It's just a shame that a team that's always competitive to good can't get a fan base.

Part of it is that antiquated [BLEEP] hole they play in.

---

It's just a shame that a team that's always competitive to good can't get a fan base.  

Part of it is that antiquated [BLEEP] hole they play in.

It’s a shame. I was following pretty closely when Joe Maddon was there and even though he took them to the WS they still couldn’t draw crowds. Part of the problem is they suffer from the Florida franchise ailment in that many people in this state are mostly from somewhere else. When the Red Sox or Yankees came to town, attendance went up.

Tampa had a spiffy new stadium on the drawing boards but I don’t know what ever became of it. Miami’s new stadium struggles might have scared them. 

I know there was talk going on about splitting their season between Tampa and Montreal. Like the stadium idea, I think that drifted with the wind, too.

---

It's just a shame that a team that's always competitive to good can't get a fan base.  

Part of it is that antiquated [BLEEP] hole they play in.

It’s a shame. I was following pretty closely when Joe Maddon was there and even though he took them to the WS they still couldn’t draw crowds. Part of the problem is they suffer from the Florida franchise ailment in that many people in this state are mostly from somewhere else. When the Red Sox or Yankees came to town, attendance went up.

Tampa had a spiffy new stadium on the drawing boards but I don’t know what ever became of it. Miami’s new stadium struggles might have scared them. 

I know there was talk going on about splitting their season between Tampa and Montreal. Like the stadium idea, I think that drifted with the wind, too.

For some reason Florida just doesn't feel like a baseball state.  Many people here are from somewhere else (myself included) and grew up following their home team.   

Montreal is possibly even less of a baseball city than Tampa.  I went to a few games before the Expos left.......the "crowds" were probably less than what the Jumbo Shrimp draw.

---

When you get into the endzone, act like you've been there before.

The Rays winning that series was a pipe dream. They had the 3rd cheapest roster vs. the Dodgers who had the most expensive. They kept it exciting, but there’s a reason that it didn’t go to game 7. That being said, I was pulling for them the whole time and enjoyed watching them. They have nothing to be ashamed of

---

I was hoping the Rays would win, then The Bucs.  I don’t like Brady but thought it would be really nice for a city to have all their teams wins.  But with the Dodgers, I suppose I won’t have to hear Shannon Gunz talk about it.  Second thought, she’ll still talk about it

Well we have Lakers/Dodgers. Go Rams?

I can’t get behind that one, lol.

---

Well we have Lakers/Dodgers. Go Rams?

I can’t get behind that one, lol.

No worries, I'm a fan of the first two, and grew up a Rams fan and neither can I.

---

To be fair, that's a move he's made all season. Didn't work last night. That said, in a game like that, sometimes you do something different. I didn't like that it was Nick Anderson. He's been lights out all year until they extended him three innings in the ALDS against the Yankees. He hasn't been the same since.

Really, the Rays were overmatched in that series. And really just because they don't have the bats. That should really be the offseason priority, find a couple of decent hitters. And it doesn't have to homerun guys, just guys that can get hits and keep the line moving.

If you have a guy who's shutting them down, why take him out? Had LA gotten another hit or two in that frame, then that might be a sign Snell was flagging. Otherwise, use him up then bring in a fresh arm. Regardless of the outcome, Snell wasn't playing another game until next season.

You're not going to get much of an argument from me. I would have left him in. I was just telling you that move was made all season long. It's part of their analytical approach to the game. In this case, batting averages of opponents go up significantly the third time a pitcher faces them. It could be argued them making that move throughout the season was why they were in game six of the World Series to begin with.

But again, in that situation, I would have deviated from the norm based on the feel of that particular  game.

---

Much to The O-line Matters and my chagrin, the Rays have re-signed Mike Zunino.

https://www.tampabay.com/sports/rays/202...-decision/

---

Much to The O-line Matters and my chagrin, the Rays have re-signed Mike Zunino.

https://www.tampabay.com/sports/rays/202...-decision/

This drove me nuts! I can understand the team wanting to sign cheaper players, but Zunino has proven time and time again that he is an abysmal hitter. He may play good defense, but he's almost always a sure out, at the plate. Can't we at least find a catcher who can hit .225 to .240 and give us somewhat of a chance? I read a rumor that catcher was gonna be our highest priority, but I guess that went out the window. My only hope is that the minor league catcher they just traded Nick Lowe for (Heriberto Hernandez) turns into something decent. He had very impressive hitting stats albeit in the minor leagues, but at least it's a start. He also showed some pretty impressive power numbers as well and he's not even 21. I'd assign him to our AAA team and hopefully, if he impresses, we could get him on the team by mid season, but that is a tall order for such a young player. I hope we aren't done looking for catchers. Losing Charlie Morton was bad enough, but re- signing Zunino seems like a bad omen.

---

Much to The O-line Matters and my chagrin, the Rays have re-signed Mike Zunino.

https://www.tampabay.com/sports/rays/202...-decision/

This drove me nuts! I can understand the team wanting to sign cheaper players, but Zunino has proven time and time again that he is an abysmal hitter. He may play good defense, but he's almost always a sure out, at the plate. Can't we at least find a catcher who can hit .225 to .240 and give us somewhat of a chance? I read a rumor that catcher was gonna be our highest priority, but I guess that went out the window. My only hope is that the minor league catcher they just traded Nick Lowe for (Heriberto Hernandez) turns into something decent. He had very impressive hitting stats albeit in the minor leagues, but at least it's a start. He also showed some pretty impressive power numbers as well and he's not even 21. I'd assign him to our AAA team and hopefully, if he impresses, we could get him on the team by mid season, but that is a tall order for such a young player. I hope we aren't done looking for catchers. Losing Charlie Morton was bad enough, but re- signing Zunino seems like a bad omen.

Yeah, I'm hoping Zunino is plan B, really. I feel like we're in the National League and we're sending a pitcher up to the plate every nine at bats when he's in. He was supposedly a better hitter than this, but I haven't seen it in two years.

---

I should've known there would be some trade off to the Jags getting the #1 pick and possibly getting better. As my football team gets better, my Rays are gonna start sucking again. First, we lose Charlie Morton and now there are reports that we have agreed to trade Blake Snell to the Padres for what is basically, a bunch of "magic beans." With our best two starting pitchers gone, we have no ace and we're gonna have to score 6+ runs a game to even stay in contention for a .500 record. This sucks!

---

I should've known there would be some trade off to the Jags getting the #1 pick and possibly getting better. As my football team gets better, my Rays are gonna start sucking again. First, we lose Charlie Morton and now there are reports that we have agreed to trade Blake Snell to the Padres for what is basically, a bunch of "magic beans."  With our best two starting pitchers gone, we have no ace and we're gonna have to score 6+ runs a game to even stay in contention for a .500 record. This sucks!

Quite frankly, outside of his Cy Young season, I haven't been very impressed with Snell. He was shaky before that season and went back to being shaky after that season. During that season, nothing ever bothered him, he never really showed any kind of emotion, good or bad. Before and after that season, a bad circumstance often derailed him. And he throws way too many pitches because he's always going deep in counts.

Also, this has been the Rays MO from the beginning. They shed older, more expensive players for younger ones. They don't have a budget like a Yankees or Red Sox, so they have to make due other ways. Really, this makes their success all that more impressive. At this point, I can't be to critical of the front office until I see the team being terrible again.

---

I should've known there would be some trade off to the Jags getting the #1 pick and possibly getting better. As my football team gets better, my Rays are gonna start sucking again. First, we lose Charlie Morton and now there are reports that we have agreed to trade Blake Snell to the Padres for what is basically, a bunch of "magic beans."  With our best two starting pitchers gone, we have no ace and we're gonna have to score 6+ runs a game to even stay in contention for a .500 record. This sucks!

Quite frankly, outside of his Cy Young season, I haven't been very impressed with Snell. He was shaky before that season and went back to being shaky after that season. During that season, nothing ever bothered him, he never really showed any kind of emotion, good or bad. Before and after that season, a bad circumstance often derailed him. And he throws way too many pitches because he's always going deep in counts.

Also, this has been the Rays MO from the beginning. They shed older, more expensive players for younger ones. They don't have a budget like a Yankees or Red Sox, so they have to make due other ways. Really, this makes their success all that more impressive. At this point, I can't be to critical of the front office until I see the team being terrible again.

I know, but I thought maybe, since we'd reached the World Series, they'd at least give this roster one more season to gel and see how good they could be. I should've known better. 

Oh, they'll be bad next year. We're now left with Glasnow, Yarbrough, Waka and Fleming as starting pitchers. I don't see a #1 in that bunch. Glasnow is a #2, Yarbrough is a #4 at best, Waka is someone they got off the trash heap and Fleming is a complete unknown.

---

Quite frankly, outside of his Cy Young season, I haven't been very impressed with Snell. He was shaky before that season and went back to being shaky after that season. During that season, nothing ever bothered him, he never really showed any kind of emotion, good or bad. Before and after that season, a bad circumstance often derailed him. And he throws way too many pitches because he's always going deep in counts.

Also, this has been the Rays MO from the beginning. They shed older, more expensive players for younger ones. They don't have a budget like a Yankees or Red Sox, so they have to make due other ways. Really, this makes their success all that more impressive. At this point, I can't be to critical of the front office until I see the team being terrible again.

I know, but I thought maybe, since we'd reached the World Series, they'd at least give this roster one more season to gel and see how good they could be. I should've known better. 

Oh, they'll be bad next year. We're now left with Glasnow, Yarbrough, Waka and Fleming as starting pitchers. I don't see a #1 in that bunch. Glasnow is a #2, Yarbrough is a #4 at best, Waka is someone they got off the trash heap and Fleming is a complete unknown.

I mean, they don't even really use a "starting pitcher" model anymore. They certainly don't use a five man rotation. And even the "starters" rarely see a lineup the third time through. I don't think they're going to be bad at all. Not likely as good, but not likely bad, either.

---

We made another deal today. This one is pretty good. We traded our erratic reliever, Jose Alvarado to Philadelphia in a 3 team team and in return we get a minor league infield prospect Dillon Paulson. This kid looks to have some power in his bat and he hits for a decent average as well. I like when we bring in guys who have some "pop" in their bat. Alvarado always made me nervous when he came into pitch anyway. He was all over the place and lacked control.

---

We made another deal today. This one is pretty good. We traded our erratic reliever, Jose Alvarado to Philadelphia in a 3 team team and in return we get a minor league infield prospect Dillon Paulson. This kid looks to have some power in his bat and he hits for a decent average as well. I like when we bring in guys who have some "pop" in their bat. Alvarado always made me nervous when he came into pitch anyway. He was all over the place and lacked control.

I saw this earlier and was going to post it, but I waited for you. Alvarado was what's called a two-packer. Basically, you'd go through two packs of cigarettes before he closed out an inning. I don't remember who came up with that, maybe Lou Pinella? Anyway, oddly enough, he got it done more often than not. But really, as with almost any Rays trade, I wait to see how it pans out. The team could definitely use some more bats.

---

We made another deal today. This one is pretty good. We traded our erratic reliever, Jose Alvarado to Philadelphia in a 3 team team and in return we get a minor league infield prospect Dillon Paulson. This kid looks to have some power in his bat and he hits for a decent average as well. I like when we bring in guys who have some "pop" in their bat. Alvarado always made me nervous when he came into pitch anyway. He was all over the place and lacked control.

I saw this earlier and was going to post it, but I waited for you. Alvarado was what's called a two-packer. Basically, you'd go through two packs of cigarettes before he closed out an inning. I don't remember who came up with that, maybe Lou Pinella? Anyway, oddly enough, he got it done more often than not. But really, as with almost any Rays trade, I wait to see how it pans out. The team could definitely use some more bats.

Agreed, but by the time he did, my blood pressure was already in the danger zone. 

It's a gamble, but in my mind it was worth it. We need some young power on this team. Hopefully the kid will develop, although I am pretty satisfied with our infield situation. It's catcher, Centerfield and now starting pitching that most concerns me at this point.

---

They just can't compete money-wise with anybody, with the total lack of support they get. They do what they can do. Quite frankly, I find it amazing how well they've done over the years. They've obviously got people who know how to evaluate young talent.

---

They just can't compete money-wise with anybody, with the total lack of support they get.  They do what they can do.  Quite frankly, I find it amazing how well they've done over the years.  They've obviously got people who know how to evaluate young talent.

I constantly joke with my wife that I wish the Jags had the front office the Rays do. Imagine what those guys could do with a cap and Khan's money.

---