Man On Fire by Jared Carrabis
Ortiz Power Surge Not Enough / Rays Widen The Lead In The East

For those that haven't taken the Rays seriously all season long, what about now? The team with the second lowest payroll in all of baseball behind the Florida Marlins are in first place with ten games remaining in the regular season. Not only are they in first place but they hold a two game lead over the Boston Red Sox. Having taken the season series between the two teams, Boston now realistically is three games back of the Rays who now need to lose the division by a full game in order to be handed the Wild Card.


Tampa Bay, we read you loud and clear: you are no longer a team that is to be underestimated. You are no longer a "bye series" on the schedule and the Trop is no longer a place for Tim Wakefield to pad his season stats. The Rays pounded Tim Wakefield who is usually the equivalent to Pedro Martinez in 1999 at Tropicana Field. Wakefield lasted just two and a third innings and gave up six earned runs on six hits. Three of those six hits were bombs into the stands by Wily Aybar, Gabe Gross and Fernando Perez.


With the exception of David Ortiz, the Red Sox offense simply took a night off when the team needed it the most. David Ortiz took on the Rays pitching single handedly by launching two home runs accounting for all three of the Red Sox RBI's. The first four batters atop the Red Sox lineup between Jacoby Ellsbury, Dustin Pedroia, David Ortiz and Kevin Youkilis were 6-for-15 while the number five through nine hitters were a combined 0-for-17. In a game where the division title hangs in the balance, that can't happen.


This of course was a game that the Red Sox went into battle without the likes of a JD Drew, Mike Lowell, Jason Bay or Jason Varitek. The Rays can feel like they beat the Red Sox big, but in reality, they did not. One way or another, regardless of how these two teams enter the postseason, the team that Boston has starting in Game 1 of the ALDS will not be the team that the Rays clobbered 10-3 on Wednesday night.


Reports coming from the Boston Herald have indicated that JD Drew is still suffering from a herniated disc in his back. Drew felt discomfort in his back after taking batting practice on Wednesday in St. Pete. The Red Sox right fielder was expected to return this weekend but with these reports of lingering pain, his return is anyone's guess at this point.


In my personal opinion, one of the main reasons why instant replay was forced into action this season as opposed to next season was because of the Tampa Bay Rays. Major League Baseball would like to avoid any controversial play in the postseason and with Tampa Bay never making it this far, there aren't too many other domes that pose as a playground for controversial calls. Just think about all the famous baseball calls in the history of the game...

Kirk Gibson's home run in the 1988 World Series, "I don't believe what I just saw!" or Joe Carter's home run in the 1993 World Series "Touch 'em all Joe! You'll never hit a bigger home run in your life!" Can you imagine how absurd it would be to have an ALCS or World Series at the Trop of all places and have a game winning home run call go something like this "Pena hits it out to right and it's off the catwalk! and the Rays are going to the World Series!" That's a little ridiculous if you ask me and I personally think that Tropicana Field is a joke. So in light of that, instant replay will come in handy now that the Rays are in the playoff mix this year.


If everything goes according to plan, it will be the Red Sox in that American League Championship Series hypothetically if the Rays take it that far. I would hate to see the Red Sox get screwed out of a home run because of how awful Tropicana Field is. Only time will tell if instant replay in baseball will be needed at that circus tent of a field but the postseason will be a lot more fair now that it is.


The Red Sox can realistically still win the division. The first step towards doing so is winning one game at a time. Tonight they start with the Blue Jays in Toronto. The task will be difficult as Boston is dealt AJ Burnett in game one of the series and Roy Halladay in game two, but the Jays are now out of it and the Red Sox have everything to fight for. Paul Byrd gets the ball (again) against the Toronto Blue Jays in the series opener. Friday night will be Paul Byrd's fifth time facing the Blue Jays in his last eight starts. In his last four decisions against the Jays, Byrd breaks even at 2-2.

Final Score: Red Sox 3, Rays 10

Published on September 19, 2008

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