Injuries Show Rays Organizational Depth

by Erik Hahmann on May 29, 2009 11:30 AM EDT

More than any other team right now the Rays are having to depend on the depth the Front Office has built up over the past couple of years.

Pat Burrell has a neck issue? No problem, the switch hitting team of Ben Zobrist and Willy Aybar(Billy Aybrist?) can fill in. The beautifully average Gabe Gross has also spent time at DH.

Scott Kazmir's quad is acting up? They plug in the top pitching prospect in baseball, David Price.

Akinori Iwamura tears his ACL and is done for the season? Billy Aybrist fills in there as well.

Jason Bartlett, the current best shortstop in the AL, sprains an ankle? Reid Brignac and Ben Zobrist step in.

Backup catcher Shawn Riggans gets hurt? Michel Hernandez fills in just fine.

Brian Shouse strains a shoulder? Randy Choate can come in straight off the LOOGY assembly line.

It's not like the Rays are scraping the bottom of the barrel and replacing their stars with talent that is below league average. Players like Aybar and Zobrist would be starting on a lot of teams in baseball. David Price would have been in many team's rotations to start the season. Reid Brignac would be the top prospect in many organizations. If something were to happen to Gabe Gross or Gabe Kapler the Rays have Matt Joyce chomping at the bit at Durham. Suppose there was another injury to someone in the rotation, how many other teams could bring up 6th and 7th starters as capable as Mitch Talbot or Carlos Hernandez? Don't forget about Wade Davis either.

The Yankees lose A-Rod and are forced to replace him with Cody Ransom and Ramiro Pena. The Cubs lose Aramis Ramirez and have to trade FOR Ryan Freel. No one wants to trade for Ryan Freel, not even Ryan Freel. The Rays lose Scott Kazmir, their starters at DH, second base, and shortstop, yet are seemingly no worse for the wear. I know we kiss Andrew Friedman's @$$ a bit on this site, and I know the team is skidding a bit right now, but imagine where they would be without the depth he's built up.

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yet the other teams you compare us to all have better records then we do,

what does that say about our depth?

by davidsmarch on May 29, 2009 11:32 AM EDT reply actions

the other teams dont have 9 injured starters

So long, Sweet Lime!

by PlayOnWords on May 29, 2009 11:39 AM EDT up reply actions

starters/major contributors

So long, Sweet Lime!

by PlayOnWords on May 29, 2009 11:40 AM EDT up reply actions

8, Percival is a major contributor for other teams.

by R.J. Anderson on May 29, 2009 11:40 AM EDT up reply actions 2 recs

boom. roasted.

So long, Sweet Lime!

by PlayOnWords on May 29, 2009 11:41 AM EDT up reply actions

Frankly, NY has had much more lost injury time than the Rays so far

SP, 2 setup RP’s, 3B & backup, RF, C & backup.

But apparently they don’t have depth to overcome this. They’re just lucky I guess.

by nyyfaninlaaland on May 29, 2009 9:34 PM EDT up reply actions

We were more injured last year. This year it is not an excuse

1. Kazmir is not really hurt. He just really sucks right now
2. Percival also doesn’t really count
3. Is Shouse truly hurt? Plus he wasn’t really that great to begin with
4. Aki and Bartlett just got hurt. We were playing .500 ball with them
5. Riggans is a back up
6. PtB wasn’t doing much prior to him going down and even still it hasn’t been that long

The only injuries that have truly hurt this year hav been Aki and Bartlett. Those injuries just took place so there is no way you can blame our record on the lose of those two.

by matthan on May 29, 2009 1:12 PM EDT up reply actions

1. Prove that

2. Okay. So 8.
3. I assume. And he was just fine.
4. We got over .500 at one point, not like W-L record is the best way to value those players.
5. One who hits homeruns and gets about 10 ABs a week.
6. His power wasn’t there, but he was very solid with RISP and the power outage has to be temporary. We knew he was streaky going into this deal.

So long, Sweet Lime!

by PlayOnWords on May 29, 2009 1:39 PM EDT up reply actions

If it weren't for Zobrist, PTB's injury would have really sunk us.

I think that speaks more to our depth than anything. No, we haven’t been great, but we could have really capsized without some of these guys. Instead, we’re struggling around .500… with the way our pitching has been, it’s shocking to think we’re even close to five hundy.

by Suttree on May 29, 2009 1:43 PM EDT up reply actions

Our pythag w-l is 27-22

fwiw

So long, Sweet Lime!

by PlayOnWords on May 29, 2009 1:47 PM EDT up reply actions

Sadly, pythag doesn't always work out well, but yeah.

Eventually our starting pitching has to regress… Shields walks one less batter a game, Sonny starts pitching like he can (or gets bumped), and Price does his best 2006 Kaz impression. Mix that in with our defense (still really good), and our bats (even if Zobrist regresses, PTB/Joyce/possible Upton revitalization should keep us around 5 runs a game), and we’re right back in the thick of things.

by Suttree on May 29, 2009 1:55 PM EDT up reply actions

I can think of a few starts (yesterday + Shieldsy's gems against Seattle and Oakland...I think it was Oakland)

Where the bats went mute. Those were easily winnable. And then there was Monday night. Oh, Jesus. Anyway – it’s not like we’re getting manhandled. We’re inches, not yards, from being a .500 or better club and within shouting distance of 1st.

So long, Sweet Lime!

by PlayOnWords on May 29, 2009 2:15 PM EDT up reply actions

Thank you.

No, the “should haves” don’t get you any more games in the standings, but that’s why they call it bad luck. This teams has played better than their record indicates and should play better the rest of the way. That’s not going to make everyone happy with the season, the cries of imminent failure are a bit tiresome.

Beyond the Boxscore // Calling BJ Upton lazy is lazy.

by Sky Kalkman on May 29, 2009 5:27 PM EDT up reply actions