Once the fog cleared from the greater Port Charlotte area, likely opening day starter Alex Cobb got the opportunity to throw live batting practice, along with Nathan Karns and flame throwers Jose Dominguez and Jhan Martinez among others. Karns, one of the candidates for the number five starter’s job, will get the ball in the spring opener against the Orioles, Thursday.
Tag Archives: Drew Smyly
Projecting the Rays 2015 Starting Rotation
I don’t put much credence into projections and predictions. With that said, projections can offer quite a bit of insight into a mathematically calculated outcome, whereas predictions are a wild stab in the dark by people who look at everything face value. Predictions rarely turn out correct (see the Rays predictions to go to the World Series last year) and projections, more often than not, warrant merit.
Hot-Stove: Rays Avoid Arbitration with Eight Players, Sign Five to Minor League Deals
Heading the January 16th arbitration deadline, Tampa Bay had eight arbitration eligible players they hadn’t reached an agreement with, and until 1:00 PM to sign a deal, or settle in court. As I reported earlier on Tumblr, the Rays were able to avoid arbitration this afternoon with those players — John Jaso, Kevin Jepsen, Jake McGee, Logan Forsythe, Desmond Jennings, Rene Rivera, Alex Cobb, and Drew Smyly.
Early Returns of the Drew Smyly Project (Reposted from Jeff Sullivan/Fangraphs)
Since we’re nearing the end of the season, I have started to shift my focus toward the future. As bloggers and baseball writers begin to evaluate any major moves (trades, acquisitions, etc) that were made over the course of the season, one thing became obvious when discussing the Rays moving forward: Drew Smyly promises to play a major role in next season’s starting rotation. Smyly’s improvement as a starter became the talk of many a blogger and baseball writer alike, and because of it, I felt the need to repost an article (below) on that very subject. In short, if Smyly’s early returns speak to anything, it’s that he promises to be an exciting piece on the roster. If he’s done this well in only seven starts with Tampa Bay, just think about how well he’ll perform after a little more work with the Rays’ coaching staff.
Rays 9/9/14 Starting Lineup, Etc
Rays 9/9/14 Starting Lineup Zobrist 2B DeJesus DH Longoria 3B Loney 1B Myers RF Joyce LF Escobar SS Kiermaier CF Hanigan C Archer RHP Noteworthiness Evan Longoria’s 12 career home runs at this Yankee Stadium are the most by a visiting player in the park’s six-year history. Rays starters have a 3.46 ERA this season …