DEVIL RAYS COLUMNISTS SUCK For A Writer, Bill Chastain Makes A Crappy GM

Bill Chastain clearly has no idea what team he is covering. He thinks the Tampa Bay Rays should sign free agent catcher Jorge Posada, and worse, he thinks the Rays actually have a shot if they open up their wallet.

Joe Torre is no longer the Yankees’ manager and Posada lives in Tampa. Such a commitment might take the entire free-agent budget, but given the point in the team’s progression, such a commitment might be the best money spent in franchise history.

This is absolutely idiotic and we will speak very slowly for Mr. Chastain, in case he is still taking his stupidity pills.

6 Reasons why the Rays will not sign (and should not sign) Jorge Posada…

1. The Rays “free agent budget” is going to be taken up by the arbitration-eligible Scott Kazmir and Carlos Pena. The Rays will not give a 36-year old catcher at least $60 million for 4 years.
2. He has two years left as a full-time catcher, which means the Rays would be paying at least $15 million per year in 2010 and 2011 for a DH.
3. The Mets and the Yankees are about to get into a bidding war for Posada, and both teams will go to a fourth year on the contract to get the deal done. The Mets only other option is to re-sign Paul LoDuca. Who would you rather have?
4. We will forgive Mr. Chastain if he does not know about Posada’s son. Jorge Jr. was born with Craniosynostosis. The Jorge Posada Foundation was started by Jorge and his wife to help find a cure. If given a choice, Posada will sign with one of the New York teams where he enjoys more publicity for himself which leads to more publicity for his foundation.
5. Dioner Navarro is very young and started to show signs of becoming an above-average major league catcher in the second half of 2007. The upgrade from Navarro (age 23) to Posada (36) in 2008 is not enough to justify the extra cost over the next four years (~$50 million) especially when Navarro could be an equal catcher in 2009 and the better catcher in 2010-2011.
6. With both New York teams going to 4 years on a contract, that means the Rays would have to up the contract to $17-18 million per year or add a 5th year on to the end to get him out of New York. In the end…It would probably cost the Rays $85 million for 5 years, with Posada being 41 in the final year of the contract.

Would that be the “best money spent in franchise history”? We admit, the Rays have spent some dumb money in the past, but if the Rays signed Posada, by the 4th year, the contract would make the Greg Vaughn signing look like the Deal of the Century.

Rays’ focus on internal improvements [devilrays.com]

The Hangover: Evan Longoria Picks Up In Arizona, Where He Left Off In Durham

Peo Sequaros 5, Scottsdale Scorpions 4.
The Arizona Fall League is under way and several prospects from the Devil Rays organization are on the Scottsdale Scorpions roster, including Evan Longoria and Reid Brignac. Also joining The Dirtbag and the Cajun God of Baseball are pitchers Nick DeBarr, Calvin Medlock, Evan Meek and Mike Prochaska as well as John Jaso and Chris Nowak. On opening day, Longoria and Brignac combined to go 0-7 while Calvin Medlock gave up the tying run despite striking out 3 in 2 innings. Longoria picked up the pace on day 2, with a 2-run home run in the first inning. He finished 1-4. Nick DeBarr pitched a perfect 8th inning.

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA…

• The Yankees have spent over $1.1 billion on player salaries since their last world series championship. To date, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays have spent slightly more than $350 million in quest of their first. At this rate, the Rays have another 20 years before they reach futility level of the hapless Yankees…right? [Empyreal Environs]
• ArmchairGM reports “sources” that say the Devil Rays have “serious interest in (Jorge) Posada. This is not going to happen. The Tigers just picked up Pudge Rodriguez’ option at $13 million. Pudge and Posada are both 36. Pudge had an OPS of .714 this season while Posada’s OPS was .969. Pudge played in 129 games compared to 144 for Posada. Posada is going to be seeking $15 million per year for the next 4 years. The Rays may have “serious interest” but they are not paying a 36 year old catcher $60 million. He might be worth it in 2008. But both Pudge and Posada have already pushed the shelf-life of a catcher and are likely to not have much left in the tank. [ArmchairGM]
• Chris Mason was named the AA starting pitcher of the year, Minor League Baseball’s equivalent of the Cy Young award. It is too bad they couldn’t name the award after a former minor league pitcher that had an incredible minor league career. [MiLB]
• If the Rays fail to reach .500 in 2008, Joe Maddon will likely not be brought back for the final year of his contract. If Joe Torre is fired by the Yankees and does not land a job for 2008, the Rays could have considerable interest in signing the manager. The problem is Torre will be 69 in 2009. It is difficult to determine if Torre would be willing to work with a roster that is filled with talented, but very young players. Torre has only ever succeeded with veteran-ladened rosters. It is not out of the realm of possibility, but it is a longshot at best. [One More Dying Quail]
• The Rays released their 2008 schedule and everybody is awfully excited about the return of Lou Piniella. For the third consecutive season, the Ray will open the season on the road and for the second time in three years, the Rays will open the season in Baltimore, risking a cold, bad weather opener. [tampabay.com]
• Rays Digest hands out their team awards. Our favorite is Al Reyes taking home the award for “Best Relief Pitcher”. They could have also named the award, “Only Relief Pitcher” or “Least Suckiest Guy Wearing A Devil Rays Uniform Pretending To Be A Major League Pitcher”. Of course, they somehow came up with four (!) pitchers that were honorable mentions. [Rays Digest]

AL East Roundup: A-Rod Puts Mother On Speakerphone

AL EAST	W	L	GB	L10	STK	E#
Boston Red Sox	11	5	–	8-2	W4	—
Baltimore Orioles	11	7	1.0	8-2	W4	145
New York Yankees	8	8	3.0	5-5	L2	144
Toronto Blue Jays	8	10	4.0	3-7	L5	142
Tampa Bay Devil Rays	7	11	5.0	4-6	L1	141

Red Sox 7, Yankees 6. The Pink Hats hit 4 straight home runs in the 3rd inning to erase a 3-0 deficit and held on in the 9th when Jonathon Papplebon got Alex Rodriguez to ground into a force out to end the game (somebody call A-Rod’s therapist). It was the first time the Sox had swept the Evil Empire in Boston since 1990. And why did Joe Torre and Brian Cashman think it was a good idea to hold back Chien-Ming Wang and not start him last night? Because that would have been perceived as a panic move this early in the season. Kinda like using Mo Rivera in the 8th inning on Friday after saying that would not happen this year.

Orioles 7, Blue Jays 3. The Orioles win again? That’s annoying.

NOTE FROM AROUND THE AL EAST…

• Hideki Matsui is likely to rejoin the Yankees on Monday when they face the Devil Rays.
• Jorge Posada who has missed action with a bruised thumb, could play tonight versus the Rays as the DH.
• People in Chicago are starting to get excited about the idea of having Alex Rodriguez in the second city next season.
• Things are in danger of spiraling out of control in Toronto.