Gone: Carl Crawford, Carlos Pena, Jason Bartlett, Matt Garza, Rafael Soriano, Joaquin Benoit, Grant Balfour.
Essentially, the Rays blew up their entire bullpen - a unit that led the AL in ERA last year - and lost three other cornerstone pieces of the franchise's recent success in Crawford, Garza, and Pena. However, the only irreplaceable piece here is most likely Crawford. Garza and Pena are notoriously erratic and the Rays have the rotation and lineup depth to replace them in Dan Johnson and Jeremy Hellickson. Additionally, the original idiots - Johnny Damon and Manny Ramirez - do their best to fill the hole left by Crawford. Crawford's spot in left was long thought to be reserved for Desmond Jennings but he hasn't quite put the pieces together at the major league level yet.
Overall, it is tough to predict a repeat of the success the Rays had last year. Their new bullpen is a huge question mark for a team that will be playing many close games in a tough AL East.
Prediction: 3rd in AL East. I am not sure that Joe Maddon can squeeze enough lemonade out of this new roster to complement the excellent starting pitching.
Surprise Player: Jeremy Hellickson
Depth at starting pitching allowed the Rays to deal Garza for the entire Cubs farm system and Hellickson is largely the reason for that. He shined in four August starts last summer and then shifted into a bullpen role to end the season and keep his innings under control. Hellickson has dominated the minors at every level, always posting a K/9 rate over 9 while keeping his walk rate low, and can easily slide into the number 2 spot in the Tampa rotation.
Saw Hellickson last year when I was down there, he's the real deal...but you're right - they're gonna have a hard time winning the division with a bullpen anchored by the Farns. But still a great young team with a lot of players that are great to watch.
ReplyDeleteTampa is such a funny market for baseball. I agree, there is a lack of fan base and perhaps a revision to their marketing plan in addition to their roster would improve the club. Time to get the retired folk out for games...or not! Even with the lack of fan base, they play well and maybe that's due to a lack of pressure like we see in the larger cities.
ReplyDeleteGame starts at 6am!! Seniors menu at the concession stand!
ReplyDeleteThey say a new stadium would help but I'm not so sure...having been to both parks in FLA I prefer spending 3+ hrs in the air conditioned comfort of the Trop!
ReplyDeleteI too think they'll be in tough this year but I believe they have the pitching to take out the Yankees. The line-up will miss Crawford for sure but Maddon is a superb manager and should be able to make the necessary adjustments
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