Detroit News: Rays rise on speed, strength

the Rays’ Detroit coverage is more interesting than anything on the Tampa/St. Pete sites…

The expectations are greater, and so is the competition. But the Rays finally are starting to prove last year was far from a fluke.

After a sluggish start, which fairly can be blamed on injuries—among those placed on the disabled list in May alone, Pat Burrell (neck), Scott Kazmir (quad), Troy Percival (shoulder), Jason Bartlett (ankle), Akinori Iwamura (ACL) and Brian Shouse (elbow)—the Rays had won nine of 10 and were a season-best nine above .500 before losing Wednesday to drop back to five games behind the Red Sox in the AL East.

They’ve revived their season with equal parts speed and strength. Entering Wednesday, they had 121 stolen bases—the Angels (76) are second—and 105 homers, making them the fifth team in history with 100 of each before the All-Star break.

That puts the Rays on pace for 248 stolen bases and 215 homers, which would make them the second member of the 200-200 club (1996 Rockies, 221 homers, 201 steals).

plus, Tigers Notebook: Homers offset June swoon

THE PETER GOLENBLOG: Matt Silverman can Kiss My Ass !

Woo-Hoo! Even Golenblock is getting the hang of this blogging/non-blogging thing!

Matt Silverman, who I consider a friend, can kiss my ass.  But his ######## about the attendance at the Trop was beneath his usual class act.  The Phillies were in town, and he was bemoaning the fact that there were only 20,000 or so fans there for each of the three games against a team that the Rays had faced in the World Series.  He speculated that the place should have been packed.  But why?  Rays fans don’t give a crap about the Phillies, who clobbered the home town in the series.  What Silverman should have said was, “Last year we drew an average of 13,000 fans, and this year we’re averaging close to 20,000 fans a game.  If we continue to play as well as we have been, I expect that next year attendance will go even higher.” But commissioner Bud Selig has a bug up his ass about the Rays getting a new stadium—even though there’s no good reason to build one—and so even though he denied he was doing so, Matt was blackmailing the politicians a little bit—either you build us a new stadium or we’re going to move to Fairbanks, Alaska.  Which only served to infuriate Rays fans who are tired of Stuart Sternburg complaining he doesn’t have enough money to buy another player for the stretch run.  Hey Stu, you made $500 million dollars in the market.  If you can’t buy another player, maybe you need to find another investor so you can.

...As I said in the spring, the Rays are going to win 90 games this year, the mark of a top team.  The question remains whether they can catch the Yanks or the Sox.  I’m still betting they will.  And as they march toward the playoffs, attendance will rise.  So Matty, shut the f*** up. 

DRaysBay: An Exclusive Interview With Ben Zobrist The Ben Zobrist Code Pt 2

Ben Zobrist explains his transformation from slap hitter to home run hitter.

“I knew something had to change,” Zobrist said. “Jaime approached me at showtime with some video of good big league hitters and compared it with swings he had of mine, showed me the difference, gave me his philosophy of how I needed to change my swing.” At first, Zobrist’s admits that he was uncertain of Cevallo’s technique. However after hearing a familar voice echo the same advice he bought into the system a bit more. “Jaime’s techniques made sense but I wasn’t too sure about making complete changes based on a guy that I didn’t know too well, but when I heard Dan, who I knew well basically telling me very similar things in a different way, I knew I had to go with it,” says Zobrist.

Tampa Tribune: New Kaz is back, but will he last?

Scott Kazmir and the head he rode in on - hopefully not the one he rode out on - were back on the mound at Tropicana Field on Saturday night.

Rays owner Stu Sternberg, who popped into town to see if anyone had built a new stadium while he was gone, didn’t once try to count the house while in the Rays dugout before the game with the Marlins.

Sternberg was chatty, but mum on team president Matt Silverman’s recent comments on disappointing attendance. Sternberg did herald the return of Kazmir, among others.

“It’s like we’re getting the band back together,” he said.

...

Saturday, before another postgame concert in Baseball Central (Pat Benatar, Rays drew 35,790), the new Kaz, fresh from the DL stunt to get his mechanics and mind right, threw 92 pitches in five innings, 61 for strikes, allowing four hits and two runs.

Phillies Player Involved in Altercation With Fan in Tampa?

The St. Pete Times has a brief mention of an altercation between an unnamed Phillies player and a fan in Tampa that took place after Thursday’s game:  “An incident took place between a fan and a Phillies player after Thursday’s game, the Rays confirmed. ‘At this point it is a police matter and for that reason we won’t have any further comment,’ the team said in a statement, but did not identify the player. St. Petersburg Police officials could not be reached late Friday night, but a dispatcher confirmed that a report for a battery call was taken at the stadium at about 11 p.m. Thursday. The Phillies could not be reached for comment.”

On a separate The700Level post yesterday afternoon, commenter will.H offered a second-hand account of a similar-sounding incident, naming a Phillies player and describing a physical and verbal altercation. With no official word from the teams, the police, or any players, we’re going to leave it at that for now and not speculate any further until more details are available.

Thanks to The Beltin’ Barnald.

Philadelphia Daily News: Phillies not content with knowing umps blew replay vs. Rays

“The first time I see Bob Watson, I’m going to have him sit down and explain that to me,” Manuel said. “I’ve got some questions I want to ask.”

In the seventh inning of the Phillies’ 10-4 loss to the Rays on Wednesday night at Tropicana Field, an umpiring crew led by chief Gary Cederstrom used instant replay to determine whether a fan had interfered with a ground-rule double by Pat Burrell. Had replay determined that a fan interfered with the ball, baserunner Carl Crawford would have been awarded home instead of having to stop at third.

While the review ultimately worked in the Phillies’ favor, keeping Crawford at third base after no fan interference was found, the mere fact that replay was used on a seemingly innocuous play in a game they trailed by six runs angered the Phillies.

Turns out, their anger was justified.

Yesterday, Major League Baseball informed Cederstrom that his crew had erred in using replay. By rule, replay is supposed to be used only on potential home-runs involving boundary calls (whether the ball is fair or foul; whether the ball cleared the wall; whether a fan interfered with the ball).

“I’m sorry about the confusion that was raised,” Cederstrom told the Associated Press yesterday, reading from a prepared statement. “As you know, instant replay is to be used only in boundary or fair-foul calls involving home runs or potential home runs. I regret the error that we had.”

Tampa Tribune: Baker bristles at Rays move from St. Pete

Will the Tampa Bay Rays be coming to downtown Tampa?

Not if St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Baker has anything to say about it.

A group studying whether the baseball team should leave Tropicana Field has included three sites in Hillsborough County - downtown Tampa, the West Shore district and the state fairgrounds east of downtown - in a list of potential locations for a new stadium.

Since the Rays withdrew plans for a waterfront facility in downtown St. Petersburg last year, the A Baseball Community coalition, which is headed by Progress Energy CEO Jeff Lyash, has been searching for a new home for the Mayor League Baseball team.

Until now, the coalition has not publicly raised the option of moving across the Bay, and the revelation could reignite old-rivalries between Hillsborough and Pinellas officials.

Baker said he thinks the coalition has strayed from its original mission by expanding the search to locations outside the city. He is vowing to challenge, in a courtroom if necessary, any attempts by the Rays to move away.

“Our expectation and intention is that the Rays will continue to play in St. Petersburg,” Baker said. “I think it’s a pretty clear position.”

plus, Sonnanstine is the odd man out

Chalk: Kicking Joe DiMaggio’s Ass: Joltin’ Jason Bartlett’s Streak Hits 19

And have Joey Adonis after ya? No tanks.

Historic Tropicana Field saw history made Thursday night in the 5th inning as Devil Ray superstar Joltin’ Jason Bartlett launched a line drive single into right.  With that epic single, Bartlett became an immortal — he has hit safely in his 19th consecutive game and broken Quinton McCracken’s Devil Ray record hitting streak that had stood for over a decade.

Now that the Devil Ray record is Bartlett’s, Joltin’ Jason naturally will continue his streak until he takes down Joe DiMaggio’s Major League record of 56 consecutive games.

...Maybe this will convince the doubters: Joe DiMaggio’s storied streak began on May 15 1941.  Joltin’ Jason Bartlett’s streak began on May 15 2009 — 68 years to the day.  Clearly, it’s destiny.

Tampa Tribune: Who gets bumped when Kaz returns?

LHP Scott Kazmir will come off the disabled list and pitch Saturday or Sunday against the Marlins, and an announcement on whom he will replace on the roster and in the rotation is imminent.

Manager Joe Maddon reiterated Thursday the decision is complicated by the fact RHP Chad Bradford is ready to rejoin the bullpen.

“We’re discussing it right now, and we’ll have an announcement today,” Maddon said after the Rays’ 10-4 victory against the Phillies on Thursday night. “We still have not made up our minds.”

RHP Jeff Niemann was supposed to start Saturday and LHP David Price on Sunday. If both remain in the rotation, Kazmir, who went on the DL on May 22 to heal a right quad strain and work on his mechanics, could bump them back one start.

Bradford, who had elbow surgery before the season, was scheduled to make another appearance at Triple-A Durham on Saturday. Maddon said he could be recalled before then.

The Rays’ options for creating a spot in the rotation for Kazmir include sending Andy Sonnanstine or Price to Durham or moving Sonnanstine or Niemann to the bullpen.

The Biz of Baseball: The Tampa Bay Rays Fan Base and the Curse of Vince Naimoli

“Sounds like a good B-Movie”, sez Maury.

If Silverman is looking for something to attribute the poor showing to it’s this: the Naimoli era. Fans need more than a first date after years of losing before they’re ready to go steady. And they need even more winning to get through the “for better or worse” part of a marriage with their hometown club. Silverman and Co. will have to remain patient, which isn’t easy given the money they’re pouring into the Trop and the roster.

Sharockman reported before Wednesday night’s game was in the books that the Rays are expecting more, and better, with crowds of around 20,000 expected for the remainder of the series, which ends on Thursday.

Apparently, the fans didn’t get the memo.

Wednesday night’s game which saw the Rays win 7-1 over the Phillies drew less than Tuesday’s abysmal showing. The final paid attendance for the game was announced at 18,862, or 247 fans less than the 19,109 for the series opener. Welcome to the Curse of Vince Naimoli.

The Flagrant Fan - For the Love of Baseball: What Hustle Will Do

The older entitlement generation are leading this game to jogging ruin!

As someone affected by the current economy, this writer is appalled by the lack of hustle the lucky few who play in the major leagues display on a nightly basis. A few posts ago here in the FanDome, the topic was Craig Monroe, a fringe player in the majors who hustled his way out of a job in MLB due to his lack of hustle. After watching the Bay Rays play the Phillies tonight, both sides of the hustling spectrum came into full view.

...But that’s where Ben Zobrist comes in. Pena got hit by a pitch moving Crawford to second. Zobrist then worked a walk loading the bases. Burrell is next and was ahead 2-0 in the count. Everything was in his favor but Burrell blew it and grounded to short on an inside pitch. Zobrist busted as hard as he could toward second and when Rollins flipped to Utley, they both expected it to be the last out of the inning. But Zobrist running as hard as he could, beat the throw. Safe! The run scored making it 3-1 but he also prolonged the inning. A single and a double followed and broke the game open to 7-1.

Zobrist, who has turned out to be one of the biggest pleasant surprises of 2009, gets it. He takes nothing for granted and works hard on every play. Crawford (which is a bit surprising) and Upton don’t get it. They played the game like a part of the entitlement generation and cost their team two runs.

To a displaced worker now trying his darnedest to make his new company work, Zobrist is a hero.

Topkin: Tampa Bay Rays find small crowds “bewildering”

s’house is half filled…

Rays officials were clearly disappointed in the relatively small crowd of 19,608 for Tuesday’s opening game and similar projections for the other two games of the World Series rematch with the Phillies.

“As we were planning for the season, we circled this series as one of the most compelling of the year,’’ team president Matt Silverman said Tuesday night. “It’s a rare privilege to host a rematch of the World Series, especially against a team with local connections. Based on all the information we had, we projected full houses.  It’s a huge miss.”

Silverman said the Rays are perplexed why attendance hasn’t been better - the Rays went into play Tuesday averaging 22,796, which was 10th in the American League and 23rd in the majors. Going into the season, they said their goal was to match the MLB average, which was 29,562 entering play Tuesday.

“Quite frankly, we don’t know what to attribute it to, but it’s not just the economy,’’ he said.  “It’s bewildering. There seems to be great affection for the team and excitement for the ‘09 campaign, but it’s not showing up at the gate at all.”

Rays Former #1 Pick In 2005, Wade Townsend Retires

Nothing is everything, everything is nothing…

Rays Prospects has the link from CBS Sports of the Rays #1 pick and #8 overall pick in the 2005 MLB draft, RHP Wade Townsend from Rice announcing his retirement. Townsend has battled injuries since signing with the Rays, having Tommy John surgery in the fall of 05. When he did play in the minors, he battled control problems and was moved from a starter to the bullpen in 2007. He play in AA Montgomery last year only to pitch just in 13 games and fall victim to labrum surgery.

Townsend was picked ahead of future Major League high caliber players such as Mike Pelfrey, Cameron Maybin Andrew McCutchen, and Jay Bruce. Those were the exact four picks to follow him in the draft, not to mention other stars such as Jacoby Ellsbury and Rays own Matt Garza. He was only one of two players not to reach the Majors in the top 16 picks in that 2005 draft.

Stuart Sternberg will root against the New York Mets, his longtime favorite team

Stuart Sternberg: From Ownbey to be an owner.

Stuart Sternberg was a Mets fan and season-ticket holder long before he became principal owner of the Rays. Heck, long before many of the Rays were even born, going back to the early ‘80s.

But when the team he owns plays the team he loved in a three-game series starting tonight at the new Citi Field, his loyalties won’t be divided a bit.

“My emotions are crystal clear,” Sternberg wrote in an e-mail Thursday. “The Mets are just another team that is in the way of where we plan to get to.

“Whatever emotion I might have had left when Shea (Stadium, the Mets’ previous home) was knocked down. I attended close to 1,000 games there and would have been proud and a bit choked up to have my team play the place.”

S.I. : Marchman: A tale of two brothers: What’s the difference between the Uptons?

I see Hal Trosky mentioned, which reminds of the two ML broadcasters (don’t ask me who they were as I was repairing my legless Billholden end table) that came across his name yesterday...and didn’t know who he was.

The varying approaches that Tampa Bay and Arizona took with their wildly talented players show in some wildly varying results. More than his inconsistent hitting lines, B.J.’s struggles are reflected in an inconsistent approach. In 2006, for instance, he swung at 14 percent of pitches outside the strike zone; the next year, it was 19 percent, an increase of more than 35 percent. In his three seasons Justin has ranged from 24 percent to 26 percent. B.J.’s isolated power—slugging average minus batting average, a measure of pure extra-base hitting—dropped more than 100 points from his first to his second year, increased 150 points in his third year, and has dropped steadily since; Justin’s has increased each year.

Again, this is surely partly a reflection of talent, that slight and indiscernible difference in genetics that some genius some day may be able to isolate under an electron microscope. Blind as we may be to the specific mechanics, there is no mystery here. But if, injuries and early promotion aside, B.J.’s fundamental problem has been an inability to fix on one aspect of his game and master it, it’s hard not to tie that to the inconsistent way in which he was treated in his formative days as a major leaguer, when no one even seemed quite able to decide what position he should play, let alone what style he should adopt at the plate.

Dodger Thoughts:Edwin Jackson: What if?

As I researched this piece, I read several reviews of Jackson, and there is a common theme: No one disputes his physical tools, but almost every criticism ends up with his mental approach and confidence.  Baseball Prospectus still had words like “frustrated,” “struggles” and the dreaded “potential” in its 2009 review of Jackson.  I don’t know where I saw it, but I know Jackson himself said in an interview that he does not blame the Dodgers or Rays for moving him, as he knew better than anyone how his career had evolved to this point.

I close this piece by saying that if the question was, “Could the Dodgers have kept Edwin Jackson on the 25-man roster from 2007 to the present?,” from a pure roster management issue, I would say yes. Enough flotsam existed on the roster during that time to make me think they could have done that, and whatever damage Jackson brought on to the team during his growth period would probably not have been too different than every other bad pitcher during the last 2½ seasons. 

But from what I think what would have happened, only if had he been able to speed up his growth to where he is today could Jackson have survived the 2007 season as a Dodger out of options.  And we’ll never know if Jackson would be the pitcher he is today without those two years in Tampa, where he got 62 starts to work out whatever issues he had.

MLB: Manuel, Maddon select All-Star Game coaches

With the game being played in St. Louis, it’s no surprise that Manuel selected Cardinals skipper Tony La Russa as one of his coaches, but it wasn’t just hometown favoritism. La Russa has been an All-Star manager five times, most recently leading the National League team in 2007.

Joining that duo on the bench will be Los Angeles Dodgers manager Joe Torre, a nine-time All Star player himself, including four appearances in a St. Louis Cardinals uniform. He also managed the Cards from 1990-1995, and has been an All-Star manager six times, all in the American League. In fact, Manuel himself was one of Torre’s All-Star coaches in 2002.

...

In the American League, Maddon selected Kansas City Royals manager Trey Hillman and Seattle Mariners skipper Don Wakamatsu to join him on the bench for the game.

It will mark the Major League All-Star Game debut in any role for both of Maddon’s coaches. Maddon himself was a participant in the 2003 game as the bench coach of the defending 2002 World Series champion Angels.

Rancel: Revisited : A look at Carl Crawford & Roberto Clemente at age 27

and...RETIRE 13 is a movement of interested individuals and organizations that believe that “it’s not time yet, but maybe in the future” that Carl Crawford’s #13 be retired from Major League Baseball!

I also discovered that from age 27-37, Clemente experienced a power surge, and averaged a .502 slg over his final 11 seasons. While CC hasn’t had a home run breakout, his slugging percentage is 40 points higher than it was in 2008. After just six extra base hits in April, CC’s showed some serious power in May in which he slugged .512 with 13 XBH. Crawford has just three extra base hits in the month of June, but two of them have been home runs.

Once again, I decided to compare the two players through the first 289 plate appearances during the year in which they were classified as 27. Not surprisingly, the comparison is holding very strong. In fact, their OPS is within two points of each other. They are also within two home runs, two doubles and one triple of each other.

...The .454 slugging % Clemente posted in 1962 would end up as the lowest of his final 11 seasons. As we move closer to July, we will undoubtedly hear Crawford’s name mentioned in trade rumors. After looking at this comparison, it puts in perspective (for me at least) the type of player we are dealing with in Crawford. I’m not saying Crawford is next Clemente. Defensively, Clemente’s arm was legendary, but CC’s speed makes him very special not only defensively, but on the basepaths.

Are the Rays “back” to their 2008 form?

To quote Little Bit O’Luck, the pitchman for the “Take Five” scratch off game here in New York, “Whoa! Slow down, buddy!”

The Rays have won six in a row, but their bullpen is still in shambles and three of those wins came against the Nationals. Last night they beat a Rockies team that was due for a loss after winning a stunning 11 straight games.

As much as the stat-zombies self-justify their lust for the Rays with references to their run-differential, the team does not have a closer. And I don’t mean a guy to accumulate the meaningless save stat, they don’t have a closer----a pitcher who they can bring into a game with a one-run lead and the bases loaded against the Red Sox and feel confident he’s going to get them out of trouble. (They do have someone for that, but his name’s Scott Kazmir and they’re not going to put him in the bullpen, I don’t think.)

Let’s see what happens when they play teams that can really hit like the Phillies, Marlins and Rangers. I’d bet they’re going to be back around .500 by July 4th because of that bullpen. If that happens, their run differential will mean absolutely nothing.

Peter Gammons: “Devil Rays Will Definitely Make Playoffs”

Talk to me in August...the Rays won’t win 55 games this year. (oof...over-aspartamedicated moment there)

Near the open of the Sunday afternoon edition of ESPN’s Baseball Tonight, Peter Gammons was asked about the Devil Rays chances to make the playoffs this season.  Here’s what Gammons said:

Definitely…. The pitching is gonna get better. They already lead the league in runs, and as Krukie mentioned Ben Zobrist has been unbelievable. But I think the key thing is that Price is gonna get better and they can bring Wade Davis back and Scott Kazmir, after working with Rick Peterson is only maybe two minor league rehab starts away from coming back.

Murray Chass On Baseball: ANGRY ANDY FRIEDMAN

Oh, if only Jason Jones had visited the New York Times earlier…

Andrew Friedman is angry with me. He is the general manager of the Tampa Bay Rays, and he is angry that I wrote in a column that he did not return a call from me seeking comment about the Rays’ treatment of Evan Longoria and David Price.

Friedman did not tell me himself that he is angry. He directed Rick Vaughn, the team’s vice president for communications, to call and tell me. Friedman still hasn’t called so I haven’t been able to ask him about the Rays’ treatment of Longoria and Price.

I had called Friedman to ask him about the way the Rays manipulated the major league service time for their two young players, in Longoria’s case gaining leverage in their negotiations for a multi-year contract and in Price’s case delaying by a year his eligibility for free agency.

Vaughn said I was unfair and unethical in the way I called Friedman and portrayed the absence of a return call. He noted that I called Friedman the day before the draft. How in the world could I expect to get the general manager the day before the draft, Vaughn asked, suggesting that the timing of the column was bad and that I should have waited to write it another time when it would have been more convenient for Friedman to call back.

Now Vaughn was not only acting as the Rays’ vice president for communications, but he was also acting as my editor. One of the things I like about writing for this Web site is I don’t have editors. I like having no editors. Most of them, I have found, have been useless, if not downright incompetent.

MADDON’S PITCH COUNT ALIENATING MANY IN BASEBALL

He’s learned the language, taken jobs, and tried to fit in. But there’s something about him we don’t like!

The Rays use the theory that after 105 pitches the “possibility” of a pitcher injuring his arm becomes greater. Well, sure it does, and after stealing 40 bases, a runners legs could get injured, or after 30 home runs, Longoria could pull a hamstring, or injure his shoulder. These “numbers” are created by mathematicians, not by true baseball men. Ask Jim Leyland, a World Series winner as a manager, ask Hall of Fame Pitchers Bob Gibson, Bob Feller, Nolan Ryan, future HOF’s Randy Johnson, and Tom Glavine. Nolan Ryan currently is the President of the Texas Rangers, and he steadfastly disagrees with Maddon’s philosophies. You’d think that World Series winning managers, and Hall of fame pitchers that disagree with these theories would probably have better insight than a 30 year career minor leaguer and coach, recently turned manager.

...We write it, but it isn’t just our opinion, ask the Hall of Famers, the baseball executives around the league, and then ask the fans. Especially the older fans that understand baseball and the way it really is supposed to be played. Maddon will continue to preach that the game has changed. No it hasn’t, it only changes when people like Maddon try to alter it to caress their ego, rather than go with what is established and already works. Change is good when it’s for the better, but not good when it makes the game go backwards.

Lancaster: Rays reportedly work out Pedro

Whether your pitching routine could use a tune-up or you haven’t touched a ball since you were 36, our beginner’s guide will get you back on the mound and burning serious calories in no time!

Strange report out of the Dominican Republic today, as Listin Diario cites a source saying Pedro Martinez threw 20 pitches—all fastballs—for Rays officials in Santo Domingo and another workout (in which he’ll also use his breaking stuff) is scheduled.

To be quite honest, I’m not sure what the Rays would do with Martinez, given that they could hardly expect him to step in as the Pedro of old and they already have to find a rotation spot for Scott Kazmir when he’s ready to go. Not to mention the possibility that Wade Davis could be deemed ready at some point as the summer wears on.

Martinez, 37, last pitched in the World Baseball Classic in March. Coming off shoulder surgery, he went 5-6 with a 5.61 ERA in 20 starts for the Mets last season after making only five starts for them in 2007.

If I hear anything from Rays types about it, I’ll pass it along. But my initial read would be that Pedro needs the Rays more than the Rays need Pedro at the moment.

Evan Longoria: Mariano Rivera still the best closer in baseball

The Rays have made the biggest impact on Mariano Rivera’s reputation this season, twice rallying against the righthander, and leaving many to wonder if his days as the Yankees’ closer are numbered.

But at least one person in Tampa Bay’s clubhouse insists Rivera hasn’t come upon the twilight of his career, even if his velocity has diminished and more balls are finding their way into the swaths of grass between outfielders.

Following the Yankees’ 4-3 win at the Stadium Sunday - which ended on Evan Longoria’s slow roller to second, capping a perfect ninth and Rivera’s 13th save - the Rays’ third baseman called the Sandman the best closer in all of baseball.

“Among the closers in the game, if I had to choose one guy, I would still want him running out there in the ninth inning,” Longoria said. “If I was the manager, I would send him out there every day.

“I wasn’t here when he was at the height, at the peak of his game, when every pitch he threw was 95-96 mph and cutting. The thing is, he’s dropped a couple miles off his fastball, but he still puts it where he wants it. ... I don’t really see his ability to get guys out in the ninth inning decreasing that much at all.”

Longoria on Rivera, with nothing funny for me to add.

NY Times (Schwarz): Pitching’s Bright Stars Sometimes Flame Out

Scouts have generally called Strasburg the best amateur pitching prospect they have seen. This is the rough equivalent of being rated the world’s No. 1 hydrogen dirigible. For all the promise Strasburg has shown, having names like McDonald, Prior and Taylor in one’s family tree would leave any pitcher digging for adoption papers.

Twenty years ago, Louisiana State’s Ben McDonald was roundly hailed as the best college pitching prospect ever; he won 78 major league games before retiring at 30 with a bum shoulder. No one took McDonald’s consensus best-ever tag until 2001, when Mark Prior of the University of Southern California was such a steely-eyed, bazooka-armed, strike-throwing machine that he was nicknamed Robopitcher. Prior won 18 games for the Chicago Cubs two years later before an avalanche of injuries left him pitching’s Venus de Milo.

Three high school pitchers during this period also were electric enough to prompt best-ever hyperbole: Todd Van Poppel in 1990, Brien Taylor in 1991 and Matt White in 1996. Van Poppel won just 40 games in a meandering career, and Taylor and White descended into the moat of the minor leagues, never to be heard from again.

Strasburg, who turns 21 next month, is in fact the sixth once-in-a-lifetime pitcher of his own short lifetime. But this has barely distracted the raving scouts, whose job is to look forward, not back. This time, they mean it. Really.

Tampa Bay Rays see difference in Yankee Stadium’s new atmosphere

The House That Stankiewicz Built.

The aura and mystique of the old Stadium is gone forever, so say the Tampa Bay Rays.

“You’re in the new Yankee Stadium. It’s absolutely a different stadium,” Rays manager Joe Maddon said before last night’s series opener in the Bronx was rained out. “It’s kind of nice, actually, because I hated the smell of the old place.... I don’t know if that odor was the remnants of the ghosts walking around, but they always had a home-court advantage in that yard.

“I’m not saying they can’t develop it here, but they had an advantage just based on the smell of the place. They could have put that in a bottle, sprayed it on somebody and you’d say, ‘Oh, Yankee Stadium.’”

..."This place, don’t get me wrong, is an unbelievable ballpark,” Longoria said of the new Stadium. “They did a great job on it, but it’s not the same thing.”

Longoria leads AL players in All-Star fan voting

Tampa Bay third baseman Evan Longoria leads all AL players in fan voting for All-Star spots, more than doubling the total of perennial starter Alex Rodriguez.

Longoria had received 1,036,071 votes in results released Tuesday. New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter drew the second-most votes in the AL, followed by Texas second baseman Ian Kinsler and Minnesota catcher Joe Mauer.

The age of A-Rod is over. The age of E-Long has just begun.
Dear god, we need to come up with a nickname for him… FAST!

Gordon Edes: Fortunes tied to disabled list

CHICAGO – So, what to make of the impact injuries and attrition have had on the season’s first two months?

Fans in Arizona and Cleveland would tell you that injuries have quashed hope, with their counterparts in Philadelphia, Tampa Bay and Anaheim fretful of the ultimate consequences of their team’s missing key parts.

Meanwhile, fans in Los Angeles, New York, St. Louis and even Toronto are apt to argue that any absence can be overcome.

Both sides, on June 1 at least, would be right.

The Los Angeles Dodgers have the best record in baseball, even though right-hander Hiroki Kuroda(notes) hasn’t pitched since opening day because of a strained oblique muscle and Manny Ramirez(notes) is serving a 50-game suspension related to steroids.

“I think a big part of it is mindset,” said Dodgers manager Joe Torre, who will have Kuroda starting Monday night in Dodger Stadium against Arizona.

“I learned a long time ago, when you lose somebody, you’re wishing you didn’t lose him, but if the manager is worried about it, then everybody else is going to worry about it, too. Things you can’t control, you just have to let go, and find a way to make other things work.”

The Chicago Cubs, winners of 97 games in 2008, are barely above .500 without third baseman Aramis Ramirez(notes), who is expected to miss another six to eight weeks with a dislocated left shoulder. The three players who have tried to spell Ramirez at third are batting about .170 with no home runs.

“It’s probably a combination of a lot of things,” said Cubs GM Jim Hendry, when asked why some teams weather injuries better than others.

“Depends on who the guy is and what spot. Like if we’d had [left fielder Alfonso] Soriano go down for six weeks, or Derrek [Lee, the first baseman], we’re covered better with Mitch Hoffpauir and Reed Johnson(notes). Third base was a tough spot for us.

Romano: Tampa Bay Rays’ pick of Josh Hamilton over Josh Beckett is looking smarter 10 years later

Even with Hamilton possibly going on the DL...again?

Josh Beckett or Josh Hamilton?

Once, it was the only question that mattered in Tampa Bay. Two phenomenal talents, and one chance for the Devil Rays to get it right. Should they draft the smart-aleck pitcher from Texas, or the gee-whiz outfielder from North Carolina?

Ten years later, it is obvious Tampa Bay put its faith in the wrong player.

But 10 years from now, will that still be true?

... “I took a lot of heat for a long time because Josh Beckett turned out to be what we all thought he would be,” LaMar said. “People ask me if I feel vindicated now that Josh Hamilton is an All-Star. Not at all. I just feel truly happy for Josh and his family.

“You spend a lot of time on the road in this business. A lot of time away from your family in hotels and airports, just hoping to get a chance to see a player like Josh Hamilton. To see him on a baseball field at 18 could literally take your breath away. His talent was staggering, and I’m glad the world is getting a chance to see that now.”

Josh Beckett or Josh Hamilton? For the past 10 years, the answer should have been Beckett. For the next 10 years, I’m not so sure.

Tampa Bay Rays likely will stick with internal options to fill void at second base - St. Petersburg Times

For some reason, I now find Rays news interesting.

But executive VP Andrew Friedman said the Rays plan to stick with the replacements they have: Willy Aybar, Ben Zobrist and rookie Reid Brignac.

“I think we’ll stay in-house,” Friedman said. “I think with Zobie, with Willy, with Brignac, we’ve got some very capable guys.”