Joe Maddon and His Outside the Box Thinking Always Give Tampa a Ray of Hope

Joe Maddon and His Outside the Box Thinking Always Give Tampa a Ray of Hope

 

 

 

The Tampa Bay Rays are no longer a laughing stock of Major League Baseball. Their stadium may still be but the team is not. Since taking over in 2005 Joe Maddon has changed the culture of the clubhouse with his strategical thinking and out of the box analysis. The Rays made the World Series in 2008 and since then have gone on to average 91 wins a season which is remarkable considering the payroll they have to work with. If there was ever a man who gets praised for pushing the right buttons and getting the most out of his players its Maddon.

From organizing theme road trips, to bringing DJs and magicians into the clubhouse, to looking for loopholes in the replay system, Maddon does not see or approach the game like all others. This spring he is preaching during workouts for his guys to always run out plays and take the extra base anyway because if a replay were to reverse a call they could be awarded that extra base. Every little bit helps and Maddon knows this. As good as Tampa’s roster is, there’s no telling where they would be without Maddon.

Speaking of that roster, it is a pretty good one from top to bottom, although the bench is lacking some but that’s something that can be taken care of on the fly throughout the season. Starting pitching depth, a good bullpen, a top closer, and a starting offense that can go to battle with the best lineups in the game is all that Tampa can boast about, and the best manager in the game as well.

Evan Longoria is the face of the team and as long as he can stay healthy he will produce big numbers. The Rays traded away Jose Lobaton, but picked up one of the better defensive catchers and one of the best pitch framers in the game in Ryan Hanigan. Whatever Hanigan can give them offensively is a bonus, he knows and the fans know he’s there for his defense. James Loney is back after a great season last year. His career was resurrected by Maddon and he will look to continue that pace once again.

More important than all of those guys though is the one player who will be crucial to Tampa’s success. He is young but he has all the talent in the world. As he goes, Tampa goes, there’s no two ways around it. That man is Wil Myers. Acquired in the James Shields trade with Kansas City, Myers has the potential to be one of the best players in the game. He can hit for average, for power, has a patient approach, and all of that will only improve with more at bats and more maturity. I see a monster season out of him and the start of a tremendous career.

On the pitching side of things Tampa is lucky enough to have the best left handed pitcher not named Clayton Kershaw. David Price is a young, electric top of the rotation guy who knows how to get it done. Joining him is the phenomenal Chris Archer and his socks, Matt Moore, another young lefty who has all the potential in the world, and Alex Cobb who has quietly become one of the most consistent pitchers in either league. In the bullpen the Rays lost Fernando Rodney and his fantastic archery skills but gained a better closer in “THE RAGE” himself, Grant Balfour. The rest of the bullpen is filled with non-household names and guys the average fan couldn’t pick out of a lineup, but Maddon will manage them with perfection and get every ounce out of them that he can.

Boston overall is a better team and will be stiff competition for the Rays, but if Tampa can improve its bench and get enough production out of them they very well could steal the division away from Boston. Either way this is a playoff team and the tradition of winning 90 games will continue.

We will be back on Saturday with two posts taking a look first at the Padres and their possible sleeper potential and the second post will take a look at the Cleveland Indians and their ability to repeat last year’s performance. Be sure to follow us on Twitter @changingspeeds for all our coverage of the national pastime.