Tampa Bay Sports Blog

   Andy Sonnanstine threw another gem tonight as the Rays beat the Oriole’s 8-1 to even the series at one. This is creating a nice problem for the Rays as Sonny has pitched very well so far to the tune of four wins in the first month. Jackson is still up and down and Hammel had a rough night last night but they seem to be locked into spots due to the lack of options. We have harped on this but what are the Rays going to do when Kaz comes back Sunday? I’ve been on board with shopping and moving Edwin Jackson (I still am) but that’s not likely to happen so I have thought of something and I would like some opinions on it. I’m not sure so I would like someone to tell me but I believe that Matt Garza has more options. If that is so I would love to see the Rays send him down when Kazmir returns. I like Garza and think he’ll do fine here and I understand the pressure on the organization to keep him up here because of the trade but it makes more sense to me to send him down if possible. He’s coming off an injury that we aren’t sure is fixed, he hasn’t pitched that great and I think it would be good for him to sort this out in AAA rather than in the bigs. I know Kirk Birkins is expendable but that doesn’t create a spot in the rotation. We’ve seen Hammel and Jackson in relief and it doesn’t seem to suit them. Sonnanstine has earned a spot so why not Garza? If there are no more options on him then this is irrelevant as Sonnanstine will be the odd man out, but if not then Garza should go. What do you think?

Technorati Tags: Andy Sonnanstine, Edwin Jackson, Jason Hammel, Kirk Birkins, Matt Garza, Scott Kazmir, Tampa Bay Rays

   Let me give it to myself before I get shell shocked by Rays Index and the rest of them. Jason Bartlett is better than Brendan Harris. I judged Bartlett too quick and I have to retract my earlier statements. In the first few weeks of the season I was so unimpressed by the play of Jason Bartlett that I started speaking out of turn on some things. Bartlett still makes me miss Harris offensively at the moment but after seeing him play short the last few weeks, the defense is noticeably improved. At the moment Bartlett has seemed to put the throwing problems behind him but the range is there. He has made some great plays and I feel the need as a man to let everyone know that I have tasted my foot and have decided to remove it. I still have some complaints about some things on the defensive side but this is a much better team. We obviously miss Delmon Young is right field but Gross and Haynes seem to be fine out there. B.J. Upton still plays too shallow in center and whenever Hisnke or Gomes is in right is hold my breath. None of this is horrible though which leads me to Dioner Navarro. Navarro seems to be swinging the bat better so far this year but he is still a statue behind the plate. I have never understood the love affair with this guy. He stabs at too many balls instead of sliding his body, his arm is average at best and from what I can see he is still looking to the dugout to call a game. I think Shawn Riggans does a fine job behind the plate and would like to see him get more playing time but this is all minor. This team is light years ahead of last year as Longoria is as good if not better than Aki at third and Aki has translated nicely to second. Pena is one of the best I’ve seen at first and Crawford makes up for bad jumps with great speed. The right field platoon is working and Upton is slowly improving in center. The biggest difference is Bartlett. I’m not afraid to admit when I’m wrong and I’ll take my lumps for running my mouth. Bartlett has made a huge difference on defense and I’m glad he has. If Aki and Bartlett would start hitting I would be much happier but they are part of the solution right now and I’ll take whatever is given to me on this as I was WRONG!.

Technorati Tags: Akinori Iwamura, BJ Upton, Carl Crawford, Carlos Pena, Dioner Navarro, Eric Hinske, Evan Longoria, Gabe Gross, Jason Bartlett, Jonny Gomes, Nathan Haynes, Shawn Riggans, Tampa Bay Rays

   Well the draft is over and all the hoopla began on how great everyone is or why did they draft a guy like Dexter Jackson so high and then I saw something that was actually interesting. Roy Cummings reported today that the Bucs received trade offers for Chris Simms and turned them down. Huh?! I don’t understand what is going on with this guy. Let’s try and review what we know and see if we can figure out what the Bucs are thinking here. First thing is Simms doesn’t want to be here anymore. I get this but I still can’t figure out why he resigned here to begin with. Granted he was a restricted free-agent when he re-signed but I don’t know why he didn’t at least test the waters. That’s Simms fault. Now we have Jeff Garcia, Brian Griese, Luke McCown and Josh Johnson in some order in front of him and there is no reason I can see the Bucs kept him. I know you want to get the most out of a trade but when you have a guy, who is obviously out of your plans, and someone wants to give you something for him, take it. I’m not a Simms supporter or basher, he’s played poorly and well, but I certainly can’t see a scenario that keeps him here. Griese has proven himself in this system and so has Garcia and McCown so why hold on to him? Gradkowski will be gone and Jake Plummer is retired (sort of) and now there’s a ‘new protoge’ so what’s the deal? I’m no GM but Bruce Allen isn’t that far ahead of me with this type of reasoning. According to Cummings the Bucs were pushing Gradkowski when asked about trades. Maybe there is a chance in hell that Gradkowski could be decent but no one is giving up a draft pick to find out, so why not unload someone you don’t want? This is extremely puzzling and this is one of the many things that Gruden and Allen do that aggravate the crap out of this fan base. Simms was a 3rd round pick and hasn’t performed better than that, plus he has no spleen now and is at least 4th or 5th on the depth chart so what in god’s name makes these guys think he is worth more than a 6th or 7th round pick? If anyone know please explain it to me because I’m lost here. Wait maybe I’ve got it, Gruden tried to coax Phil Simms out of retirement so he could have another ‘veteran quaterback’ and Simms told him to go to hell. Now he’s taking it out on his kid. Sounds good to me. Got a better explanation?

Sources: Roy Cummings,

Technorati Tags: Brian Griese, Bruce Gradkowski, Chris Simms, Dexter Jackson, Jeff Garcia, Josh Johnson, Luke McCown, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

   For my very few readers out there a quick note. I’m having some trouble with the site right now and am hoping to have it fixed shortly. This is a learning process for all as this is my first blog and I’m learning all of this on the fly so when I’m hit with spam and other crap I have a hard time dealing with it and must bring in help. We should have all taken care of by tonight or tomorrow morning at the latest. In the mean time enjoy the games and I’ll get to work once things are squared away.

   The Magic have moved on to the second round of the playoffs with a convincing victory over the Toronto Raptors 102-92 and won the series 4-1. Dwight Howard had his third 20/20 game of the playoffs and simply proved to be too much for the Raptors to handle. Howard, Turk, Lewis and Nelson all played well throughout and especially down the stretch to get the Magic through a very physical game. Howard had 21 points and 20 rebounds, (10 of which were offensive) and everyone chipped in down the stretch to finish off Toronto. Jameer Nelson and Keith Bogans hit three pointers in the final three minutes and the Magic again had six players in double figures scoring in the series finale. This is hopefully the start of something big here as the Magic await the winner of the Sixers/Pistons series. It will probably end up with Detroit hosting the Magic and that is what this team said they wanted. The Magic were swept out of the first round last year by Detroit and are looking forward to getting some payback. The Magic will be rested since they finished this series off pretty quick and there will be no excuses this time. Go Magic!

Source: Yahoo NBA

Technorati Tags: Hedo Turkoglu, Jameer Nelson, Keith Bogans, Orlando Magic, Rashard Lewis

   Well in case you’ve been locked in a closet and hadn’t heard let me tell you, our hometown Tampa Bay Rays are in first place! Well tied for first actually but in first none the less. I know it’s early and I know I’m not supposed to get overly excited about it this early but c’mon! I’ve been a fan since Wilson Alvarez and Juan Guzman! I’ve had to watch Ben Grieve and Vinny Cashstealer! I’ve earned this and so have you. Sound off and let ‘em know you’re excited too. What a great week it’s been and hopefully they can ride this momentum for a while and give us all a chance to prove this is a baseball town. I will post the standings just for fun, look and be in awe.

   The other exciting news of the day for the Rays is that James Shields has won player of the week honors. After beating Toronto early in the week with a line of 7 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 5 K Shields finished off the week against the Sox with sparkling line of 9 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 7 K against Boston ace Josh Beckett for the sweep of the Sox. That’s the kind of week you like to see from your ace. The Rays are off tonight so we get to soak this up for another day.

Source: Yahoo MLB

Technorati Tags: James Shields, Tampa Bay Rays

   This story isn’t any surprise to any of us Magic fans but, according to Brian Schmitz, Hedo Turkoglu has been named the winner of the most improved player award. The Magic have scheduled a news conference for tomorrow but they would not disclose what it was for. Turk had an outstanding season and has continued it into the playoffs. He bumped his points per game average from 13.3 to 19.7, his rebounds from 4.0 to 7.3, his assists from 3.2 to 4.7 and bumped his field goal, free throw and three point percentages up as well. You could always see Turk had game but he never had as much responsibility before this season. With Grant Hill gone and the Magic not completely sure what to expect from Rashard Lewis, Turk was expected to step it up and he certainly delivered. He has shown the ability to score from anywhere on the court but, more importantly for the Magic, he showed that he’s a cold blooded closer. Congrats to Hedo and hopefully this isn’t the end of the hardware received this year.

Technorati Tags: Hedo Turkoglu, Orlando Magic, Rashard Lewis

   Well day two is done and the Bucs made some trades on both days to acquire more picks. Nothing very significantcame of the trades and the draft went along fairly quick and smooth. Today’s picks were…

•    3rd round: OG Jeramy Zuttah, Rutgers
•    4th round: DT Dre Moore, Maryland
•    5th round: QB Josh Johnson, San Diego
•    6th round: LB Geno Hayes, Florida State
•    7th round: RB Cory Boyd, South Carolina

   It should be no surprise to anyone that a QB was taken by Gruden so I’m not going to fret over that. I definitely thought the 7throunder was a puzzler with the Bucs going for a running back. They have what seems to be a plethora of RB’s on the roster already (QB’s too but anyway) so I thought for sure they would take a flyer on another WR or OL. This was a draft that didn’t have many big names for the Bucs but I trust Monte Kiffin for sure to pick quality guys for the defense. Gruden is Gruden so we’ll hear how great every one of these guys are and probably won’t see much of them this year unless one of them really step up and show something. Anyway the grades are already being handed out by Fox Sports and others in a race to see which idiot can decide how the NFL teams did in their ‘expert opinions’. I advise again going to Buc Em’ and stopping there.

Technorati Tags: Cory Byrd, Dre Moore, Geno Hayes, Jeramy Zuttah, Josh Johnson, Monte Kiffin, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

   What an outstanding week it has been for the Rays Nation. First, they sweep a very good Toronto team in the home away from home series in Orlando, only to follow it up with a sweep of the Boston Red Sox at home. There were big time crowds, big time plays and really big time pitching involved. Today James Shields out dueled Boston Ace Josh Beckett and pitched the best game of his young career in, oh how should we put it, Beckett-like fashion. Shields mowed down Boston hitters with a precision and efficiency we’ve been waiting for out of him this season. Shields hadn’t pitched up to his usual standards up to this point this season, even though he still gave the team a solid six or seven innings, until he put it all together today for the sweep of the Champs. The pitching was the most exciting and uplifting part of the sweep as Shields, Edwin Jackson and the bullpen locked down a formidable Boston lineup (even without Lowell and Ortiz) and showed no fear in doing so. The Rays now have a pitching staff that can stand with anyone which includes the best bullpen in baseball this season. I repeat loudly, THE BEST BULLPEN IN BASEBALL! Now I’m not a fool thinking this can hold out the entire season but it’s a large building block for the team to build on the rest of the season. They all know they are good enough now and should begin to carry themselves more confidently and relaxed when they visit Boston and New York later in the season. Outstanding job Rays!

Technorati Tags: Edwin Jackson, James Shields, Tampa Bay Rays

   I want to say something to you to all out there. You should be watching the NBA playoffs. Not just the Magic, but all these games. I just finished watching the Jazz/Rockets game and it was great. I hear people all the time telling me the NBA isn’t what it used to be since Jordan, Magic and Bird. If you really think that then you never really liked Basketball. If you can’t appreciate watching Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard, Allen Iverson, Chris Paul, etc.. then you never liked the game. These games are so much fun to watch it’s silly. Like him or not Kobe is today’s Michael Jordan. I’m not saying he’s better or worse but he is as much fun to watch. So is Dwight Howard and Lebron James and the whole league in general. I get tired of the ‘old school’ people who talk about the game changing and guys can’t do what they used to do. Do you think Isiah Thomas could cover Lebron James? Do you think Kobe Bryant couldn’t play against Michael Jordan? Do you think Ray Allen couldn’t shoot in 1982? I think not! As all sports go athletes evolve and the game changes but it doesn’t make it worse. Just because guys dunk more now than they did 20 years ago doesn’t mean the game is worse. Just because the games have lower scores now doesn’t mean these guys are worse offensively. Most are better defensively. If you put Bruce Bowen on Joe Dumars he shuts him down just like he does anyone else. The arguments people have when it comes to this crap are asinine. All games change. All athletes are better. It’s not just steroids either. It’s conditioning, it’s the game getting specialized, it’s coaches schemes getting more intricate and so on. I wish people would evolve with the game that they watch and realize that it is constantly improving due to multiple things that coaches and athletes can do. If you’re not watching these games now and you watched them in the 90’s or 80’s you’re really missing some great basketball and you should say that you were NEVER a basketball fan, not that you used to be.

Technorati Tags: Orlando Magic

   I’ve never been more excited to be a Rays fan. The Rays beat Boston again tonight 2-1 and it was an awesome game. Edwin Jackson pitched well and the bullpen did too. The Rays hung in against the Sox all the way Akinori Iwamura finally came through in the eighth with a two run homer that sealed the deal. Clay Buchholz pitched a great game and kept the Rays hitters off balance all night yet the Rays did enough to get by and that was great to see, again! My seats tonight were right behind the Boston dugout and I figured I would be hounded and annoyed all night by the front-running Tampa Bay Red Sox fans. There were less than expected and it was a beautiful thing to be a part of. There are still more Sox fans at the game than Rays fans most likely but it was much more even tonight than in the past. As I told one of the Sox fans, I’m not saying the Rays are going to win the division or even go to the playoffs this year but it’s nice to have scoreboard, even if it’s just for a weekend. I heard all the crap from the idiots tonight about how they are the Champs and I’m not disagreeing but how can you blame us fans for getting excited. Most of the excitement in it is BECAUSE the Sox are the Champs. We’re not taking the title from you, we’re just excited that things seem to be going in the right direction and we beat the Champs in a series. Think about it. Tim Wakefield, who has been pitching since Babe Ruth, is like 152-2 or something against the Rays in the Trop but we pulled that game out last night. The Rays were dominated by Clay Buchholz for seven innings only to break through on a homer and pull out another one. This is competing. This is exciting. The Rays may not be able to keep it up through the entire season but whether they do or not, right now we are competing and winning. The Rays have done this with guys like Bartlett, Pena, Garza and Iwamura underachieving, Kazmir and Floyd hurt and a multitude of other things that in the past they would have never overcome. It is becoming a time in Tampa Bay where it is harder to except when the Rays lose. It is more fun to watch this team, win or lose, than it ever has been in it’s history. What a game and series so far. Sorry Sox fans but even though the Rays may not quite be there and they may have been a laughing stock since their inception, the Rays are close. They beat you this weekend and regardless of the trash you may talk they haven’t gone 80+ years without a ring, just 10.

Technorati Tags: Akinori Iwamura, Edwin Jackson, Jason Bartlett, Tampa Bay Rays

   The Bucs draft went off today without too much wildness. I saw rumors of a Jason Taylor trade, a Chad Johnson trade, a Lito Sheppard trade and all kinds of other crap I had not intention of paying attention to. I originally intended to cover this pick by pick but I again found myself annoyed with Mel Kiper and the other geniuses and left early to go to the Rays game. It was a smart move in hindsight and I feel completely covered by what Buc Em’ did. Anyway here’s who the Bucs drafted and I’ll leave to the Buc Em’ guys to analyze it as I really didn’t get to see much of the players drafted and it sounds like they know who they are and what to expect.

•   1st round: CB Aqib Talib, Kansas
•   2nd round: WR Dexter Jackson, Appalachian State

   I again advise all interested in the draft coverage for the Bucs to go to Buc Em’ and check it all out there as they are on top of things. I just want to vent a little now about this stuff. I had no less than 100 people in the last two weeks ask me who the Bucs would draft and what did I think of the mock draft and blah, blah blah. I must say I love all the drafts as they bring new hope and excitement to any franchise and it is fun to imagine what the prospective athletes can do for your team if expectations are met. The problem is, especially with the NFL draft, that no one knows what’s going to happen. I repeat NO ONE knows. Not the analysts, the fans, the players, the scouts or even the coaches know what is going to happen. I know that is part of the excitement but I can’t stand when guys like Mel Kiper (obviously he annoys me most) and others sit there and decide who made a mistake and who did great. Look, bottom line is if these guys were that smart they wouldn’t be working for ESPN. I love the MLB and NHL drafts more than the NFL and NBA drafts because there is not as many ‘geniuses’ out there telling teams how they screwed up. The worst part of the draft is the fact that as soon as it’s over there will be draft grades everywhere. How can you give a grade when they haven’t played yet? I give my opinions on stuff all the time and I’m wrong a lot more than I will ever admit but I know that if I was as smart as I thought I was I would be working for an organization somewhere making them champions and not typing about it on the internet. No knocking the draft but just follow the coverage and dream with the rest of us and don’t decide it was good or bad before you see anyone play.

Technorati Tags: Aqib Talib, Dexter Jackson, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

   The Magic finally showed some clutch play away from the Amway Arena and put down the Raptor’s for a 3-1 lead and are one away from closing out the series. Turk stepped up in the fourth and the Magic overcame bad play from the backcourt to overcome Toronto. On that note I must get into the backcourt situation with the Magic. The big three of Howard, Lewis and Turkoglu are good enough to compete with almost anyone anf with that the rest of the team must realize and augment this. I love Jameer Nelson and his toughness but this guy has to be more careful with the ball and play like the point guard the team needs. He is turning the ball over way too much and this will become a problem against the better teams in the East. I have confidence in this team because the big three are better than most realize but the rest of the team needs to assist them and not try to do too much. This is sort of like the Quarterback “managing the game” in football. Those QB’s asked to do that are expected to try to make a play when asked but most of the time they are ‘required’ to play it safe and not make mistakes. That’s what Nelson and Evans are doing right now. A guy like Turkoglu having seven turnovers is not bad because he can make plays that most can’t. A point guard in the position like Nelson can’t have four turnovers (should have been counted for about ten) as he is not the playmaker he seems to think he is. The Magic are going to get through this series but when they come up against a Boston, who is ridiculous deep, or a Detroit or even a Philadelphia they are not going to get by with this type of play from their backcourt. I’m one of the few who thinks the Magic’s big three are good enough to beat a Boston big three of Garnett, Pierce and Allen (really a big fourto include Cassell) because I believe our big three overall have more of a “killer instinct” than theirs. The problem is that Boston’s other players don’t create more issues for their guys to overcome. If Nelson, Evans and Arroyo continue to hinder more than help than there is no shot and that would be extremely disappointing.

Technorati Tags: Carlos Arroyo, Hedo Turkoglu, Jameer Nelson, Maurice Evans, Orlando Magic, Rashard Lewis

   I’m out of control right now. What a game!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

   What a huge night for the Rays and their fans. Rays Index wrote today about how big this series actually is for the Rays and I’m in complete agreement on this. This series with Boston is a show a prove opportunity for the Rays. This is huge not just for the fans, who finally get to see how this team matches up against the big boys. It’s not just big for the league to see what the Rays are made of. It’s biggest for the players themselves. This is a chance to get out there and finally realize that they ARE good enough to compete with these guys. I’ve been a fan since day one here as this is my hometown and I am loyal to a fault and this is by far the best TEAM the Rays have fielded since their inception. I will now delve into tonight’s game with the most positive thought I have had of this team to date. I’ve been very critical of the team, players and so on. Sometimes it’s fair and sometimes not. There will be no negativity tonight. I saw something in this team tonight that has been rare in the past. They believed. They showed they believed and they showed they belonged. It was great to see it in their faces and in their body language. Sure there were guys still visibly tight and pressing in the pressure situations but that’s understandable. Their was a different look to these guys though, even the ones pressing. They didn’t look nervous like they did in the past like they were worried about being the guy to screw it up. They looked like they wanted to be the guy to get it done. In the past a situation like the one we saw with Dan Wheeler facing Ortiz, and then Manny Ramirez, us fans and players would be all but sure that something bad was going to happen. Even though the thought still may have been there (I admit I thought it) and Wheeler put it to bed with authority. Again in the 11th, Scott Dohman got a double play out of David Ortiz to shut the Sox down. This was a beautiful thing to watch. I was more excited watching this game tonight than any I game I can remember watching. I will say nothing negative about anyone this evening, not even Joe Maddon. I know I believe the Rays are closer than ever to competing, but the RAYS should now too. At this point in my post it’s in the bottom of the 11th and C.C. just stroked a single to left and stole second and I’m going insane so I need to get away from the computer. I hope everyone out there is as excited as I am about the Rays tonight, win or lose. 

Technorati Tags: Akinori Iwamura, BJ Upton, Carl Crawford, Carlos Pena, Dioner Navarro, Eric Hinske, Evan Longoria, James Shields, Jason Bartlett, Jonny Gomes, Matt Garza, Nathan Haynes, Tampa Bay Rays

   The Magic dropped their first game of the playoffs and it wasn’t very close. Toronto jumped out early and finished off the Magic by a score of 108-94. The Magic’s ‘big three’ in Turk, Lewis and Howard all played well but the Raptors bench players showed up to play tonight. The Raptors bench outscored the Magic bench 42-24 and that was the killer tonight. This hopefully shows the Magic personnel their weakness and the boys come better prepared for game 4 on Saturday.

Technorati Tags: Hedo Turkoglu, Orlando Magic, Rashard Lewis

   The Rays are now 6-0 in Disney’s Wide World of Sports Stadium and have gotten back to the .500 mark. There was some sketchy play on the field (Dioner Navarro) but the Rays overcame it behind Evan Longoria and Carl Crawford to finish off the Toronto Blue Jays. Surprisingly Troy Percival was used for a third straight day and Joe Maddon said in an interview with Todd Kalas after the game that Percival “will not be available” tomorrow regardless of the situation. That’s comforting with Boston coming to town. It was a great series for the Rays and they most definitely look improved over last years club all the way around.

Technorati Tags: Carl Crawford, Dioner Navarro, Evan Longoria, Tampa Bay Rays, Troy Percival

   Well no sooner than we were figuring out where everyone would fit with the new Gabe Gross acquisition the Rays designated Dan Johnson for assignment. This gives the Rays 10 days to trade, release or pass him through waivers. This puts me a little more at ease as Gross, even though I’ve yet to see him play, can help out in the outfield. The Heater had the story first and you can read about it here.

   In other Rays news Scott Kazmir made another rehab start this morning, yes at 10:30 am this morning and everything went well lining him up for one more rehab start and a May 3rd return to the bigs against Boston.

One more note on the Rays here. Credit is due to both DRaysBay and Rays Index who both do an outstanding job covering the Rays minor league affiliates. I used to keep up with that but with my job keeping me so busy and trying to keep up with all that’s going on in Tampa Bay and Orlando there’s no time for that anymore. I don’t feel like I’m missing much with the way these guys keep up with things though. Check out the above links and see.

Technorati Tags: Dan Johnson, Gabe Gross, Scott Kazmir, Tampa Bay Rays

   If the Rays keep this up the ownership group may look at a new ballpark in Orlando instead. Just kidding (hopefully). Shields pitched well, Longoria homered, Navarro made a nice return and Eric Hinske had a good time bashing his former team. I’m of course speaking literally here as Hinske darn near hit for the cycle against his former team. A nice game all around for the Rays and they have won four straight in Orlando now dating back to the last years sweep of the Rangers. The fun part of this win today was that earlier today DRaysBay interviewed Drunk Jays Fans and they seemed pretty happy not to have Eric Hinske anymore. How bout now? I’m not going to make too much of that because we can relate with Aubrey Huff. Huff kills us every time it seems but I don’t want him back, so believe me I can relate.

   In other Rays news today the Rays picked up another lefthanded outfielder from the Milwaukee Brewers in Gabe Gross for minor league pitcher Josh Butler. You can read about the trade in a brief mention over at MLBTR. I’m puzzled as to why the Rays need another LH outfielder. What exactly are they trying to do here? We now have Dan Johnson, Eric Hinske, Nathan Haynes and eventually Cliff Floyd. Hmmmmm…… Hinske has definitely earned more playing time and Jonny Gomes is hitting his way into an everyday spot soooooo…… OK, sorry. I’ve got to assume that Haynes is on the way out and don’t forget Justin Ruggiano is still on the roster, for now. I’ve never seen Gabe Gross play so I’m not knocking him, maybe he’s good. This is just strange though. I’m not a fan of Nathan Haynes but I think he’s done a good enough job to keep a roster spot and when Pena can play first again I’ve got to assume that Hinske will be the DH with Gomes receiving most of the playing time in right. This is why I like Haynes on the roster as with Hinske or Gomes in right we need someone to be a late inning defensive replacement. I guess this will all sort itself out and we need to see what Gross can do but this is still very questionable right now. I’ll leave it alone and see how it goes.

Technorati Tags: Carlos Pena, Cliff Floyd, Dan Johnson, Dioner Navarro, Eric Hinske, Evan Longoria, Gabe Gross, James Shields, Jonny Gomes, Justin Ruggiano, Nathan Haynes, Tampa Bay Rays

   The Orlando Magic played game 2 of their playoff series with the Toronto Raptors tonight but who new? The NBA could’ve found a way to put this game on broadcast TV but instead it was on NBATV. Oh well, the more they hide them the more surprised everyone will be to see them in the Eastern Conference Finals. The Magic squeaked by in game 2 behind Dwight Howard’s second straight 20-20 game of the playoffs. Howard had 29 points and 20 rebounds and Jameer Nelson and Rashard Lewis had strong nights in the 104-103 victory. I didn’t get to watch this one as I don’t subscribe to NBATV but there was a live blog over at the Orlando Sentinal with Tim Stephens. I forgot to post that earlier but I will remind everyone next time as the Thursday night game is on NBATV also. Sorry Tim! It’s been a good night for Orlando and a bad one for Toronto. Hopefully we keep beating em down.

Technorati Tags: Jameer Nelson, Orlando Magic, Rashard Lewis