No more! Reid Brignac leads the team out of the void.

I am the new president of the Reid Brignac fan club. Photo courtesy of Stephanie.

I'll be the first to admit, I wasn't the biggest Reid Brignac fan. Every time he came up to the Rays, he seemed to be a non-factor. Many Rays fans chided me for not giving Reid a chance and dismissing him outright. But last night, the Durham Bulls shortstop truly made his major league debut.  Brignac went 4-4 with a homer, 2 doubles, a single and 3 RBI's. It was almost as if he willed the Rays out of their 11 game losing streak to an 8-4 victory of the Baltimore Orioles.

To be sure, the Baltimore Orioles are not in the same league as the Yankees and Red Sox. But, they're still a major league baseball team and in the first inning the Rays looked like they were still in the same funk that plagued them over the last 11 games. They got an early 1 run lead, but a combination of scoreboard and mental errors allowed Baltimore to jump to a 4-1 lead. The bottom of the 1st, the Rays looked like a team who hadn't won a game in a long time.

Then came Brignac. BJ Upton was on 1st, 2 outs.  The game very well could've hung on this at-bat and Brignac came through with a 2-run homer. And like that, the gates were open.  The Rays found their offense. They found their defense. And David Price found enough to keep putting up zeros on the O's.  The bullpen even found some of its groove with the combination of Dan Wheeler, Brian Shouse, and JP Howell getting the final 6 outs... a task that hasn't been easy for the Rays lately.

The Rays have had serious leadership issues since Carlos Pena got hurt.  It's one thing to step up and say you're embarrassed by the losing streak. It's another thing to go 4-4 and have a career game when given a rare start. And, for that, I must tip my hat to Mr. Reid Brignac. I hope you're able to play your way on to the opening day roster in 2010.