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Rays Need Price On His Game Today Against Halladay

By theraysparty | July 9, 2009 | The Rays Party

With the coverage of twitter, even Major League managers use the site to put out their ideas and thoughts about their team and the game. Joe Maddon had this tweet just a short time ago (10:00 am) about how the Rays will beat Jays pitcher Roy Halladay in today's afternoon game.Success v Halladay is mostly the result of pitching well U only beat him via pitching-The scoring will be less as w/all teams he facesThis means the outcome of the game will ride mostly on today's starting pitcher for the Rays David Price. His start last Saturday was not something to ride on with lack of command placing the fastball over the bad part of the plate while walking five batters. Maddon has talked about Price refocusing on the fastball and start working on a changeup more, which should help him against right-handers as it tails away from them.Maddon also...

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A Possible Two Seamer And Less Fouls For Kazmir

By theraysparty | July 9, 2009 | The Rays Party

A bad start for Scott Kazmir period, but looking at his location and break charts is so repetitive, I will just give you some pitch f/x stats and a break chart showing that possible two seam fastball he could be experimenting. I also have adjusted the Game Day pitch types to fix any errors. Pitch f/x didn't chart three pitches which are missing data and pitch types. Strike% Swinging Strike Foul% FB% SL% CH% 61.7 7.5 15 61.5 20.2 18.3 Not bad numbers, namely the fouls being down 5% than his season average. His pitch type usage is around his average for this season with the changeup splitting time with the slider. Still, location was really Kazmir's problem with nine hits allowed mainly in the air. Having only four strikeouts from a strikeout pitcher will also inflate his hits allowed if he doesn't command his pitches well. Here is the...

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Thursday's Games of the Day

By Jonathan Etkowicz | July 9, 2009 | MLB Notebook

Twelve games are being played on Thursday. I'm trying a new format for Games of the Day. Instead of picking only some of the games, each game will be previewed. Two aces, Tim Lincecum and Felix Hernandez, pitch on Thursday. Roy Halladay may be taking the mound in Tampa Bay as a sort of trade audition. Tommy Hanson will get a test from the Rockies at Coors Field. Paul Konerko looks to continue his hot hitting against the Indians. The Cardinals and Brewers rap up an exciting July series. These games and more can be found below. Toronto at Tampa...

Read more | Discuss | Tags: Alfredo Aceves, Andrew Miller, Arizona Diamondbacks, Atlanta Braves, Boston Red Sox, Brad Penny, Carl Crawford, Chicago White Sox, Cincinnati Reds, Clayton Richard, Cleveland Indians, Cody Ross, Colorado Rockies, David Price, Felix Hernandez, Florida Marlins, Games of the Day, Houston Astros, John Lannan, Kansas City Royals, Los Angeles Dodgers, Luke Hochevar, Micah Owings, Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins, MLB, New York Mets, New York Yankees, Nyjer Morgan, Paul Konerko, Philadelphia Phillies, Rafael Furcal, Randy Wolf, Roy Halladay, San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants, Seattle Mariners, St. Louis Cardinals, Tampa Bay Rays, Texas Rangers, Tim Lincecum, Tommy Hanson, Toronto Blue Jays, Washington Nationals

Zorilla's Approach Chart, Looking Good

By theraysparty | July 9, 2009 | The Rays Party

Trying out a new type of location chart which Brooks Baseball has started to use. The approach chart gives the location from one view point, usually a right-handed hitter, for pitchers. This makes it easy to know a pitcher pitched to the different handedness with one single chart. In a four hour slug fest, the Rays came out winners riding on the bat of Ben Zobrist (Zorilla) who drove in four runs, scored four, and was 3-5 at the plate with a walk. Three of those runs came on a huge home run (17th of the season) in the fourth to put the Rays up by three runs, forcing Jays starter Brian Tallet out of the game. Zobrist would score two runs of the Rays five runs before that home run on a walk and a single. Accounting for five runs total, Zobrist got an opportunity to hit in the...

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I Love Walkoffs!

By Matt Whit | July 8, 2009 | The Rays Party

I was unable to watch the game in it's entirety but what is there to say?What went right...1. Hmmm... well there was that hit from Zobrist2. Back half of the bullpen pitched nicely, including JP who shut them down and gave up no hits3. Who didn't hit? Zobrist, Burrell, even Navi. Everyone put the bat on the ball tonight. ....Oh and BJ stole home. Good stuffand What didn't...1. Anytime you give up 7 ER's in 6 1/3 innings, its safe to say you didn't pitch a good game. Sorry Scottie2. Balfour had a rough outing. I love the guy, but 2/3 innings and 2 ER's just isn't a good line out of the pen.3. I'm happy with a walkoff so no more of these negatives... Bottom line...Back-to-back walkoffs make me happy. Enough said.What's next?Price needs to show some bounce back ability after that...

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Longoria's Slump Is A Comfort Thing

By theraysparty | July 8, 2009 | The Rays Party

[This was suppose to be up earlier so things can change in tonight's game.]Baseball statistics can tell a lot about a player. Although most of the traditional stats won't go into the process of a baseball player (most important part), some sabermetrics go into and with pitch f/x starting to lead the way into in more depth data of the actually process of the pitches thrown. Still, nothing is as good as seeing the player himself play the game(with the help of video technology of course). So now I want to focus on Evan Longoria's current slump.If you been paying attention to Longoria lately, you notice the drop in offensive production starting around a 0 for 6 night against the Orioles on May 13th. Since then, his OPS has dropped from 1.165 before that game to its current .899 (still good for a hitter, not good for Longo). Not to...

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Fantasy Links of the Day

By Jonathan Etkowicz | July 8, 2009 | MLB Notebook

Closer Links:Depth Chart and Hot Seat. Fantasy Baseball 101 says forget the Riveras, Papelbons, and Nathans and get two cheap closers for the price of one of the top tier closers. Mimicking Christopher Harris' column (which can be found in last night's Links), Eric Karabell discusses the closers who were chosen for the All-Star Game and those who should have been chosen in Relief Efforts.Everything Links:In T.I.P.S., Brad Rysz discusses B.J. Upton, Scott Hairston, Aramis Ramirez, John Danks, Washington's pitching, and more. MLB.com's Roundtable discusses the shockingly good starts to the season Ben Zobrist, Russell Branyan, Edwin Jackson, and Adam...

Read more | Discuss | Tags: Adam Lind, Aramis Ramirez, B.J. Upton, Ben Zobrist, Brad Penny, Brad Rysz, Chase Utley, Daily Notes, Edwin Jackson, Eric Karabell, Eric Mack, Fantasy, Fantasy Baseball, Fantasy Baseball 411, Gordon Beckham, Grady Sizemore, Ian Stewart, Jake Fox, John Danks, Jonathan Phillips, Justin Smoak, Mark Reynolds, Pittsburgh Pirates, Russell Branyan, Scott Hairston, Tampa Bay Rays, Troy Patterson, Washington Nationals

Vote For Los!!!

By Matt Whit | July 8, 2009 | The Rays Party

I don't think enough has been said about supporting Carlos Pena for the final spot on the American League All-Star team. This is a chance for us to show our support for a key guy that has been a centerpiece of the Rays Organization! Vote For Los Here!!!...

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MLB Top 10: Halos Grab AL West Lead

By Jaymes Langrehr | June 29, 2009 | MVN Outsider

Sometimes when I think about this list during the weekend before Mondays roll around, things end up looking a bit differently than I pictured. This was one of those weeks. Over the weekend, multiple winning streaks were snapped, teams unexpectedly played poorly, and my top ten list underwent some major reconstruction. The result? A drastically different list compared to what we would've seen on Friday. 1. Los Angeles Angels (41-32)The Halos have won five straight, including a series win over the red-hot Rockies last week. They followed up the impressive series win by sweeping the woeful Diamondbacks over the weekend, and they now hold a 1.5 game lead in the AL West over Texas. They get the chance to widen the gap this week when they continue their road trip in Texas, in what some are calling the biggest series for the Angels this year.2. Tampa Bay Rays (42-35)Don't look...Read more

Read more | Discuss | Tags: Boston Red Sox, Chicago White Sox, Colorado Rockies, Detroit Tigers, Los Angeles Angels, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Minnesota Twins, MLB, MLB Outsider, MLB Top 10, New York Yankees, San Francisco Giants, Seattle Mariners, Tampa Bay Rays

MLB Great Debates: Which Playoff Contender Needs a Trade to Stay in the Race?

By Staff Report | June 26, 2009 | MVN Outsider

MLB Outsider's Jaymes Langrehr and Kurt Evans debate the issue: Which contending team most needs to make a deal before the July 31 trade deadline in order to stay in the race? Jaymes Langrehr argues that the Brewers desperately need starting pitching:As we get closer to the trade deadline, a good number of teams are developing clear needs that need to be addressed if they're going to stay in playoff contention. Some teams will be able to cope with their weaknesses and still make the playoffs due to their other strengths. Other clubs will need to make a move if they have any chance at contending in the second half.The Milwaukee Brewers are a prime example. Heading into this season, they knew that their pitching wouldn't be as good as it was down the stretch last season. Given the strength of their offense, however, they figured to be in okay...Read more

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MLB Top 10: Rox Still Hot

By Jaymes Langrehr | June 22, 2009 | MVN Outsider

Sure, the Colorado Rockies may not be on an insanely long winning streak at the moment (they're back to a merely above-average 5-game streak), but they're still playing the best baseball outside of Los Angeles or Boston at this point. For that reason, they hang on to the #1 spot in this week's Top 10 list. But who takes the #2 spot? With quite a few teams piecing together winning streaks lately, there are plenty of contenders -- there are seven teams who have won at least three games in a row, so there's no shortage of teams playing well, unlike in previous weeks.1. Colorado Rockies (36-33)Sure, it may not be an 11-game win streak, but after dropping a game to the Rays to snap the streak, Colorado has won five straight. For those of you keeping track at home, that's 16 wins in their past 17 games, and it's...Read more

Read more | Discuss | Tags: Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, Colorado Rockies, Detroit Tigers, Los Angeles Dodgers, MLB, MLB Outsider, MLB Top 10, San Francisco Giants, Seattle Mariners, St. Louis Cardinals, Tampa Bay Rays

MLB Outsider - Who?

By Kurt Evans | June 22, 2009 | MVN Outsider

Everybody's heard of Alex Rodriguez. We all know who Johan Santana is. Lord knows we've all seen the towering homeruns of Albert Pujols. But as fascinating as those players are -- and it's usually a lot of fun to see somebody turn into a star and have a long, successful career -- there are a number of players in the '09 season who have put up heroic numbers... and yet most of us wouldn't be able to spot them in a crowd or even recognize their name in a discussion. Here's a short list of this year's surprises...The HittersPablo Sandoval - 22-years-old, the Giants rookie is batting .338 and is presently on pace to hit 50 doubles, 5 triples, 20 homeruns, and drive in 82 RBI. I'm sure that Giant fans everywhere know his name and are buying his poster, but outside of San Fran he's probably about as recognizable as...Read more

Read more | 1 Comment | Tags: Atlanta Braves, Cincinnati Reds, Colorado Rockies, Florida Marlins, Minnesota Twins, MLB, MLB Outsider, San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants, St. Louis Cardinals, Tampa Bay Rays

MLB Outsider - Hurdle Out to Competition Edition

By Kurt Evans | June 15, 2009 | MVN Outsider

We're now roughly a month away from the All Star Game and while the season is unfolding in a somewhat predictable manner, there have been more than a few unexpected developments. For example -- the Cubs. Sure, we all know that they're the Cubs (aka the Chicago Invent New Ways to Lose Surprisinglys) but did anybody expect them to have such a crappy offense? Certainly not I. But more impressive than the Cubs' historic burn-out have been the teams we'd traditionally expect to be finished due to their Rockie start only for things to develop unpredictably. (See what I did there? "Rockie" start? I'm a genius!) Let's look closer in this week's Stock Market.RisingColorado RockiesAs a simple baseball fan, I have a few rules I try to follow. When it comes to playoff expectations, I never give up on a team before September until they are either 10 games under...Read more

Read more | Discuss | Tags: Cleveland Indians, Colorado Rockies, New York Mets, NL Central, Tampa Bay Rays, Texas Rangers, Toronto Blue Jays

MLB Top 10: Will the Rockies Ever Lose?

By Jaymes Langrehr | June 15, 2009 | MVN Outsider

For most teams, the MLB season includes multiple peaks and valleys. Ultimately, you're never as good as you are when you're playing at a peak, and you're never as bad as when you're playing in a valley. Right now, the Colorado Rockies are riding a peak that's a mile high (har har), winning eleven games in a row. Whenever the "L10" column in the standings reads "10-0", you know you're playing really good baseball. It's no surprise that the Rockies take the top spot in this week's top ten list, but who else has been putting together hot streaks while the Rockies steal the headlines?1. Colorado Rockies (31-32)At this point, there's really no one else you can put at the top of this list. I always thought that their run in September two years ago was a once-in-a-lifetime thing and would never be repeated, but it looks like the 2009...Read more

Read more | 1 Comment | Tags: Boston Red Sox, Cleveland Indians, Colorado Rockies, Detroit Tigers, Florida Marlins, Houston Astros, Los Angeles Angels, Los Angeles Dodgers, MLB, MLB Outsider, MLB Top 10, San Francisco Giants, Tampa Bay Rays

MLB Top 10: Yanks Enter Week Hotter Than Boston -- Will it Stay that Way?

By Jaymes Langrehr | June 8, 2009 | MVN Outsider

It was an interesting week in baseball -- Randy Johnson won his 300th career game in front of about 12 people in Washington, the Dodgers stole a couple wins from Philadelphia in walkoff fashion, the Rangers proved their worth with a brutal East Coast road trip, and the Rockies started slugging the tar out of the ball...and they weren't even playing at home. So who heads up this week's Top 10 list as the team playing the best baseball?1. Philadelphia Phillies (33-22)The Phillies had a pair of tough walkoff losses in Los Angeles over the weekend, but prior to the late-game collapses the Phils were winners of seven straight. With the Mets running into serious injury problems, Philadelphia has a hold on the NL East -- they have a chance to expand that three game division lead starting Tuesday night when they travel to New York for a three game...Read more

Read more | Discuss | Tags: Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, Colorado Rockies, Los Angeles Dodgers, Milwaukee Brewers, MLB, MLB Outsider, MLB Top 10, New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies, San Francisco Giants, Tampa Bay Rays, Texas Rangers

MLB Outsider Mock Draft: Tampa Bay Rays Select Andrew Oliver

By Staff Report | June 1, 2009 | MVN Outsider

MLB Outsider is hosting a 2009 MLB mock draft, where bloggers from all over come together in an attempt to project the draft results that will take place June 9. Around the Majors' David Bloom picks for the Tampa Bay Rays at No. 29. The Rays restock their pitching by taking Andrew Oliver out of Oklahoma State. Follow the mock draft here.The Tampa Bay Rays find themselves in unfamiliar territory. With the the impressive World Series appearance in 2009, they find themselves selecting their first player at the bottom of the first round. Gone are the days of choosing the best overall talent in the draft. The Rays in the the Stuart Sternberg regime have shown at times that they will go for talent, even if it means they will have to pay the player. An example is David Price who was considered the clear-cut favorite two years ago. Back...Read more

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