The Hangover: The Rays Claim Two Bad Knees Off Of Waivers

Devil Rays (66-96)
Since when do the Rays need another outfielder with a history of leg problems and since when do the Rays need fewer experienced arms in the bullpen? The Rays claimed Chris Snelling off of waivers from the A’s. Jay Witasick was released to make room on the roster. It appears as though Snelling was released because he is the only person in professional baseball with legs worse than Rocco Baldelli. In 8 professional seasons he has been on the DL seven times, including…

• torn ACL (2002)
• knee surgery (2003)
• right knee tendinitus (2003)
• torn meniscus in the left knee (2005)
• surgery (2006)
• yet another knee surgery (2007).

Next June, when both Snelling and Rocco are on the DL, maybe they can take a trip to Aruba together and sit in the hot tub and compare scars.

Marc Topkin provides good background on the Rays new Aussie. [ tampabay.com]

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

• A friend of mine that is Phillies fan, called me up after he heard the Phillies had named Chuck LaMar their Director of Professional Scouting, and asked me if he should be worried. I started laughing. It is a curious move by the Phillies. For all of LaMar’s faults, he did seem to be a competent evaluator of amateur talent. For the most part, he had a strong draft history with the Rays. On the other hand, this was the GM that was considered the worst GM in baseball to work with when it came to making trades, and the Phillies have him in charge of professional scouting, and he will provide input on trades for GM Pat Gillick. Strange move. [MLB]
• Dustin Pedroia was named Top Rookie by the players association and won the same award by the Sporting News as voted on by players and managers. [tampabay.com]
• Greg Norton has been a professional baseball player for 15 years. He wants to prove that he can repeat his 2006 performance when he hit .296 with 17 home runs in only 96 games. In those 15 seasons, he has only played in more than 120 games 5 times. It appears that 2007 was the norm and 2006 was the exception to the rule. [Devil Rays]

The Hangover: Rays Continue To Win With 4th Place In Sight

Devil Rays 9, Orioles 7.
Could the Tampa Bay Devil Rays actually avoid last place for only the second time in their ten year existence?

With last night’s come-from-behind victory over the Orioles, the Rays have moved within 3 games of Baltimore for 4th place in the AL East. And while the worst record in baseball appeared to be a foregone conclusion three weeks ago, the Rays are now only 1.5 games behind the White Sox after making up 6 games in the last week and a half.

There have been plenty of reasons for the recent surge in performance, but most of the credit has to go to the revamped bullpen. The additions made before the trading deadline appear to be the spark that have reinstalled confidence in this young team, with the Tampa Tribune going so far as to call the new bullpen a “strength”.

“Our bullpen’s been outstanding,” RHP James Shields said. “This whole second half I think we’ve been great. It feels good as a starter to go out there and feel comfortable with coming out of the game.”

Even more telling is this quote from Joe Maddon.

“These guys have learned their craft. They’ve waited for their opportunity. The seventh, eighth and ninth innings are a very hectic part of the game and you have to have a special makeup and personality to handle that. … It might take a seasoned veteran in a sense of lesser physical ability but more of a feel for the game to be able to accomplish that role.”

This is something that was lost on the Devil Rays front office in their first two years at the helm. Let’s chalk it up to growing pains. If there is one area where a team should be willing to sacrifice a little talent for experience, it is in the bullpen. On talent alone, none of the new guys (or even Al Reyes) are a pimple on the fanny of Juan Salas or Ruddy Lugo or Seth McClung. Yet all of the veteran arms in the bullpen have clearly outperformed those younger more talented relief pitchers.

And with a more stable (if not great) bullpen, the effects can be felt elsewhere on the team. Starting pitchers no longer feel pressure to work late in games or hand over a close lead. The hitters no longer feel the pressure to build a 6-run lead. And with less pressure on such a young team the change has been deafening.

Deafening…to the tune of 10-3 in the past 2 weeks and a real chance to move out of the cellar in the AL East and gain some confidence heading into 2008.

Rays’ bullpen has become a strength [TBO]
No-name pen makes strides [tampabay.com]

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

• Carlos Pena has broken the franchise record for home runs in a season, by notching his 35th dinger last night. And in true El Gato fashion his home run hit a Gatowalk, breaking a 4-4 tie. [Yahoo!]
• We loved Patrick Kennedy’s take on Carlos Pena’s record breaking home run. We were wondering why Jose Canseco was not in attendance or why he did not delivery a video message to be played on the jumbotron. [DRays Bay]
• Carl Crawford was ejected after a blown-call at first base. While his tantrum was animated, and actually a little comical (in hindsight) we are not sure that the actions deserve a suspension. [TBO]
• Heading into last night’s game the Devil Rays are hitting .325 and averaging more than 9 runs per game since a team meeting conducted by hitting coach Steve Henderson. Including last night, the team is 9-3 in those 12 games. [Bradenton Herald]
• A strong finish by the Devil Rays to an otherwise disastrous season, may not seem significant to most baseball fans, but the importance is not lost on Joe Maddon. [Devil Rays]

“It is definitely a sign of progress, definitely a sign of measured progress,” Maddon said. “I just think finishing strongly — we’ve battled all season, we’ve had our setbacks and problems – and now we’re playing the kind of baseball we envisioned. Finish strong. You go into the offseason with a really good last month like this and you leave with a good taste in your mouth. And you know going into Spring Training, you have this nice little month to build off of. And you know what you’re capable of doing against good teams in a pennant chase.”

• In the real world, it takes the average person a period of time to receive the results of medical tests. However, that does not usually occur in the sports world where teams employ their own doctors and have access to specialists not known to the average citizen. This is why the recent news, or lack-their-of, concerning Rocco Baldelli is particularly perplexing. We have a strange feeling that the news is not good and the team is seeking a second and possibly third opinion before making an announcement. [tampabay.com]

“I still believe there’s a chance to get him back at least possibly to DH at some point,” manager Joe Maddon said Monday. “That may be something we can do; we just don’t know until we get the results of these tests.”

• The Devil Rays much-improved bullpen just got another boost with the return of Jay Witasick who missed more than a month. [Devil Rays]
• Stua
  rt Sternberg gave Joe Maddon yet another vote of confidence. The fact that this team refused to give up on the season when it would have been an easy thing to do, should have erased any of the lingering doubts in the Devil Rays Universe. [Devil Rays]
• Another member of the Devil Rays that many have doubted as to his place in the organization is catcher Dioner Navarro. We have long defended Navi and begged for patience as catchers are notoriously slow developers at the plate. Still, a team will have trouble surviving with a player that is hitting at or below the Mendoza-line and Navi needed to start hitting sooner rather than later. It is beginning to appear as though he is finding a comfort zone at the plate. After hitting .177 before the all-star break, he is hitting at a .272 clip since. [Devil Rays]
• Akinori Iwamura is still adjusting to life as a major leaguer, and is not satisfied with where his game is yet. Even more revealing in this piece is that Joe Maddon admits to making lineup decisions based on how the Japanese media might react. [asahi.com]

“When we first got him, my thought was to hit him lower in the batting order until he got acclimated,” Maddon said. “My concern was if I started hitting him at the top of the order and then tried to move him to the bottom as the season was progressing, that would create quite a stir in Japan for no good reason. So I’d much rather move him up than down.”

• Including Jae Seo, it has been a rough season for Korean major leaguers. [The Korea Times]

Down On The Farm: Four Renegades Named To All-Star Team

Durham 4, Columbus 3. Jason Pridie drove in 3 of the Bulls’ 4 runs, with a 2-run first inning home run and a solo home run in the 5th. He also added a double and now has 5 home runs and is hitting .315 (.907 OPS) in 38 games since being promoted from AA. Justin Ruggiano was 2-4 and Evan Longoria was 1-3 with a double and a RBI. Mitch Talbot struck out 6 in 6 innings to pick up his 10th win. Shawn Camp struck out 4 in 1.2 innings for his 2nd save.

Chattanooga 9, Montgomery 8. In their first game without closer Dale Thayer, the Biscuits blew a 7th inning 8-5 lead, with the final two runs being scored on a home run in the 9th inning with 2 outs and 2 strikes, off of Nick DeBarr. Wade Davis allowed 5 runs on 7 hits and 2 walks in only 2.1 innings. 5 of the 7 outs recorded by Davis came via the strikeout.

Clearwater 12, Vero Beach 5. Jay Witasick pitched one inning in his first rehab appearance, allowing 1 hit. Jackson Brennan was 4-5 with his 18th double and 2 runs scored. Garret Groce was 2-5 and drove in 2.

Greensboro 12, Columbus 6. Wade Townsend continues his up-and-down season. After a strong effort his last time out, Townsend was touched for 7 runs (6 earned ) in 3.1 innings. He walked 5 and gave up 4 hits. He fell to 6-10 with a 5.08 ERA. The Catfish hit 4 home runs, including two by John Matulia, who doubled his season total. Cesar Suarez hit his 10th and now has 73 RBI, good for 8th in the SAL. Ryan Royster hit his 20th home run which is tied for 3rd and he has 75 RBI, tied for 5th in the league.

Hudson Valley 8, Batavia 4. Maiko Loyola was 2-5 and stole his 18th and 19th bases for the Renegades.

Burlington 3, Princeton 2 (12 innings).

NOTES FROM DOWN ON THE FARM…

• Four members of the Hudson Valley Renegades were named to the New York-Penn League All-Star team. The players are Emeel Salem, a 6th round pick this season, Maiko Loyola, Mike McCormick, a 5th round pick in 2005 and Jason Ragan. The game will be hosted by the Renegades next week. [Hudson Valley Renegades]
  
• Jay Witasick made a rehab appearance last night for Vero Beach and will likely make another on Saturday. [TCPalm]
• Tim Corcoran has been optioned to AA Montgomery and Dale Thayer has been promoted to AAA Durham. Thayer, who set the Southern League record for saves in 2006, leads the SL this season with 21. Corcoran is likely to be designated for assignment when/if the Rays sign David Price before the August 15 deadline. [OurSports Central]
• Tim Corcoran will have to shave his beard, as Devil Rays minor leaguers are not allowed to wear facial hair. [Stacy Long’s Riverwalk Talk]

The Hangover: Devil Rays Lose The Old-Fashined Way

Orioles 3, Devil Rays 0.
It was nice of the Devil Rays to get back to losing in a fashion with which we are more familiar. You know the kind where Scott Kazmir pitches lights out for 5 innings and then wears down in an effort to pitch just well enough to lose. That is of course followed by a reliever throwing gas on the fire. In this case it was Juan Salas pleading innocent of steroids but guilty of being unable to throw strikes with the bases loaded.

All the while the “almighty” Rays offense thought it was “Turn Back The Clock” night as they were shutout by a pitiful Orioles pitching staff despite having runners on base in 7 innings. Entering last night’s contest, the Rays had the 4th highest team batting average since the all-star break (.315) yet, in a game during which the pitchers gave them a chance to win, the offense managed to ground into more double plays (4) than they had hits (2).

When is the Bucs first pre-season game? Maybe we should just start Bucs Index now.

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

• Carl Crawford was back in the lineup last night after missing two games with a minor ankle injury. [tampabay.com]
• Juan Salas made his first appearance for the Rays since being suspended by the league for testing positive for performance enhancing drugs. He could instantly step into the role of 7th inning pitcher. Considering he is one relief pitcher with an ERA below 4, maybe he should be the 8th inning guy and closer-in-waiting if/when Al Reyes is traded. [TBO]
• Juan Salas spoke about why he was suspended for the first time. Of course, rather than take responsibility, he took the same low road most players take. He claims he has no idea how he tested positive. We believe him. We think it must have been the invisible steroid fairy that haunts idiot baseball players in their sleep. The fairy looks like Jose Canseco with wings and instead of a wand, it carries a needle to stick in their ass. [tampabay.com]

“It was an accident,’’ Salas said. “I was not aware. I didn’t do it knowing what was going on. It must have been something in a drink. I don’t know.’’

• Jay Witasick believes he will be throwing in a couple of days and will be off the DL when he is eligible. [Devil Rays]
• Casey Fossum should be back with the club on Thursday. That sound you heard was a sigh-of-relief from Devil Rays Red Sox fans. [USA Today]
• Before last night’s game, the Baltimore Orioles honored Cal Ripken, Jr. on his induction to the Hall of Fame. We tip our caps and hope that someday we can have a player half as good and half as classy play 21 years for the Devil Rays. [Baltimore Sun]
• Instead we get to “root” for players like Elijah Dukes. It is like Dukes is trying to get released by the Devil Rays. Why would anyone want to be released by the Devil Rays? [TBO]

The Hangover: The Devil Rays Allowed No Runs Yesterday!

Devil Rays (off day)
The schedule makers must have seen this past weekend coming and mercifully gave the Rays and their dwindling fans base a much needed day off.

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

• BJ Upton and Robinson Cano were selected as AL co-players of the week. Upton hit .414 with 2 home runs and 8 RBI. [The Sports Network]
• The Devil Rays at their current pace would finish the season 54-108 and become just the 12th team in history to allow 1,000 runs. Since June 12, the Rays are 9-27 and have allowed 7.26 runs per game. [The New York Sun]
  
• Jay Witasick was placed on the 15-day DL and JP Howell was optioned back to Durham. Jason Hammel, who never even left the ballclub is back on the active roster and Juan Salas was promoted back to Tampa for the first time since being suspended for 50-games for steroid use. Hammel who was being sent back to Durham so that he could return to being a starter, will instead take Howell’s spot in the rotation and be a starter for the Rays. [tampabay.com]
• Casey Fossum will miss a couple of games to be with his family after the birth of their child on Tuesday. That sound you just heard was the moan from Orioles hitters. [tampabay.com]
• What happened to James Shields, indeed? We doubt it is a hidden injury. The Rays are going to be extra careful with guys like Scott Kazmir and Shields. An injured arm is usually easy to spot in a young pitcher. They will change their mechanics or they will be afraid to throw a certain pitch. More likely, Shields is just fighting through a “dead-arm” period. [armchairgm]
• A new low for the Devil Rays? How about a power ranking of #32. For those of you that haven’t had your coffee yet, there are only 30 teams in baseball. And frankly, we are in no position to argue. [Chicago Tribune]

[THE HANGOVER] We Like The Feel Of A Hammer On Our Heads

Yankees 21, Devil Rays 4.
Why do we keep hitting ourselves in the head with a hammer? Because when we stop, it will feel so good.

With one out in the bottom of the 7th inning of the second game of the double header on Saturday night, Hideki Matsui came to the plate with 2 runners on base and hit a three-run home run off of Brian Stokes. The home run made the score 17-5 and were the 3rd, 4th and 5th runs to score off of Stokes.

At this point, pitching coach Jim Hickey made a visit to the mound. We are fairly sure that we were the only Devil Rays fans that were still tuned into the game at this point. However, if there were other masochists out there they were probably wondering aloud as we were “What in the hell does a pitching coach say to a pitcher in a situation like this?” We imagine the conversation went something like this…

Coach Hickey: How are you feeling?
Brian Stokes: Where is Papa Joe (Maddon)?
Coach Hickey: He is admiring how well you are throwing. He says that you are real close and if your pitches were just in a different spot, you would be doing great.
Brian Stokes: Really? Do you think so?
Coach Hickey: No. Actually, you are really stinking up the joint. Why don’t you get your head out of your ass and get some guys out.
Brian Stokes: I don’t want to be out here anymore.
Coach Hickey: You know this is the second game of a double-header and we only have 9 pitchers in the bullpen this weekend. So, sorry kid. You gotta stay out here.
Brian Stokes: please tell Papa Joe to come out here and take me out. These fans are really mean.
Coach Hickey: Shut up and get your act together.
Brian Stokes: But this isn’t fair. It’s 17-5. Can’t somebody else pitch now?
Coach Hickey: Nope.
Brian Stokes: *fighting back tears*
Coach Hickey: C’mon. You are our “down 12-5 guy”. That’s an important role. It could be worse. You could be our “down 18-3 guy”. That’s Scott Dohmann’s job.
Brian Stokes: I guess that is kinda important.
Coach Hickey: atta boy. go get ’em *Hickey leaves the mound*

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

• With Leather summed up this weekend best with the following headline: “THE DEVIL RAYS ARE NOT GOOD.” [With Leather]

It was like watching 55,000 people cheer a snuff film. Troubling. Snuff films should only be enjoyed quietly, and in the privacy of a locked room.

• Marc Lancaster goes through the numbers from the weekend series. He probably broke his abacus. [Rays Report]
• It is hard to imagine than things can get any worse than this, so let’s hope this is the bottom of the barrel. [Rays Talk]
• Carl Crawford injured his foot in the first game on Saturday, but is not expected to miss much time. [TampaBay.com]
• Marc Lancaster thinks the Rays need bullpen help. Thank you Captain Fucking Obvious. In other news, Marc Lancaster reports that water is wet. [TBO]
• We are not sure why Bill Chastain found this move surprising but Jason Hammel was sent down to Durham to become a starter again. Andrew Friedman and Joe Maddon made it clear when Hammel was first called up that the team still viewed him as a starter in the long term. [Devil Rays]
• But…Jay Witasick is likely headed to the DL and Jason Hammel may be needed to take Witasick’s spot on the roster. [TBO]
• Tom Jones sits down for a one-on-one with Akinori Iwamura. [TampaBay.com]

The Hangover: Not Your Older Brother’s Devil Rays

Devil Rays 11, Padres 4.
Shhhh. *in a hushed tone* The Rays have now won 7 of 9. We are afraid to say it too loud. If other people find out, they may think it is some sort of mistake and take some of the wins back. Last night it was the Scott Kazmir from the first half of 2006…at least for the first 5 innings. He was sharp. His slider was great. He was striking batters out and not walking anybody. Most importantly, he was managing his pitches. After 5 innings, he only had 77 pitches, which is not great, but is good for Kid K. Then came the 6th inning. 40 pitches (!) and 2 runs later, Kazmir had 117 pitches and couldn’t come out for the 7th. baby steps.

And of course Carlos Pena. El Gato. For those that want to knock Joe Maddon and his staff, you have to give them credit for resurrecting Pena’s career. Once considered one of the top prospects in baseball in the Rangers organization, he bounced around to 5 different organizations in 6 seasons. Coming into this season he had a .243 career batting average and a .790 OPS. He was reduced to accepting a minor league contract from The Tampa Bay Devil Rays with only the promise that he would have a chance to compete for a roster spot. Then Joe Maddon and George Hendrick convinced Pena to use the whole field. They reminded him that he has enough power to hit home runs to the opposite field and straight away. Now? Pena is hitting .311 with a 1.055 OPS. He is 5th in the AL in home runs despite having 50% fewer at bats than anybody else in the top 10. His .656 SLG would be good for 3rd in the AL if he had enough at bats to qualify.

A look at the standings and the Rays are now tied with Toronto for 3rd place in the AL East, a game ahead of the Orioles. The Rays are actually a game up on the Jays in the loss column and only 2 games behind the Yankees. Is it a mistake? Others will think so. It is now the middle on June and the Rays should be in their customary last place position…right?

Rather, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays are now only 4 games below .500. Only 4 games below The Charlie Hough Line. The Tampa Bay Devil Rays are 4 games below Charlie with 31 starts by the Axis of Evil (Seo/Fossum/Jackson). 4 games below .500 with one reliable relief pitcher who can’t pitch every day.

But like they say in baseball…Momentum is only as good as tomorrow’s starting pitcher. So our excitement is tempered by the knowledge that Edwin Jackson is on the mound tonight and the Rays must face Jake Peavy who is 7-1 with a 1.97 ERA. In Jackson’s defense, the Rays have actually won 2 of his last 3 starts, despite his 0-7 record. And should the Rays lose tonight? Tomorrow it is JP Howell, and we’ll take that over Jae Seo.

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

• The Rays made it official yesterday and signed Jay Witasick to fill the vacancy in the bullpen.
• Joe Maddon stated that Jay Witasick will be the 7th inning set-up man. Of course, knowing Papa Joe, that might last as long as a Delmon Young at bat.
• The Rays designated Ruddy Lugo for assignment to make room for Jay Witasick. They will need to remove another player from the 40-man roster in two weeks when Juan Salas returns from his suspension and a second player will have to be designated if David Price signs a major league contract, which is the standard for top picks. It would not surprise us if a trade is made in the next two weeks to free up at least one of those roster spots.
• According to Heath Bell, the Rays tried to acquire him from the Padres after the Padres acquired him from the Mets. The Rays were interested in making Bell the closer and from the sound of it, Bell would have liked the move.

“I eventually would like to be a closer,” said Bell, who lives some two hours from Tampa Bay, in Port St. Lucie. “The Devil Rays didn’t have a closer. I would have been pretty fine with that. I was a closer in the minors. It was just so much fun doing it.”

• This must be a mistake…Every week SI.com releases their “MLB Power Rankings”. The Rankings actually cover three pages with 10 teams on each page. We always go straight to page three to find out exactly where the Devil Rays are ranked that week. Well, this week, the Rays were no where to be found on the third page. They have jumped up from #24 all the way to #19. PAGE 2 BABY!

The Hangover: Jason Hammel To The Bullpen…For Now

Devil Rays (off day)
The Devil Rays made an interesting and unexpected move yesterday. With two openings in the bullpen, the Rays recalled Jason Hammel from Durham. Having already dipped into the Durham relief corps and drawing two blanks, Andrew Friedman decided on an alternative solution to the Rays abysmal bullpen. Hammel was having a strong start to the season as a starting pitcher for the Bulls and was considered an option to fill one of the holes in the rotation. Now he is being called upon to shore up the leaks in the ‘pen. And of course by “leak” we really mean holes the size of the Trop.

This move means that the Rays have already seen enough in two starts from Andy Sonnanstine and JP Howell that they will stay in the rotation for the time being. It also means that Edwin Jackson is now officially on notice. If the team truly sees Hammel as a starting pitcher in the long run, they will not want his stay in the bullpen to be an extended one. Moving from the bullpen to the rotation can be a difficult adjustment for some pitchers and for most pitchers it can take several starts before they build up the endurance to be able to pitch deep into games. If Jackson fails to show improvement in his next 2-3 starts, look for Hammel and Jackson to switch roles.

Hammel has proven that he deserved another shot at the majors. Friedman and Maddon needed an arm in the bullpen and they went to Durham and chose the best arm that was available. It just happened to be a starting pitcher.

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

• To fill the other open spot in the bullpen, the Rays will sign Jay Witasick who was released by the A’s last week. Witasick struggled with his control in Oakland. In 15 innings, he walked 9 batters and gave up 14 hits.
• Surprisingly, Jae Seo has accepted his demotion to Durham rather than become a free agent.
• Dioner Navarro could return to the lineup as early as tonight. And yes, we are aware that Raul Casanova has homered in two straight games, but there is no reason for Navi to worry about his job. Casanova has been a role player in parts of 8 major league seasons. Entering 2007, he had 28 home runs in 960 at bats and a career .233 batting average. That would equate to about 15 home runs over a 500 at bat season. Oh yeah…and he is 34 years old. He is not all of the sudden Johnny Bench.
• Al Keck and Tom Korun of ABCActionNews have a new blog that covers the local sports teams including the Rays. It’s worth checking out. [Sports Talk]
• Scott Kazmir feels that is on the verge putting everything together.
• In two starts Andy Sonnanstine has 15 strike outs and no walks. In the minor leagues he posted a 6:1 strikeout to walk ratio. Only 28 pitchers in the history of baseball have posted a ratio of better than 3:1 with a minimum of 1000 innings pitched. Will The Duke be able to keep up his success as a major league pitcher? Our guess is that if Sonny can stay in the majors for 1000 innings, he will be definitely end his career in the top 30 all-time. Not bad.
• Remember Shinji Mori? The free agent relief pitcher the Rays did sign? We can’t blame you if your memory is a little hazy. He never threw a single pitch in a regular season game. Yesterday he was released by the Rays.