Note from editor: In Feb of ’06, Rob wrote an article predicting the Rays success at the following link:  http://www.athomeplate.com/drayspre06.shtml

All Aboard! The Tampa Bay Rays’ bandwagon has left the building and I, like many others, have a first class ticket in the “Just Jumped on Board” section.  Now being a native of Southwest Florida, I am proud of the Tampa Bay Rays, but the Chicago White Sox have been my team since 1978.  You see until the Marlins and Rays entered the league, outside of Spring Training, us Floridians didn’t have a team to root for. Once the teams packed up and headed north to start their regular season, the usual story was that a native’s favorite team was the one that called their respective city home for Spring Training.  So, despite being a diehard Chi-Sox fan, I’m on the Rays’ bandwagon and proud of this little team that could.

Now, a lot of baseball “experts” have understandably been questioning Tampa’s success all season long.  Since it seems as though the Rays are looking more and more like they’re gonna make the playoffs, there’s still some people saying that they’ll get waxed in the postseason.  I’m not saying they’ll become the victim of a first round sweep, but I’m not convinced they won’t either. 

The following are some points that support the Rays and then some that are my concerns regarding their ability to be successful come October:

** They play like veterans but their average age is 26.5 years old and their average amount of experience in the majors is less than four and a half years.  In baseball terms, that’s pretty young to be having the level of success they’re currently enjoying.  Now they may be youngsters, but don’t for a second think that means they will bow to their elders.  They have an ongoing feud with the Red Sox that has resulted in a few bench clearing brawls over the past few seasons.  Likewise, they’ve had some testy moments with the Yankees, Angels, and Rangers and that’s just this season.  Instead of being gracious and respectful, Manager Joe Maddon has his team believing that they belong at the top, and I might add, with a bit of a chip on their shoulders.

** These guys might very well be too inexperienced to succeed in the post-season.  On the other hand, they may be just too young to realize it or for that matter, care; regardless, we will find out in less than a month.  One thing that is for certain, never has the month of September meant so much to the fans, players, and front office of the Tampa Bay Rays as it does this season.  In fact, as September might be an important month, who knows, October might be important too.

** One thing that is worth mentioning, they have their work cut out for them during the September.  If they do indeed win the American League East, no one will be able to say this team is a fluke.  Additionally if they win their division, they will certainly have momentum going into the playoff. 

** Now, I am not a conspiracy theorist, but I find it interesting that in the final month of the season, MLB has teams that normally contend for the playoffs going up against the Rays.  The Yankees, Tigers, Red Sox, and Twins all play Tampa which until this year, usually loses the most in September than any other month.  If the brainiacs at MLB were trying to give the top teams a break or any easy win in September, this plan might backfire on them this season.  Again, I’m not a conspiracy guy, but it does raise my suspicions; let’s call it food for thought.

** Just to give you an idea, here’s the Rays schedule breakdown for September:
NYY – 6 games (3H, 3A)/Bos – 6 games (3H, 3A)/Tor – 3 games (3A)/Bal – 3 games
(3A)/Min – 4 games (4H)/Det – 4 games (4A)
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       
** One thing that was noticeable and scrutinized was that the Rays did not make any major moves prior to the trade deadline.  The reason is that their roster really is pretty stable and any position that might need to be filled could be done with players that are down on the farm.  At Triple “A” Durham, Manager Charlie Montoyo has a lot of major league ready talent.  There is a lot of talk about phenom David Price, but there are other players that are ready if needed.  Big Texan Jeff Niemann is 9-5 with a 3.59 ERA and 128 Ks; Mitch Talbot is 13-9 with a 3.86 ERA and 141 Ks; closer Scott Dohmann has 20 saves with 49 ks in 41 IP.

** Regardless of how things turn out, this sort of success is good for the Rays’ organization because they are the proverbial “small market team”. If you remember back to just a few years ago, they were one of the teams that Bud Selig said should be considered for contraction; (I still think he made that word up)! The Rays have many top level personnel throughout baseball perplexed and scratching their heads in amazement. The brain trust of Team President Matthew Silverman, de facto GM Andrew Friedman, Manager Joe Maddon, and V.P./consultant Gerry Hunsicker might not have created a new recipe for success, but at the very least, they have the opposition thinking they did.

** At any rate, its human nature to root for the underdog; it’s David versus Goliath. People just love a Cinderella story and the Rays definitely fall into that category; once a fan’s team is eliminated from the postseason, they too will jump on the Tampa Bay Rays’ bandwagon.  Just watch, if they do make it to the playoffs, you will start hearing about a significant increase in their merchandise sales.  This is not only good for the Rays, it is good for the game of baseball in general.

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