The baseball season is over…162 regular season games plus the All-Star game plus five post season games equal 168 games total and a bit of an empty, disappointed feeling in my gut. Bummer.
The Rays could and should have beat the Rangers, but in the end those bastards with their stupid hand signals for long distance high fives and deer antlers prevailed. More so though it’s sad to watch the Rays, arguably, best players potentially packing up and saying goodbye. It’s especially hard since I can think of a few players on the team that should have been cut, or never should have been added to the roster before we even got this deep into the season (cough…Shoppach, Hawpe, Baldelli, etc).
With that said and with sadness, I’d like to say goodbye and fair thee well to Carl Crawford, Carlos Pena, and Rafael Soriano. You will be missed!
Carl Crawford, in a sense you were the quiet heart of the team. Not one to put yourself into the public eye for anything other than your performance on the field, you shined defensively and offensively over the course of your nine seasons with the Rays. When other players slacked either at the plate or on the field, you were always the one that your teammates and we fans could look to and depend on for some sense of stability. My last request of you: don’t go to the Yankees or Red Sox. I know, they’d be the teams that would pay you the multi-millions you’ll be asking for and may rightfully deserve. But it’s going to be too hard for us die-hard Rays fans to cheer you on from afar while being on one of those teams.
Carlos Pena, The other players looked up to you and your professional demeanor. Granted this wasn’t the best year for you offensively, but we all know that you’ve still some pop in your bat. Maybe a different hitting coach will bring it out of you again next year. I’d also be remiss if I neglected to mention that we’re going to be hard pressed to find a first baseman with the Gold Glove talents or capability that you possess. Don’t get me wrong, if the Rays put Dan Johnson in at first, I don’t doubt that he’d do well. But let’s face it; he’s no Pena.
And Rafael Soriano, we were just getting to know you…it’s sad to see you leave so soon! No more cool, calm, and collected performances on the mound only to be punctuated by you ripping your shirt out when victory is achieved. I love JP Howell, and I can’t wait for him to be back next year especially with he and Benoit acting as a one-two punch. But geez, watching you pitch in those really intense situations has been amazing. I’ll forgive you for the blown save after the All Star game, and the two run homer that you gave up Tuesday night.
To those coming up to fill the gaps of any and all positions that might open up: don’t fuck things up. Jennings, you’re Crawford’s apparent successor. I know that you didn’t get much opportunity to show what you’ve got this year, but in the times that you did, dare I say that, you didn’t look quite like you did in AAA? I hope that performance doesn’t carry over to the 2011 season. Oh Dan Johnson the Yankee and Red Sox killer; super pumped to see you in the lineup more often. Your bat will be welcome, especially when you take into consideration your performance both in AAA and the big leagues (what was it all together, over 37 homers?) this year. I just hope you can be solid at first. I’m also pretty excited to see McGee, Ekstrom, and Hellickson get used more next season.
In the end, us Rays fans can raise a parting glass to the 2010 season. This year was quite magical, wasn’t it? Certainly it’s going to be sad to see some of my (and many others) favorite players gone. There is however an undying, resilient hope for for what the 2011 season might bring. I know, the ownership is cutting the salary which is indeed a crappy thing to do, but that hope remains and the fire still burns that our beloved Rays will be successful in 2011. And in the words of the Wrigleyville faithful, “maybe next year.”
