The Rays finally had their first meeting with the division rival Blue Jays on June 29 in Toronto, starting a three–game series in which the Rays won the first two.

Roy Halladay's return in the first game was quickly shot down by Jeff Niemann, who outpitched him in one of his greatest performances to date. Carl Crawford's second deck home run opened up the scoring and a Pat Burrell home run (how about 30 more of those?) extended the lead. Tampa Bay won 4–1 and dropped Halladay's record to 10–2.

The Rays repeated their 4–1 victory the next night as Matt Garza defeated Scott Richmond. B.J. Upton hit Richmond's first pitch for a home run. Crawford and Willy Aybar later piled on with home runs of their own. First batter Upton hit one his first time up, second batter Crawford hit one his second time up and third batter Aybar hit one his third time up. The team extended its winning streak to seven games.

The third game proved to be the Rays' downfall. James Shields pitched against Ricky Romero, who had dominated the Phillies in his previous start. Shields on the road is never a safe bet. Sure enough, Adam Lind, Rod Barajas and Scott Rolen homered as the Blue Jays took a home a Canada Day victory, 5–0.

The Rays still won the series, which they can always hold over Toronto's heads. Now it's time to face the Texas Rangers. Saturday night's game will be televised on MLB Network and Sunday night's game will air on ESPN. This bodes well for us. I hope Ian Kinsler beat Dustin Pedroia in All–Star voting, but let's shut him down for a few days. Until next time, go Rays.

The annual Citrus Series ended with three games at Tropicana Field, in which the Tampa Bay Rays swept the Florida Marlins by scores of 7–3, 3–2 and 5–2.

The crowds for the weekend games were not bad — 35,790 for Saturday's game featuring Pat Benatar, then nearly 30,000 Sunday. That is a good sign, right along with the five–game winning streak.

The pitchers did very well throughout the series. James Shields earned a quality start Friday night and his bullpen shut it down for the win. Scott Kazmir returned Saturday and went back to throwing 92 MPH fastballs. He wasn't horrible, which is an improvement. He allowed two runs in five innings with one walk and five strikeouts. David Price allowed two hits, but five walks, in more than six innings on Sunday. Chad Bradford and J.P. Howell teamed up to give the Marlins loaded bases with just one out, then a walk forced in a run. Howell realized where he was, then struck out Ronny Paulino and Ross Gload to end the sweep.

The bullpen has been great since June 8, as they have allowed seven runs in about 55 innings. Howell started out slowly, but has reverted to last year's success. Dan Wheeler and Grant Balfour have also improved following bad beginnings. Balfour is even striking out hitters with the slider now. By comparison, the Mets bullpen has lost nine games this month. I knew they were due to implode.

Speaking of imploded teams, the Toronto Blue Jays will host the Rays for the first time this season, which has been a long time coming. Roy Halladay returns from the disabled list just in time to face the surging Tampa Bay lineup. This concludes our five–game winning streak. It's been fun. Well, maybe a loss is not entirely automatic, just probable. Jeff Niemann needs to bring his two–hitter A–game tonight. Until next time, go Rays.

Mere minutes after the Rays defeated the Florida Marlins 7–3 in Friday night's game at Tropicana Field, major changes to the roster were announced. Scott Kazmir returns from the disabled list, where he had been with a quadriceps strain/mechanical problem. Returning from elbow surgery, Chad Bradford will be making his 2009 Rays debut this weekend. The victims here were relief pitcher Winston Abreu, who was designated for assignment, and starter Andy Sonnanstine, whose 6.61 ERA this season ranked him the worst in the league among qualifiers and got him sent to AAA Durham.

Abreu didn't do too badly from what I saw. He was dominating at Durham. Hopefully he stays in this organization and continues what he did before at that level.

Sonnanstine's demotion to AAA has been long–awaited. This season, at least. His frequently giving up home runs and five–run innings became too much for everyone to handle. After two years straight in the Major Leagues, he now returns to Durham to fix… whatever his problem is. From the playoff starting rotation to this. I don't know what's wrong with him. Hopefully he, like Kazmir, figures it out.

Speaking of Kazmir, he will start the Saturday night Citrus Series game against the Marlins. He did very well in rehab, not only healing that quadriceps but finding and straightening out pitching delivery flaws. He wasn't driving off of his back leg, which reduced his fastball to about a AA level pitch. He's good at 94 miles per hour, but worthless at 88. He's no J.P. Howell, but now he's finally getting back on track.

Chad Bradford also makes his season debut. He was a major presence in last year's bullpen after being picked up off waivers from Baltimore. His unusual delivery and high rate of ground ball outs make him a big time commodity. He's a great postseason pitcher and tends to at least do well regardless of the situation. We needed him back, and now we have him to give us another intriguing option.

If you can attend these home games in any possible way, please go. The attendance is looking somewhat dismal so far. But I do hear that the Rays are considering a Hillsborough County stadium (finally, please build it soon), so revenue and higher crowds may be forthcoming. Until next time, go Rays.

After the shellshock of the Rays' 10–1 series–opening loss, the World Series rematch turned around in favor of the home team and Tampa Bay ousted Philadelphia with victories in the final two games.

David Price got hammered for six runs, five earned, in the very first inning of the series on Tuesday night, capped off by a three–run home run from John Mayberry, Jr. From that point on it was over. Once again Price threw strikes, but once again threw them right over the middle of the plate and got hammered. He should soon discover the balance between walking everyone and getting hit hard. Location becomes very important at this level. Though I still don't think he should be sent back to AAA when Kazmir returns.

Matt Garza put on a show in Wednesday's game, only allowing one run in eight strong innings. Pat Burrell greeted ex-teammate Joe Blanton with a towering two–run home run in the second inning. He now has just two home runs this year, but both have been long. And he hit one or two balls high off the Green Monster earlier this year as well. Maybe this series sparked his flame. The Rays also poured on five insurance runs in the eighth inning, all with two outs, against J.C. Roidmero and Chan Ho Park.

The rubber match started out as a hitters' duel. Andy Sonnanstine further jeopardized his job status by surrendering four first inning runs. Not to be outdone, the Rays scored three times in each of the first two innings against the unluckiest name in baseball, Antonio Bastardo. Sonnanstine settled down back into good form and shut the Phillies down for the remainder of his start. Ben Zobrist (16) and Willy Aybar (6) hit big home runs in the Rays' 10–4 win.

Jason Bartlett has broken the team record with a 19–game hitting streak. The previous record was held by Quinton McCracken, the Devil Rays' first leadoff man, who hit safely in 18 consecutive games in late 1998. Bartlett proves time and time again that he is money in the bank and that the Twins were wrong to trade him. Had the Twins played Bartlett in 2008, they would have been in the playoffs and not the Rays, guaranteed. Keep it going, just stay in that comfort zone and keep on hitting.

As was reported a few days ago, Akinori Iwamura's days in Tampa Bay might not be over yet. His ACL tear was discovered to have been partial, not complete as initial MRIs indicated. He had arthroscopic surgery and is now out 6–8 weeks. This means he could return in September alongside Fernando Perez. Even though Zobrist has effectively taken the second base job with his incredible season, Iwamura gives the Rays more options. We know how much Joe Maddon loves lineup options. And he had been hitting .300 prior to the injury, so this is very good news.

The Rays play the Marlins tonight in a battle of Floridian aces. James Shields faces the 7–1 Josh Johnson. Get some runs for your top pitcher, Rays. We know we can use all the wins against teams like this. Until next time, go Rays.

The 2009 All Star Game is quickly approaching. Live on July 14 from St. Louis, we will see the best (and most popular) players in the game on one field. So, as a Rays fan, I am heavily voting for my team's players, especially Carlos Pena, Evan Longoria, Jason Bartlett, Carl Crawford and write–in Ben Zobrist.

Pena leads the American League in home runs, yet he trails the elite Chris Davis in the voting. Yes, the Chris Davis who is hitting .194 with 101 strikeouts and just 14 walks, with nine fewer home runs, who plays for the Rangers of all teams, is ahead of Pena. This is a travesty of the highest order. Pena is a much better player than Davis. He deserves more respect.

Longoria should be leading the league in votes. Until recently he was. He has been a key catalyst in a somewhat disappointing lineup. If he got in last year, why shouldn't he start this year? He will… just keep on voting for him.

Bartlett should start too based on his stats and reputation as a winner. He is hitting .373 with a career–high seven home runs and 14 out of 15 stolen bases. He has also been a defensive wizard and the anchor of the infield. Derek Jeter leads him by a landslide in voting. Is he having a good season? Yes. Does he deserve to be there? Probably so. But he will be the starter solely based on his reputation and Yankee fandom. Bartlett should be this year's starter, no question.

Crawford is currently fifth among outfielders. Several of them deserve to start, so Crawford should at least get into the game. His incredible 37 stolen bases and counting, added to his .307 batting average, make him a candidate for Comeback Player of the Year and for All Star consideration. The most exciting players should get in. Crawford is one of them.

Even though he is not on the ballot, the legend of “Zorilla” needs to go to St. Louis and be honored as he should be. Ben Zobrist has single–handedly won or sealed the win on several games this year for the Rays. His on–base percentage of .400 and 15 home runs only begin to tell the story. He has driven in 42 runs and hit most of his home runs with runners on base and/or in late, close game situations. He has played his best defense despite being moved around the outfield and middle infield. At age 28, he's even running better (8–for–10 in base stealing). Most importantly, he has been the Joker card in the Rays' deck. He can be placed in there anywhere at anytime and get the job done. With World Series home field advantage on the line, Zobrist is exactly the kind of player the American League wants. Take him, Joe Maddon — you won't regret it.

I'm also voting for a few of my favorite Braves, notably Chipper Jones, Brian McCann and Nate McLouth. I am absolutely not voting for any Red Sox, Yankees, Mets or Phillies. I would encourage you to follow my lead.

Don't forget to vote for the 32nd member of each league's roster in the days leading up to the game. Then watch the game July 14 on FOX. I'll be watching it the night before I leave for a six day trip to San Diego. Until then, vote today and vote Ray.

And watch the epic World Series rematch at Tropicana Field. Rays vs. Phillies starts tonight with David Price vs. Jamie Moyer. If you can get there (I can't), please buy tickets and support your American League champions. Until next time, go Rays.

The Rays hit the road for six games in Colorado and Queens, New York, winning just once in Coors Field but taking two out of three in the new Citi Field.

The Rockies were very difficult to beat (though the losses were close) largely because they are on a streak nearly matching their huge run in late 2007. They have now won 16 of their last 17 games. The one loss was in the Rays series opener when five home runs helped beat them 12–4. Evan Longoria, Carlos Pena, Ben Zobrist, Gabe Kapler and B.J. Upton — quite a diverse group — hit the thin air for home runs. Zobrist and Upton hit long tee shots into the left field seats and Pena hit his about 400 feet to left center field, a hefty shot for a left–handed hitter.

New York was the next stop, not to face the hated Yankees, but the equally hated (by me) Mets. The Mets won the opener 5–3 because Andy Sonnanstine is just not that good this year. I think it should be him that loses his starting job when Scott Kazmir returns. He has been strong in rehab and Andy with his 6.60 ERA and 15 home runs allowed is just the odd man out. We shouldn't be screwing around with David Price by sending him up and down. Just move Sonnanstine to the bullpen.

Thankfully the Rays won the Saturday and Sunday games by scores of 3–1 and 10–6. Saturday's game on FOX with Thom Brennaman and Tim “Watch Darren Daulton use his mitt like a glove” McCarver showed once again that the Rays play better on network television. James Shields outdueled Johan Santana, pitching seven outstanding innings and picking up the win. Pena tagged Santana for a long straightaway home run and, after a rain delay, Zobrist joined the party with a shot over the right field wall.

Sunday was a back–and–forth affair with several lead changes. After Brian Schnieder, he of zero home runs all season, hit his second three–run home run of the series to give New York the lead, Tampa Bay stormed right back thanks in part to another long Upton home run. When he hits them, they come late in the game and travel far. They added insurance runs and won the game and the series. J.P. Howell did a good job closing out both games. Maybe he can be a closer now.

Next is the World Series rematch at Tropicana Field as the Rays host the inferior Philadelphia Phillies. Pat Burrell, who so far has hit more like Adam Everett, will be facing his former team for the first time. Hopefully that will set him off. I love seeing the Rays beat the Mets and I may even take greater pleasure in seeing them avenge last year's losses to the Phillies. Until next time, go Rays.

Tropicana Field's turf was not about to be sullied by the horrendous Washington Nationals, who despite having a few good players, entered this series at 16–42 with manager Manny Acta on the chopping block.

The Nationals' ineptitude showed in droves against the Rays as Tampa Bay took the sweep to extend its winning streak to five games.

Friday night saw Matt Garza spot Washington three first inning runs, two of which were driven in by Elijah Dukes in his first at–bat against his former team. I wish he was banned from baseball. The Rays, however, shut them down after that and slowly came back. It culminated with a two–out, two–strike home run by Gabe Kapler of all people. He entered the series hitting .173 with that one home run in Yankee Stadium. He basically doubled his productivity for the entire season.

The great part about the home run was the event that led up to it. The usually reliable Nick Johnson, who had let the game–tying double bounce over his glove earlier, overran Kapler's foul pop–up and dropped it. The very next pitch gave the Rays the lead. From that point it was game over as they won 4–3.

Early trouble hit Andy Sonnanstine on Saturday night. Ryan Zimmerman's first inning home run (my annual salary says he's on the All Star team) gave Washington a 1–0 lead. The Rays entered the bottom of the sixth inning down 2–1. Not for long. After starter Jordan Zimmerman was pulled following five good innings, Jason Bergmann came in. Just as I do to him in video games, the Rays teed him off. Ben Zobrist launched a three–run home run after hits by Evan Longoria and Carlos Pena. Then Gabe Gross promptly hit a two–run blast. Five runs, no outs. Longoria later hit a two–run double off former (Devil) Ray Jesus Colome. The Rays won 8–3.

The series finale should have been a lock as James Shields faced Ross Detweiler. But it certainly was not automatic. Again thanks in part to Dukes, Shields put the Rays in a 4–0 hole in the fourth inning, which quickly became 4–2. Two innings later after a Gabe Gross walk, Kapler struck again as he lined a game–tying home run over the short wall in left field. Now he's finally hitting like Popeye — he already looks like him. Two more innings later, Carlos Pena doubled, then pinch hitter Willy Aybar stepped up. His routine ground ball bounced off third base and rolled into left field, becoming an RBI double. Since they are the Nationals, they got nothing done against J.P. Howell and the Rays won 5–4.

This was a sweep the Rays needed and should have earned. Sure enough, they did. Though Howell downplayed it after the game (“It's difficult to sweep any Major League ballclub”), this just had to happen. It was a key series at home against possibly the worst MLB team ever assembled. Good thing they got it.

Not only did they get it, the bullpen rolled right through it. For the entire six–game homestand, in more than 20 innings pitched, the relievers' ERA was 0.00. No earned runs for six full games. That entire crew did an outstanding job. For that we thank you.

I would also like to point out that B.J. Upton stole six bases in this series. He took two in each game, which is an amazing feat. Especially seeing as he was never caught. Carl Crawford also stole his 36th base, Zobrist his eighth, and Reid Brignac his first in the Major Leagues. The Rays are the fastest team to reach 100 stolen bases since 1991. I enjoy watching this team run. It's arguably their greatest strength.

Now it's off to Colorado, where the Rockies will enter having won 11 consecutive games. It's like that epic 2007 streak cut in half, and it's still great. Maybe this is a sign that they are due for some losing. The Rays are on a streak themselves. Can they keep it going? As Joe Maddon said after today's game, “I was a power hitter when I played in Boulder.” So the power bats can certainly use the altitude. Until next time, go Rays.

The Rays returned home this week and returned to last week's form, winning two out of three games from Joe Maddon's old Angels team despite losing the opener.

They lost the first game 4–3 as James Shields only surrendered two earned runs out of four total. Carlos Pena made his sixth error after having made two in 2008. Despite a Ben Zobrist eighth inning home run and solid relief work from Grant Balfour, Randy Choate and J.P. Howell, the Rays fell to Jered Weaver and Los Angeles (of Anaheim).

The bats came out in droves in game two, picking up a lackluster performance from Jeff Niemann (3.2 IP, 5 R, 4 ER) to beat usual Ray killer John Lackey 9–5. Pena and Willy Aybar homered off Lackey while Zobrist (7) and B.J. Upton (18) picked up stolen bases. Lance Cormier rescued Niemann with more than two innings of shutdown relief. Jason Isringhausen, Joe Nelson and Dan Wheeler showed their A–game as well as the Rays evened up the series.

The rubber game was the best of both worlds: the bats kept on swinging, the pitchers kept mowing the Angels down. Evan Longoria snapped an 0–for–19 stretch with a towering home run off Centerfield Street, his 14th this year and the first of four Tampa Bay home runs. Carl Crawford (5), Dioner Navarro (4) and Pena (19) also hit home runs. Crawford added his 35th stolen base, on a pickoff throw no less, and Gabe Gross stole two for the first time since… ever. He went 3–for–4 with a walk, pacing the bottom of the order.

David Price needs to keep his pitch count down, though he doesn't give up runs. He walked six batters in just 4.1 innings, but also struck out six and allowed just two hits. He kept his team in this game, but needs to stop walking everything that moves and just get outs. The bullpen, as it did for Niemann, came to the rescue as Balfour, Choate and Nelson struck out six more hitters and only allowed four baserunners. The Rays won 11–1 and won the series.

Now with the Washington Nationals, the worst team baseball has seen in years, in town, it may be the perfect time to give the bullpen a break. Matt Garza starts tonight against rookie Craig Stammen. And no, Stephen Strasburg will not be seen in this series.

Now on to roster moves: Pat Burrell is returning for the Nationals series. This is a team he should be familiar with, having played in their division for several years. His strained neck may finally be healed, though he was 1–for–13 with six strikeouts in his low minor league rehab. In exchange, Matt Joyce was sent back to Durham. I think it's unfortunate because this guy can drive an extra–base hit off anyone, but the fact that he was hitting .188 and needs to play everyday somewhere justifies the Rays' decision. Hopefully we see him in the AAA All Star Game (vote for him here) and back up here by September. The way Gabe Kapler has slacked off, somebody needs to pick him up.

Jason Bartlett will be rehabbing with the Charlotte Stone Crabs this weekend. As speed is a key asset to his game, his ankle injury has been treated with great caution. Hopefully he burns everyone out on the bases and shows up in Colorado ready to pierce the thin air with bullets.

In the Draft, the Rays took Fred McGriff's distant relative LeVon Washington with the 30th overall pick. A high school middle infielder currently healing a shoulder injury, Washington runs faster than Tim Beckham and projects to be a high average hitter with decent power despite his small frame. He compared himself to Jose Reyes, which I would say is accurate.

They also selected Georgia high school catcher Luke Bailey in the fourth round. A first round talent coming off Tommy John surgery, this guy could be a steal in the long run. The Rays took a big gamble on Bailey, and I see it ultimately paying off. That surgery works miracles these days.

With the 349th overall pick, the Rays selected Alex Koronis, a junior pitcher from The University of Tampa, which of course is my school. He might not sign because he has another year of eligibility, but he has been the Spartans' go–to guy out of the bullpen, according to coach Joe Urso. He can close games, pitch in long relief, or even start and go the distance. I interviewed him for a newspaper piece not long ago, and I can tell you he's an interesting character and a good guy. So whether or not he joins the Rays, he'll go on to a bright future.

Now let's beat those Nationals and not continue our legacy of playing down to inferior teams. I like how Kevin Kennedy brought that up after last night's game. Until next time, go Rays.

Friday night: Rained out; make–up date unannounced.

Saturday afternoon: Rays get some help from Ben Zobrist and Willy Aybar's home runs. Grant Balfour and the bullpen blow the lead in the eighth inning, but they're bailed out by a four–run Rays ninth inning. Dan Wheeler nearly blows it again, sending the tying run to the plate with nobody out, but the Rays win 9–7.

Sunday afternoon: Rays blow the lead thanks to Balfour, J.P. Howell and a major defensive gaffe by Aybar. They go down in flames 4–3.

Monday night: Andy Sonnanstine gives up four home runs to the Yankees. Despite the first home run this year from Gabe Kapler, the Rays lose 5–3 on national television.

As one can see, this weekend for the Rays started off quite well, then fell into disarray. They can come back home and face yet another turnaround project. Their next opponent, the Angels, also had a slow start this season. Hopefully for us, it still is slow. Then we get the Washington Nationals, who are basically today's Devil Rays. At least they should be drafting Stephen Strasburg.

I would also like to plug my new, totally unrelated blog. This one is written for my Journalism I class at school, and deals with broad topics within that field. You can find it at http://brentonthejournalist.blogspot.com.

It is now time for the Yankees and Red Sox to fight to the death. Then we can have the remains. Until next time, go Rays.

The Rays went 0–for–13 with runners in scoring position.

They left 11 men on base, as opposed to the Royals' three.

James Shields received very little run support through his first seven innings.

Yet the Rays managed to win today's game 3–2 and complete the sweep — their first sweep of 2009.

The victory can be attributed primarily to three men: Shields, Carl Crawford and B.J. Upton.

Shields picked up the victory, allowing only a two–run double to Billy Butler in eight innings of work. He walked nobody and struck out eight Royals.

Crawford, in addition to his 34th stolen base, hit his fourth home run of the year to cut the Rays' deficit to 2–1 in inning number seven.

And then there's B.J. With two outs in the eighth inning, he smashed the first pitch more than halfway up into the left field seats to give his team the lead. This homestand was his turning point. His batting average jumped up to .218, and his third home run of the season single–handedly won a game. Upton should now be feared once again.

We can't forget Ben Zobrist, who stole his sixth base of the season; Joe Dillon, who picked up three hits; or Michel Hernandez, who scored on the Upton home run.

Nor should we forget former Royal J.P. Howell. He saved the game 1–2–3 against the 3–4–5 hitters. Despite his great stats, he has had trouble late in close games. Thankfully, this was 2008 Howell revisited. He did an incredible job. So did Matt Joyce catching Butler's deep fly ball to start that ninth inning.

So now it's off to New York, where men become legends and rats become roadkill. The Rays performed admirably in the last two series, so they better not screw it up now. Until next time, go Rays.