Rays continue to roll through spring; Beat Jays 10-0. Plus Possible trade candidates...again

For the second straight day the Rays routed their way to a victory. Today the star was the Blue Jays defensive who had five errors in one inning. The fifth inning couldnt have gone worse for the Jays. The Rays scored 10 Runs and that was more than enough. Jonny Gomes is heating up again, going 3-4 with home run, tying him with Carlos Pena for the team lead(4). BJ Upton(2-4) and Carlos Pena(2RBI) continue to have quietly impressive springs. Eric Hinske started at 3B and Elliot Johnson at SS to show some defensive flexibility that will help them make the club.


It was all good news on the mound. Jason Hammel pitched only four innings by design to allow relievers to get more work in. Hammel was impressive, giving up only three hits and no walks. Trever Miller, Al Reyes, Dan Wheeler, Gary Glover and Troy Percival, the five keys to the Rays pen, pitched a combined five scoreless innings only giving up two hits and striking out six. The best sign was from Percival, who struck out two in his scoreless frame, after a disasterous outing on Sunday.

In other news:

Brian Anderson's career as a Rays isn't quite over yet. While his playing days are now done, the Rays were impressed by Anderson and named him assistant to Pitching Coach Jim Hickey. Anderson will assist in scouting and monitoring the staff. Quote from The Heater:

"It's not something I ever dreamed of," Anderson said. "I was honored."

Also we have some encouraging news on Scott Kazmir. Kazmir, who hasn't thrown of a mound in over a week, will begin tossing from 90-120 feet in the next few days and could see some time on a mound next week.

Reports are coming out of Seattle that the Rays maybe interested in OF Jeremy Reed.

"A veteran American League scout said Monday that Tampa Bay also is interested in Reed as a left-handed hitting outfielder to platoon with Jonny Gomes. The Rays might be willing to trade some young pitching to land someone who might get 350 or more at-bats this season."

Reed is left handed, can play CF and has two more years of team control. He played a career high 141 games in 2005, but only hit .254/.322/.352. Reed can hit righties ok, but can't touch a lefty(.271/.329/.396 compared to .165/.245/.226) for his career. We all know the only thing Gomes mashes better than lefties is blondes, so a platoon with Reed looks pretty good on paper. Plus by all accounts Reed is a very good defender.

The Mariners did have interest in Edwin Jackson and J.P. Howell last season.

Another option that may be available is Matt Murton of the Cubs. The Cubs just picked up former Jays OF Reed Johnson and have been trying to move Murton. The problem with Murton is he is suited for the corner OF and not much else. He is, however, a pretty good offensive player with a career line of .296/.365/.455, but like Gomes is much better against lefties.

Jackson Dominates in 3-1 Rays Victory

I hate Edwin Jackson

I love Edwin Jackson

I hate Edwin Jackson

I love Edwin Jackson

This is how I feel every other start with Edwin Jackson. Today I love Edwin Jackson. Behind a dominating effort today by Jackson, the Rays beat the Phillies 3-1. Jackson went 5.2 inninngs giving up three hits, one walk, one run and seven K's. Today's performance basically locks his spot in the rotation. Troy Percival and Scott Dohmann had perfect innings. Grant Balfour gave up a walk in his scoreless inning.

The Rays were pretty quiet at the plate, but scored three runs on seven hits. Evan Longoria was 0-2 with an intentional walk to load the bases, He's that intimidating. Jason Bartlett was the only Ray with a multi-hit game going 2-3. Cliff Floyd left five men on base.

On to Injury News:

Scott Kazmir worked inside with Ron Porterfield today and it's still unsure if he will throw a bullpen session tomorrow.

Willy Aybar, Longoria's biggest competition, will be sidelined until Monday at the earliest with hamstring problems. I don't think Aybar's status had any affect on Longoria's status. If Aybar is unavailable, Joel Guzman is more likely to see time at 3B than Longoria.

Shawn Riggans and Ben Zobrist appear to be on track for opening day and may see some action in a spring game soon.

Longoria homers again, but Rays lose 4-2; Kazmir speaks about injury

Another quick recap for me today. The Rays are playing another home and home series with the Phillies today and tomorrow. Today the Rays dropped the first game to the Phillies in Clearwater 4-2. Evan "Encore" Longoria hit another home run today. That gives "The Natural" a team leading three on the spring. While it still looks like he's Durham bound he isn't going quietly. Other than Longoria's blast the Rays managed only two other hits, one by Reid Brignac and one by Dioner Navarro.


On the mound, Matt Garza had a so-so outing. He went six innings giving up four runs(three earned) and walked three. J.P. Howell was perfect in his only inning. The story on the mound today was the Phillies Cole Hamels. Hamels went six innings giving up one run on two hits and had seven K's.

The same two teams play tomorrow at Al Lang Field. Edwin Jackson gets the start for the Rays followed by: Scott Munter, Scott Dohmann, Troy Percival and Grant Balfour.

Here's the Box score .

In other news, Ben Zobrist had the cast taken off his thumb a week a head of schedule and might not miss the season opener after all.

Scott Kazmir will continue to take it easy, especially after watching Brian Anderson's career end last week with an elbow injury. From Raysbaseball.com:

"It kind of freaked me out a little bit, to be honest with you," Kazmir said. "You see him come in and the next thing you know he's talking about, 'Oh, I ripped my whatever' and what not. Then I'm like, maybe I should take a little more time.

"I see that going on. I'm thinking, 'Oh, man, I don't want to be in that boat.' And, plus, I've got the time no just to make sure that everything is strong and I'm ready to go."

Kazmir talked to Anderson after Anderson received the diagnosis, but he didn't want to talk to him too much.

"I didn't want to get too many images in my head about what was going on," Kazmir said. "But yeah, I talked to him a little bit about it right when he came in afterwards."

Kazmir said he's all ears when receiving good advice, noting Anderson told him: "Dude, don't rush it at all. This is a perfect time to do that, Spring Training."

Rays sweep split squad games; Injuries piling up for Rays

The Rays completed the split squad sweep today defeating the Braves in a wild one 11-10 and a beating the Yankees quietly 7-2. I'm on the road so this recap will be semi-brief. Jeff Niemann(4 Innings, 6 Hits, 1ER, 1K against Yankees) and Jason Hammel(5 Innings, 3 Hits, 0ER, 3K's against Braves) provided the Rays with solid starts. Niemann continues to be solid this spring. As for Hammel, it was a great start coming off a completely awful one against the Indians.

Scott Dohmann, Kurt Birkins and Calvin Medlock all struggled against the Braves giving up a combined 10 runs in 3 Innings. However the offense led by Elliot Johnson(3-5 3 RBI playing 2B and CF) pounded out 12 hits and 11 runs. The Rays jumped on John Smoltz for 5 runs in 4.2 Innings. Also having good days at the plate for the Rays were Carlos Pena and Reid Brignac. Evan Longoria was 1-3 with 2BB and 2 runs scored.

In Tampa thing were kept very civil and there were no questionable plays or dirty ones either. The Rays limited the hitting to the baseball and not the other teams players. In all 4 Rays(Eric Hinske, Chris Richard, Hector Gimenez, Mike Difelice) hit home runs to lead the Rays offense past the Yankees. Hinske is just having a lights out spring with 2 hits including the homer and is batting .480. Gary Glover, Dan Wheeler and Scott Munter provided the Rays with 5 strong relief innings giving up only 1 unearned run. There were no signs of hostility by either team, hopefully a positive sign that the two teams have moved on a little bit from the week of flare ups.

The Injury bug continues to follow the Rays where ever they go. Already this spring Rocco Baldelli, Ben Zobrist, Brian Anderson, Andy Cannizaro, Reid Brignac, Scott Kazmir have all missed time. Anderson's career is over and Baldelli's is in doubt. Zobrist and Kazmir may not be ready by opening day, but shouldn't have to go on the DL. Brignac only missed a few days from a broken toe and is playing and Andy Cannizaro could play as early as Tuesday.

Now you can add Shawn Riggans and Kurt Birkins to that list of injuries now. Riggans was hit in the hand by a Blane Boyer pitch against Atlanta and will receive and X-Ray. This is the latest injury for the often banged up Riggans, He is the favorite to back up Dioner Navarro at C. Kurt Birkins walked of the mound against the Braves without recording an out. Birkins gave up 2 runs before leaving the game. TBO.com is reporting Birkins felt tightness in his bicep.

Call it a comeback: Rays beat Jays 8-4.

Jon Weber Showing the Chrome Dome


Trailing for most of the game today, the Rays decided to pick up the offense in the 8th inning by scoring five runs. The five run inning put the Rays over the top in an 8-4 victory over the Blue Jays on a cloudy day in St. Petersburg. The Rays are now 10-3-1 this spring.

For a second straight start Edwin Jackson struggled. Ejax gave up four ER in five Innings. Again, the problem with Jackson was control. He walked four batters and had zero K's. Al Reyes pitched in with a scoreless inning and has yet to give up a run this spring(that counted at least). Trever Miller pitched a perfect 1.1 innings and Grant Balfour closed down the final 1.2 innings including 3 K's and no hits.

Evan "Encore" Longoria hit his second home run of the spring, a 2-run shot off Jeremy Accardo in the 8th. Longoria finished 1-2 with the 2 run blast, raising his avg to .333. His competition Willy Aybar was 0-2. Joel Guzman should officially be out of the 3B race playing LF going 0-1.

The fifth OF spot is looking like a two man race between John Rodriguez and Jon Weber. Rodriguez is starting to hit and was 2-3 today with an RBI. Jon Weber was 1-4. Chris Richard is quickly falling out of the race playing 1B and going 0-1.

Eric Hisnke also continued his hot spring going 1-2 with 2 runs scored. He is hitting .476, playing all corner positions.

Rays go extra innings with Sox ending in 3-3 tie in 10 innings.

A day after fireworks were flying on the field, the Rays went back to work today against another division rival. The Rays ended up tying the Red Sox 3-3 in 10 inning down in Fort Myers. The Rays continued to get great work from the offseason's prize aquisition Matt Garza.

Garza pitched 4.2 innings of shutout ball today, lowering his spring ERA to 1.93. J.P. Howell, who is being used in long relief situations by design, gave up one run in 2.1 innings. Mitch Talbot and Kurt Birkins had chances to close the door on Rays wins, but each gave up runs in their innings ending the game in a 3-3 tie.

At the plate there was competing players up and down the lineup. The 5th OF Race looked like this:

Jon Weber 2-4 with a Solo Homer playing LF and CF

Chris Richard was 0-1 with a sac fly at DH

John Rodriguez got two hits doubling his spring total in one game, was 2-5 playing RF

Evan Longoria got another long look today at 3B, but was 0-3 at the plate bringing his average down to .318. Willy Aybar was 0-1 in his AB. Eric Hinske somewhere in the middle of the battle of both was 1-1 raising his average to .474. Elliot Johnson also got his first game action at SS today filling in for the injured Ben Zobrist and Andy Cannizaro. He was 1-1 at the plate and is now hitting this spring .562.

Tampa Bay Brawl: Tempers flare in Rays vs. Yankees rematch

As promised the Yankees attempted to exact "Revenge" on the Rays for a perfectly legal play. During the bottom of the first inning today, Heath Phillips was ejected from the game for hitting Evan Longoria, the swiss army knife of five tool players. However, the fireworks didn't stop there. Shelley Duncan, who has been vocal about paying the Rays back, went sliding into second base spikes high in second inning. The ball Duncan hit was a grounder to third and Duncan was immediately ejected. Aki Iwamura wasn't hurt, but Jonny F. Gomes took offense and came running in from RF to confront Duncan. Benches cleared and after a few shoves back and forth order was restored. In all Duncan, Phillps, hitting coach Kevin Long and third base coach Bobby Meacham were ejected for the Yankees. Gomes was the only Rays player sent to the showers early. According to TBO.com, Gomes went walking off the field somewhat triumphantly and according to another account hi-fived all the players on his way out. And who said spring training didn't mean anything.


Here are some quotes from Rays Players and Joe Maddon who was none to pleased:

“The other day we were playing in Tampa, that play you saw at home plate was a good, hard baseball play,” he said. “What you saw today is the definition of a dirty play. There is no room for that in our game, it’s contemptible, it’s wrong, it’s borderline criminal, and I cannot believe they did that.”

“Dirty play,” said B.J. Upton. “Just a flat-out dirty play. Period.”

“That was sort of second nature,” Gomes said. “I was taught from T-ball all the way up to have your teammate’s back. With that guy trying to hurt a teammate, I just acted how I acted.”

Gomes did get an initial shot in on Duncan but said an all-out brawl wasn’t his goal.

“I probably could have done a lot of things worse, but it is a baseball field and there’s fans and kids watching,” said Gomes. “I just had to let him know, that’s not going to fly with me on the field.”

“You’re just going out there, spikes high, trying to put them into somebody?” said Percival. “There’s no room in baseball for that kind of stuff. Ty Cobb’s been gone a long time.”

“It’s not typical of them, that’s for sure,” said Percival. “They’ve always been a professional organization. They’ve always played hard and they’ve always played smart. I won’t say that about today’s game.”

There also was as actual game played as well. The Rays won 7-6 in case you care. Andy Sonnanstine pitched extremely well throwing three scoreless innings and seemingly has the inside track on the 4th rotation spot. Scott Dohman escaped a bit of trouble in his scoreless frame. Rays Closer Troy Percival was perfect in his inning of work. The Rays seemed to have suffered another injury when Brian Anderson, trying to comeback from an elbow injury, walked off the mound after giving up 2 hits and 3 ER without recording an out. He was replaced by Calvin Medlock who held the Yankees without giving up a run in two innings. Dan Wheeler wasn't so sharp giving up three runs in one inning. G-Love pitched a perfect 9th for the save

At the Plate Gomes contributed an RBI before his ejection as did Cliff Floyd and WIlly Aybar. Ronnie Merrill, Who? hit a solo home run. Carl Crawford, Reid Brignac and Aki Iwamura had two hits a piece. As far as races go, the OF Race went like this Jon Weber 1-4 1 RBI(.200), John Rodriguez 1-2 2 RBI(0.83) and Chris Richard 0-1(.385). On the 3B side Evan Longoria was 0-1(.368), Willy Aybar 0-1 1 RBI(.300) , Joel Guzman 0-1(.188) and Eric Hinske went 1-2(.444)

It also occured to me today that our comments were turned off to most readers. I have fixed the problem so let the comments be FREE!

Price Cut !: Price, Ruggiano and Ryu sent down.

The Rays made their second round of cuts today optioning David Price to minor leagues. The move is no surprise and is necessary for Price to get regular work in. He most likely will report to Advanced A Vero Beach. Maddon said Price was "Very Impressive." Price seemed a bit disappointed saying:

“They came into this thing with a plan and they’re going to stick to it,” he said. “That’s what happens.”

In a very surprising move to me the Rays optioned Justin Ruggiano to the minors. Maddon said the Rays are more likely leaning towards keeping left handed Vets Jon Weber or John Rodriguez. Although you can probably add Chris Richard to that list, he is left handed.

Ruggiano had a very impressive season at AAA last year, earning a September callup. He's struggled at the plate this spring, but still has been better that Rodriguez who has one hit in 22 AB's (0.45 Avg). He is also solid at all three OF positions. The official stance from Maddon was the Rays didn't want Ruggiano to ride the bench and he can play everyday at AAA.

I think that's kinda lame since the RF/DH will be a platoon where all players will get time. With Eric Hinske almost a lock to make the team he would provide the Rays with a Lefty off the bench. It seems to me that Maddon just preferred a veteran to take that spot.

As R.J. Anderson pointed out the Rays are and have been talking about possibly adding Kenny Lofton to the mix. So maybe there is something going on behind the scenes and they are preparing to add Lofton soon.

Also J.K. Ryu was optioned as well.

Longoria Homers, Shields Strong as Rays beat Twins 7-1

The Rays without Carl Crawford beat the Twins with Delmon Young. CC didn't make the trip, but Evan Longoria decided to bring the big stick with him to Fort Myers. Longoria homered off of Juan Rincon when he came in the game as a pinch hitter. Overall, Longoria was 1-2, raising his average to .389. Other 3B candidate Willy Aybar was 2-2 with 2 RBI. Joel Guzman was 0-4 playing LF and 3B.

The "Rocco Roster Spot Race" candidates also played today. Eric Hinske was 1-3 with an RBI playing 1B. Justin Ruggiano played RF going 0-4 . John Rodriguez continued his awful spring at the plate going 0-3. Rodriguez played CF and is batting 0.45 this spring. Dioner Navarro and Elliot "Tonka Truck" Johnson also added 2-Run homers of their own.

On the mound Co-Ace James Shields was strong with five shutout innings. Shields escaped a few jams, but only gave up four hits over five. Kurt Birkins and Scott Munter pitched in with scoreless innings. J.K. Ryu gave up a run on three hits in his inning of work. #1 overall pick David Price remained perfect, pitching a flawless ninth inning.

Tomorrow marks the most anticipated match up of the Spring as the Yankees come down to Al Lang Field. The Yankees are expected to keep Derek Jeter and A-Rod in Tampa. Elliot Johnson is not expected to play for the Rays. Andy Sonnanstine will make his first start for the Rays followed by: Brian Anderson, Gary Glover, Troy Percival and Dan Wheeler.

Ben Zobrist to miss 4 weeks with fractured thumb.

Marc Topkin is reporting on the heater that Rays Utility man Ben Zobrist suffered a hair line fracture to his left thumb and will be out at least four weeks. This is a big blow to the Rays roster since Ben was been groomed this offseason as a "Super Utility" player. So far he's played seven positions this spring, making a smooth adjustment to the outfield. Zobrist was also swinging the hot bat this spring .421/.522/.632.

This leaves Andy Cannizaro as the odds on favorite to take the spot vacated by Benzo since Cannizaro is really the only other player who can back up Jason Bartlett at SS. Willy Aybar should also get a look as well. This could also effect who takes Rocco Baldelli's vacant spot. Zobrist's ability to play CF gave the Rays the ability entertain the idea of keeping a guy like Eric Hinske, who can only play the corners. Now the only two players capable of playing back up to Upton are Justin Ruggiano and John Rodriguez who is hitting 0.53 this spring. It'll be interesting to see how Ben Zobrist's injury affects the makeup of this team come March 31.

In other news the Rays made their first cuts after todays game assigning the following players to minor league camp Wade Davis, Jake McGee and Matt Spring and optioning John Jaso, James Houser and Fernando Perez.

Also an interesting tidbit John Raburn was quietly added to the Rays 40 Man Roster

We wish Zobrist a speedy recovery

Rays comeback falls short; Indians win 12-10

Forget Jason Hammel it should be Jason Hammered. Hammel was absolutely lit up today by the Indians to the tune of NINE earned runs in 3.1 Innings. The Rays have their first losing streak of the spring after todays 12-10 loss to the Indians. They also have another streak going. For the second straight day a rotation candidate(Jackson yesterday)struggled leaving me to believe that Andy Sonnastine and Jeff Niemann should be the favorites for spots four and five in the rotation. The complex part of the equation is Hammel and Jackson are both out of options and aren't reliable now, but you'd hate to give them up for nothing in return. Al Reyes and Trever Miller pitched perfect innings. Grant Balfour gave up a run in his inning. And Finally Wade Davis and Jake "Jack" McGee finally had a scoreless appearances, going one inning a piece.

Eric Hinske is proving his value at the plate ripping an RBI double. Hinske may be the odds on favorite to stick with the team if Rocco goes on the DL. Hinske is hitting .462 this spring compared to John Rodriguez who is hitting 0.53. Hinske can also play more positions than Rodriguez and has a better track record in the Majors. My other favorite in the "Rocco Roster Spot Race", Justin Ruggiano, is hitting .231.

Evan "Encore" Longoria was 2-5 putting his average at .375, but that still may not be enough after Joe Maddon was quoted in the St. Petersburg Times as saying Longoria has had some "not so good" ABs this spring. It's seems more likely that even if Evan hits .500 he won't be making the team out of spring. B.J. Upton added a 3 run home run to his spring stat line. John Jaso had a 2-run double.

Boxscore

Rays Spring Training Photos

First round of Spring Training photos from last week:

Jackson hit hard as Rays drop game to Reds 6-4

The Rays proved today that you can't win them all. On a brisk Sunday afternoon the red hot Rays cooled off a bit losing 6-4 to the visiting Reds. Edwin Jackson pitched like he did the first half of last season, which was pretty bad. The second inning was the trouble spot for Jackson. He gave up six runs, five earned and had a throwing error. In total Jackson went four innings giving up seven hits, six runs, five earned, walking two and zero K's. The defense didn't help much either, committing four errors including Jackson's. However, The rest of the Rays pitched well. Chris Mason, Troy Percival, Dan Wheeler, Gary Glover and Mitch Talbot combined for five no hit innings giving up a combined two walks and striking out five.

Evan Longoria was 1-1 with a run scored in his only AB. Hot hitting Jonny Gomes went 0-3, but Mr. March Ben Zobrist continued rolling on with two hits, playing RF and LF. Zobrist has now played seven positions in spring and is hitting .421. Willy Aybar and Joel Guzman were both 0-2.

BoxScore

Jason Hammel gets the start for Rays tomorrow against the visiting Indians and Paul Byrd. Also scheduled to pitch for the Rays are: Grant Balfour, Al Reyes, Wade Davis, Trever Miller and Jake McGee. Before the game Scott Kazmir is expected to throw a bullpen session.

Rays beat Yanks 4-1; Price makes Impressive Debut

The may have changed the name of the field, but today a legend was born on it. The Rays beat the Yankees to improve to 7-1 this spring, but the real story was David Price. Price took the mound in a professional game for the first time. So what he plunked the first batter, he was just setting the tone. Price went on to strike out the side topping the Radar gun at 99 MPH. Scouts consistently clocked Price at 95-97. Grown men wept in the stands as they witness the greatness. Ok so maybe thats all little dramatic for a spring game, but you have to be impressed by David Price's debut in a Rays Uni even in an exhibition game. All in all Price threw 17 pitches, 11 for strikes and Duncan, Lane and Betemit may not be Jeter, Rodriguez and Posada, but you can't dismiss the arsenal Price showed.

Price was the most impressive, but wasn't the only Rays pitcher who pitched well today. Shaking off his so-so first start of the spring, Matt Garza allowed one hit in three innings striking out four. Brian Anderson and Scott Munter threw a scoreless inning a piece and Scott Dohmann was perfect in his two innings of work. Kurt Birkins also worked an inning, giving up the Yankees only run.

Jonny Gomes hit his second home run of the spring, hitting a solo shot off of Mike Mussina. Hector Gimenez also hit a home run(1). His shot came off of Yankee Prospect Russ Ohlendorf. Rays 3B stud Evan Longoria was 1-3 with a run scored, while his closest competition, Willy Aybar was 1-1 with a RBI double playing 1B.

Box Score

The record setting Rays lead by Edwin Jackson will host the Reds on Sunday without Rocco Baldelli, who has all but been ruled out for Sunday's game. The clock is ticking on Baldelli and even Skipper Joe Maddon admitted it by telling the St. Petersburg Times:

"It's not like we're not worried about it right now (but) over the course of the next week something's probably got to give in a positive direction to know that he's going to be able to to get out there with any kind of regularity,'' Maddon said. "You're looking to get nine innings, whether it's as a DH or an outfielder so I'd say the next week is going to be very vital or important to determine that.''

The outlook on Scott Kazmir is much better. Kaz will throw a bullpen session on Monday after completing the long toss portion of his rehab.

Rays continue Marching through spring; beat Phillies 9-1, plus live observations of past 2 games

The Rays improved to 6-1 today with a 9-1 rout over the Phillies, completing my two day, two city sweep. As mentioned yesterday, I was in attendance yesterday and today. I'll get into some observations in a bit, but first some highlights of the game.

"Big Red" Jeff Niemann pitched three no hit innings, which was a lot better than his first outing. This time he kept the pitch count low pounding the zone. Al Reyes and Trever Miller looked good in their innings of work. J.P. Howell gave up the only run, but was solid in three innings. Andy Sonnastine pitched a scoreless 9th inning.

On the offensive side, Joel Guzman, Carlos Pena, Chris Richard and Eric Hinske swung the stick well, all driving in runs. Aki and Jason Bartlett executed a double steal and Bartlett had another steal of his own. Evan Longoria, B.J. Upton, Carl Crawford and Jonny Gomes didn't see any action in the field or at the plate.

They also played a five inning game after the nine inning game finished. J.K. Ryu, Calvin Medlock, James Houser, Wade Davis and Jake McGee all pitched an inning. Reid Brignac(had an epic 10+ pitch walk) and Justin Ruggiano played the whole five innings among some non-roster invitees.

I took over 300 pictures over the past two games so forgive me if it takes a while to cipher through them and upload. I hope I can finish that this weekend, if not Monday the latest. Here are my observations over the past two days:

Thursday

Shields look shakey at first, but rebounded as the game went on. He escaped a jam in the third inning by striking out Geoff Jenkins(I believe) on a wicked change up.

Evan Longoria's swing and stance remind me of A-Rod. In the field he made a laser throw on a bunt attempt. He looks ready, but don't think he'll break camp with the team.

Willy Aybar saw action both days and continues to get more PT than Longoria, leading me to believe they are leading towards him as the starter.

Pena continues to have one of the sweetest swings, hitting a shot to Left Field.

Percival looked very sharp in his first appearance. His velocity look pretty good from where I was sitting.

Aki and Bartlett looked very smooth in the middle, they also seem very committed to getting to know each other spending all day by each others side.

Friday

If I had to describe David Price in one word it would be Professional. Everything Price did was business-like, from shagging fly balls to his bullpen session. He did not act like he was too good to interact with the fans either, signing autographs after his session. Truly a quality pitcher and person worthy of the top pick. He pitched a solid bullpen session and showed no signs of injury.

Jim Hickey and Gary Glover worked on his release point for about 20 minutes.

Ben Zobrist looked very comfortable in center field even on a windy day. He took direct routes and displayed a strong arm. If he can continue to learn the OF it will really help this team.

Reid Brignac has more than enough range to play shortstop. I don't care what you've read about him, but he got to two ground balls that I didn't think any shortstop could get to. He also has a solid arm and a sweet stroke at the plate.

Jake McGee will be a closer down the road. McGee worked from the stretch in his inning, prompting one Rays coach to say "He's got closer stuff, might as well get used to throwing from the stretch."

James Houser and Wade Davis have very solid deliveries from what I saw. Not much unnecessary movement from either.

With it looking more and more like Rocco is done for the spring and maybe longer, expect Justin Ruggiano to make the club. He is a Joe Maddon player and the fact that he can play center only helps his case.

Josh Paul and Mike Difelice are more coaches than players at this time to me. Not that that's a bad thing.

Finally, while it's only spring and people are having fun, the Rays are serious. When it comes down to practicing and working on things there is no joking around. They look very professional and intense. Overall it pretty refreshing to see the changes made in action.

I'm sure I'll remember more things later and I'll post them along with the pictures sooner than later

Rays beat Phillies 6-4

On a rainy day in Clearwater the Rays defeated the Phillies 6-4 in 6 innings. Aki lead the game off with a home run and Carlos Pena followed him a few innings later with a 2 run shot. Carl Crawford and Jason Bartlett had triples, while Gomes went 2-3 with an RBI. Evan Longoria went 0-2 at the plate but made an excellent play on a grounder to third. James Shields went 3 innings and gave up 2 runs on a second inning homer. Grant Balfour went 1 inning and gave up two runs while Troy Percival pitched one perfect inning in his first appearance of the spring. Ben Zobrist entered the game and played a half inning of Centerfield. Tommy was in attendance this afternoon and will post pics of the game sometime tomorrow.

Here's Jonny: Gomes & Pena arrive; still waiting on 3 more

The final two Rays regulars, Jonny Gomes and Carlos Pena, arrived to camp today for the team's first full workout according to The Heater. That means everybody that can be here is here. Joel Guzman, Willy Aybar & Juan Salas are still delayed due to visa issues. One would think that these players had to know there would be a possibility of visa issues and they would have maybe started the process earlier. All three players are playing key roles their respective roster battles. Aybar & Guzman could be the 3rd Base combination should the Rays choose not to go with Evan Longoria to start the season. Their other competition, Eric Hinske, has been in camp for days and could get a leg up on the competition especially with Maddon preaching accountability and trust in his opening address this morning.

As for Salas, the bullpen is really down to one remaining spot between himself, Scott Dohmann and Grant Balfour. Five spots are already taken with Reyes, Percival, Wheeler, Glover and Miller. The sixth spot will go to either Edwin Jackson, Jason Hammel or Andy Sonnanstine. It is almost certain that Sonnanstine and Jackson will make the rotation so Hammel looks to be the long man in the pen. Being almost a week late to camp doesn't help Salas' case for the last spot. Another factor working against Salas is he is the only one of the three I mentioned earlier with an option to go back to the minor leagues, Balfour or Dohmann would have to clear waivers first.

Funny Rays Spring Training Pics from Yahoo

Entire Gallery:




















Is Maddon peeing on Friedman Doggystyle?














Jae Kuk Ryu is thinking one of two things here. 1) I bet I can hit that bird from here or 2) This guy knows I can speak English right?

















Brian Anderson is really, really hungry.

Spring Training Day 2 Pictures

I was out at the Rays second day of spring practice and took some pictures again. Here's your second glimpse of how the boys in blue look this year. Click on the pictures to make them larger. I won't be able to go to any more practices for awhile. Having a real job kind of gets in the way sometimes. Enjoy.

This is the third ball I've seen Garza bobble or drop.

The present and future

"I know you can't grow facial hair yet, but here's some tips anyway"

Kaz hasn't shaved in like a month.

Just thought this old guy looked funny.

Orvella looks like a midget.

Chris Mason walking alone.

Neimann has to duck to get out of the dugout.

Shields and Garza were at each other's side all day.

Scott "The Enforcer" Cursi

Even General Managers need water.