Tampa Bay Sports Blog

   Yes I am as excited as anyone out there that the Rays are in first. Now this means a few things to me and my few readers out there. First thing is that this series will be intense on the field and in the stands. Going to these games means I will be dealing with all these annoying Sox fans and if the shit goes down on the field, we could be brawling in the stands as well. Anyone ready to post bail for me? My son going to his mother’s for the week doesn’t help either, more free time more to drink is bad news! It should be fun though and I’ll try to keep my cool here. Now all that leads to the fact that my posts will be few and far between over the next few days. I’ll be taking my camera with me to these games so I’ll try to have some cool pics when the series is done. Good times. Now, on to my bitch fest. First thing is regarding something I saw over at DRays Bay. In a quick reference on Saturday’s game I saw something about B.J. Upton being moved into the leadoff spot, which I like by the way, and then there was this statement. “But he’s not a team leader or anything like that, nope.” Are they inferring that this guy IS a team leader? God I hope not. I try not to dog Upton too much because he is young and still developing, but if he’s a team leader there is a problem. I’ve got a friend who’s a coach in the area and is in close with some coaches and scouts for the Rays and he tells me that Upton is a straight up punk. You can see it in his game too. He lacks hustle and just has that look about him. Like I said, I’m not going after him too much because he’s young and has a lot of growing up to do, hell I was a punk too so I get it. I’ll let that go now as it’s not a big deal, it just rubbed me the wrong way. Now on to the real problem. Jonny Gomes. I know I’m about to rip this guy on the heels of him hitting a pinch hit homer last night but I don’t give a shit. He is the most useless player on this team and needs to be gone. I’ve heard fans saying that they like him because he’s an “enforcer” on the roster. What?! It’s not freakin Hockey, it’s Baseball. I don’t see any Red Sox or Yankees players shivering in fear over the fact that Gomes is sitting in the dugout, do you? I also don’t see a need to keep this guy on the team when a guy like Justin Ruggiano has performed better at this level this year and should be sharing time with Gross and Hinske in RF. Gomes is not helping this team and it’s about time the fans started to see that. I know the first thing out of everyone’s mouth is, hey he hit a homer last night that HELPED. True, but what about all the other at bats he’s had where he strikes out or pops out weakly. I actually get queasy when I hear the fans cheering for this guy at the games. What is it about him that you’re cheering? The music? The Pro Wrestler look? The ugly swing? What is it? I don’t get this at all. Please Rays, remove Mr. Gomes from our sight, he serves no purpose at ALL!

Scott Brannelly

Source: DRays Bay

Technorati Tags: BJ Upton, Eric Hinske, Gabe Gross, Jonny Gomes, Justin Ruggiano, Tampa Bay Rays

   Finally some good news out of the Bucs camp. Earnest Graham got the money he wanted and will not be holding out. First report of the deal from Rick Stroud show the deal to be a four year $11 million deal. This news actually excites me! I’ve been a fan of Graham’s since his UF days and was as happy for him as anyone when he broke out last year. Graham took over the starting RB role after injuries ran through the Bucs backfield and finished the year with 898 yards on 222 carries to include 10 rushing touchdowns. He is one of those “work horse” type backs that is very easy to root for. I love this deal and I’m glad the Bucs got this done without any sort of holdout on Graham’s part.

Scott Brannelly

Source: Bucs Beat

Technorati Tags: Earnest Graham, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

   In all things USF Bulls I have deferred to the master Greg Auman. He has some nice stuff over at The Bulletin covering Gransberry and an interview with Joe Dumars. I have little time for covering the Bulls, much less anything else, so I have left that section of the blog alone. I am looking for someone who wants to cover the Bulls, preferably a USF student. If you are interested please email me at scott@tampabaysportsblog.com or leave comments in this post. Thanks.

Scott Brannelly

Technorati Tags: Joe Dumars, Kentrell Gransbury, USF Bulls

   Here we go again. The Lightning rolled out there new sign on the side of the Stadium this week and it seems they screwed up again. This time it was noticed right away (as opposed to the whole Denis thing where he was still pictured on the stadium after being demoted) and will be fixed quickly. In the pic the Bolts have the highly touted Steve Stamkos, who was drafted number 1 overall in last weeks draft, pictured in an action shot holding his stick left handed. What’s the problem you ask? He’s right handed. When the mistake was pointed out team spokesman Bill Wickett said “it’s going to be changed” and that they photo shopped Stamkos’ face on another players body. What? You can’t get a picture of the guy, you have to PHOTO SHOP it? I know he hasn’t played for the team yet but he could at least put on a uniform and take a picture, right? It also amazes me that no one knew he was RIGHT HANDED until pointed out AFTER unveiling the 47 foot sign on the side of the freakin stadium. The stupidity behind this entire story amazes me! I wonder now if anyone even scouted this guy. Hats off to the short bus kids working in the Lightning marketing department. Great job guys! Thank you for bringing this to my attention Mr. Cristodero.

Scott Brannelly

Source: Lightning Strikes

Technorati Tags: Steve Stamkos, Tampa Bay Lightning

   As I sit and watch this game tonight there appears to be something glaringly wrong with C.C. and Kaz. First off, Crawford has been on first twice tonight without even an bluff at taking second. I know he had a sore knee and had said he was “rejuvenated” when he came off his suspension. He isn’t looking so tonight. It really stuck out to me when I saw the homer that Freddy Sanchez hit. That looked like a ball Carl could’ve gotten to and he looked Uptonesque as he went after that ball. We’ll see there. I’m very concerned watching Kaz tonight though. He is looking very uncomfortable as he throws very timidly tonight. His slider is looking like a curveball and his fastball looks very average. He appears to be moving around gingerly as well. I’m very nervous watching this game. I hope my eyes are deceiving me and these guys aren’t hurt. We’ll see.

Scott Brannelly

Technorati Tags: Carl Crawford, Scott Brannelly, Scott Kazmir, Tampa Bay Rays

   This is where I don’t understand the politics of baseball and what not. It appears that Ben Zobrist is still holding those pictures of someone making love to a sheep. Mr. Zobrist is a guy who I have always wondered how he made it. The Rays needed another infielder and now the big Z is here to fill that need. I’ll deal with that. My biggest question here is with Justin Ruggiano. Why send him down? Let’s be honest here, Jonny Gomes is the one who should be gone. Gomes is completely useless in the field and is almost as useless at the plate. I know they’re paying him and he doesn’t have options, but isn’t it time they just DFA’d the guy? I feel pretty confident he’ll get through waivers, and if he doesn’t, he can go somewhere else and strike out with the bases loaded. Justin has earned his shot and brings more to the table than the Pro Wrestler. He can actually play the field, he hits well enough and should be someone the Rays are looking at to platoon with Gabe Gross. Now we still have Gomes and the big Z is back. Outstanding!

Source: Rays Report

Technorati Tags: Ben Zobrist, Gabe Gross, Jonny Gomes, Justin Ruggiano, Tampa Bay Rays

    It’s now official according to ESPN, Barry Melrose is the new Head Coach of our beloved Tampa Bay Lightning. This has been speculated on for a while, and now that the new ownership group has been approved it will be announced today at a press conference. Melrose hasn’t coached since 1995 and only coached in the NHL for 3 seasons. He took the Kings to the Finals in his first season where they lost to Montreal in five games, after which he followed that with two straight losing seasons. Before coaching the Kings he coached the Medicine Hat Tigers of the WHL to a Memorial Cup Trophy in ‘87-’88. After that he coached the Adirondack Red Wings for three seasons where they won a Calder Cup in the ‘91-’92 season. I hope this move works out for the Bolts despite my skepticism. I understand the thought process in going after a “players coach” to replace Torts but I would think they could get someone with more experience who has coached in this decade. All things considered we should be looking at a big season for Vinny Lecavalier under “The Mullet”.

   Another quick Bolts note here. It’s being reported that Vinny Prospal is all but taken care of. The only reason the contract hasn’t been signed yet is due to him being in Europe still. That’s good news.

Source: ESPN

Technorati Tags: Barry Melrose, Vaclav Prospal, Vinny Lecavalier

   This series with the Cubs has been the most fun to watch of any of the series this year. The Rays have showcased over the last couple days how far they’ve come. They hit Carlos Zambrano, which I didn’t expect them to do, and they have played phenomenal defense. All the stars are aligned for this team, especially at home, and we should be looking at a legitimate shot at a 90 win season. This is all due to the defense in my opinion. The ‘D’ has helped improve the pitching staff to the point that teams are trying to BUNT with 2 outs in the ninth in order to try and push a run across. I’ve never been more excited to be a Rays fan. All that being said I would like two things today in the series finally. PLEASE GIVE TROY PERCIVAL THE NIGHT OFF! I know that I can’t take another night like the last two. I’m not picking on Troy, I love the way he pitches, my heart can’t take all these games that go down to the wire. So either the bats need to blow them away or Shields needs to throw a complete game shutout. I know I shouldn’t drink and smoke but this has been brutal, especially with the idiot Cub fans in the stands. Second thing is with Mr. B.J. Upton. Please for the love of god do something to make us think you’re playing hard! I know he’s one of those ‘fluid type’ athletes that make things look easy but it appears to me that he is hot dogging it way too much. When I watch him play it looks like he tries to “look cool” more than play hard. He doesn’t run out balls the way EVERY OTHER PLAYER DOES and he just looks too lethargic in the way he does everything. Show some hustle B.J.! I do want to take a minute to inform everyone of an official name change. I vowed some time ago that I would never refer to TFC by his given name, but over the course of the season he has shown me something that makes me not want to be so harsh with him. I will now adopt Ron and Ian’s nickname of whiskers. Henceforth TFC will now be referred to as “Whiskers”. I would say some positive things about him now, but I’ll hold off for a while just in case I lose my bet with Rays Index. Good times! Hope to see you all out there tonight. Oh, and since I mentioned Rays Index, I saw that The Professor cancelled his trip to the Trop this week due to personal matters. I just want to say I hope all is well with Cork and his wife and this is nothing overly serious. Best wishes to you Mr. and Mrs. Professor!

Scott Brannelly

References: Rays Index

Technorati Tags: BJ Upton, Dioner Navarro, Tampa Bay Rays, Troy Percival

   With everything being so busy I’ve been neglecting our Lightning. Well I’ve finally mustered up some recent news for the Bolts fans.

•    The NHL’s Board of Governor’s unanimously approved the sale of the Lightning to the new ownership group headed by Oren Koules. We all new this was coming, but the fiasco still isn’t over. There are some other things that need to be finished up by the purchasers, but this should be over with now. In the same article there were some rule changes, check it out here.
•    The Lightning acquired the negotiating rights to former fan favorite F Vaclav “Vinny” Prospal. The Bolts traded away Prospal last year for D Alex Picard, after feuding with coach John Tortorella. He is said to be seeking somewhere around $5 million, but with Torts gone who knows. The Bolts traded one of this years 7th round picks and, if he signs, next years 4th rounder to get Prospal back.
•    And finally, posterboy Vinny Lecavalier hauled in the King Clancy trophy last week. The award is given to the player who “best exemplifies leadership on and off the ice and has made a noteworthy humanitarian contribution to the community”. Just another day in the fabulous life of Mr. Lecavalier.

   That’s all for the Bolts for now, I’ll get you an update on the draft when it comes.

Scott Brannelly

Sources: Lightning Official Site, Lightning Strikes

Technorati Tags: Alex Picard, John Tortorella, Oren Koules, Tampa Bay Lightning, Vaclav Prospal, Vinny Lecavalier

   It was a fairly active week with the Bucs as far as off-season stuff goes and there were some things that you may have missed that you need to check out. The Bucs had their annual Fanfest over the weekend and there were some things brought up there that are worth noting also. Let’s get to it.

•    Justin Pawlawski of the ”Buc Blitz” show, which is on Saturdays from 12-3 pm, over at 620 WDAE did a couple of interviews that you should definitely listen to. I really like this guy and he should have his own show somewhere during the week besides producing the Ron and Ian show (which is the best local show by the way). Maybe get rid of stupid ass Jim Rome? EPIC! He does a great job of asking questions without being confrontational or being too soft. He interviewed Bucs GM Bruce Allen at Fanfest and more interestingly, an interview with QB Jeff Garcia while filling in for Steve Duemig. It was said on the Ron and Ian show that when Garcia called in he was so mad Justin had to calm him down in order to put him on the air. Check those interviews out here.
•    RB Earnest Graham said he will be report to mandatory mini-camp and will not be a holdout. This is great news. I really think the Bucs need to give this guy a new deal. I really hate the way NFL contracts work because it’s so easy to see both sides in a case like this. We all pick sides and in most cases people say “you signed the contract”. It’s really not that simple though, especially with Earnest Graham. He came out of hiding and saved this team when Pittman and Cadillac were out. A case could be made for him being the MVP of last year’s team instead of Jeff Garcia. He was a career special teamer before last season and is going into this season as an important part of the offense. He will be splitting carries with Warrick Dunn and Cadillac Williams, and with Dunn aging and Cadillac’s brittle-ness, he will probably getting the bulk of them. He will be screwing himself if he holds out and he should be rewarded for showing up. Give him his money!
•    There was a call to protest Fanfest from some locals, mainly www.firejerramystevens.com, and I’m curious as to how it went. I didn’t hear much about it on the radio or from anyone that went so, if anyone knows anything, please leave comments below. \
•    In the previously mentioned interview with Jeff Garcia and Justin Pawlawski, Garcia explained himself and his contract situation. He really comes across as an honest guy and given that, along with Gruden and Allen’s history of being not so honest, I give him the benefit of the doubt and hope he can get this worked out. Doesn’t it strike you funny though that Gruden can’t seem to get along with ANY of the upper echelon players on the offensive side of the ball?

   That about wraps this up for now. There should be more Buc news coming out with the Mini-Camp coming up so I’ll try to keep everything up to date.

Scott Brannelly

Sources: 620WDAE, Fire Jerramy Stevens

Technorati Tags: 620WDAE, Bruce Allen, Cadillac Williams, Earnest Graham, Ian Beckles, Jeff Garcia, Jerramy Stevens, Jon Gruden, Justin Pawlawski, Ron Diaz, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Warrick Dunn

   I finally have a minute to drop a line to everyone. Between my freakin job, the Rays, birthday parties and Father’s Day I haven’t had any time to get on here and run my mouth. I wish this was my full time job so I could get on here. It had been a pretty interesting last week and I’ll try to do some catching up on here with some posts tonight and over the next couple days. It will be tough with the Cubs coming in. I gave my tickets to friend on Wednesday so most of my catching up will be done while I watch the game then. Good times everyone! I’ve been working on my Insurance site www.insuranceoptionsdirect.com, if you pop over there and check it out and have some ideas for me there please leave comments in this post or email me at scott@tampabaysportsblog.com. Thanks!

Scott Brannelly

Technorati Tags: Scott Brannelly, Tampa Bay Rays

   All hell started to break loose now in Boston. After the incident with Crisp and Joe Maddon last night we all knew something would happen. Well here it is. James Shields hit Dustin Pedroia in the first which I thought would be it, but no! Shields came back in the second and hit Coco Crisp who then charged the mound. Shields took a wild swing at him and missed, after which TFC pulled Crisp to the ground where Jonny Gomes and Carl Crawford went to work on Crisp. It was a pretty brawl as far as Baseball fights go, yet Aki showed us all that is an absolute wuss! Aki stood quietly in the middle of the field being restrained (not really) by one of the Red Sox coaches. I will have a hard time respecting this guy as a man from this point on. Earlier today I pointed out that Aki has not fought his own battles here, now he stands pat while the ENTIRE TEAM fights. There is no excuse for this at all. How can you just stand there while every guy you play with is involved in a brawl? Right or wrong, you NEVER stand pat when your friends, team mates, family or whatever fight! Never! maybe I’m over-reacting to this, but if I was in that locker room with him I would not let this go quietly. I’ll still pull for Aki on the field and that’s it. Time to turn in your package Aki, you no longer require one.

Scott Brannelly

Technorati Tags: Akinori Iwamura, Carl Crawford, James Shields, Jonny Gomes, Tampa Bay Rays, TFC

  If you watched the game last night you saw the confrontation between Manager Joe Maddon and Coco Crisp. Coco tried to steal second in the eighth inning of a 5-1 game and slid late and hard into Akinori Iwamura while being tagged out. It was a blatant cheap shot attempt and Joe Maddon had plenty to say to Crisp when he went out to the mound to replace Jason Hammel. They shouted at each other and eventually stared each other down from the dugout. I love the fact that Maddon is defending his players but I think it’s high time that Aki stopped letting everyone fight his battles for him. Crisp says he was mad at an earlier play in which he says Jason Bartlett blocked the bag at which point he said he told Bartlett to watch out. He then retaliates against Aki while trying to steal in the eighth? This is the second time Aki has been involved with dirty tactics at second and he has not even come close to defending himself. This time it was Maddon, the first time it was Jonny Gomes coming in from right field. I’m all for keeping your composure and what not, but a man needs to be a man! I like Aki and think he’s doing a great job at second, but he looks like a little boy waiting for his big brother to step in out there. He should’ve pummeled Shelley Duncan the first time and he should’ve done it to Crisp as well. In my old age I have learned to walk away from a fight, but I will never let someone treat me like a bitch! It makes me wonder about Aki’s toughness when he just allows people to do this. We saw both ends of the spectrum last night. Aki walked away without saying a word again and B.J. Upton cried like a little bitch after striking out looking for the 400th time this year. Both are wrong and both look bad. Upton needs to shut up and swing. Aki needs to stand up for himself. I’ve always said “if you’re afraid to fight but will, that’s normal. If you won’t fight because you’re afraid, you’re a bitch”. Have some backbone and stand up for yourself Aki! The video here is courtesy of David Chalk at Bugs and Cranks, it was brought to my attention by Rays Index. 

   The other thing that bothers me about this is that the Announcers, Fans, Coaches, Players, Bugs, Birds and everyone else expects the pitcher to hit him today. Our pitcher is Shields today and he gives us the biggest chance not to get swept. He could hit Crisp and could get ejected, not good. Then the Sox win again! Let’s wait to retaliate and how bout Aki stands up for himself now!

Scott Brannelly

Sources: Rays Index, Bugs and Cranks

Technorati Tags: Akinori Iwamura, BJ Upton, Jason Bartlett, Joe Maddon, Jonny Gomes, Tampa Bay Rays

   When I started this site a few months ago there were a lot of things I wanted to try and cover. I’ve pretty much sorted that out, but one thing I thought about covering was Maria Sharapova. I have a sick obsession with her and she has gotten me into watching Women’s Tennis again. I’ve followed her for a few years and I decided not to cover her because I would probably end up getting sued for something. Anyway, I’m sitting here watching the replay of the French Open match between Maria and Dinara Safina and it hit me. I feel disgusting when I hear this. Watching them is not the problem, it’s hearing them. Maria has always been picked on for her Monica Seles type grunts, but this Safina chick sounds awful! The noise that comes out of her sounds like she is having “consensual sex” with Jerramy Stevens. In other words, she sounds like a rape victim in the act. It is the most disturbing sound I’ve ever heard! Now being biased towards everything Sharapova, I realize that her grunts might not turn people on the way they do me, but this is the most horrifying sound I’ve ever heard and I can’t force myself to mute the TV! I don’t know what that makes me (not normal for sure!) but the next time you happen to see that Safina is playing you must watch and listen so you can understand what I’m talking about. I probably shouldn’t have shared this with you all but the Insurance thing is slow today.

Scott Brannelly

Technorati Tags: Dinara Safina, French Open, Jerramy Stevens, Maria Sharapova, Monica Seles

   First things first, don’t think that I’m grouping these guys in any way except they both play for the Bucs. That being said, Jeff Garcia is sounding like an idiot! I was on his side at the beginning of the off-season when he said he wanted a new deal. I have no problem with Garcia wanting a new deal, the Bucs have the money and he did a very good job for us last year. Considering the way NFL contracts work and the age of the veteran QB, I don’t blame him for trying to get as much as possible. This is getting a little out of control now as Garcia is making empty threats to the team as if they can’t survive without him. Check out this excerpt from Stephen Holders column..

“For me to go into this season and if it doesn’t work itself out, if a contract is not presented as far as a renewal and a chance to finish my career here, then I will seriously think about . . . what my alternate options may be. It may come to not even playing football anymore.  And I’d hate to even say that, but I feel like when you mistreat people there comes a time when it doesn’t matter how much money you’re going to be paid. If you’re not being treated the right way it’s going to lead to some drastic decisions and those decisions may just take me away from the game.”

   These are quotes from Garcia that he made on Sirius yesterday. Look Jeff, I would love to see you playing for the Bucs this year as you are the best of the bunch, but to think the Bucs owe you something is asinine! You signed the contract, play you moron. If you play well again Gruden will bring you back, if you don’t you will have a nice retirement with your hot wife and millions of dollars. Get over yourself! If you don’t play the Bucs have Luke McCown (who played well when you were INJURED last year) and Brian Greise who played well before going to Chicago. You don’t have the leverage you think you do so move on!

   Now on to more fun stuff. There is a new site up in the area dedicated to the Madman that is Jerramy Stevens! They have the full list of what makes this guy a large pile of feces and they also have “Fire Jerramy Stevens” type apparel. I love this! As I stated in my previous post on this guy I usually don’t get into the personal lives of pro athletes, but this guy is a special kind of asshole! He is a much worse person than Michael Vick and he’s doing time. At least Vick was just a twisted weirdo who thinks he loves his dogs even though he murdered them. Stevens has no regard for anyone, Man, Woman or beast. He’s a walking litter box who should be next in line for lethal injection. It’s scary to think that the only thing keeping this guy from full fledged maniacal behavior is football. It will be scary to see what happens when he retires. I put the over/under at 1 year after retirement that he move into a permanent cell. Go to the site and read the rap sheet.

Scott Brannelly

Links: Fire Jerramy Stevens, Stephen Holder

Technorati Tags: Brian Griese, Jeff Garcia, Jerramy Stevens, Luke McCown, Michael Vick, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

   The series in Boston is pretty much going the way I thought it would. I’m not silly enough to think the Rays can go to Boston and sneak out with another series win. I figured they would drop the first two and grab the third behind James Shields. This isn’t being brought up because of the two losses, I’ve been meaning to bring this up for a while now. The Rays bats are not very good right now. Aki has picked it up over the last month, TFC and Bartlett are doing better. The problem is the middle of the order. Upton is still taking too many strikes and isn’t hitting for any power. Watching him at this point he looks to be a better leadoff hitter than number three hitter. Pena has struggled and is now hurt. Longoria hasn’t burst on the scene like we all anticipated. Looking at the lineup from top to bottom there is absolutely no one that would scare any pitcher out there. The Rays need to make a move to get a legit middle of the order hitter. To take it a step further in my little fantasy here, I want an elite type hitter. I saw a ridiculous rumor a week or two ago that had the Rays trading David Price among others to the Cards for Albert Pujols. I would do that in a heartbeat. I’m all about developing from within, maintaining a strong farm system and all that but why chase potential when a front line hitter like that may be available. I’m sure that rumor was bogus so don’t take it as me saying the Rays should get Pujols, I’m just saying it’s time to start looking at things a little different. If guys like Matt Holliday, Albert Pujols or Magglio Ordonez become available at a steep price I personally would rather see the Rays go for a more “win now” approach. Now understand, I’m not saying they should try to be the Yankees, they should try to be the Red Sox. Look at it like this, the Sox are a great team because the have Ramirez/Ortiz in the middle. They won without Beckett, Lowell, etc… (although Varitek aint hurtin’ them either). I think Longoria will eventually develop into a great middle order guy, Upton should hopefully find his power stroke again but what else is coming in the way of hitters, Ryan Royster? The Rays lack power throughout the organization and should move some of this pitching depth to get a feared hitter. The Rays originally had a plan to win more toward the ‘09 or ‘10 seasons but things have changed fellas. There should be more of a rush now because pitching is so volatile. Will Shields and Kaz be healthy next year? This seems to be the year that you want to start planning on. With Kazmir and Shields pitching well, Garza improving, a solid bullpen and David Price storming towards the bigs it’s time to start hunting. Here’s my logic. If you trade some guys like Wade Davis, Jake McGee, Jeff Niemann and Fernando Perez it would definitely hurt your minor league system, but you would get a big time bat or two back and that makes you Major League club better right now and for the next year or two after. During that time you can replenish your farm system through the draft and what not. You also still have guys like Mitch Talbot, Jeremy Hellickson, Desmond Jennings, Heath Rollins and Chris Mason down there. You have depth and it’s time to use it! We can’t continue to put this much pressure on the pitching staff and defense. This is why I was for Bonds over Floyd. Say what you want about Bonds, he is feared as a hitter every day he walks and that makes everyone better. Floyd is no Bonds and will probably not stay healthy for half of the teams games this year. Make a move for the sake of winning now please!

Scott Brannelly

Technorati Tags: Akinori Iwamura, Barry Bonds, BJ Upton, Carlos Pena, Chris Mason, Cliff Floyd, David Price, Desmond Jennings, Evan Longoria, Fernando Perez, Heath Rollins, Jake McGee, James Shields, Jason Bartlett, Jeff Niemann, Jeremy Hellickson, Matt Garza, Mitch Talbot, Ryan Royster, Scott Kazmir, Tampa Bay Rays, TFC, Wade Davis

   The Lightning have officially let Head Coach John Tortorella go and the Stanley Cup winning coach is now available to be signed. It’s a sad day even though it may be welcomed by some fans and players. Torts was always a very strict coach who required alot of his players, made everyone accountable and is as stubborn as it gets. All of these traits, which may have led to his firing, were key in the Bolts’ Playoff run in 2004 which eventually ended with the Lightning hoisting the Stanley Cup Trophy. Torts coached here in Tampa Bay for 6 and 1/2 seasons leading the team to four straight playoff appearances and compiled a career record of 239 wins, 222 losses, 36 ties and 38 OT losses. The Lightning made the big show under Torts from ‘02-03 to ‘06-’07, of course winning it all in ‘04. The Bolts finished last in the NHL last season and as the season went on it appeared the players had stopped listening. I’m sad to see him go but I’m not completely disappointed in it. I will be if the geniuses up top do decide to bring in Barry Melrose. Melrose is as useless a head coach you can find today. Bringing him in would essentially be the same thing as the Bucs firing Jon Gruden to bring in John Madden. I would rather see them go after someone with a little more actual experience. Let’s leave Melrose in the booth please. All in all it was a great run with the dictator and I know I’ll miss him. It won’t take him long to snatch up work so I won’t shed any tears but I do wish him well. Thanks for the Cup Torts, we all appreciate it here!

Scott Brannelly

Source: Tampa Bay Lightning Official Site

Technorati Tags: Barry Melrose, John Tortorella, Tampa Bay Lightning

   Two things today. It appears that 1B Carlos Pena broke his finger in his first at bat yesterday and, even though he went on to homer and double, has found himself on the 15 day disabled list. I think this could work out well for Carlos and the Rays. If he can take this time off to heal his finger and his hamstring and comeback a little more relaxed it could be the best thing for him. This is not exactly the best time for the Rays to lose their Gold Glove caliber first baseman but if a guy like Longoria or Hinske can find their power stroke and take over the four spot in the order it could relieve Pena of some pressure when he returns. He is being counted on to be a big time cleanup hitter and is just not responding at the moment. Hopefully it works out this way, I don’t even want to think about how bad this could be.

   The bet has been accepted and is now on after my banter with Rays Index yesterday. Rays Index wrote a post about TFC’s Historical Season in the making comparing him to the likes of Johnny Bench and Carlton Fisk and I felt the need to say something. I’m not disagreeing that TFC is off to a great start, I just felt it was a little premature to start comparing him to the greats. Rays Index weren’t really comparing him to Bench and the like, they were essentially making a point about his great season. It has worked out now between us in a wager that goes like this. If TFC hits below .300 for the year, I’ve been invited to write a post on Rays Index of my own choosing. If TFC hits .300 or above I have agreed to write 10 positive things about TFC and Jason Bartlett. It should be interesting to see how things work out although I do want to say one thing in general here, I never ever root against anyone that plays for the Rays. I’m very critical of the Rays but make no mistake, I’m a fan. If TFC does hit .300 I’ll be happy to write positively about him. Good times!

Scott Brannelly can be reached here.

Rays Index: Historic Season, Defending TFC

TBSB: Relax with praise of TFC

Technorati Tags: Carlos Pena, Dioner Navarro, Eric Hinske, Evan Longoria, Rays Index, Tampa Bay Rays, TFC

   This is getting out of control now. I know everyone out there is happy with the production of the fat catcher so far this year, but let’s all relax and just appreciate what he’s done. I’m not going to try to lie and say that he hasn’t improved or performed beyond expectations, he has. I’m not going to buy into people making him out to be some sort of godsend that has finally arrived either though. We all have our own opinions of how players perform and project, but to think this guy is going to become one of the best at his position is quite absurd. This is why I have a problem with stats. I’m not saying I don’t pay attention to stats, but they don’t always tell the truth. When I see a stat that compares a guy like the fat catcher to Johnny Bench, Russel Martin or Gary Carter I have to stop myself from laughing til I puke. People are getting out of control with stat comparisons and what not and it makes me wonder, what has this all come to? Are we judging players STRICTLY on stats now? I know that baseball is a game of stats. I know that the barometer of how a player is doing in the game is largely based on stats, but how in the hell can you compare TFC (the fat catcher) to Johnny Bench? I’m not saying I’m not wrong in my own assessment of him, hell I’m wrong all the time, but how can you do this? The fat catcher’s name shouldn’t even be mentioned on the same day as Johnny Bench’s much less in the same sentence. I’m not trying to stir anything up here, Rays Indexalready has put me in my place on the net, but what is it they see in this guy that makes them believers? I’ve watched TFC play this year and have marvelled at his improvement, but again, what makes people think he’s going to be a great hitter? I can’t argue sight over stats but every time I watch him hit he is not impressive. He has hit some balls hard, done a great job with clutch hitting but I’m not going to buy into him becoming a great offensive catcher just yet. He has huge holes in his swing, has Steve Henderson as his hitting coach and is already fat and slow. This is a horrible combination for success and I really haven’t seen anything that is going to make me think differently. This is one of those things I just don’t understand. This was all brought up because Steve Henson called TFC a middling catcher. I’m going to lean more towards Henderson in this opinion but I’m not looking to stir up anything here. I’m just curious as to what makes these guys think he’s not? He has never lit it up offensively and he is nothing to brag about defensively either. Let me do this, I’ll give positives and negatives and see if I can figure it out.

•    Positives: He is having a great offensive season to this point batting .352 with an .825 OPS. He has definitely improved offensively and defensively as we all can agree. He has a very good batters eye as he doesn’t strike out much and does get on base. He is gaining a nice relationship with the pitching staff. He is doing a good job behind the plate with an CERA of 3.48 and a CS% of .304. He’s doing this all at an age of 24.
•    Negatives: He has a very average swing with very little power behind it. He clogs up the bases and makes quite a few baserunning mistakes. He’s has very little lateral movement which leads to alot of wild pitches and passed balls. He is still not yet calling the game for pitchers even though people will have you believe he is. He is only 24 and already fat.

   There is not alot of negatives yet not alot of potential either. I’m content with him behind the plate for now and I’m not looking for the Rays to go out and replace him as I was in the offseason. I just don’t think he’s great, going to be great or wouldn’t dog someone for thinking he should be replaced soon. I agree with what they said that drafting Posey to win “now” is retarded. This is all just something to talk about here as I’m not trying to get taken to the woodshed, I’m just curious as to what makes you fans of TFC think he’s going to be an above average player. I’ll do this. I’ll make a friendly bet with Rays Index that TFC will finish the season with an average of below .300. The stakes I don’t want to make crazy because I don’t want to root against him, I’m just not convinced that he’ll be able to keep up his production. Take it for what it’s worth guys and stop comparing him to great catchers because he’s not.

Scott Brannelly can be reached here.

Source: Rays Index, Yahoo

Technorati Tags: Dioner Navarro, Steve Henderson, Tampa Bay Rays

   I need to preface what I’m about to say by giving credit to anyone that has been a Rays fan before the bandwagon opened. I appreciate anyone who has gone to the games and suffered through everything that I have since our inception. That being said there are a couple fans at the games I would love to smack with a spiked bat! The first target of mine is the “heckler”. I don’t hear him too much at the games except when there are below 10,000 at the game. If you watch the games on TV, you know who he is. I don’t know his name but he is one of the most annoying people on earth. He usually picks on one player from the other team and every time they come to bat he yells in some sort of faggy drill instructor type voice. He never has anything good to say and is so loud that he disrupts Magrane and Staats while doing the play by play. I’m told he’s a lawyer but I’m not sure. He is the first idiot. The most annoying people you could ever see at a Rays game though are the second targets. If you’ve ever sat in the upper deck behind home plate, you know exactly who I’m talking about. There is an old couple that have been going to games for at least four years now (that’s the first time I noticed them) that have a stupid tradition. Every time one of our pitchers strikes out a batter they stand up and march the hitter back to the dugout. They each have a sign, one says left and one says right, and they scream ” left, right, left right” until the hitter reaches the dugout. I don’t know how or why they came up with this but it is the most annoying thing in the world! They do it whether we’re winning or losing, no matter how many people are there and no matter what you say to them. It appears they are only entertaining themselves and I’m embarrassed to be near them when they do this. I’ve told them to shut up (I would tell the heckler too but I’ve never sat near him) and every time I’ve been near them the other fans in the area do too. They don’t acknowledge anyone speaking to them and just keep going. Again, I appreciate anyone who goes to all the games these people do, but shut up! I love the Kazmir Krazies, the guys with the bells and wigs and anyone who tries to bring some life to these games. I just can’t stand the idiots who draw attention to themselves by trying to berate the other team. We just started winning. We still have a half empty stadium and we still haven’t earned our respect from everyone. This has gone on for years and it is something that makes people that don’t go much not want to come back. Be a fan and root for your team. Don’t be an obnoxious asshole (Philly fan of any kind) and talk shit just to draw attention to yourself. These people should be lined up on a Monday and publicly lashed like they do in Singapore!

Scott Brannelly

Technorati Tags: Scott Kazmir, Tampa Bay Rays