2023 Rays: It's About Eflin Time

[VORP Speed]

1 run in 24 innings to get swept out of the playoffs last season. Add offense in the offseason?? Nahhh. A couple of J Lowe, Raley, Aranda, Brujan should be up this year and hopefully provide more than they've shown to date. Franco and B Lowe healthy and maybe productive for an entire season? The pitching is the pitching.

 

[Petagine in a Bottle]

I don’t know where this should go, but pretty cool story about retired-Ray John Jaso.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/14/sports/baseball/john-jaso.html?smid=fb-nytimes&smtyp=cur&fbclid=IwAR0b8XxAdLbl_FwjDGPEsCX9eDxDMeZeA9Z4hjncz5mlX77-o7e6eVWspQE&mibextid=uc01c0

 

[jon abbey]

The Rays are always groundbreaking, trying a new approach to pitching again this spring evidently:

View: https://twitter.com/JoeTrezz/status/1626249501617815552

 

[VORP Speed]

Rays HoF inductees.

I think Crawford is really much better known as a Red Sock.

 

[jon abbey]

View: https://twitter.com/tbtimes_rays/status/1630608816894083079?s=46&t=0GHHaPVUX26Io0V2HIcS0g

 

[VORP Speed]

View: https://twitter.com/tbtimes_rays/status/1630608816894083079?s=46&t=0GHHaPVUX26Io0V2HIcS0g

That’s what you get for giving out big contracts!

 

[LoLsapien]

Noone else threw up in their mouth even a little bit seeing Boggs on that poster? And next to Crawford too. It's like they're taunting Sox fans... Not a Rays fan exactly but I respect their approach to innovation and am looking forward to what they do this year. If the Sox aren't contenders I'd enjoy seeing the Devil Rays hopefully take it to the Yanks and Astros this season.

 

[koufax32]

Radio voice Dave Wills passed away unexpectedly. He was only 58.

https://www.tampabay.com/sports/rays/2023/03/05/rays-radio-dave-wills-dies-andy-freed-stuart-sternberg/

 

[LogansDad]

Whatever these guys did to Jeffery Springs is entirely unfair.

 

[jon abbey]

View: https://twitter.com/JasonRRMartinez/status/1640423320737959937

 

[jon abbey]

Pohshay Foeshay Fo Shizzle

 

[VORP Speed]

They were getting some French names on board in anticipation of the move to Montreal. Stuck with them now, I guess.

 

[VORP Speed]

Ahh, the smell of plastic and the glare of fluorescent lighting…it’s opening day at the Trop!!

Rays locked in their 26 man to start the season: Josh Lowe gets another shot to be a major leaguer, Brooks Raley mashed in the spring and gets his shot, too.

 

[MuzzyField]

From Thunderdome to The Trop… Happy 25th Birthday Rays!

In the spirit of persistence, the Tampa PBS affiliate WEDU is premiering a documentary Thursday 3/30 at 9pm on the crazy history that led to the Devil Rays becoming a reality. A few of my friends were part of the creative team that put it together.

Here is a link the WEDU website, there is promo and some bonus material.
https://www.wedu.org/shows/rise-of-the-rays/?fbclid=IwAR1oIDx4Oq47hnZnM4F781Q48R7FM9VD0g-NbCZzo3CseFYJryvK1je6Wq4?fbclid=IwAR1oIDx4Oq47hnZnM4F781Q48R7FM9VD0g-NbCZzo3CseFYJryvK1je6Wq4

The full program will available to stream after it airs. It’s baseball, so I’m not sure about PBS streaming/app access outside of the Tampa/St. Pete/Sarasota market.

 

[jon abbey]

Letting you know in advance I’m going to be irritated when Ben Heller comes up and is awesome, even though two other teams also released him since NY, in I think 2021.

 

[Jim Ed Rice in HOF]

Colts: We've got the most pathetic participation banner ever!
Rays:


Pretty weak celebrating that you won the wild card. Oh, wait...

 

[jon abbey]

View: https://twitter.com/TBTimes_Rays/status/1646988991814594568?s=20

 

[VORP Speed]

View: https://twitter.com/TBTimes_Rays/status/1646988991814594568?s=20

Will be shocked if this doesn’t end up with TJ

Nice streak there. Strategic post by abbey to break it. Now time to see if these young’uns are for real or if it was just a combo of everyone getting hot at the same time and AAAA competition.

 

[LogansDad]

Will be shocked if this doesn’t end up with TJ

Nice streak there. Strategic post by abbey to break it. Now time to see if these young’uns are for real or if it was just a combo of everyone getting hot at the same time and AAAA competition.

I feel like it's a little of all three, to be honest. Everyone on the team was on a heater, sure, but I think they are still going to be pretty good when it normalizes.

Sucks about Springs, though. I do worry that their approach to pitching leads to everyone wearing down, but would need to do more research on that.

 

[jon abbey]

Kyle Boddy runs Driveline, he is as knowledgable as anyone on this topic:

View: https://twitter.com/drivelinekyle/status/1657533565213773824?s=20

 

[Petagine in a Bottle]

Well, there’s a lot of disagreement in these parts over whether previously injured pitchers are more likely to get injured in the future!

 

[jon abbey]

When you start 20-3, you can follow it with a full third of a season at 96 win pace (32-22) and still be a four game home sweep of KC from 112 win pace halfway through the season. That seems good.

 

[Sin Duda]

There's no Sons of Boog Powell thread, so I'll mention it here ... the Baltimores just glided past Tampa for first place!! Yes, I'm not kidding! I would never have believed this in April.

 

[mikeot]

There's no Sons of Boog Powell thread, so I'll mention it here ... the Baltimores just glided past Tampa for first place!! Yes, I'm not kidding! I would never have believed this in April.

The odds of the O's winning the AL East went from zero preseason to 29 after last night's exra-innings win that propelled them a full game up on the Rays. Three games left in the series at the Trop this weekend, should be wild.

 

[VORP Speed]

I guess I can stop avoiding posting in this thread to not jinx the magical season.

 

[jon abbey]

Junior Caminero coming up, that’s exciting.

View: https://twitter.com/jeffpassan/status/1705051468259090751?s=46&t=0GHHaPVUX26Io0V2HIcS0g