Jump to content
SportsWrath

This sucks


Allstarjim

Recommended Posts

Really wanted to see the Rays in the playoffs this year. Eliminated when Oakland won last night. The Rays have won 89 games with 2 to play, have the second highest run differential in the American League, and have allowed the fewest runs in the Majors this year... by that measure, it's fair to say they had the best pitching staff in all of baseball. And they are getting squeezed out of the playoffs. I hope they win these last two games and get to 91 wins, regardless, been a great season for my "other" team. Although I must say, I feel bad rooting against them now when the Mets came to town and swept them. Probably the best the Mets hit all season for a 3 game stretch. In hindsight, those wins didn't help the Metsies at all, but it sure would've helped the Rays to win 2 out of 3 in that series. :(

 

David Price should win the AL Cy. This team needs another hitter or two. Probably the last we'll see of BJ Upton in a Rays' uni.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

NEVER! I think the Rays were really done in by the absence of Evan Longoria for more than half the season. They were the most dominant pitching staff in the majors, but couldn't score enough runs, and when your best hitter is out of the lineup for that long, it's pretty evident on the reason why. He only played in 74 games and still hit 17 homers with 55 RBI's. If Longoria stays healthy, the Rays win 5 or 6 more games, I believe, and they are in the playoffs.

 

I also think Joe Maddon was part of this teams' failure. The Hideki Matsui experiment was an abject failure and unnecessary. He benched Luke Scott for a significant stretch in favor of Matsui, inexplicably so. Scott wasn't a high average hitter, but at .229 he was 82 points higher than Matsui, who was just abysmal, hittin .147. And Scott provided the power numbers and RBI production that the Rays were lacking. He hit 14 homeruns and 55 RBI's in 314 AB's. Matsui, 2 homers and 7 RBI in almost a hundred AB's. The Matsui experiment was inexplicable, while Scott toiled needlessly on the bench.

 

They just wasted career years from Price (who should win the AL Cy) and Fernando Rodney, 48 saves and a record breaking 0.60 ERA for a closer. Unreal dominance by Rodney this season. Even the great Mariano Rivera never had a season as dominant as Rodney's this year.

 

Just unfortunate for the Rays. Hopefully they can mostly keep this group together next season. 90 wins is something, especially in the AL East.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Come to the dark side.

 

We are WS bound.

 

BTW, Detroit is going to be a dangerous team in the playoffs. Verlander and Scherzer is as powerful a 1-2 starting pitching punch as there is in the AL playoffs. But I believe the Washington Nationals are going to win it all.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

 

BTW, Detroit is going to be a dangerous team in the playoffs. Verlander and Scherzer is as powerful a 1-2 starting pitching punch as there is in the AL playoffs. But I believe the Washington Nationals are going to win it all.

Me too. But the A's have a lot of magic going for them. And pitching overcomes all. Gee, who has good pitching besides the Nats

*rubs chin*

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Could it be the Giants? I have no idea what happened to Lincecum this year, but Cain is great, Bumgartner, Vogelsong, they will be a tough team.

 

I wonder how Strasburg feels right now. Obviously, I've seen more of the Nationals than the Giants or really any other team in the playoffs this year, with the possible exception of the Yankees, and the Nationals just seem to have it all together. They get the timely, clutch hits, the starting pitching is great, the bullpen is great, and they are gamers. The other team I see in this that seems to have it all going for them like that is the Orioles. It just seems like these teams have had a magical year, and I wouldn't be surprised to see that be the World Series... however, the O's still have to get by the Rangers... just one game to do it and anything can happen. Crazy, though, at the beginning of the season if you said there would be a Beltway Series, you'd be openly mocked, lol. Buck Showalter and Davey Johnson... got to be the managers of the year.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I cannot see how you overlook Bob Melvin in the AL for Manager of the Year.

Lincecum didn't take care of himself in the off season. With a 160 pound frame, he needs to be in prime shape. And that led to confidence issues. He has no longer been the Freak with 2 strikes. Glad we gave Cain the long term and Freak the short term money. He's got a chance to prove out in the playoffs and beyond.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...