Is Johnny Damon a Hall of Famer?

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Is Johnny Damon a hall of famer? Roger Mooney of the Tampa Tribune breaks it down.

This is what Joe Maddon thought he was getting when the Rays signed Johnny Damon on Feb. 1: An average left fielder with some life in his bat and the reputation of being a great clubhouse guy.

This is what Maddon actually got: A better-than-great clubhouse guy with a lot of life left in his bat, who is quietly putting the finishing touches on what is looking like a Hall of Fame-career.

"This liberal arts kind of player, a guy who's fulfilled a lot of different arenas or areas, he's not just specialized in the home runs or strikeouts or 3,000 hits," Maddon said. "He's done a lot of things real well."

What Damon has mostly done real well for the Rays is get on base. It took him less than 70 games to set the franchise mark for consecutive games of reaching base at least once at 39. It took a failed drug test by Manny Ramirez to make Damon the Rays full-time designated hitter, and it took Damon those same number of games to establish himself as the best DH in franchise history.

Damon is about to catch Jimmie Foxx for 72nd place on the all-time hits list, and he is about to become the 53rd player in major league history with 500 doubles.

With that milestone double, Damon will become 11th player with 500 doubles, 100 triples, 200 home runs and 2,500 hits. The other 10 are in the Hall of Fame.

Evan Longoria laughs with awe when he hears those numbers.

"It's kind of crazy to think that, because his approach and his outlook on a daily basis is like he's a rookie player, you don't really take a step back and think about the stuff he's accomplished in his career," Longoria said. "I think he'll be in the Hall of Fame without a doubt, just looking at his numbers right now."

Damon is keenly aware of where he stands in baseball history and where those with similar career stats stand, and those fellas have their mail forwarded to Cooperstown.

"I think I can now," Damon said when asked if he sees himself as a Hall of Famer. "Regardless of whether I get to 3,000 hits or not, I think the runs scored and winning the championships definitely helps me out. But it's tough because I've definitely been on some teams where the focus has been on other players, like the A-Rods and the Jeters and the Mannys and stuff, and a lot of the stuff you've done gets overlooked. But if you ask a lot of (my) former teammates, they would believe so, and I guess at the end of the day that's the most important thing, to have the respect from all of your teammates, and I feel like I have that."

Longoria, the three-time All-Star third baseman with two Gold Gloves, said he learns something from Damon every day. Longoria marvels at how well Damon prepares himself for a game, and how much fun Smiling Johnny Damon has playing.

"He goes out there and has fun. That's the biggest thing," Longoria said. "You can tell he enjoys playing the game every day."

Damon entered Saturday night's game needing 356 hits to reach 3,000. At the pace he's on, he'll need two more seasons to reach that milestone.

"He talks about sticking around and trying to extend his contract here," Longoria said. "That would be cool to play with him a couple of more years and possibly watch him get that 3,000 hit."

The Rays could do worse at DH. In fact, with the exception of Jose Canseco's 31 homers during the first half in 1999, they have.

The team will be tempted to move Damon in July should they fall out of playoff contention, and his modest $5.25 million contract will be an issue in the offseason should they try to resign him.

But in nearly three months, Damon has proven to be the perfect DH for the Rays – relatively cheap and very productive.

And, Damon wants to play close to Orlando home and wants to play for a playoff contender.

Plus, he's highly motivated to add to those Hall of Fame credentials.

"For us it's a positive," Maddon said, "because as he's motivated it's going to bring out the best in his performance. We're going to reap the benefits of him attaining these numbers."

Recap: Tampa Bay Rays vs. Florida Marlins

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Recap: Marlins Series

1) First, James Shield is quite possibly Superman himself. James continued his impressive 2011 season with his second consecutive complete game. Sunday, Shields dominated the Marlins by only allowing 1 run on 4 hits. Shields has rebounded quite well from a lackluster 2010 season. He is without a doubt the Rays ace this year.

2) Not to take away from Shield’s performance but the Marlins morale was most likely at an all time low on Sunday. Marlins Manager Edwin Rodriguez unexpectedly resigned prior to Sunday’s game. The Marlins currently have a record of 1-18 in the month of June.

3) Casey Kotchman has been on fire of late. Kotchman went 2-3 in Sunday’s game and could be a player of the month candidate. In June, Kotchman is hitting .309 and in the last seven days Kotchman has hit. 364. The St. Petersburg native seems to have found a groove. "When it rains, it pours," Choate said. "You can use every cliche in the book. I felt I had him beat. They get paid to hit, like I get paid to pitch. Somehow he kept it inside the line. I'm not even quite sure how, because if I put it any more inside, it would have hit him.

4) Alex Cobb impressed again with six innings work allowing only 1 run. Cobb now has a 2-0 record with a 2.55 ERA. Neimann is back on the 25 man roster but can he get it going? If not we know that Cobb is a more than capable replacement.

5) Tampa handled the Marlins with relative ease sweeping the “OTHER” Florida team. Tampa’s bats were sporadic throughout the series but the pitching was lights out as always.

The Current State of the Tampa Bay Rays

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We have great pitching and……well…. we have a great manager. The Tampa Bay Rays are competing in the toughest division in baseball with great pitching and a great manager and that’s it! How is Tampa hanging in there when compared to the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox’s?

Success has a formula and for the Rays it’s their minor league system. The Rays are consistently producing nice arms. Some of this has to do with the past decade of high draft picks but more recently Mark Friedman has been quite savvy in collecting picks via trades. The problem is that the majority of the Rays prospects are pitchers. Granted, you can’t ever enough quality arms but the lack of bats coming up is of some concern. Besides Desmond Jennings, the Rays have NO other viable internal options to help the anemic Rays offense.

So where are the Rays in 2011? They are currently the mirror image of their farm system. Great pitching all around sprinkled with decent hitters here and there.
The lack of offense was highlighted in the most recent series against the division leading Boston Red Sox. The Rays were only able to produce two runs on seven hits during the first two games of the series. The trademark “Rays Manufactured Run” isn’t as prevalent without Crawford tearing up the bases. This was painfully obvious in last nights loss to Boston. In the bottom of the ninth, Elliot failed in his attempt to lay down the sacrifice bunt and advance both Kotchman and Upton. Sean Rodriguez and Justin Ruggiano followed by striking out to end the game. The difference in 2011 and 2010, 2009, 2008 is that in previous years we would have gotten the runners over and scored at least one run via a sacrifice fly.

It’s not that Tampa doesn’t have the ability to hit but rather the consistency in doing so isn’t there. The fact of the matter is that Upton, Jaso, Fuld, Johnson, Shoppach, Brignac, and Rodriguez are all below league averages in offensive production. Upton started off the year on a tear only to sizzle to a .143 BA this month. Furthermore, Longoria is sporting a .244/.358/.430 stat line. If the season ended today this would be his worst season to date. Without the unexpected bat of Matt Joyce the Rays could theoretically be completely out of the AL East Pennant race by now.

So where do we go from here? I would hold tight and stay the course. The Rays currently have an unofficial musical chairs game in the outfield with Desmond Jennings joining soon. With the July 31st deadline approaching the Rays may look to deal one of those outfielders in order to sure up other deficiencies such as offense. The problem is which outfielder should go?

BJ Upton is the player with the most trade buzz. Despite his bad press he is a solid center fielder. With the exception of 2009, Upton has had a WAR of four or better. Add in his outstanding defensive skills and above average base stealing and he actually out performs a list of very notable center fielders.
Notable Center Fielders that B.J. Upton had a better WAR than last year:

Denard Span
Alex Rios
Andrew McCutchen
Matt Kemp
Adam Jones

As previously mentioned, BJ has cooled down significantly but historically he has an annual slump that lasts between 30-45 days. There’s no doubt, trading Upton would render a good return of prospects but would Tampa be a better off?

The reason for the musical chairs in the outfield is because of the lack production at the plate. In May, Sam Fuld came out of nowhere and became a fan favorite yet his June has been so horrific he’s lucky to still be on the 25 man roster. Justin Ruggiano was called up before Desmond Jennings and has caught fire this month. Yet many wonder if he’s this month’s version of Sam Fuld. If BJ Upton is traded then Tampa is left with one of the two as the everyday left fielder. I know, scary thought.

Desmond Jennings is expected to arrive within weeks and is branded as the next Carl Crawford of BJ Upton 3.0. It’s very possible that Jennings catches on quick and mimics Atlanta’s Jason Heywards entrance to the bigs but can the Rays count on that? My feeling is “no they cannot”. Not only is this a tremendous amount of pressure on a rookie but it’s unrealistic no matter how touted the prospect is.

My feeling is that the Rays should keep BJ Upton unless they fall really behind in the standings. This would give the Rays an outfield of Jennings, Upton, and Joyce with Ruggiano as the 4th option. There isn’t a ton of power there but that’s a great defense, speed, and athleticism that could help jolt the Rays in producing more of their trademarked “Manufactured Runs”. In addition, Longoria is starting too heat up after his stint on the DL. If Zobrist, Damon, and Kotchman continue their current hitting trends the Rays would then have above average offensive production from every position minus shortstop and catcher. Even if Jennings struggles its unlikely that the offense will drop off if any. On the contrary, if Upton was traded the likelihood of a drop off is much more likely. It follows, that the Rays should benefit by simply staying put and waiting it out.

So what’s the current state of the Rays? Same old same old. There right in the thick of the AL East division despite a shoe string budget. The pitching is talented and deep with internal options waiting in the farm leagues. The hitting is inconsistent and options are limited with little spending money. Calling upon Jennings and waiting on Longoria and Upton to heat up could be enough fire power to compete during the pennant race in September. Especially with Joe Maddon at the helm.

Tampa Bay Rays vs. Boston Red Sox GAME 3 Recap

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WP- C. Buchholz (6-3)
LP- D. Price (7-6)
S- J. Papelbon (13)

The Tampa Bay Rays and Boston Red Sox have a history of playing hard against one another. Call it animosity. Call it little brother syndrome. Call it what you will. Every game between the two organizations is interesting and Thursday didn’t disappoint.

During the first inning, both benches were warned after David Price beamed Kevin Youkilis to load the bases. Price didn’t comment on the issue but speculation is that Price was returning the favor based on Tuesday night when Youkilis kicked the Rays Casey Kotchman in the left ankle, leaving a bruise. Though Price may have earned style points with his teammates he ultimately put himself and his team behind the eight ball for the remainder of the night.

By hitting Youkilis, Price loaded the bases, and eventually walked in the go ahead run. Also, the warning seemed to have affectively taken away Price’s ability and confidence to attack the inside of the plate. Even accidentally hitting a batter would result in a rejection and possible suspension and fines. The result was a rattled Price that never really settled down. He gave up a couple of runs in the second inning and was gone by the fifth.

Despite shaky pitching, the Rays fought back with Sam Fuld’s second inning double that scored Upton making the score 3-1. Buchholz wasn’t stellar but was affective in handling the Rays lineup through five innings. In the fifth Buchholz left the game with back soreness and Alfredo Aceves entered the game for the Red Sox’s. Tampa responded with a Casey Kotchman solo homerun that brought the Rays within one run.

The Rays kept the game close until the ninth when Adrian Gonzalez jacked a solo homerun of Kyle Farnsworth restoring Boston’s two-run lead. Despite giving up the additional run the Rays made it interesting in the bottom half of the inning. Kotchman led off with a double and BJ Upton reached base on an infield single. Unfortunately, Elliot Johnson responded with committing the ultimate sin. While attempting the sacrifice bunt he popped the ball up to record the first out without advancing any of the runners. Jonathan Papelbon followed by striking out Justin Ruggiano and Sean Rodriguez to end the game. Papelbon recorded his 13th save of the season. Boston took the series 2-1

Tampa Bay Rays vs. Boston Red Sox Series Preview

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Tuesday, 7:10 PM: Tim Wakefield (4.88 FIP) vs. James Shields (3.50 FIP)
Wednesday, 7:10 PM: Josh Beckett (3.13 FIP) vs. Jeremy Hellickson (4.03 FIP)
Thursday, 7:10 PM: Clay Buchholz (4.38 FIP) vs. David Price (2.92 FIP)

The Red Sox enter St. Petersburg with a nine game winning streak and a 4.5 game lead over the Rays in the AL East. The Red Sox have put their early season slump behind them and are playing the best ball in the majors. If the Rays have any hope they might need to get feisty!

The Red Sox’s offense is nothing short of spectacular right now. The Red Sox’s are sporting an incredible .353 wOBA and bring numerous hot hitters such as “The Greatest Ray of All Time”, Carl Crawford. On paper, the only advantage the Rays hold is their pitching. By chance or maybe Maddons design the Rays have their three best starters for the series. If the Rays are going to win the series they will heav

This series also marks the beginning of a dreadfully hard schedule. They will face the Soxs or Yankees 14 times in the next 33 games. The Rays are a competitive bunch but I’m not sure if any team would look forward to that schedule. If your looking at the glass half full, then the Rays will definitively find out if they are buyers or sellers well before the trade deadline (aka move Upton).

As mentioned earlier, Carl Crawford is returning to the “Trop” for the first time since free agency. The twitter world has many of the Rays players encouraging the fans to cheer Crawford when he approaches the plate. I’m sure they will but in my opinion you won’t here them over the cheers from Red Sox fans. ☹