people, I’m just saying we have to be pitching better. We can’t pitch like that and expect to compete on a nightly basis. That’s just not going to happen. [Joe Maddon via St. Pete Times]

1. At what point has the bullpen ever given an impression that they have the ability to “come back after the break better”? This is not a situation where they have struggled recently nor have they been plagued by injuries. This bullpen has been bad since day one and they are not going to pitch better in the second half. We are not going to give you the numbers because we just ate breakfast. To say that the Devil Rays bullpen has been bad is an insult to bad bullpens.
2. If it is not going to be “new people”, then who is it going to be? The same clowns in different roles? If Shawn Camp can’t get a batter out in the 7th inning, he is not going to get a batter out in the 6th inning. The team needs new blood in the bullpen. In the off-season it will need a complete overhaul. But right now it needs one or two new pieces or this team is in real danger of losing 105 games.

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

• It is a good thing that Joe Maddon gave Carl Crawford the day off on Sunday (he pinch hit in the 8th) because now C. C. is well-rested to attend the super-party hosted by Barry Bonds and Jay-Z. Also of note is a conversation that Crawford had with Scott Boras. Boras is not Crawford’s agent, but would certainly like to represent him. If C.C. does switch to Boras, Crawford will not be a Devil Ray following the 2010 season. Boras clients rarely sign extensions and almost always test the free agent waters. [Tampa Tribune]
• Chicago Flame believes that the addition of Carl Crawford to the AL All-Star squad cost Curtis Granderson a more deserving spot. [Chicago Flame]
• To say Edwin Jackson has underachieved is an understatement of enormous proportions. [NBX Sports Action Blog]
• Vegas Watch says that the Rays defense is just as much to blame as the pitching for the poor first half showing. There point is that the Rays pitchers have consistently high BABIP. It could be a sign of bad luck as more batted balls are finding holes in the defense, but when it is consistent across all pitchers, that means the defense is not performing. This surprises us as the outfield defense has been spectacular (outside of Delmon Young’s recent stint playing in the center field bleachers) and the infield has two gold-glove caliber players in Akinori Iwamura and Carlos Pena. On the other hand, Brendan Harris is steady but lacking in range which is the same that can be said of Ty Wigginton at second base and BJ Upton has range but is unsteady. [Vegas Watch]

Down On The Farm: Jeff Niemann Is Getting Closer To The Devil Rays

Daytona 7, Vero Beach 6 (gm 1). Jake McGee struck out 11 in 6 innings but gave up 3 runs on 3 solo home runs. Greg Dupas gave up 4 unearned runs in the 7th to blow the lead, the final 3 coming on a 3-run home run with 2 outs. Sergio Pedroza had a 3-run home run in the first and Shawn Riggans was 2-3 in the third game of his rehab assignment.

Daytona 14, Vero Beach 13 (gm 2). Aaron Sisk was 2-3 with 2 home runs and 3 RBI. He now has 7 home runs on the season. Rhyne Hughes was 3-5 with his 11th home run. He is now hitting .331. Jackson Brennan was 2-3 and hit his 5th home run.

Columbus 3, Rome 1. Heath Rollins picked up his third straight win in his past four starts to move to 9-3 on the season. He gave up 5 hits and 3 walks while striking out 3 in 6 shut out innings. Cesar Suarez was 3-5 and stole 2 bases. He is hitting .298 with 20 steals on the year.

Oneonta 6, Hudson Valley 2.

Bristol 5, Princeton 3.

NOTES FROM DOWN ON THE FARM…

• Jeff Niemann is trying to remain patient. One reason he is yet to join the Devil Rays is the need to further develop his new split-finger fastball. Still, he is 5-1 with a 2.80 ERA in his last 6 starts and his time may be sooner rather than later. [St. Pete Times]
  
• Doug Waechter has finished his rehab assignment with the Hudson Valley Renegades and will now move on to Vero Beach to continue his recovery from shoulder surgery. [Hudson Valley Renegades]

It got better every outing…My slider definitely got better every outing. I can feel the velocity — it was there then it wasn’t there then it was back — and that’s a rehab kind of thing.