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Stephen Strasburg who? People need to start talking about Jeremy Hellickson and the stuff this kid has. In the place of  Wade David being put on the DL with a shoulder strain, Hellickson was able to prove again he deserves to be at the major league level.

Hellickson is the top pitching prosepect in the organization and in his second start of the season against the Tigers he gained his second win. He went seven scoreless innings while striking out seven, no walks and 3 hits. After giving up a leadoff hit in the first inning, the next 18 were retired. I cant say how good this kid is. He does it so calmly and fluent its unbeleivable. I know Strasburg gets the hype but this kid is a star for sure.

“He knows how to pitch, that’s for sure,” said James Shields, the elder statesman of the Rays’ starting rotation at age 28. “He’s got really good command of his pitches. He knows where each one of them is going. That’s one of the main differences between the Minor Leagues and the Major Leagues.”

Im glad the elder of the staff had this to say because pretty soon he will be taking his spot sooner than later. In two starts Hellickson is 2-0, has a 1.29 ERA and 13/2 strikeout-to-walk ratio.

Most teams that lose two starting pitchers in the same day more than likely will have a downfall but not when you have a star like Hellickson to bring up from AAA to outduel the opposing team. I look forward to seeing this kid in the Rays rotation in the near future and staying. I just cant see why he needs to waste any of his arm facing batters in the minors that are clearly no competition for him. He leads the minors in win with a record of 12-3 and has an ERA of 2.45

When you go 19 and 7 for the month, you’re not going to have too many bums who are getting any run.  This months version contains only 3 players, and 1 of them I had to reach a little bit for.  Without further ado…

Kelly Shoppach

Awful.  The only word to really describe the hitting of Kelly Shoppach during the month of July. .128 in 46 PA isn’t even laughable it’s so paltry.  46 PA’s, 5 hits, no extra base hits.  Couple that with 5BB and 15K and you have put together about an awful of a month as a hitter could produce.  Enough said, this is making me angry.

Andy Sonnanstine

5 appearances, 6 ER, 3 bombs, and a 7.36 ERA for the month will land you on this list.  I once saw Sonnanstine as a potentially valuable 5th pitcher for the Rays, but it seems as though he has just regressed the last 2 years.  He gave up a run in all but one of those 5 appearances in June, and had a brilliant .2 IP, 4 H 3 ER dazzler vs the Indians.

Randy Choate

When you allow opponents to hit .333 off you for the month, you’re also going to have a pretty good chance to end up on this list.  Choate had 14 games in July, allowed 8 hits in 6.2 IP, and 5 ER.  I had to reach on this one, just because I don’t like to put guys on the list who aren’t really playing/pitching too often, but a 2 man Bums of the Month list seemed kind of pointless.  Welcome Randy.

Carlos Pena

Pena who has been struggling to put the bat on the ball all year other than dropping HR, actually brought his average up above .240 for the month of July (.241). While that seems pretty measly, and it is, Pena still is great at looking at pitches and taking BB (15 BB in July) and by doing so, always keeps his OBP above .350.  For the month of July he hit .241/.365/.506/.871 and hit his 2nd most HR of any month of the season with 7.

Matt Joyce

A lot of Rays fans have been clamoring for Joyce to get a real chance to show some of the power that he showed with the Tigers and the reason why the Rays moved Edwin Jackson to obtain him.  Just like Pena, he didn’t really hit the ball well (.235) but when you can slug at a .559 clip for the month, on a team where everyone has below average BA, you’ll more than likely end up on our studs of the month list. He hit 5 HR and 7 2b for the month, which explains the high .SLG even with the low BA.  Just like Pena, Joyce has a great eye, and knows how to get on base even when he isn’t hitting the ball (.342 OBP).

Joaquin Benoit

BEAST.  The heir apparent to closer Rafael Soriano, Benoit has pretty much been unhittable all year long.  In July, he pitched 15.1 IP, gave up 5 hits, and only 1 run, while striking out 21 guys and walking only 2.  The one run that he allowed was a HR.  You can’t get much more unhittable than facing 53 guys in a month and allowing 5 hits.  Benoit doesn’t allow hits, and doesn’t walk guys, he pretty much just strikes guys out.

Wade Davis

Amongst constant trade speculation, Wade Davis put up his best month of the year.  He went 4 and 0 wit ha 3.03 ERA in 5 starts.  Most importantly to me, he issued his fewest BB total of any month of the season.  He also allowed his fewest hit and run totals of any month of the season.  He ended the month with a 1.194 WHIP, by far his best WHIP numbers of the year.

I know everyone is going to ask how the hell I didn’t put Matt Garza on here when he pitched a no hitter in July, but Garza had a pretty subpar month other than that outing.

The Rays have acquired Chad Qualls from the Arizona D-backs for a player to be named. Qualls has not faired well this year in Arizona  recording 12 saves in 43 games while posting a 1-4 record and an 8.29 ERA.

Qualls will be filing in for Grant Balfour who has been placed on the disabled list.

Its said Qualls has suffered by playing in Arizona this year but if your a decent pitcher location should not be an issue, especially when he tallied up 24 saves last year for the D-backs. I just dont know what his placee in the bullpen will be when Balfour gets off the disabled list.

There has been some wild speculation lately involving the Tampa Bay Rays, and the likelihood of us making a trade before the Non-Waiver Trade Deadline of the 31st of July or what is going to turn out to be the actual trade deadline in 2010, which is August 31st.

Almost every viable trade target has been rumored to the Rays at some point and by some media publication. I will take a look at the potential trade targets on our end, as well as the players that we might be willing to move in a deal.

Not Getting Traded, Sorry Rays Fans

There has been a lot of talk about the Rays moving CF BJ Upton.  It’s just not happening Rays fans.  The Rays view BJ as too valuable in CF and are generally not in the business of trading players when there is value is low, which right now, BJ’s is.  Even though BJ ranks near the bottom of the league in UZR and +/- ratings by Bill James, the Rays tend to use not only widely accepted sabermetric values to assess their players, but some of their own rankings as well.  I’d imagine that although interest in BJ remains high throughout the league, much to the chagrin of many Rays fans, he will not be dealt.

Two Most Likely Targets

If I had to put my finger on the two guys who aren’t MR’s (we will deal for one of those) the Rays likely have the most interest in, they would be Jayson Werth and Prince Fielder.  I know Prince would seem like a long shot, and mildly illogical, he fits the Rays window.  He will be eligible for arbitration for one more year, and while his arbitration number will be in the 10 million range more than likely, with the 10.125 million dollar contract of Carlos Pena, the 10 million dollar contract of Carl Crawford, the 7.5 million dollar contract of Rafael Soriano, the 4 million dollar club option on Dan Wheeler and a few other contracts set to come off the books, Prince’s high salary would still fit into the Rays short term plans.

As far as how his bat would fit into the lineup, I think it would go without saying.  The Rays are a middle of the order power hitting team (14th in HR, 15th in SLG).  We have 2 players with over an .800 OPS that qualify for statistical consideration in Evan Longoria and Carl Crawford.  Prince would immediately lead the team in SLG, OPS and HR, and would be a potent addition to the middle of the lineup.

The only problem with Prince in my mind, is he perpetuates the problem that the Rays have against LHP.  He is even farther below the Rays already below average splits against LHP.

Isn’t this somewhat intriguing though…
RF Ben Zobrist
LF Carl Crawford
3b Evan Longoria
DH Prince Fielder
1b Carlos Pena
SS Jason Bartlett
2b Reid Brignac
CF BJ Upton/Matt Joyce
C Kelley Shoppach

The other potential trade target, and this rumor refuses to go away, is for LF Jayson Werth of the Philadelphia Phillies.  I thought Werth would put up huge numbers this season with his impending FA status this offseason, but his his splits are more than mildly disturbing.  He has seen a regression in OPS that is catastrophic in nature for every month the season has progressed.

Nonetheless, Werth is a career +.850 OPS guy in his 4 full seasons in Philadelphia.

My biggest question with Werth is, why would we pick up another OF that we are unlikely to sign in the offseason.  We already have a glut of impending FA’s, and Werth, even coming off of an average year, is only 31 years old and in the prime of his career.  Someone is going to have to overpay for him.  The Rays are never really going to be in position to trade for a rental without it severely damaging the long term outlook to the team, and I just don’t see Werth as that big of an upgrade in the OF or the power department to justify giving up Wade Davis (who the Phils undoubtedly want).

Possible Trade Bait

While there has been a lot of interest in other clubs in both Reid Brignac and Sean Rodriguez, the Rays more than likely won’t be moving those players either.  The one player on the MLB roster who I could see the Rays dangling as bait for a big bat would be Wade Davis.

Davis has shown some flashes of brilliance this year, but is still wildly inconsistent.  He is still struggling with his command, and not striking out enough pitchers.  With SP Jeremy Hellickson dominating AAA, the Rays could view him as a seamless replacement for Davis.

Davis is still seen as a possible top end of the rotation starter by many teams throughout the league, and would be a great addition for young teams looking to add some pitching depth.

Jeremy Hellickson

Wade Davis

For the first time in history the Rays seen the other side of a no-hitter. Matt Garza was only one walk away from a perfect game but did only face the minimum 27 batters in his no-hitter against the Tigers last night. The Rays also made history by being involved in three official no-hitters in one season since 1917.

“It’s the first no-hitter I’ve ever had,” Garza said. “It’s great I was the first one to do it [in Rays history]. It’s a young franchise and I have a feeling they’re going to have many more to come. But I can’t put enough emphasis on it how big the win was. We are trying to win the [American League] East, we’re not just trying to win a couple games — we’re trying to win the East and make it known. It was a great way to start the homestand.”

I must say Garza pitched a hell of a game, he attacked the strike zone and didn’t care if they hit the ball or not. I mean, why would you care when your team makes unbeleivable plays all night including a catch by Ben “stretch armstrong” Zobrist in the 3rd inning when he pulled his arm out of socket and then brought it back in to make an tremendous catch in right field to rob Danny Worth from an extra base hit. And if you didn’t think Carl Crawford was cross eyed before, he definitely was in the 8th inning when Miggy Cabrera hit a screamer right at Crawford’s face and caught the ball at the last second before almost being knocked out. When a team makes tremendous plays like these two, you have to know something special is going to happen in the night.

On the other hand Tigers pitcher Matt Scherzer was also hitless through almost 5 innings until Matt Joyce came up with the bases loaded and hit his 2nd grand salami of the season putting the Rays up 4-0. This was only Joyce’s 3rd homerun of the season and two of them have been grand slams. The other run came from a solo shot to center in the 8th by Carl “Im crossed eyed now for real” Crawford.

“Coming up, obviously the bases were loaded, and I think both teams had a no-hitter going — so, no pressure,” Joyce said. “You’re facing your old team and kind of want to prove something. I honestly had the approach to where I was just going to hit a hard ground ball up the middle. The count ran to 3-1 and I really wanted to get out there and get something out front and kind of drive it, and it ended up hitting off the bat. So I was like, ‘OK, well, let’s try to hit a ground ball up the middle again’ — 3-2 fastball, and I just put a good one on it.”

The Rays are 15-6 in the month of July and if they have this spark going into the series this weekend against the Yanks, they could be atop of the divisoin starting next week.

Rocco Baldelli is back and ready to regain his major league form. Baldelli initially rejoined the Rays at the beginning of the season as an instructor to help out the youngins but is now on the Single A team for the Rays, signing a minor league contract earlier in the day.

Baldelli has suffered from numerous injuries and fatigue since joining the bigs in 200o, where he was picked 6th overall by the Rays. He finished 3rd that year in Rookie of the Year votes.

I personally dont get the signing, but Baldelli was a fan favorite in Tampa and if he can get back to form somehow then so be it. There’s nothing to really lose if he doesn’t achieve his goal. If he does stay healthy and prove he is able to play with the big boys, I dont see his role being more than an occassional DH or pinch hitter.

“With Rocco, knowing him, he’s going to be very honest with us in regard to what he thinks he can do,” Maddon said. “If he thought he could be of use to us, he’s going to tell us that. If it’s not, I’m sure he’d tell us that to. I’ve just got a lot of faith in him.”

This would definitely be a great story if he makes a turn around but I just don’t see it happening. I will keep the Rocco up date and his process of regaining form. Maybe he can be the comeback player of the year in the future.

Carl Crawford has been ripping the shit out of the ball and  put on a show of his own, in a 5-2 win over the Indians, with 2 longs balls in the 1st and 3rd innings. The first one went 438ft and the other  went 445ft. This was the first time CC had a multi homerun game at the Trop and the 5th of his career.

During the month of July, he is hittng .405 with 3 hrs,10 RBI’s, has an OBP .421, while slugging .730. If you dont know what this means… its pretty damn good.

Crawford leads the team now in batting average (.321) and steals (29). CC already has 10 homeruns on the season, the most hes every had before the all-star break. He ended last year with 15 dingers and with the way hes been hitting, CC could end up beating his career high in homeruns (18). This guy has been a highlight reel all season long and I hope all you fans are enjoying it because the way he is playing now, the Rays will not be able to afford him for sure.

“He is a rare combination of speed and power in today’s game,” Maddon said. “He’s a really strong athlete. He runs strong. He plays defense in a strong way. He’s incredibly powerful, and he shows that right there with those homers.

“Every year since I’ve been here, I’ve seen the game improve annually, and I’m seeing it again. Goodness, he’s going to the All-Star Game, and he’s starting. I guess it all makes sense.”

Wade Davis started the game off rough, giving up two early homeruns, including a leadoff homerun by Michael Brantley. Davis then realized he needed to mix in other pitches with his fastball and sailed through 7 innings, walking 4 and striking out 4. Wade has been under a lot of scrutiny by losing his last 6 starts but rebounded nice in this game. We have to realize that he is our 5th starter and not our ace, so give him some slack, this is his rookie season. Davis is (6-9) with a 4.69 ERA.

“Feels like it’s been awhile. I forgot what it felt like to win,” Davis said. “That was awesome, getting that out of the way, especially with the All-Star break and ending on a good note.”

Way to go Wade, Im glad I picked you up in my fanstasy league this week.

The Rays extended their win streak to five, with the sweep of the Red Sox beating them 6-4. This was the second time the Rays have swept Boston this year, with the first one coming in Boston near the beginning of the season. But the Sox did come back in the second series of the year to sweep the Rays at the Trop at the end of May, which started the Rays midseason slump.

I feel it is safe to say the Rays have found their swagger and are ready to take back what is rightfully theirs; The AL East. The Rays now lead the season series against Boston (8-4) and  are (22-10) against the AL East.

David Price threw very well against Boston, using his overpowering fastball to strikeout 10 in 7 1/3 innings and allowing 2 runs.  Price now leads the American League with 12 wins. With Price pitching so early in the week, there is a big possibility he could get the nod to start the All-Star game in Anaheim next Tuesday. A decision should be made by Joe Girardi within a couple of days whether or not he will get the start.

“[David] pitched I’d say 90 percent [with the fastball],” manager Joe Maddon said. “[He] did throw a couple of hooks, changes and sliders later in the game, but [he] primarily pitched with his fastball, and that was fantastic. He kept pounding the strike zone with it. … That fastball was really, really good tonight — [it had] really late life.”

Evan Longoria helped out his All-Star teammate by hitting a 442 ft. blast off the catwalk in left field breaking the game open 1-0. Longoria now has the two furthest hit balls at the Trop this season with the first one going 473 ft. against the Orioles Opening Day. This was Longoria’s first homerun in 78 at-bats, longest without hitting a dinger in his career. Longoria has 13 homeruns for the season and is second on the team behind Pena (16).

Price also got some support by another All-Star Carl Crawford, when he hit a RBI single up the middle after going back and forth with a 12-pitch at-bat. Crawford has lit up this offense  hitting .394 with 6 RBI’s and 1 hr during the month of July. Carwford will be starting his first All-Star game, where last year he won the MVP for making “the catch”.

The only downfall of the game was the 9th inning, when it took the Rays looking to Matt Garza to finish out the game. Garza’s last outing was a short one, lasingt only 3 innings and this was basically his day to workout. But with the bullpen needing a rest, Garza was inclined to come out of the pen to give Rafael Soriano a day off.

Im calling it right now, the Rays will have the best record again before the All-Star break this weekend.