Bartlett SS
Upton CF
Crawford LF
Longoria 3B
Pena 1B
Baldelli DH (By the way, Rock has Aybar’s postseason roster spot because he can play defense.)
Zobrist RF
Shoppach C
Rodriguez 2B
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Mark,
I have been watching baseball my entire life, and I NEVER remember a team in the playoffs sending out a lineup card with TWO guys in it that batted below .200 for the regular season. Add to that the fact that another player in the starting lineup played in only 10 regular season games this year and what we are left with is a Rays team facing a must win in game two with JAMES SHIELDS on the mound. To say that we should be in panic mode is a gross understatement. I know Maddon led the team to 96 wins in the regular season, but I am left scratching my head with his post-season moves thus far.
I understand the sentiment but it is only one game. No time to panic yet. You have to ride the horse that brung you and this is the horse that brung us.
(Please note, I will obviously be deleting anything I wrote supporting Shields if he tanks. God bless the internet.)
let’s face it…this team won 96 games in spite of Maddon….the guy is a shitty on-field manager….and it’s about to end the Rays season…a team hitting .248 keeps a guy for his “speed” and a guy that has a total of 28 MLB at bats this season…and we sit Aybar who has been tremendous off the bench…insane…it’s obvious he runs a great clubhouse but his on field Zen master BS is about to, sadly, end our season….Shields????
Not sure I agree Larry. Baseball is one of the few sports in which it is almost impossible to succeed in spite of the manager’s strategy. There are too many variables.
I think Maddon’s unorthodox style carries the ultimate risk-reward. If we win, he is a genius that beat the big boys with a low payroll thanks to his willingness to reinvent the wheel. But, if we lose, he is a maddening tinkerer that thwarts conventional wisdom just to prove how hip he is.
Mark,
I agree with your response to Larry and would further say that when you have a payroll handicap like the Rays do, it is almost a necessity to be unorthodox. However, one area where the Rays have an advantage is starting pitching and that is why I can’t for the life of me figure out why Shields is pitching a must win game two today? I don’t care how old he is or how much experience he has or doesn’t have, Jeremy Hellickson is at least the second best pitcher on the Rays staff and should be getting the ball today. Sheilds should have been moved to the bullpen months ago. (By the way, the best part of yesterday was that the Rays weren’t the team that got no hit).
Mark,
I agree with your response to Larry and would go a step further to say that when you have a payroll handicap like the Rays do, it is almost a necessity to be unorthodox. However one area where the Rays have an advantage is starting pitching and I can’t for the life of me figure out why James Shields is pitching a MUST WIN game two especially when there are FOUR other pitchers on this staff that are better alternatives. Shields should have been moved to the bullpen months ago. You have to play to your strengths in the post-season especially a short series. (On the bright side, at least the Rays weren’t the team to get no hit yesterday. So we got that going for us, which is nice.)