The Rays and 2009 | Braves and Rays's Blog

The Rays are poised to make a serious run for the AL East in 2009. The starting rotation looks extremely good with the likes of Shields, Garza, Kazmir, Sonnanstine, and Price. Jackson seems to be the odd man out.

Needs????

Without a doubt the RF and Bullpen are the #1 and #1 needs for the Rays this offseason. Yes, we have two #1 needs and both are crucial for 2009 success. Much of the Rays 2008 success was due to the surprising starting rotation. With relatively good health all year these young men were able to platoon the Rays to the World Series. However, it would be unfair and unrealistic to expect the same results in 2009. To bet on the repeat would be risky at best.

The Rays managed a revolving door at the RF position in 2008. Gross, Hinske, Baldelli, Zobrist, Gomes, and Perez all got a chance to impress. Baldelli, looks to have an inside track for 2009 but his mitochondrial disorder is a risk. Hinske could be resigned but should be considered as a last option. The FA market for a right handed outfielder is thin and with teams such as the Braves shopping for similar prospects it's not likely the Rays fill the void via FA.

The Rays have depth at the starting rotation (Majors and Minors) and can very easily fill this void with dealing Sonnanstine, Jackson, or even Kazmir. As stated before, Jackson seems to be the odd man out. The Trade possibilities are endless and according to ESPN's Jayson Stark. the rays have an interest in Raul Ibanez.

The only concern with a trade is the Rays tight budget. The Rays might need to add a nice prospect into the package to get a potential trade partner to pay the salary. Once again the possibilities are endless via trade. May the speculation begin. If you want to see some good ideas on possible trades visit http://thetrop.blogspot.com/. Kinda a amauter blog but decent ideas.

Now we turn our attention to the Bullpen.

There is surprisingly tons of quality bullpen FA options. With Percival's health always a concern, Trever Miller moving on, and Price competing for the starting nod; this is another HUGE HOLE to fill. Remember we can't expect our starting rotation to repeat 2008. So beefing up the Pen will be HUGE. We could always keep Edwin Jackson and use him in the pen but then our RF hole is harder to fill.

There are so many possible options via FA that all the Rays need to do is wait for the bargain shopping in January. Fuentes, K-Rod, and Wood will be gone but the Rays will possibly still have the following list to shop from:

Juan Cruz
Brandon Lyon
David Weathers
Eric Gagne
Trevor Hoffman
Jason Isring......

To name a few.

The Rays have few holes to fill but how they shop will determine there 2009 season. What are your thoughts...................