Tampa Bay Rays Regular Season Home Opener Now Sold Out!

It's great to see so much excitement around the Rays 2009 season. In fact, I was looking into some extra tickets to the home opener today (using my season ticket password) and it is [UPDATED] sold out before tickets go on sale to the general public tomorrow! It'll be a great way to start 2009 for the Rays (with a sellout). Does it really get much better than hoisting the American League Champion banner in front of the half-billion dollar Yankees? Of course, you can still get tickets to the home opener by purchasing a season ticket packages. For example, half season (weekend plan) Lower Box seats are available in Section 121 and 122. Or, if you are feeling adventurous, Full Season Tickets are available in 103, Row J (Home Plate Club) or Lower Box seats in Sections 107-Wheel Chair, 118-Row EE, 120-X or 122-L. Those are some pretty good seats still available!!!

StubHub now has 1500+ tickets available (so it appears as though there are some entrepreneurs in the Tampa Bay area) from $27 (upper deck) to $1,500+ (home plate club). I'm not sure why anyone would pay $1,500 when that would buy you half of the season in the Lower Box.

Some great seats are still available for the Tuesday and Wednesday Yankee games, but the good seats are likely to sell pretty quickly once the sale is opened to the public. Wouldn't it be great to start the season off with 3 sellouts? Come on, Rays Fans, let's pack the Trop!!!

Let's pack the TROP and show the Yankees we aren't messing around this year!!!

9=8 (yes, 9 does still equal 8 for the Rays) - Joe Maddon announces 2009 slogan "9 > 8"

As all readers of this blog know, Joe Maddon launched 2008 with the seemingly strange motto of 9=8. That is to say (just as a reminder) 9 players, playing hard as a team for 9 innings equals 1 of the 8 spots in the postseason. That great slogan was the genesis of this Rays blog.

So, how would Joe Maddon inspire his team this year? Last week the skipper announced that the slogan for 2009 is "'09 > '08" (or, 2009 is greater than 2008). Maddon specifically said he preferred not to use the word "greater" but that there is no symbol for "better," so he went with greater and the associated symbol ">".

Joe Maddon did go on to say, "Of course I wanted to re-emphasize that 9 will always equal 8 in our math, but furthermore, this year, '09 is going the be greater than '08." Yeah, we here at 9=8.com do believe this is the core of the franchise's philosophy, so we're glad to hear Joe reiterate this point. Below are some additional comments on the new slogan from Maddon (per the St. Pete Times' Heater Blog).

"Of course I wanted to re-emphasize that 9 will always equal 8 in our math, but furthermore, this year, '09 is going the be greater than '08,'' he said. "And we want it to be hopefully better by at least three games, which we missed last year. Of course we did wonderfully last year and of course it was all good, but I keep talking about building this new road and you just can't rely on 9 = 8 all the time. You have to better than we were in some areas last year.

"I'm not talking about being great. Although that phrase is greater than, and you look at the greater than sign, I'd prefer it equalled "better than" as opposed to "greater than." ... I just want us to understand that in order to build this new road we have to be better than we were last year. I did say “greater than,” but then I reduced it to “better than, and eventually I would just like to get that (the > symbol) working for us, just the symbol, "better than." There’s no “better than” symbol. I was thinking of creating my own symbol with the “greater than” sign maybe with a circle around it, equaling better than. Just a new Rays culture kind of symbol , but I didn’t want to get too nuts, so I just chose to go this way.’’

Rays #2, Yankees #1, AL East Tops in USA Today's MLB 2009 Power Rankings

HEADLINE: Tampa Bay Rays finally get some respect!!

After opening 2008 as the odds on favorite to finish in last place (per Vegas odds of the Rays winning the World Series of something like 150:1), the Rays are getting some much-deserved respect (the new Vegas Odds are out and the Rays are a 14:1 bet to win the World Series in 2009).

According to the newly released (2 days ago) USA Today MLB 2009 Power Rankings, the Tampa Bay Rays are #2. As anyone would guess, $500 million in off-season expenditures did buy the Yankees the #1 position (but just barely). The Boston Red Sox follow the Rays at #3. So, once again, the American League East should be a ridiculously hard division from which to make the playoffs. It's a good thing the Rays didn't sit on their hands in the offseason.

So, here are the 2009 Power Rankings from USA Today - enjoy!

1 NEW YORK YANKEES
All eyes on how A-Rod reacts to his latest and biggest crisis. (Three first-place votes)
Points: 339
Final 2008: 9

2 TAMPA BAY RAYS
Pat Burrell's bat is a big boost for the AL's ninth-best offense in '08. (Two first-place votes)
Points: 331
Final 2008: 2

3 BOSTON RED SOX
Much the same team; as long as they're not the same old team. (One first-place vote)
Points: 326
Final 2008: 3

4 PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES
Having Chase Utley (hip) from the start could decide the NL East. (Four first-place votes)
Points: 325
Final 2008: 1

5 CHICAGO CUBS
Keeping Rich Harden, Milton Bradley healthy makes them formidable. (One first-place vote)
Points: 316
Final 2008: 5

6 NEW YORK METS
Does the bullpen overhaul make them collapse-proof?
Points: 302
Final 2008: 11

7 LOS ANGELES ANGELS
John Lackey-Ervin Santana combo must carry the smaller-ball team.
Points: 292
Final 2008: 4

8 CLEVELAND INDIANS
Kerry Wood helps plenty, but the return of Travis Hafner imperative.
Points: 257
Final 2008: 15

9 LOS ANGELES DODGERS
Best of the NL West even without Manny.
Points: 244
Final 2008: 6

10 CHICAGO WHITE SOX
Ozzie Guillen wants return to 2005's run-and-gun style.
Points: 228
Final 2008: 7

11 MINNESOTA TWINS
Offseason with no moves might not be a bad thing.
Points: 224
Final 2008: 10

12 ST. LOUIS CARDINALS
Need to find a closer and a healthy Chris Carpenter. (One first-place vote)
Points: 217
Final 2008: 14

13 ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS
Gifted young players have to curb growing strikeout totals.
Points: 205
Final 2008: 17

14 MILWAUKEE BREWERS
Plenty to replenish especially pitching after the playoff run.
Points: 184
Final 2008: 8

15 HOUSTON ASTROS
Filling out the rotation could be a season-long challenge.
Points: 174
Final 2008: 13

16 ATLANTA BRAVES
Rebuilt the rotation, but new wave on offense is just getting started.
Points: 173
Final 2008: 24

17 TORONTO BLUE JAYS
Injuries punch holes in the rotation they relied on.
Points: 172
Final 2008: 12

18 DETROIT TIGERS
Need bounce-back seasons too many bounce-back seasons.
Points: 163
Final 2008: 21

19 SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS
A little more offense could make them an NL West threat.
Points: 157
Final 2008: 25

20 OAKLAND ATHLETICS
The closest they've come to a total rebuild in the Billy Beane era.
Points: 147
Final 2008: 20

21 FLORIDA MARLINS
Hanley Ramirez is the cornerstone, but will the ballpark get built?
Points: 133
Final 2008: 16

22 TEXAS RANGERS
They hit, but Nolan Ryan is the guy running the team now.
Points: 129
Final 2008: 18

23 KANSAS CITY ROYALS
A work in progress, but at least some pieces are in place.
Points: 114
Final 2008: 19

24 CINCINNATI REDS
Quietly building a strong collection of young talent.
Points: 110
Final 2008: 22

25 BALTIMORE ORIOLES
It took being possibly the AL's most improved team to get this high.
Points: 86
Final 2008: 26

26 COLORADO ROCKIES
That World Series was a mile higher than where they are now.
Points: 82
Final 2008: 23

27 PITTSBURGH PIRATES
Somebody needs to figure out their young starting pitchers.
Points: 49
Final 2008: 27

28 SAN DIEGO PADRES
The owner can sell this team, but can the marketing department?
Points: 42
Final 2008: 28

29 SEATTLE MARINERS
More unclaimed jobs than any other team in the majors.
Points: 37
Final 2008: 29

30 WASHINGTON NATIONALS
Can Ryan Zimmerman ask for another hitter in arbitration?
Points: 22
Final 2008: 30

Getting Ready for 2009 Tampa Bay Rays Baseball: Offseason Recap

After reading through an endless number of articles on Tampa Bay Rays rumors and moves, I thought it might be a helpful primer for Rays fans to have a summary of the most important offseason happenings. So, here goes.

The Rays were very busy this offseason. After an historic run to the World Series in 2008, the Rays set their sites on fielding an even better team in 2009. Going into the offseason, the Rays clearly outlined their primary goals in this article: right field and the bullpen. Additionally, the Rays noted that they had a glut of great pitching, some of which would like need to be moved to make room for other up and comers (especially those like Niemann and Hammels who are out of minor leagues options). With the recent announcement that Chad Bradford needed elbow surgery and will be out 3-4 months as a stark reminder of the realities of MLB, pitching depth is a great asset for the Rays.

So, jumping right in to the offseason summary. First, the Rays allowed several of their 2008 players (allowed because they chose not to resign them) to become free agents including Rocco Baldelli (signed by the Red Sox), Cliff Floyd (signed by the Padres), Eric Hinske (signed by the Pirates), Trevor Miller (signed by the Cardinals) and Johnny Gomes (signed a minor league contract with the Reds). All of these players contributed to the team’s success in 2008, so they will be missed. But, all things considered, the Rays did not lose a single full-time starter in the offseason to free agency! The good news is that all of the above mentioned players were role / platoon players; the bad news is that the Rays were successful last year in large part due to the contributions of its role players. But, I digress.

The biggest news for the Rays came in the signing of Pat Burrell to a 2-year $16 million contract. Burrell, one of the big guns available to the Rays (others included Manny Ramirez, Adam Dunn, Milton Bradley, Ken Griffey, Bobby Abreu, and Jason Giambi, to name a few). Burrell will be the Rays full-time DH and might be able to fill-in in RF from time to time (such as when the Rays play inter-league play or when they return to the World Series…!). Burrell has been a consistent source of power for the Phillies having hit an average of about 30 home runs in each of the last 7 seasons. While I really liked Cliff Floyd, Burrell represents a significant upgrade to the Rays DH position and he is right handed (the Rays lineup is a bit left-lopsided).

There were persistent rumors that the Rays were actively shopping some of their plethora of starting pitching. This manifested itself in the dealing of Edwin Jackson to the Tigers in exchange for hot prospect, Matt Joyce. Joyce is an up and coming left-handed batting right fielder who is now under the Rays’ control for 6 years. Jackson, a 14-game winner in 2008, will be sorely missed. But, the reality of his situation is that he will make $2.2 million in 2009 (he signed a 1-year deal with the Tigers for this amount) and he was likely to be on the outside looking in for the Rays starting rotation (with David Price eventually taking over the #5 slot).

Another great, but less talked about move, was the acquisition of Joe Nelson via free agency. Nelson is a top-shelf relief pitcher who pitched 54 innings for the Marlins in 2008 posting a stellar 2.00 ERA. He is a 34-year old veteran that the Rays agreed to pay $1.3 million in a one-year deal. The interesting tidbit of news on Nelson is that he received interest from 19 MLB teams (19!!!) and he CHOSE to join the Rays. When is the last time you heard of a player choosing to join the Tampa Bay Rays when he had multiple options? It truly IS a NEW DAY IN TAMPA BAY!!

Adding to Burrell, Nelson and Joyce, the Rays also signed veteran right-fielder (and body builder extraordinaire...well, not really) Gabe Kapler to a one-year $1 million deal. Kapler hit .354 with 22 RBIs against left handed pitching in 2008. One of the biggest problems for the Rays last year was hitting left handed pitching (the World Series made this very clear). Shoring up their right handed line-up seems like a pretty good idea since the AL East now includes the likes of C.C. Sabathia, Andy Petite, Jon Lester, etc. With Burrell at DH and Kapler as a platoon option in RF against lefties, I think the Rays did just that. This also gives the Rays another option in center field if BJ Upton needs more time to get ready; Kapler started 25 games in CF last year for the Brewers.

The Rays had a few other items to address and did so over the course of early 2009. Firstly, they lost their lefty specialist (Trevor Miller). Miller was a great asset to the Rays, but it appears as though he may have some injury issues to work through in 2009 and he was expensive. So, the Rays signed side-armed lefty 40-year old veteran Brian Shouse to a two-year deal (have you noticed a trend in the bullpen – veterans?). Shouse was a strong 5-1 with a 2.81 ERA in 69 games for the Brewers in 2008. Lefties only hit .180 off him, with an on-base percentage of .192. He is the prototypical specialist pitcher. The Rays also signed RHP Lance Cormier to a $675,000 deal to shore things up further. Lance has something to prove as his raw stats are not among the best of the Rays pen, but he's clearly a talented pitcher with good stuff...and the price was right. Between Shouse, Nelson, Bradford (once he gets healthy), Cormier, Howell, Balfour and Wheeler (not to mention Hammels and Niemann), hitters are going to get all kinds of different looks from the Rays bullpen this year.

In another interesting part of the baseball prospect/farm system process, the Rays lost promising pitching prospect, Eddie Morlan, to the Rule 5 draft. Eddie was a solid prospect with some pretty good numbers in the Rays' farm system. The good news is that the Rays were able to pick up a pretty interesting prospect in Derek Rodriguez. Rodriguez, a right-handed relief pitcher, is 25 years old. He posted some very good numbers in 2008, when he was 5-2 with a 3.29 ERA in 49 appearances in double-A and triple-A. He struck out 10 batters per 9 IP and a 2.7 strikeouts-to-walk ratio. He also held opponents to a .191 batting average. The catch is that the Rays must give him back and pay $50,000 if he does not make the 25-man roster in 2009. But, we've seen some pretty good fortune from guys like this (e.g. Balfour), so it's a small price to pay for a very interesting prospect.

Tying up all the other loose ends, the Rays were also busy with a number of their players that were already under Rays control, but needed new contracts. The Rays avoided arbitration by signing Jason Bartlett to a 1-year deal worth about $2 million; signing Gabe Gross to a 1-year deal worth about $1.3 million; and signing Grant Balfour to a 1-year deal worth about $1.4 million (avoiding arbitration). The Rays have also been busily negotiating with Dioner Navarro and Willy Aybar, both of whom are arbitration eligible. The Rays would like to sign Navi to a long-term deal, but that did not happen. The St. Pete Times reported earlier today that the Rays were successful in their arbitration case against Navi. Navi will earn $2.1 million in 2009. Let's hope there are no hard feelings. It is possible that the Rays come to terms with Aybar prior to his arbitration case, but that looks less likely by the day. The Rays victory against Dioner might help things along here.

Well, that's a pretty complete overview of the offseason (except for a few minor league signings). If there is anything that I missed, don't hesitate to comment. Go Rays!

FAN FEST 2009 - Special 9=8.com Ticket Package!

So, the Rays announced the details of Fan Fest 2009 over the weekend and I wanted to share the details with you here. I also think it's cool that the Rays decided to launch a special 9=8.com (ok, so it's just 9=8) ticket package! Buy 9 tickets for the price of 8! I'll just pretend they launched this deal because of the success of this blog.

Anyway, the highlights are as follow: Free Parking; 10AM to 5PM (unless you are a season ticketholder - then it's earlier (9AM for season tickerholders); Autographs (from Noon to 5PM - UPDATED list below); ALCS Trophy, Food, Games and more. The official Tampa Bay Rays press release is below. Don't miss out!

Here is the schedule released by the team as of Tuesday afternoon, and subject to change:

Noon-1 p.m.
Table 1 John Jaso, Gabe Kapler
Table 2- Juan Salas, Ray Olmedo
Table 3- Pat Burrell, Randy Choate
Table 4- Tim Beckham, Reid Brignac
Table 5- Carl Crawford
(Season Ticket Holders Line- Photo Only) –James Shields, Fernando Perez

1-2 p.m.
Table 1- Joe Nelson, Chad Bradford
Table 2- B.J. Upton , Willy Aybar
Table 3- Chad Orvella, Michel Hernandez, Derek Rodriguez
Table 4- Julio DePaula , Jacob McGee
Table 5- Jon Weber, Jason Cromer, Calvin Medlock
(Season Ticket Holders Line- Photo Only) Evan Longoria, Matt Garza

2-3 p.m.
Table 1- Matt Joyce, Grant Balfour
Table 2- Carlos Pena, Jason Hammel
Table 3- Craig Albernaz, Ray Sadler
Table 4- Jeremy Cummings, Elliot Johnson
Table 5- Neil Frontz, Chris Nowak, Dan Wheeler
(Season Ticket Holders Line- Photo Only) Dioner Navarro, Andy Sonnanstine

3-4 p.m.
Table 1- Steve Henderson, Joe Maddon
Table 2- Wade Davis, David Price
Table 3- Dave Martinez, George Hendrick
Table 4- Lance Cormier, Brian Shouse
Table 5- Chris Richard, Jason Childers, Dewon Day
(Season Ticket Holders Line- Photo Only)- Jason Bartlett, J.P. Howell

4-5 p.m.
Table 1-Bobby Ramos, Jim Hickey
Table 2- James Houser, Mitch Talbot
Table 3- Shawn Riggans, Justin Ruggiano
Table 4- Scott Kazmir, Carlos Hernandez
Table 5- Brian Anderson, Tom Foley, Todd Greene
(Season Ticket Holders Line- Photo Only) Troy Percival, Jeff Niemann

ST. PETERSBURG, FL -- The Tampa Bay Rays 2009 Fan Fest, presented by MetroPCS, will be held Saturday, February 14 at Tropicana Field. The event is also sponsored by Southern Chevy Dealers,Sweetbay Supermarket and Bright House Sports Network.

Fan Fest hours will be 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. for the general public. Admission and parking are free to this fun-filled event.

A $10 donation to the Rays Baseball Foundation will allow fans the opportunity to get autographs from Rays players and coaches throughout the day. Autographs for kids 14 and under and season ticketholders are free with a wristband. Season ticket holders will also have the opportunity to have their photograph taken with a Rays player.

More than 20 former major leaguers will be signing autographs during the event as well.
While individual tickets will go on sale the week of February 23, fans can purchase season ticket plans and select their seats at Fan Fest. The Rays will also introduce a special 9=8 Ticket Package, which includes tickets to 9 games for the price of 8. Prices for the 9=8 package start as low as $95 and are available in the Baseline Box and Upper Deck. The package also includes a wristband for access to the autograph areas.

All fans will have an opportunity to have their photo taken with the American League Championship Trophy, courtesy of Visual Touch Photography. In addition, fans can visit the Bright House Sports Network Kids Interactive Zone and take a swing in a big league batting cage, test their fastball in the speed pitch booth and hit a home run in the Wiffle Ball Home Run Derby. Kids will also have the chance to run the bases and all fans can tour the Rays clubhouse.
Select Rays postseason merchandise will be available at 50% off.

Rays broadcasters Andy Freed, Dave Wills, Dewayne Staats and Todd Kalas will be on hand as will former major league catcher and manager and current broadcaster Buck Martinez, who will conduct a special question-and-answer session for all fans in the Centerfield Street Brew House at 1 p.m.

Martinez is currently host of Baseball This Morning on XM Radio and is a broadcaster for TBS and the Baltimore Orioles TV network.

The Rays will also welcome a special guest. Joey Chestnut, the winner of the 2007 and 2008 Annual Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest, will greet fans and sign autographs. Chestnut, who unseated Kobayashi as the world champion, is ranked as the number one professional eater in the world.

Fans are encouraged to stop by the MetroPCS Call-A-Friend Stage from 1:00-3:00 p.m. to have the opportunity for a Rays player to call a friend or family member and receive the most up-to-date information on MetroPCS products.

Artifacts from the Ted Williams Museum and Hitters Hall of Fame will be showcased as well as artifacts from the world's largest autographed baseball collection, including balls signed by Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Ty Cobb and many others. There will also be a baseball card show. The team will honor their most loyal and diehard fans by inducting six new members into the Rays/Pepsi Fan Wall of Fame during a ceremony at noon on the field. Those being honored are Corinne Bulla, St. Petersburg; Annie Miller, St. Petersburg; Pieter Wiemkin, St. Petersburg; Father Tom Anastasia, Plant City; David Brougham, New Port Richey; and Charlie Troeger, Auburndale.

The Rays Touch Tank presented by Visit St. Petersburg Clearwater will be open for fans to pet and feed live cownose rays. A silent auction will take place with proceeds benefiting the Rays Baseball Foundation.

The team will also be holding National Anthem auditions at Fan Fest. The first 50 fans to register will audition live for a chance to sing the anthem before a game at Tropicana Field this season. Audition sign-ups will be from 9:00 to 10:00 a.m. at Gate 1. Auditions will begin at 10 a.m. and close at 4 p.m.

Groups and musical instruments (acoustic only) are welcome. For more information on Rays National Anthem auditions please call (727) 825-3151.

Fans may call 888-FAN-RAYS or log on to http://www.raysbaseball.com/ for more information on the Rays 2009 Fan Fest.