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.
  

Still holding out hope, the season is not over

This guy's still holding out hope for a Rays turnaround!

I'm holding out hope.  I'm holding out hope that these Rays will somehow find what they're missing. I'm holding out hope that this team can get hot. I'm holding out hope that the starting pitching becomes dominant again. I'm holding out hope that Pat Burrell and Carlos Pena didn't forget how to swing the bat. I'm holding out hope that Dioner Navarro can get clutch hits. I'm holding out hope that the Rays will be a playoff team.

Last night's loss to the New York Yankees at Tropicana Field has a very demoralizing feel to it. Many are saying today that the Rays are done. Columns declaring their death were published and Yankee fan thinks the Rays were just a fluke. But, I say ... there's still hope. Somewhere, buried deep, is the Rays we know and love. We saw them Tuesday night. We've seen them in flashes during other parts of the season. Where are they now?

This team, as it stands, is capable of going on a run.  The Yankees did it. The Red Sox did it. Now, it's the Rays turn. And maybe, just maybe, if the Rays get hot at the right time... they can ride it all the way to the promised land. I know many of you may think I'm overly optimist. But, this is baseball, not football. One game or two doesn't get you eliminated. Baseball is 162 game marathon. It's a marathon that miracles can happen. The Rays have plenty of games against the teams in front of them. It's up to them to seize the opportunity.

Here are some things I noticed in the Rays 6-2 loss to the Yankees:

• Get some offense going, please! I'll say this for the Rays lineup, they really know how to stink up the joint. I've got to give some credit to Joba Chamberlain for his excellent performance, but the Rays gave him a lot of help.  For some reason, this team isn't making adjustments as they go through the order.  The Rays need to change their approach on the 2nd and 3rd trips up against a pitcher. The Yankees did it last night. Why couldn't the Rays?
  

• PtB Hate.  Pat Burrell has become the new Troy Percival to Rays fans. He got booed at the Trop last night as he continues to look absolutely lost at the plate. He went 0-4 with K's.  PtB even got his own "hate" column from St. Pete Times writer John Romano this morning.  He's an easy target. He wasn't part of last year's run. He's making a lot of money. And he's not doing what he was paid to do. I'm not sure there's any use of hating on PtB, because he's here to stay. It may be easier just to root for him to get on one of those "streaks."
  

• Carlos Pena's falling stock. Pena's starting to get some bad vibes coming his way from Rays' fans. It's a little harder to hate on Pena because he's such a nice guy and he represents so much about the Rays turnaround. However, if he keeps looking bad at the plate or something happens to PtB... Pena could be in for his boo birds at the Trop.  I've even heard some talk from fans that the Rays should trade Carlos Pena.  That's a subject I don't think I've ever heard until this week.
  

• Matt Garza and Derek Jeter.  If you want to point to one big mistake Garza made last night, it was giving up the triple to Jeter to begin the game. For some reason, that run loomed large all game. It seemed to give Joba some extra energy as he took the mound in the bottom of the 1st. For the most part, Garza was solid... just not solid enough.
  

• Good defense. One common thread among these games is the defense.  On Monday and Wednesday, the Yankees made some great plays and won. On Tuesday, they didn't look as good and lost. It's like Joe Maddon keeps saying: Pitching and defense will win games.
  

• Royals Relief.  This week would be a good time to start a win streak.  The Rays are 6-0 versus the Royals this year. Tomorrow night starts a 4 game set.
  

• 5 games back. The 2009 Rays are now 5 games back on the 2008 Rays.  But, the 2008 Rays would be 3 games back from the 2009 Yankees. 
  

Picture post: Kazmir bobblehead takes place of honor on my desk

One day after his fine performance against the New York Yankees, the Scott Kazmir bobblehead arrived in the newroom. Kaz is sporting the road grays and seems to be mid-pitch with a big grin on his face. I've been told that there is precedence for trade before bobblehead day. The Cubs traded Michael Barrett in 2007 before his bobblehead giveaway. The promotion went on as planned.

As for Kaz, I would like to see him stay a Ray for awhile. He's going to take his place next to my phone on my desk for the rest of the season. That way, I can have Kaz watching me as go about my day.

Kaz takes his place of honor on my desk.

Here's a look at a quick video of the Kaz bobblehead:

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