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Price is back and better than ever! Man we needed him. We're 8-2 in our last 10 games now. On a roll and sneaking up into a wildcard spot

Price returning in form is HUGE.

Cobb's return again will be HUGE.

The bullpen has gone from 29th in ERA, to 20th as of a few days ago.

The staff ERA has improved from 27th, to as of yesterday ..... 17th.

Myers is the real thing, and Longo looks near healthy.

An extended hot steak (like 20-8) will vault the Rays into 1st ..... as the Red Sox have yet to have a bad run of any length. (They may have just started one this past weekend).

I always forget RealGM has forums for other sports aside from basketball (apparently a lot of other people do, too).

If the Rays can finish these next 6 games prior to the all star break with a 6-0 or 5-1 record, I'd be thrilled.

A continued strong run up to the all star game isn't critical, but it should get the momentum going for the upcoming dog days.

Longo and Zobrist hitting .150ish in July. Luckily, nearly everyone else is hitting above their averages to keep us rolling. Archer/Torres/McGee/Rodney pitched a great game tonight.

craig01 wrote:A continued strong run up to the all star game isn't critical, but it should get the momentum going for the upcoming dog days.

Considering who the Rays are playing against until the ASG — Minnesota and Houston — I'd say it is critical to keep the strong run going. You can't lose to cellar dwelling teams like the Twins and Astros and expect to be a division champ.

Two sweeps in a row. 8 straight wins. Matt Moore wins his 13th, and is FINALLY named to the All Star Game.

Rays need to sweep Houston to close out the first half on a hot streak, b/c the schedule after the break gets really tough with a road trip against Toronto, Boston and NY.

We won that one without starting DJ, Zobrist or Escobar. Looking at the lineup just before the game, I figured we were giving a game away with 3 of our best defenders on the bench with the day off. Nice late pinch hit by Zobrist to keep us in it though. And man, Scott smashed a ball off the jumbotron I think! Glad that guy is getting back in the groove.

Last series before break is vs AAA Houston. Should be a sweep, but I won't be surprised if we give 1 up.

I wouldn't be surprised if we lost one, either. You don't really see winning streaks in MLB that lasts this long. I know it's Houston, but even tho their record sucks, they hang with teams. Rays need to just keep doing what they've been doing and they should get the sweep. They can't look ahead to the break or think, "It's just Houston."

Last night was disappointing, especially when Longoria was caught looking at the 3rd strike in the 9th.

Honestly, I was expecting him to drill one.....

The way the AL East is playing, one can hardly leave any GW opportunities on the plate.

This division is headed for one of the all-time rock 'em sock 'em round robins.

And what makes this so interesting, is that all except Toronto are playing really good baseball.....and no doubt they will have another run coming as well.

I really like Matt Joyce, but the guy has been terrible at the plate this year. Here's his monthly splits:

Month -- Avg
MAR/APR -- .225
MAY -- .299
JUNE -- .211
JULY -- .233

He had a nice hot streak in May, but those other months are ugly. On top of that, he's only used vs RHP because he's even worse vs lefties. At least his walk rate is decent. Really hope he picks it up.

craig01 wrote:Last night was disappointing, especially when Longoria was caught looking at the 3rd strike in the 9th.

Honestly, I was expecting him to drill one.....

The way the AL East is playing, one can hardly leave any GW opportunities on the plate.

This division is headed for one of the all-time rock 'em sock 'em round robins.

And what makes this so interesting, is that all except Toronto are playing really good baseball.....and no doubt they will have another run coming as well.

I was watching as well and expecting a blast. Even a single at that point would have saved the game. Oh well :\

Scott/Myers have been hot. Longo/Joyce really cooling off. I have a feeling the break will get Longo back into it. Joyce has struggled all year, save for May. Not sure how much longer he'll be starting at this point. Might see a KJ/SRod platoon in LF if Joyce doesn't pick it up.

Yunel Escobar's contract has $5m/yr for the next 2 years on it as club options. Meaning the organization decides whether to keep him for that price or let him go. His defense has been great and though his batting average doesn't look great on the surface, he's produced very well in the 9th hole having zero protection around that slot. The Rays don't have very much money to work with, but I think they strongly consider keeping this guy around. Next year I think is a definite, considering Lee's injury will hold him back another year at least.

MagicRays wrote:Yunel Escobar's contract has $5m/yr for the next 2 years on it as club options. Meaning the organization decides whether to keep him for that price or let him go. His defense has been great and though his batting average doesn't look great on the surface, he's produced very well in the 9th hole having zero protection around that slot. The Rays don't have very much money to work with, but I think they strongly consider keeping this guy around. Next year I think is a definite, considering Lee's injury will hold him back another year at least.

Esscobar is worth every penny. Plus, he has kept his head on straight thus far.

Really suprised the other guys (not Longo, Myers) are producing on offense. If Longo can get hot again soon then we are in good shape.

Optimus_Steel wrote:Really suprised the other guys (not Longo, Myers) are producing on offense. If Longo can get hot again soon then we are in good shape.

We are getting more production at Catcher this year than we did last year, and a huge increase in Shortstop production year-over-year. Thank you Lobaton and Escobar! And we now have the flexibility to only need SRod vs LHP, who he is more effective against. That is a plus. Oh yea, and we have managed to hit a home run at 1B (Loney) for the 3rd year in a row for cheap.

MagicRays wrote:

Optimus_Steel wrote:Really suprised the other guys (not Longo, Myers) are producing on offense. If Longo can get hot again soon then we are in good shape.

We are getting more production at Catcher this year than we did last year, and a huge increase in Shortstop production year-over-year. Thank you Lobaton and Escobar! And we now have the flexibility to only need SRod vs LHP, who he is more effective against. That is a plus. Oh yea, and we have managed to hit a home run at 1B (Loney) for the 3rd year in a row for cheap.

Loney has been nothing short of spectacular for the price and the expectations of the signing.

Optimus_Steel wrote:

MagicRays wrote:

Optimus_Steel wrote:Really suprised the other guys (not Longo, Myers) are producing on offense. If Longo can get hot again soon then we are in good shape.

We are getting more production at Catcher this year than we did last year, and a huge increase in Shortstop production year-over-year. Thank you Lobaton and Escobar! And we now have the flexibility to only need SRod vs LHP, who he is more effective against. That is a plus. Oh yea, and we have managed to hit a home run at 1B (Loney) for the 3rd year in a row for cheap.

Loney has been nothing short of spectacular for the price and the expectations of the signing.

Definitely. Unfortunately it's gonna cost much more to keep him around next year. Unless he pulls a super cool move and agrees to less money to stay with a super cool contender like us Wishful thinking. We do have Belnome waiting for a chance if he leaves though.

Yeah, Loney has been a fantastic addition, and offensively has produced light years ahead of what pena was giving the Rays.

Kotchman was OK a couple of years back, but Loney has been clutch and has kept rallies alive and knocked in runs.