The Rays' Offseason: Free Agency (Part 1)

As a Tampa Bay Rays fan, I’d be hard-pressed to say that I enjoy the beginning of off-season free agency. Over the course of the Rays’ history, free agency has brought only disappointment, whether that be through the loss of star players to larger-market clubs or through their own addition of a big-name player that didn’t meet expectations. Last year was the epitome of this, as major contributors to the Rays such as Carl Crawford, Carlos Pena, Rafael Soriano, Grant Balfour, Randy Choate, Dan Wheeler, Joaquin Benoit, and a few others left the Bay Area to pursue more dollar signs elsewhere, while the highest-profile player that the Rays brought in in Manny Ramirez retired just a few days into the season after getting busted for drugs. The signing of guys like Joel Peralta and Kyle Farnsworth were deemed decent acquisitions, but they weren’t going to raise any ticket sales or sell jerseys. Despite a lackluster offseason, at least on the free agency front, the Rays would go on to win 91 games and the AL Wild Card.


Thankfully, it is highly unlikely to see a mass exodus of talent this offseason as Rays fans saw last year. From my scanning of MLB Trade Rumors' Free Agent Tracker, the Rays only had four potential free agents going into the open season on players. These players are:

Kelly Shoppach ($3.2MM club option with a $300K buyout)

Casey Kotchman

Johnny Damon

Kyle Farnsworth ($3.3MM club option with a $650K buyout)

As I am writing this on October 31, The Rays had just announced that they would pick up Farnsworth’s option while declining Shoppach’s. That means that Shoppach, Kotchman, and Damon are the Rays’ only free agents. So what should the Rays do with these players?

Well, to start off with Shoppach, I think Kelly's issues on offense have been well documented. Hitting only .176 at the plate is not going to keep you your job, at least not at $3.2 million like Shoppach's option would have been. One bright side to Shoppach though was, surprisingly, his defense, which was very solid throughout the year - especially in comparison to fellow C John Jaso. Shoppach even led the league by preventing 41% of stolen base attempts. He also has experience and the trust of the young pitching staff. While I raged with every 3-pitch swinging strikeout Kelly has had in his two years with the team, I wouldn't be surprised if the Rays at least offer him a one year deal at a reduced salary, perhaps even a minor league deal depending on the market.

Casey Kotchman is in an interesting situation. He certainly had a great season, batting in the .330s for the majority of the year while playing stellar defense at first - do you think James Shields gets all those pick-offs without Casey at the bag? Part of his career year was thanks to a procedure he had done in the offseason to clear his vision, allowing him to follow the ball better and thus resulting in his batting average spike. But while his 2011 campaign was nice and all, he will likely regress more towards the mean more like he did near the end of the year. In addition to the possibility of a fluke, his great year will probably attract a lot of attention from potential buyers, possibly resulting in a bidding war that the Rays have no way of winning. While I'm sure the Rays would love to bring Kotchman back, perhaps to a 2-year deal for him to prove himself, my guess is that he's swept up by another team better situated financially than Tampa Bay. 

The things that Johnny Damon can bring to the club house are great for a young team like the Rays. His leadership and experience combined with his good-hearted nature are tremendous. But Damon's statistics on the field are declining as his age increases, and while his 2011 season was good by Reid Brignac standards, so I don't think he's worth the around $5 million salary he got last year - especially since he contributes nothing defensively. If he and his agent, the dreaded Scott Boras, will accept reduced pay, then I'm all for binging Johnny back for another year or two in his pursuit of 3,000 hits. But if not, I would probably let him walk, and possibly look to move Dan Johnson or Matt Joyce to DH. When Damon decides to retire, I think he would be a great fit for the quality coach position the Joe Maddon enjoys employing.

Roloson Returns with Shutout

The Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Atlan-, er, Winnipeg Jets on Saturday night by a score of 1-0.

Dwyane Roloson, who made his first start since the Lightning's home opener, looked to be back in top form. He made 28 saves on all 28 shots he faced en route to his 29th career shutout. The defense in front of him was certainly better than it had been in his previous starts in which he struggled, but he still had to make quite a few tough plays to keep the goose egg on the board.
Vinny Lecavalier scored on a power play in the final minute of the second period to give the Bolts all the goals they would need. The Captain has 5 goals on the year now.

For more stats, video and photos, visit the Lightning's official website.

Bolts stay hot; Connolly to remain with Lightning

The Lightning defeated the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday, 4-3, to extend the team's 3-game winning streak.

The Bolts started out slow, with some bad defensive turnovers resulting in 2 Buffalo goals in the first 5 minutes and with problems keeping the puck in the offensive zone. But Vinny Lecavalier's 800th career point - a goal - sparked a turnaround, and the Lightning would go on to score 4 straight goals. Mathieu Garon had another strong outing, making several spectacular saves that allowed the Bolts to fight back. Click here for the official game recap.

After the game, Steve Yzerman announced the decision to keep Brett Connolly on the Lightning rather than send him back to his junior club team. Congrats to him on earning a roster spot with some great play in his first 9 NHL games.

Should the Rays trade James Shields?

James Shields was the ace of the Rays' pitching staff during the 2011 season. He threw 249.1 innings, 11 complete games, 4 shutouts, and 225 strikeouts, all personal or Rays records. The fact that these results came following an extremely disappointing 2010 season made his success all the sweeter. However, that fact also raises questions about whether 2010 or 2011 was the "fluke" season. Many think that the Rays, ever seeking opportunities to dump payroll and pick up a few top prospects for the future, will try to shop Shields this winter at the height of his value. ESPN's Buster Olney kicked up the dust recently when he reported that the Marlins are considering making a serious run at acquiring Shields. It's certainly a possibilty, especially with the pitching depth in the minors that the Rays have in phenom Matt Moore and solid prospects Alex Cobb and Alex Torres, along with some key offensive holes at the big league level, but the real question is, should they?

Right now, given James Shields' current contract and his recent production, his possible 2012 salary of $7 million is very team friendly. The Rays love these types of contracts, and so it makes a lot of sense for them to keep him around to produce excellent numbers for relatively cheap. He's currently in the prime of his career (he turns 30 in December) and has remained healthy for most of his career, so the possibility of him breaking down shouldn't be a concern (the fact that he doesn't rely on a 96-mph fastball that could lose velocity with age also helps). He's a clubhouse leader, being the elder statesman of the rotation and one of the longest-tenured Rays. And, in my opinion, 2011 was not the fluke season. Advanced statistics such as BABIP show that he was extremely unlucky during the 2010 campaign, and the fact that part of Shields' success in 2011 had to do with an adjustment of mechanics is promising for the future. While numbers such as his outstanding complete game total will probably regress more towards the mean in the coming seasons, I expect another well-above-average performance in 2012.

However, the Rays are never one to turn down an offer they can't refuse. Remember last year's Matt Garza deal with the Cubs? In return for Garza (who was in a similar situation as Shields is with guys like Moore and Cobb, with a very talented  Jeremy Hellickson needing a rotation spot), the Rays acquired top prospects Chris Archer and Hak-Ju Lee, plus near-MLB ready talent in Brandon Guyer and Robinson Chirinos and, of course, the #LegendofSamFuld. Considering how successful that trade has turned out so far, a trade like this is certainly in question. Although the Cubs may have overpayed for Garza, the fact that Shields' trade value right now is higher than Garza's ever was indicates that the Rays could get an even better bounty in a trade. Being able to bring in top-quality talent to help the Rays' key holes in hitting and in the bullpen would be very, very hard to turn down.

At this point, I would say that unless the Rays are absolutely blown away by a trade proposal, then it is best to keep Big Game James and the production he can bring to the MLB team right now rather than hope in the promised talent of a few prospects. In order to make room for Moore or Cobb, and to fill the other holes on the team, the Rays would be better served to try and trade a guy like Jeff Niemann, perhaps in a package deal with a minor leaguer, or even BJ Upton.

Bruised Bucs can't complete comeback in London

The Buccaneers lost to the Chicago Bears, 24-18 in a game played at Wembley Stadium in London.


The Pewter Pirates again got off to a slow start, only scoring 5 points (two off of a safety by Ronde Barber) through the first three quarters. The Bucs again put up a tough fight near the end, scoring 13 in the fourth quater, but the 4th interception against QB Josh Freeman on the day sealed the win for the Bears.

Freeman is having a rough year so far. His 4 interceptions on Sunday were just two less than his total amount of INTs all of last year. He is still having some issues of forcing plays that aren't there - throwing into double coverage or completely ignoring a linebacker waiting underneath to pick off a pass. While his comeback skills still seem to be present, he has not been able to put the finishing touches on some of the ones the Bucs have had so far this year. In my opinon, offensive coordinator Greg Olson isn't helping much either. With the Bucs struggling early but having success in their hurry-up, two-minute offense, why not stick to that style of play full-time? Also, his under-utilization of good weapons such as Arrelious Benn and Freeman's legs and size (QB draws and jump passes, anyone?) is getting to be a bit aggravating.


A lot of credit must be given to the young Bucs team for keeping the game close and nearly winning despite a nightmarish string of injuries in the last few games. Already without starters Gerald McCoy, LeGarrette Blount, Cody Grimm and Jeff Faine going into the matchup in London, the Bucs lost several other key starters throughout the course of the game. The first to go down was Earnest Graham, who was starting at running back in place of Blount. Graham injured his Achilles tendon and is likely out for the year. Later Mason Foster, Tanard Jackson, and Jeremy Zuttah (who was starting in the place of Faine) also suffered injuries. Erik Lorig and Brian Price also had to leave the game, but both returned. That's 8 starters who are currently banged up, and with a team as young as the Bucs are, it's going to be tough to win tough football games in crunch time. Hopefully the coming bye week will give an much-needed opportunity to heal before heading to New Orleans.

Bolts Shock Sabres, 3-0

The Tampa Bay Lightning shut out the Buffalo Sabres, 3-0.

The Bolts played one of their best overall games so far this season. They were pretty aggressive, playing fast and hard, taking advantage of the fact that this was the second game in as many nights for the Sabres. The Lightning played well on special teams, only going on the penalty kill 3 times and killing off each and scoring on their only power play (although they probably should have had more). The defense played superb, blocking several shots and causing turnovers with some good poke checks.

Pavel Kubina opened the scoring with a rocket shot from the point on the Bolts’ power play in the second period. In the third, Marty St. Louis added a beautiful one-on-one deke-and-shot goal that was set up by a nice steal by Vinny Lecavalier. Victor Hedman’s empty-net goal in the closing moments sealed the scoring.

The three goals were more than enough for the Lightning, as Mathieu Garon stopped all 21 shots he faced en route to the first shutout of the year. Garon, who has replaced a struggling incumbent starter Dwayne Roloson, has had a hot hand in the last few games. It’s still early, and the defense has played much better in the Lightning’s two game winning streak, but given the results so far I don’t expect Guy Boucher to go back to Roloson unless Garon gives him a reason to.

Side Notes:

-          As the above photo indicates, the much-anticipated tesla coils saw their first public action on Saturday. They were only used during the pre-game festivities, and not after the Lightning goals like they should in the future, but it was still cool. Check it out (Skip to about :55):

-          The Lightning wore their third alternate uniforms, which they will do every Saturday. They retained the same black pants and helmet, as well as the blue sweaters with “BOLTS” written on the front. Surprisingly, the shoulder patch remained last year’s logo as well. I’m curious as to why the uniform wasn’t adapted with the new logo set. It’s possible that the changes were not submitted by the silly uniform change deadline the NHL has (the same reason why no victory stripes were added to the re-done version of the new uniforms), but at this point it remains a mystery.

Lightning get back on track, defeat Islanders

The Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the New York Islanders 4-1 on Thursday night, the 15 year anniversary of the first hockey game played at the St. Pete Times Forum.

The Lightning were much better at correcting some of the biggest problems leading to their five-game winless streak. While Mathieu Garon played well in net, including a fantastic toe save int the opening minute, he only had to face 17 Islander shots. The Bolts had 30 shots of their own, so they look to be getting closer to Guy Boucher's goal of having the Lightning get 40 shots while holding the opponent to 20.

In addition, the Lightning only took 3 penalties on the night, allowing the players on the pnalty kill unit to get a fair amount of rest. This also contributed to the Bolts' victory in the shots on goal category, as the team was able to play less in their end.

Another day of 4 goals - including Ryan "Bugsy" Malone's 150th career goal - was encouraging. Vinny Lecavalier, Steven Stamkos, and Brett Clark also scored, and Teddy Purcell picked up two assists. There were quite a few more opportunities for goals as well, as at least three or four shots hit the goal post or cross bar.

Thursday Tidbits: 10/20/11

Bucs

- Gerald McCoy, Luke Stocker, and Sammie Stroughter returned to practice, but Jeff Faine, LeGarrette Blount, Michael Bennett, and Mason Foster sat out. [TBO]
- The Bucs will try to avoid kicking to the Bears' dangerous return man Devin Hester. [Twitter - Rick Stroud]

Lightning

- The tesla coils will not be ready for action in tonight's game. [Twitter - Erik Erlendsson]

Rays

- It has been confirmed by several sources that GM Andrew Friedman met with Angels executives over dinner Tueday night, as local blog DRaysBay was the first to report. It is not known what Friedman's level of interest in Los Angeles' open GM is. [DRaysBay]

Lightning fall to Panthers in Home Opener

The Tampa Bay Lightning lost to in-state rival Florida Panthers 7-4 Monday night, in front of a sold-out crowd of 19,204 at the newly-renovated St. Pete Times Forum.

This game had been highly anticipated for a number of reasons, primarily due to the introduction of the Forum's new features such as a massive pipe organ, redone concourses, and artificial lightning produced by tesla coils (which were not in operation Monday, as they need further testing), as well as the debut of the Bolts' new blue home sweaters. Unfortunately for Lightning fans, the display on the ice was not nearly as good as the one around it.

Most of the Lightning's main issues contributing to a disappointing 1-2-2 season-opening road trip remained on Monday. Although they outshot Florida 39-33, a number of turnovers and 11 more penalties would result in 7 Panther goals, including 5 power-play goals and a short-handed goal. Bolts goaltender Dwayne Roloson had another rough night; even taking some poor defense in front of him into account, Roloson’s 42 years seemed to show tonight, with a less-than-favorable reaction time, especially with his glove hand. Through four games this season, Roli has a 5.09 goals-against average.

The Lightning did seem to play with a lot of energy Monday, as to be expected in a home opener, and their offense showed signs of life. But if the Bolts continue to take silly penalties and give up bad turnovers, then they could find themselves in a deep hole that will be hard to dig out of.

Welcome to Tampa Bay Sports Blog!

This blog is being established as a school creative writing project. Here, I will discuss my thoughts and opinions about the Tampa Bay area professional sports teams, including the Buccaneers, Lightning, and Rays. I hope you enjoy the content, and any feedback is welcome.