The rays most productive (per at bat) hr hitters are Joyce at 1 every 18 and Scott 1 every 19.

Andruw Jones ( free agent over winter) hits a hr 1 out of every 12 at bats.

Someone on here mentioned over the winter ( I think it was Art- not sure) that Jones would have been a good signing. And I wish the RFO felt the same way

Yes, it was me and I truly think the RFO goofed by not signing Andruw.....Knowing him from Atlanta, I knew he still had something in the tank, is an excellent guy in the clubhouse and can still play the OF some......He may not have the speed any longer but his arm is still one of the best and he would have been a great fit here......too bad!

Thome wouldn't have been too bad either..

Ya know, lets face it. There will always be good moves , bad moves. Every team does them. No one is ever right, even of course on "our" level.

For ex. for me I HATED getting rid of Kazmir,and, as we know I was 100% incorrect.
But I HATED even more getting Burrell. I thought the lefty Hinske, righty Gomes combo ( don't forget Cliff Floyd) was working WAY too well to make a change. They knew their roles-WERE GOOD AT IT and it complicated things for opposing managers. It if ain't broke- don't fix it.

But the RFO made some moves this past winter (and so far this season) that were hard for me to believe. First, Pena???,...
then there was the same player types,.... occasional hr, sub 220 hitting, strike out, NO FIELD== LEFTIES==Scott,...B Allen,... Matsui.. ( see Pena- ok he plays first)

Then, the sub 220 hitting, no power, "utility" boys Thompson, Conrad..........Sutton!!!
Drew Sutton batted 271 for the rays-( thats like 320 for most other teams) and he is now batting 341 for the Pirates.

And no, it is NOT Maddons fault that he HAS these players to work with. Just like the when the RFO were striking gold with moves in the past, it was NOT Maddon who had anything to do with the wins.

But, the point here....- wow bad moves!!!!! The biggest slump is with THE R F O.

yea, I know, Rodney, Keppinger.... ok their batting .100

And Joe is finding it hard to win with the type of players Pineilla had to work with..Only difference is the pitching is better...

no doubt

The only bad move the RFO made was Molina.....We all thought, a good veteran catcher, great addition but Jose just has not worked out as had been hoped....He's too slow, he can't move behind the plate, his arm, for the most part, isn't there and he can't hit.....Yeah, he's great at framing pitches for strikes, but that's not enough......

The Keppinger, Rodney signings were brilliant, the return of Carlos and getting Scott WILL pay of as they are both going to have a big second half.......A year in the NL changed Carlos approach and it has taken a while to get back to the AL style, but he will be the Carlos we had before he went to the Cubs.....Scott is now 100% healthy, running much better, can play the field and since breaking the horrendous slump we are seeing what we hoped for.....

So for me, Molina was the worst deal over the winter......Plus keep in mind that there was no way in the off season that Andrew and the RFO could predict the number of injuries that would occur to this team from day one........With additions they made and not having the injuries to BJ, DJ, Longo, Joyce and Neimann, the Rays would be in 1st place now.

I think you are a Big fan of "IF"....Shouda,Coulda Woulda may wind up the fun fact of the season...

Casey, speakin of "IF"....Shoulda, Coulda, Woulda in this upcomin scenario of 4 days off till 2nd half of the season starts on Friday with the Sox. This is kinda along the lines of when some Rays players that are hot at the plate that Joe decides to sit them for a time for some reason unknown to the galaxy. but,In the case of Upton who's ba is headin south (strikin out at the plate) that he just might find his swing in the next 96 hrs. and that Scott who is on a bit of hittin roll (4 for 8) in two games,might just work in reverse and slip back into the hittin slump.

Casey that is the best post,and it may be the line we all use at the end of this year.

All except one, any guesses????
There is a prize

Fwiw. Team hitting at the All Star break.

Team average: .232, lowest in team history at the break

Runs: 363, fewest since 2002

Slugging percentage: .376, lowest in team history at the break

Perhaps, just perhaps, a pitching coach change is needed. Yeah, that's the ticket!

But the Rays are leading the league in spitting seeds on camera..I'd hate to have the Job of cleaning up the Dugout....

Last time Joe Ma sat Joyce fans were upset. Now he is on the DL. Their is reasoning behind sitting players. So one if, shoulda, coulda, woulda is if joyce had been rested more he might not be on DL.

If the Dog don't stop to squat ,he catches the Rabbit...

Most dogs will eat their own poo

Thats because most dog food smells the same....

Joe was platoonin Joyce with Zobrist in RF for every other game it seemed or when the Rays were up against a left handed starter because the 'Mighty One' didn't want Joyce to bat against opposin teams 'southpaws'. Joyce was gettin all kinds of rest. I don't believe he's on the DL because of 'exhaustion'. The injury as reported was due to him sliding into second base on a failed steal attempt.

The Rays front office has to have letters printed on its players uniforms..Fragile...Handle with care...