With the Rays mired in a horrible defensive slump, it's the responsibility of dedicated fans everywhere to pitch in and do what we can to help. And no, I don't mean picking up a glove and trotting out to third base ourselves -- I'm talking about helping out with a bit of mind juice.
As we all know, baseball is a game of superstition and rituals, and fans can be a very important part of the equation. With all the tense games at the end of last year, where would the Rays have been if it weren't for the multitude of fans at home engaging in their own unique good luck charm? When things get close, I tend to fall into the "I can't move from my seat and everything must remain exactly where it is" camp, but I know there are others that believe in the power of repetitive actions, rally caps, lucky underwear, playoff beards, etc. We can't help but do these things, so of course, we know we have a huge, demonstrable effect on the game and that the Rays would implode if we broke our ritual. It's the way it goes.
So maybe, just maybe, we can help the Rays turn around their defensive woes through some concentrated, collective positive thinking. If we're all concentrating so hard on the awesome things that the Rays have done on defense, maybe those brain waves will be potent enough to shape reality, crafting the Rays into the ideal defensive team of our thoughts. It's a long shot, but hey, any better ideas out there?
All of this is a roundabout way of saying there are a number of defensive highlights below the jump. C'mon Rays, this is what we know you're capable of!
All these replays are from games within the past couple weeks, so we know the Rays are capable of these awesome displays. Here's Upton flashing his arm...
Sean Rodriguez showing off the glove at third. The throw isn't what we're used to from Longoria, but that's a nice stop.
I think my favorite part of this one is watching how far Zobrist runs before he nabs it.
Matt Joyce has made some great defensive plays out there in recent weeks.
And of course, if we're going to channel some inner defensive magic, we have to watch the best of the best.
Sam Fuld may be injured, but the Rays could certainly use a bit more of his voodoo. Fingers crossed that our brainwaves are enough to help the Rays get out of this mental funk.
Note: Yes, I know this is mildly ridiculous. But after watching all the recent failures...well, it was fun to have an excuse to watch defensive highlights, considering the Rays haven't had many recently.