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Rays better than the Yankees? Really?
That’s what Gary Shelton of the St. Petersburg Times said in a partly sarcastic article with some jokes that fall short. Despite the tone of the article, Shelton believes the Rays has the overall advantage over the Yankees due to age and talent.
Via St. Petersburg Times:
I mean they are better. Younger. Faster. Hungrier. They play the game so much harder that even Steinbrenner-the-sequel, the same guy who recently acted as if the Rays were kids who didn’t appreciate their allowance, couldn’t keep quiet about the embarrassment. You get the feeling Hanky the Yankee is ready to bowl over a Yankees catcher himself.
In other words, yeah, these Rays ought to finish ahead of these Yankees.
I know, I know. Any moment now, Yankee fans will hit you with their history books. And it is true: The Yankees have a glorious past. On the other hand, so did Constantinople.
At this point, however, watching the Yankees is kind of like watching the Rolling Stones. It’s nice to see they can still strut around because everyone loves the oldies, but down deep, you find yourself hoping that no one breaks a hip.
Yes, Shelton did a typical side-to-side comparison list at the end of the article, and yes, the Rays’ bullpen is not far and away better than the Yankees as Shelton makes it to seem (.08 points separate the teams’ bullpen ERA). All history books aside, does Shelton actually have a point here? Are the Rays actually better overall than the Yankees? What do you think?
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on Saturday, May 17th, 2008 at 9:04 pm and is filed under Open Thread.
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17 Responses to “Rays better than the Yankees? Really?”
May 17th, 2008 at 9:10 pm
Their hitting is worse but their starting pitching has been much better.
If our hitters come back, we’ll be better.
May 17th, 2008 at 9:18 pm
Someone should tell him it is May and that the O’s were in that same position a few years ago.
THey have a good team, but I still don’t see this being their year. I think they will come back down to earth and do average. Though for years to come I expect this is the type of Rays we will see, I just don’t see it starting this year.
May 17th, 2008 at 9:41 pm
These Rays have much more talent than those O’s. No comparison.
May 17th, 2008 at 10:52 pm
I agree with Pablo, those O’s were being helped by a ridiculously over performing Brian Roberts.
The Rays hitters are all young and performing to their level or slightly below it. Maybe with the exception of Navarro.
And the Rays pitching is legit.
May 17th, 2008 at 11:40 pm
At home, the Rays seem to have an advantage. Yet they’ve only played 18 road games. and are a .500 team on the road, and some of their heavy hitters are missing on the road. Iwauara is a sub-200 hitter on the road for example. I feel they will finish over .500 this year and have a major impact on the division, but the Yankees and Sox will right the ships and finish 1-2 as always.
May 18th, 2008 at 12:20 am
No.
May 18th, 2008 at 3:59 am
The standings never lie. At this stage of the season, the Rays are better. Probably won’t last as the bats warm up. But it’s not an outrageous thought. You are as good as your win column says you are.
May 18th, 2008 at 5:36 am
Except if you play teams that aren’t performing as they should… then your record can be wrong!!
May 18th, 2008 at 7:39 am
I think his points about first base are dubious at best. Then he takes Navarro over Posada?
This is, of course, before the Yankees make the mid-year adjustments/acquisitions that the always do.
May 18th, 2008 at 9:38 am
Look right now as much as we don’t want to admit it Tampa Bay is a better team. We had this discussion last year, about the Yankees play. And I said the same thing when they were playing like this; right now as a team the Yankees stink. Do I expect it to last all season, no, but this year with the division more competative, coming on after the all-star break may be to little to late.
I don’t think it’s the end of the world one way or the other, I do get irate when I see the play of the past quarter season, This is what the teams philosophy of the past decade has brought us to. After this year the contracts of some players Giambi, Abreu, Mussina will come to a close and it will be time to take stock and decide on who if any free agents should be persued, then we’ll see if the lessons of thre past i.e. signing expensive free agents after the mid-point of they’re careers to long term and expensive contracts, and trading prospects away for a solution to this years problems with nary a glance at the long term consequences, have been learned. I know Mussina at this point has been one of the most reliable starters, but do we really want him as a 2 or 3?
Do I think the sky is falling? No, but how can anyone be tolerant of the type of play we’ve seen so far this season.
May 18th, 2008 at 11:47 am
I don’t see it as Tampa being the better team Pete. I see it as playing better now than the Yankees. Just like last year, friends always asked me if the Sox were better than the yankees. Yes, they won the Series, but I don’t think they were the better team. The Yankees team should have more potential and playing better than they are, so I wouldn’t say Tampa is the better team but rather Tampa is playing better right now…
May 18th, 2008 at 1:07 pm
I’d like to point out that right now the Yankees are playing without two all-star bats in Posada and A-Rod, they lost one of their starting pitchers to injury and Cano (an all-star second baseman) is in a cold stretch.
Talk to me in mid-June, that’s when it’s time to start panicing
May 18th, 2008 at 1:16 pm
Koch I understand your point but IMO right now they are better, look at the standings. And Chip if that was directed at me I’m not panicing, I’m relaying my disapointment with a team that has a $200,000,000 payroll. Losing is one thing but losing the way they do day after day is a disgrace.
May 18th, 2008 at 4:19 pm
Pete, what you’re saying is that the Rays are just flat out a better team.. or are you saying they are playing better? On paper, the Yankees are a better team just not playing up to par. I think the Rays and everyone else in baseball think the Rays are not as good as they currently are playing. On the road they are a sub-500 team with there hitters disappearing… They’ve played more home games than road thus far and in the end, they will be a near-500 team and in third or fourth in the division. That is why i say they are not the better team, but rather playing better right now.
May 18th, 2008 at 8:13 pm
Koch is probably right that the Rays may regress, but how far. As this young team learns the majors, they will get better or crash, this year. Cano and Cabrera, Pedroia and Papelbon did that recently, but were surrounded and supported by all-stars and experience. These young, talented Rays are doing it largely on their own, hard-scrabble, as a team. They could fade, and would still have our respect. But they could also improve. The reality is that the Rays could wind up 3rd or 4th, but without some fairly quick makeovers, so could NYY.
May 19th, 2008 at 6:06 am
And the Yankee makeovers are coming. Getting Arod back in the middle of the lineup will be huge, for the simple fact that he will garner the attention allowing the guys around him to get better pitches. Also, is it me, or does Molina seem to be getting tired at the plate? Can’t wait for Posada to be back early June…
May 19th, 2008 at 1:26 pm
I think the Rays are better than the Yankees this year… and yes I am as big a Yankee fan as there is.
Crawford, Upton, Longoria, Kazmir, Shields, Jackson, Price these are all tremendous young talents.
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