The Tampa Bay Devil*Rays staked a strong claim to the best story in baseball for 2008 by staving off the big-payroll Red Sox and Yankees to win their first-ever divisional championship.
USA Today shows the following payroll numbers for the AL East:
Yankees: $209 million
Red Sox: $133 million
Blue Jays: $98 million
Orioles: $67 million
Devil*Rays $44 million
You can buy a championship, but you don't necessarily have to spend more than anybody else. The Rays got theirs at a good price.
The division championship would have confirmed my expected matchups for the American League playoffs, except that the Chicago White Sox have stumbled into a virtual tie with the Minnesota Twins. The White Sox are a classic AL team, relying on pitching and three-run homers. The Twins more resemble the Rays, relying on pitching and defense. Tampa Bay has an edge on either opponent.
Should the Rays make the second round, they will face either the Angels or the Red Sox. The winner of that series should be the favorite to represent the AL in the World Series, but either is vulnerable to an upset by the upstart Rays.
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MVP?
I named Evan Longoria as series MVP more than any other player, I believe. But Longoria missed a key stretch in August while the Rays kept distance between themselves and the Red Sox. The most difficult player to replace in the lineup was shortstop Jason Bartlett, obtained in the offseason from the Twins. Bartlett was a vacuum cleaner at short and showed himself able to handle a bat, as his average crept up and up over the course of the season to .286 as of today (prior to the third game in the series against Detroit).
Though Bartlett has driven in under 40 runs, he has been the defensive glue for the club. I call him the team MVP for the regular season.
Longoria gets honorable mention, and would have taken my award if not for time lost to injury. His batting numbers were too gaudy to ignore, and his defense was spectacular. Quite a campaign for the rookie.
Showing posts with label Jason Bartlett. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jason Bartlett. Show all posts
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Thursday, July 03, 2008
Deja vu: Rays sweep Sox at the Trop
The Tampa Bay Devil* Rays swept the Boston Red Sox in a three game home series for the second time this season, grabbing the third game with another tense one-run victory before a sellout crowd.
The victory moves the Rays to a 3.5 game lead over Boston in the AL East with just over half the season played. The sweep reasonably establishes the Rays as the top challenger to Boston for the AL East crown. One cannot write off the Yankees, however, simply because George Steinbrenner is capable of fielding a completely different team by the end of the season if he chooses. I don't think the present version of the Yankees can compete with Boston or Tampa Bay. The Yanks need pitching, and their outfield defense is weak.
The contest shaping up between the Sox and the Rays is tough to judge. Boston has the clear edge in batting, though the Rays may improve dramatically in that department by the end of the year. The Rays have better defense and speed. Starting pitching is strong for both clubs, but the Rays' bullpen has outperformed Boston's. Finally, Boston is the more experienced club.
Boston should probably win the East, but that could change with a key injury.
Shortstop Jason Bartlett had hits in each of the three games against Boston, and his double/stolen base in the seventh helped ignite the Rays' comeback. Bartlett gets the series MVP award, edging pitcher Grant Balfour.
The Rays' front office has done a great job putting this team together, and Bartlett was a key acquisition in the offseason. The new shortstop provides the best defense the Rays have seen at that position, and he brought an adequate bat along with good speed to the lineup. Though I have praised Delmon Young's play from last year, Young hinted early on that he looked forward to moving on from Tampa Bay. Talented or not, you don't need a player like that on your team. Getting Matt Garza and Bartlett from the Twins for Young and Brendan Harris helped position the Rays for the excellent season they're enjoying.
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On the "J. T. the Brick" radio show I caught Yankeefan guaranteeing that "Dice-K" would beat the Rays on Wednesday. And the Yankees would win the division. Here's hoping the second prediction is as good as the first.
The victory moves the Rays to a 3.5 game lead over Boston in the AL East with just over half the season played. The sweep reasonably establishes the Rays as the top challenger to Boston for the AL East crown. One cannot write off the Yankees, however, simply because George Steinbrenner is capable of fielding a completely different team by the end of the season if he chooses. I don't think the present version of the Yankees can compete with Boston or Tampa Bay. The Yanks need pitching, and their outfield defense is weak.
The contest shaping up between the Sox and the Rays is tough to judge. Boston has the clear edge in batting, though the Rays may improve dramatically in that department by the end of the year. The Rays have better defense and speed. Starting pitching is strong for both clubs, but the Rays' bullpen has outperformed Boston's. Finally, Boston is the more experienced club.
Boston should probably win the East, but that could change with a key injury.
Shortstop Jason Bartlett had hits in each of the three games against Boston, and his double/stolen base in the seventh helped ignite the Rays' comeback. Bartlett gets the series MVP award, edging pitcher Grant Balfour.
The Rays' front office has done a great job putting this team together, and Bartlett was a key acquisition in the offseason. The new shortstop provides the best defense the Rays have seen at that position, and he brought an adequate bat along with good speed to the lineup. Though I have praised Delmon Young's play from last year, Young hinted early on that he looked forward to moving on from Tampa Bay. Talented or not, you don't need a player like that on your team. Getting Matt Garza and Bartlett from the Twins for Young and Brendan Harris helped position the Rays for the excellent season they're enjoying.
***
On the "J. T. the Brick" radio show I caught Yankeefan guaranteeing that "Dice-K" would beat the Rays on Wednesday. And the Yankees would win the division. Here's hoping the second prediction is as good as the first.
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