"Grounder to second, Iwamura picks it up and steps on the bag. The Rays have done it! The Rays are going to the World Series!"
Every Rays fan remembers where they were when then-Rays second baseman Akinori Iwamura stepped on the bag to clinch the American League Pennant and capped off a magical season, even if the clock struck 12 during the World Series.
Just like the 2009 Rays, fans seemed to be in a daze, still stuck on that celebratory image from the year past as baseball resumed its natural order, with New York and Boston returning to the top.
But this spring has a 2008 feel.
Halfway through spring, the Rays are 9-3. I know, I know, it's only spring training. It doesn't count. Yet for this Tampa Bay squad, the momentum they gather now may help them once the year begins. It may only be spring, but the last time the Rays fared this well, they punched their ticket to the World Series (18-8 two years ago).
Can they possibly do it again? Here are a few doubts the Rays are confident they can disprove.
No way the Rays can beat CC Sabathia and Josh Beckett.
Actually, they already have. Last year the Rays had both of their numbers. Both Sabathia and Beckett had ERAs over five and combined for a 2-3 record, giving up seven home runs in nine starts.
Boston's two other "aces," Jon Lester and John Lackey, actually fared just as poorly. They gave up 25 runs in 34 innings pitched.
The Rays do not fear the twin towers. They actually relish playing in the AL East. It's that competitive mindset that gives them a chance to survive in that division.
The Rays bullpen doesn't have a shutdown closer like Mariano Rivera or Jonathan Papelbon.
Last year's weak link was one half of the Rays' downfall (a World Series hangover and a slow 10-14 start was the other half). In 2009, the Rays were 20-25 in one-run games. They were 29-18 in 2008.
2010 solution: Enter new toy and top offseason acquisition Rafael Soriano.
In 2009 Rivera had 72 K's. Papelbon had 76. Soriano had 102.
Only Dodgers closer Jonathan Broxton had more (114 to be exact).
The Rays finally have a guy who can strike fear in the opposing team's heart for the final three outs, rather than his own team, a challenge of the 2009 Rays.
The addition of Soriano impacts the whole bullpen. J.P. Howell returns to being one of the top AL setup men and moves Dan Wheeler and Grant Balfour down another inning. If non-roster invitee Joaquin Benoit returns to form after surgery (2007: 2.85 ERA, 87 K in 82 IP), the Rays pen looks stronger than their two big-market counterparts.
The Rays can't keep up with the powerful Boston and New York offenses.
The Yankees and Red Sox represented the first and third best offenses in all of baseball. The Rays were not that far behind, ranking seventh. While the Yankees boast Alex Rodriguez and Mark Teixeira in the middle of their order, and the Red Sox feature Victor Martinez and Kevin Youkilis, the Rays can counter with MVP candidate Evan Longoria and 2009 AL HR champ Carlos Pena.
The Boston offense isn't as feared as it used to be. The Yankees lost Hideki Matsui and Johnny Damon and are hoping Curtis Granderson and Nick Johnson can pick up the slack.
If B.J. Upton's shoulder is fully recovered (recent two opposite field HR game has the front office hopeful), the Rays lineup will be just as dangerous as New York and Boston.
The 2008 Rays were a fluke. In any other division they might have a chance—just not the AL East.
The Rays' success is already a distant memory. National pundits are back ranking the Rays below the Yankees and Red Sox—and that is where they like to be.
In 2008 the Rays defied the odds and upset the natural order. It all began with a spring that made them believe. In 2010, spring is making them believe again.
Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com
- Login to post comments