The 2009 endgame begins today

The endgame of the 2009 season begins tonight at Tropicana Field.  The Rays have 56 games to make up 5 games on the Boston Red Sox... and that's just to make the playoffs.  Whether we like it or not, it's no longer early. It's no longer a long marathon.  There's no longer time to make up ground later.  The Rays must turn it on now!

We can already see that Joe Maddon's thinking about the endgame. Yesterday's insertion of Willy Aybar in the DH spot and Jason Bartlett in the leadoff spot shows that skipper knows he's run out of time to get "streaky" players hot. Each game must be treated as a must-win.  Do the Rays have to win every game on the schedule? No. But they can't let games like Sunday get away from them. The offense can't take nights off. Pitchers can't work through their troubles.  All in all, it's crunch time.

So buckle up and get ready!  We, as Rays fans, have never got to see our team "chasing" in the last couple months of the season. Last year, the Rays were the hunted. This year, the Rays are the hunters.  I think this team has the roster to make up the ground and get in the playoffs. The question is: Do they have what it takes mentally to grind out a five game differential over the next 56 games?  And that's how Joe Maddon will earn his paycheck this year.

Here are some things I noticed in the Rays 10-4 victory over the Royals:

• Applebottom jeans, boots wit da fur.  Willy Aybar is a man of few words. Instead, he lets his bat do the talking for him. And, if yesterday was any indication, Willy's ready for a run to the playoffs. Aybar rewarded Joe Maddon's decision to start him at DH with not one, but 2 homers from each side of the plate. Aybar has now made Maddon's job of filling out the lineup card a little more difficult tonight.  Should he listen to the angry villagers and go with Aybar over Pat Burrell? Or will he keep his right handed DH in the lineup to do what he's supposed to do: hit lefties.
  

• Batting first, playing shortstop, Jason Bartlett.  Another Ray who decided to reward Maddon for a little change in the lineup.  MVB, as he's called in some circles, went 3-4 with 2 runs and 2 RBI's in the leadoff spot. More importantly, he started the game with a walk to get a 2 run rally started against Zack Greinke. How many times have we seen B.J. Upton start the game with a ground out? This is another place where Maddon will have to make a tough choice today. Stick with Bossman or go with the hot bat? Judging by his comments: I think we'll see a batting order change today.
  

• Scott Kazmir, trade deadline acquisition. I know it's only been 2 starts, but the change in mound presence from Kazmir has been night and day over the last couple of starts. It's almost as if Mark Buerhle's perfect game inspired him in some strange way.  The Kazmanian Devil didn't go deep into the game, but he provided 6 solid innings and left the bullpen in good position. A solid Kaz during the endgame will be much more valuable than any trade deadline acquisition the Rays could've made.
  

• The Greatness that is Michel Hernandez.  I would be remiss if I didn't mention Hernandez's first ever triple.  He's another guy pushing for more playing time.
  

• Some 2008 vs 2009 comparisons. If you inserted the 2008 Rays after 106 games into the 2009 standings, the 2008 Rays would be in 3rd place. They would be 1 game behind Boston and 1 1/2 behind the Yankees. But, the 2008 Rays got really hot in August. They went 21-7. They only lost 2 games in row once in the month.  The Rays need that kind of August this year.
  

From near history to sad meltdown

View of James Shields from the upper deck.

We weren't talking about it, but we sure were thinking about it. Going into the 8th inning James "Big Game" Shields was tossing a no-no. He needed only 6 outs and I was going to be there for history. But somehow, as they have a few times this season, the Rays figured out a way to completely meltdown... ending a game that could've been special in a not-so-special way.

You have to give credit to Shields. The man was a pitching machine for most of the game. For those of us at the Trop, the excitement grew with each out.  Too bad the offense couldn't get anything going for Shields.  It just felt like 1 run would be enough.  But, maybe that was too much to ask.

If anything, yesterday's game tempered my enthusiasm about this team's chances of making the playoffs a little bit.  The complete lack of offense and the terrible defensive execution late in the game marks a stark contrast to what we saw last year.  If the Rays can't finish a game like this, at home, against the Kansas City Royals, what chance do they have head-to-head versus the Yankees and the Red Sox.  The next couple of weeks will be very telling.  The Rays have to have an almost perfect August to make a playoff run. Yesterday's game was not a good sign of things to come.

Here are some things I noticed in the Rays 4-1 loss to the Royals:

• Not saying "no-no."  This was the first Rays game I had been to where a pitcher took a no-no so long into the game. The fans were into the game, yet the talk was at a minimum. You could tell people were taking notice because nobody was leaving their seat... even to go get food. The stairs were empty and the movement was kept to a minimum. Too bad we weren't rewarded.
  

• Gross not laying out. I'm not going to blame Gabe Gross for not laying out on John Buck's soft liner.  I'm going to blame the offense. I have not doubt Gross would've laid out for that ball if the Rays are up 2 or more to nothing.  But in a 0-0 game, he made the right play.
  

• Dioner Navarro's troubles.  I haven't been incredibly hard on the Rays catcher since early in the season, but things are not going well for the catcher.  It's one thing to slump a little bit at the plate. It's another to slump a little bit on defense, but that error in the 8th was an absolute mental error.  Trying to go for the double-play instead of the sure out cost his team a run... maybe two.  That was *not* an example of the "run prevention" Andrew Friedman was looking for at the trade deadline.
  

• Little league play. To compound Navarro's error, Jason Bartlett made his own mental mistake in the 8th. The Royals perfectly executed the "little league" play where you attempt a steal at second with a runner on third.  The runner at 1st stops half-way and induces a rundown... while the runner at third goes home. Perfection for the Royals. Nasty for the Rays.
  

• Royals hideous bullpen. I'm sure the Rays figured, like I did, that there was no need to get to starter Brian Bannister because the Royals bullpen is so hideous.  However, Royals manager Trey Hillman hedged his bets... letting Bannister go an extra inning and then bringing in closer Joakim Soaria to finish the job. It could've backfired on Hillman, except the Rays let the Royals put up 2 insurance runs in the top of the ninth. I liked the Rays chances down 2 runs with Soaria in the ninth.  4 runs was a little much to ask.
  

• Bossman gunned down.  How big was the play where Mitch Maier gunned down B.J. Upton at the plate? To me, that was the turning point in the game.
  

Jeff Niemann, Rays' Ace

Jeff Niemann is the 1st Rays starter with double-digit wins. Let's repeat that, Jeff Niemann is the 1st Rays starter with double-digit wins. Not James "Big Game" Shields, not Matt "ALCS MVP" Garza, and certainly not Scott "AL Strikeout King" Kazmir... nope, it's Jeff "barely made the rotation because I'm out of options" Niemann.

Over the past couple of month, Niemann has become the most consistent pitcher of the starters. He's big. He's in control. And he's looking real good.  The Rays front office has been criticized all year for trading Edwin Jackson to the Tigers, but Niemann keeps showing why he's the #5 starter for this team.

Here are some things I noticed in the Rays 7-1 victory of the Kansas City Royals:

• The Rays love playing the Royals. For some reason, the Rays absolutely own this team. They're 8-0 against the Royals and have outscored them 49-19. It's too bad they can't play like this against the other last place teams in the AL. The Rays have had trouble with both Oakland and Baltimore this year.
  

• Scoring Early.  The Rays again set themselves up nicely, by jumping to an early 3-0 lead. Jason Bartlett got it going with a triple in which he scored on an error. That seemed to be more than enough for Jeff Niemann.
  

• Run Prevention.  Andrew Friedman says that was the Rays motto in the trade deadline and the Rays are keeping it going.  Carl Crawford nailed Royals catcher Brayan Pena at the plate... keeping a crucial run off the board. Pitching and defense... pitching and defense.
  

• The Angry New Pitcher. The Rays didn't waste any time getting Jeff Bennett, aka The Angry New Pitcher to the mound.  The came in for the last 2 outs of the ninth.  I saw Jason Bartlett run over to ANP and make sure everything was cool after he couldn't get to a grounder.  ANP's reputation precedes him.
  

• Today is Scott Kazmir bobble head day for the children. I already have mine at my desk, but my kids will get theirs.  
  

• Chicago White Sox vs AL East. The Yankees have lost 3 in a row, including an absolute annihilation at the hands of the Chicago White Sox. Ozzie Guillen really has his boys playing well against the AL East powerhouses. They're 8-2 against the Rays and Yankees combined. The good news for the Rays: They don't have to play them any more.  However, the Yankees still have 4 games versus the Sox and the Red Sox have 7.  Go Ozzie!
  

• Red Sox brutal schedule. In case you're wondering about the Red Sox, their schedule goes like this: @TB, @NY, DET, @Texas.  Time for the Rays to make up some ground.
  

No Deadline Deals. Rays say, so what?

Flo Rida peformed after the game. The Rays are 12-1 in concert series games. Apple-bottom jeans, indeed.

For the 2nd year in a row, Rays fans expecting some "big move" from the front office were left disappointed at the end of the trade deadline. No last minute deals. No Victor Martinez. No Roy Halladay. While a couple dozen players changed uniforms, the Rays stood pat.

Andrew Friedman said the Rays wanted to focus on "run prevention." He says he believes the team has the in-house options on offense. They may have just needed to shore up some pitching and catching. 

It's not that they didn't try. Friedman said they had some things going, but couldn't find the right fit. I'm fine with that. The Rays aren't the Yankees or Red Sox. They can't supplement their team mid-season. Don't forget, the the Red Sox held back on some moves in the off-season just to prepare for the deadline.  

While on the surface it looks like the rich got richer and the Rays couldn't keep up, just remember that the season isn't decided on the last day in July. Both the Red Sox and the Angels made moves last year that didn't help them get to the World Series.  There's still plenty of baseball left to play and the current roster has to show the front office that their faith in them is justified. 

We may have seen some of that last night.  The biggest public enemies right now among Rays fandom seems to be: Pat Burrell, Dioner Navarro, and Carlos Pena.  All three came up big last night showing that they've still got some worth to the team and can help lead this team past the Red Sox and Yankees.

Here are some things I noticed in the Rays 8-2 victory over the Kansas City Royals:

• Staking an early lead. One thing that's really bothered me about this team since the All-Star break is their lack of runs early.  It seems like they're always playing from behind. Last night B.J. Upton and Carl Crawford got hit... and Carlos Pena knocked them in for a 3-run homer in the bottom of the 1st. The Rays never looked back.
  

• PtB: Public Enemy Number 1. I guess now that Troy Percival is out of the picture, some Rays fans need someone to hat. Well, Pat Burrell has become the man. PtB is now getting booed at Tropicana Field. Many complained that the Rays need to dump him or at the least bench him. While I'm not pleased with his production, dumping him or benching him does nothing at this point. The Rays need him to get hot. The only way that's going to happen is if he gets at-bats. Maybe in a few weeks we'll look at his triple last night and say that it was where the "streak" began.
  

• Dionar Navarro, dead to the fandom.  Outside of Scott Kazmir, the catcher position has been the biggest source of rumors when it comes to the trade deadline.  The Rays were linked with Victor Martinez, almost from the start. I, for one, am glad he went to the Red Sox... so I can resume my dislike for him.  As for Navarro, I don't think Martinez would've been an upgrade defensively. While his bat would've helped, I don't think he was worth the price. As for Mr. Navarro, he knocked one out of the park. Maybe the rumors shook him up, just enough.
  

• Looking good, Mr. Price. He was throwing a ton of strikeouts, but he did keep the game in control and went 7 innings. Those are the kinds of performances we need to see from the Rays starting pitchers every night if the Rays are going to climb back into the race. Now, if we can just see 3 or 4 of those in a row from the starters.
  

• Bye-bye, Mr. Spock. I'm not sure why, but it appears Joe Nelson and his Vulcan change-up are headed to Durham. The Times said Spock learned about it after the game. The Rays said they would make a corresponding move today.
  

• I know the Rays are playing the Royals. But, this series could go a long way toward building some momentum.
  

• 39 wins to go. The Boston Red Sox needed 95 wins to get the Wild Card berth last year. I'm using that as a benchmark for this year.  After last night's win, they need 39 more to get to 95.
  

Rays rolling right along

The Rays didn't waste any time making a statement about their intentions for the 2nd half. On Sunday, they finished off a sweep of the Royals in Kansas City.  All three games, the Rays came back late in the game and the bullpen shut the door. To be sure, the Royals aren't among baseball's elite... but, these are the types of series the Rays had trouble with earlier in the year. It was encouraging to see them take care of a team they were supposed to.

Now, the Rays face a four-game set against the White Sox in Chicago.  Earlier in the year, the White Sox used revenge as a motivation to take 3 of 4 from the Rays at the Trop.  Let's hope the pain of the division series loss has subsided a bit or the Rays understand that the White Sox are coming with guns blazing. Our old friend Ozzie Gullien spent a lot of time in the off-season figuring out ways to beat his old team. He's going to have plenty of tricks up his sleeve. 

Here are some things I noticed in the Rays 4-3 victory of the Kansas City Royals:

• Matt Garza's control.  Our favorite spitting pitcher is going through some issues right now. He's having a little bit of a control problem and finds himself getting into jams. Yesterday, he was able to get out of the jams for the most part.  It's worth keeping an eye on, but I'm not too worried about him.
  

• Squeezing the Royals. In a way, I saw a lot of the old "Devil Rays" in the Royals this weekend. They have some young talent, but they're really hobbled by a weak bullpen.  When Gabe Gross took a close 2-2 pitch for ball 3, I was reminded of what it was like when the Rays weren't baseball elite.  All the calls seem to go the other way.  Gross ended up walking in the winning run.
  

• Scratching and clawing from behind.  The Rays did a good job yesterday of scratching and clawing their way back from behind. Earlier in the season when the Rays were behind late, it seemed they just waited for the long ball to bail them out.  Almost no consideration was given to moving the runner over, sacrificing and doing what it took to get the run across.  In the 8th, Crawford hustled out an infield single.  He got to 3rd on an errant pick-off throw.  Longo walked. Instead of striking out while swinging for the fences, Carlos Pena beat the shift and got a RBI single. That kind of at-bat has been noticeably absent late in Rays games all season.
  

• JP Howell, "he-who-must-not-be-named-closer." How refreshing was it to see a guy come in the 9th inning for three consecutive games and shut the door with no drama whatsoever? Matty from St. Pete reminded me that the Royals traded JP Howell to the Rays for Joey Gathwright.  Howell is becoming the Rays stone-cold closer, while Gathwright is toiling in the Baltimore Orioles farm system and jumping over cars on You Tube.
  

The Return of the Kazmanian Devil, sort of

Looking at their stats coming into the game, last night's pitching match-up looked like a gimme win for the Royals... on paper.  However, the stats don't tell the whole story of Scott Kazmir, the Rays fallen ace. He took another step forward in his return to form battling Kansas City Royals ace Zack Greinke pitch for pitch, out for out. In the end, both gave up 1 run and didn't get a decision.  But, if you're looking for clues as to what to expect from Kaz in the 2nd half... this is a good sign.  Now, the Rays need to see if he can give this kind of performance again in 5 days.

Here are some of the things I noticed in the Rays 4-2 victory over the Kansas City Royals:

• Kazmir's cramps.  Even though I'm complementary about Kaz's performance last night, I was a bit concerned when he called over the trainer before the 7th inning and essentially took himself out of the game.  Later, it was described as "mild forearm cramps."  Seriously? That's worse than a finger infection.
  

• Applebottom jeans, boots wit da fur.  Joe Maddon is a genius or at least Willy Aybar makes him look like one.  The skipper pencilled in Aybar to start at 2nd because his research showed that he could have some success against Zach Grienke.  Whatever that research is, they need to patent it. Because Aybar went 3 for 3 against Grienke.  In the eighth, he atoned for an error by knocking in the go-ahead run. Someone has to make sure and introduce Willy to Flo Rida when he's at the Trop.
  

• Wheeler & Howell.  For the 2nd night in a row, these 2 took care of the 8th and 9th innings with no drama whatsoever.  Both were very workman like and took care of business. Granted, the Kansas City Royals aren't the Red Sox or Yankees. But, it feels like it's been a long time since we've seen the 8th and 9th innings sewn up like that.  "He-who-must-not-be-named-closer" is really signing Troy Percival's retirement check now.
  

• Pat the Bat streak.  PTB is really coming on.  Last night's game-tying double is just what the brought PTB in here for.  The Times reports that PTB made a swing adjustment to help offset the bad adjustment he made when he had a stiff neck. The Rays are going to win a lot of games with him hitting like that.
  

• Joe Dillionaire appearance. We don't get to see Joe Dillionaire too often, but last night he scored the go-ahead run.  He was pinch running for PTB. He did get an at-bat later. He flew out.  Poor Dillionaire, we may not see him too much longer.
  

• 2009 vs 2008. At 50-41, the Rays are 5 1/2 games behind the Boston Red Sox.  Coincidently, they're also 5 games behind the 2008 pace. However, the 2008 team was in the middle of a losing streak during this stretch. The 2009 could pick up 4 games on their 2008 counterparts with 4 wins in a row.
  

• Looking ahead to tonight. Matt Garza gets to take the mound and start his second half off fresh. The Rays can finish off the Royals with a sweep tonight and position themselves well going into Chicago.  Maddon said on his twitter feed that the Rays need 5-5 on this trip.  6-4 sounds much better to me.
  

Longo shows up with the big stick

It was looking a bit dire for the Rays last night.  "Big Game" James Shields turned into "Big Inning for the other team."  The bats were just puttering around.  Overall, the team looked like they didn't realize they don't have time for these types of games anymore. The Kansas City Royals were up 6-2 and the Rays season seemingly hang in the balance.  

Then somewhere, somehow the Rays began the turning around. It was instantaneous.  It was slow. But, it was forward movement. They started scraping some runs.  A Longo single knocks in one. Crawford scores on a past ball.  In the seventh, Pat Burrell welcomed himself to the 2nd half with a 2 run shot... bringing the score to within 1.

Then there's Longo. Our lovable All-Star who had to miss the game for a finger infection.  A guy who was even questionable for last night's game.  A guy who the Rays need to play well in order to be successful.  Down 1 run in the 8th inning with 2 outs and a runner on... Longo did what any MLB superstar would.  He brought out the big stick and showed why he is this organization.  In doing so, he sent a message to his teammates and the rest of the league.  The Rays are ready for the 2nd half.

Here are some things I noticed from the Rays 8-7 victory over the Kansas City Royals:

• Sweet bullpen.  While Longo deserves plenty of adulation for that homer, the win wouldn't have been possible without the bullpen pitching 3 2/3 scoreless innings.  Joe Nelson, Randy Choate, and Chad Bradford all kept the Royals from scoring.  Dan Wheeler and J.P. Howell finished them off after the Rays took the lead.  There wasn't any margin for error. Wheeler and Howell came up big.
  

• Pat the Bat's resurgence.  I know I've been hard on PTB and his lack of production. I'm sure PTB has been as hard on himself. And that will keep him from stepping up as a leader. PTB is familiar with tight pennant races. He needs to lead by example. Maybe a hot streak will get him going both  on the field and in the dugout.
  

• Carl Crawford, All-Star MVP. This guy seems to be unstoppable right now. Last night: 3-5 with 3 runs scored and an RBI.  The fact that he started Longo's 8th inning at-bat on first made it much easier for Longo to time the fastball.  CC's a game-changer.
  

• Tonight: A young ace-in-the-making versus a fallen ace.  Tonight, we get are first look at the 2nd half Scott Kazmir.  He has no easy task going up against Royals All-Star righty Zack Greinke. Kaz is very important to this team's 2nd half.   We'll see tonight if he has the make-up to go mono-y-mono with Greinke.