Rays Officially Announce 1-Year Contracts For Farnsworth And Johnson

Kyle Farnsworth will make $1.25 million in 2013. Kelly Johnson will make $2.45 million. There is still no official word on the contract for Luke Scott.

Rays Designate Reid Brignac And Elliot Johnson For Assigment

The Rays have announced that they designated Reid Brignac and Elliot Johnson for assignment. The Rays needed to clear up space on the 40-man roster and both players, who were out of minor league options*, were unlikely to make the opening day roster.

The Rays have ten days to trade Brignac or Johnson or expose them to waivers. They can still accept an assignment to the minors and remain in the organization if they clears waivers.

The Rays’ 40-man roster (25 big leaguers + 15 potential replacements in the minor leagues for injuries, etc.) is currently full and the Rays still need to add Luke Scott, Kyle Farnsworth, and Kelly Johnson.

* Once a player in on a team’s 40-man roster, they can only spend time in the minors in three different seasons. Once a player has been in the minors in three different seasons, he must clear waivers before being demoted.

Evan Longoria Helps Recreate Famous Album Cover For ESPN The Magazine [VIDEO]

For reasons that are not entirely clear, ESPN the Magazine has an upcoming music issue. And as part of the issue, athletes were used to recreate iconic album covers. Among those were Josh Freeman recreating Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” and the Rays’ own Evan Longoria recreating Devo’s “Freedom of Choice” along with Giancarlo Stanton, Shane Victorino, Brandon Phillips, and Justin Upton.

Here is the cover. A behind-the-scenes video of the making of the cover can be seen below…

Dirk Hayhurst’s New Book Is Starting To Feel Like A Gigantic ‘F You’ To The Rays

[UPDATE] Hayhurst has responded to this post. You can see his comments at the end.

Looking through some more excerpts from Dirk Hayhurst’s upcoming book about his time in the Rays organization, we get an interesting, if not very flattering look at Joe Maddon. We also are starting to get a sense that this book is not going to go over well at Tropicana Field.

In one excerpt, Hayhurst suggests that Maddon’s reputation as a baseball genius is overrated. Instead, Hayhurst pays Maddon a sort of back-handed compliment…

“Winning has a way of making people look smarter then they actually are. The meager budget of the Rays versus the massive budgets of their division rivals inflated Maddon’s success to near super human proportions. It was said he could skipper a team of little leaguers to an AL division title like some kind of managerial McGyver. It was said that he understood the game so well he felt it in a metaphysical baseball sense; baseball in relation to the ebb and flow of the universe or something. The truth, however, was that Joe Maddon was simply an excellent salesman.”

Hayhurst does compliment Maddon on his ability to squeeze more talent and effort out of players than most managers. But once he starts talking about how Maddon is revolutionizing the way the game is played, Hayhurst assures us that Maddon’s success is more about baseball’s failings than Maddon’s abilities…

“To many, Maddon was outside the box. But a lot of that had to do with the fact that “the box”, as it pertains to baseball, is an easy container to spill out of. Most of the techniques Joe used were used by managers in the business world and had been around for years. Managers talking with players one-on-one was only unique because so few managers did it. Baseball, so slow to change and adapt, has a way of making geniuses out of people who do things folks in the real world have been doing for ages. Managerial decisions based on big data? That’s not new. Neither are ice-breaker meetings, team building exercises, or fun group functions based around building team identity. Joe Maddon just dressed it all up in a baseball uniform and taught it how to speak the lexicon of a major league athlete. He was charismatic and a natural leader. He read people well and understood the games value system. But if he’s a genius, it’s only because he had the courage and foresight to breakaway from the draconian rules that have governed baseball’s social morays for decades.”

And then there is this odd excerpt which suggests Hayhurst just doesn’t like Maddon all that much… [Read More...]

Proposal Would Allow Rays To Explore Stadium Sites In Tampa For A $1.4 Million ‘Fee’

A St. Pete City Council member wants to amend the Rays’ contract with the city to allow them to look at potential stadium sites outside of Pinellas County. There is just one small big catch: They want a big check first (via TBO.com)…

Councilman Charlie Gerdes proposes amending the contract with the Rays to allow the team to negotiate with developers and other local governments in Pinellas and Hillsborough counties to find a new stadium after paying the city an “exploration” fee [of $1.4 million]… the proposal would not release the Rays from their commitment to play at Tropicana Field through 2027 nor let them negotiate to play at another site sooner. If the Rays found another site, they would still have to then negotiate with the city to break their lease…”It gives them permission to look, not leave,” Gerdes said.

I honestly have no idea what to make of this proposal. On the one hand, it is at least something. At least somebody is doing something. But it also seems just a tad silly to expect the Rays to fork over $1.4 million just to look with no guarantee that they will be able get out of their contract at The Trop. I would be surprised if this goes anywhere. But we always knew people were going to have to get creative. And it looks like some people are finally doing just that.

The city council will discuss the proposal on Thursday.

Kyle Farnsworth May Or May Not Have Caught An Alligator And Put It In A Minor Leaguer’s Locker As A Form Of Revenge

Former Rays minor leaguer pitcher Dirk Hayhurst, who is also a best-selling author, is currently writing a book about his one season in the Rays’ organization. And while he is still working on the book, he is posting rough draft out-takes on his blog, DirkHayhurst.com.

The fourth excerpt to make its way online discusses Hayhurst meeting some of his teammates for the first time. Specifically, he spends a little time on David Price (“Price oozed charm and charisma. He was like the entire team’s older brother who also happened to be the quarterback and prom king.”) and a lot of time on Kyle Farnsworth.

By now, Rays fans should know that Farnsville’s reputation as an angry person is more myth than reality. But Hayhurst assures us there is a “switch” you don’t want to flip. One example was a talent a show in which a minor leaguer sang a rap song about Fansworth that was not very flattering. Hayhurst says the switch was “flipped” and Farnsworth promised revenge…

“A few days later, Farnsy was seen in a boat in one of the retention ponds behind the Ray’s complex, allegedly fishing for alligators to stick in the locker of a certain minor league jokesters. I can’t confirm that he actually caught an alligator, nor can I confirm that he was asked by the Rays to remove it from the clubhouse before someone got hurt. I can only confirmed that, with much sadness, he was reduced freezing the clothes of the offenders and filling their cleats with shaving cream.”

Hayhurst “can’t confirm” this happened, but it sure sounds like he just did.

Here Are The 64 Players That Will Be In Big League Camp For The Rays

The Rays invited seven more (non-40-man roster) players to spring training including Wil Myers and Leslie Anderson. In addition, infielder Cole Figueroa, right-handed pitchers Matt Nevarez and Jim Paduch, and lefty Jim Patterson. That brings the total number of spring training invitees to 67. However, three of the players on the 40-man roster need to be removed in order to make room for Luke Scott, Kyle Farnsworth, and Kelly Johnson. So the total number of players on the spring roster will likely be 64 when camp opens in EIGHT DAYS.

By the way, you can always track this list on the CORK-BOARD which can be found over there in the right column under “ORGANIZATIONAL DEPTH CHART.”

Position Players on 40-man Roster

Jose Molina
James Loney
Ryan Roberts
Evan Longoria
Yunel Escobar
Sam Fuld
Desmond Jennings
Ben Zobrist
Matt Joyce
Jose Lobaton
Elliot Johnson
Hak-Ju Lee
Robinson Chirinos
Brandon Guyer
Chris Gimenez
Reid Brignac
Stephen Vogt
Tim Beckham
Sean Rodriguez
Luke Scott
Kelly Johnson

Non-roster invitees and minor leaguers

Wil Myers
Leslie Anderson
Cole Figueroa
Craig Albernaz
Shelley Duncan
Rich Thompson
Shawn O’Malley
Nick Weglarz
Mike Fontenot
Mark Thomas
Jason Bourgeois

Pitchers on 40-man roster

David Price*
Jeremy Hellickson
Jeff Niemann
Alex Cobb
Matt Moore*
Jake McGee*
Fernando Rodney
Joel Peralta
Frank De Los Santos
Roberto Hernandez
Cesar Ramos*
Brandon Gomes
Dane de la Rosa
Alex Torres*
Chris Archer
Josh Lueke
Alex Colome
Jake Odorizzi
Mike Montgomery*
Enny Romero*
Felipe Rivero*
Kyle Farnsworth

Non-roster invitees and minor leaguers

Marquis Fleming
Jamey Wright
Juan Sandoval
Kirby Yates
Matt Navarez
Matt Buschmann
Will Inman
Jim Paduch
J.D. Martin
Jimmy Patterson*
Neil Schenk*
Juan Oviedo
Adam Liberatore*

* Lefty

[THE HANGOVER] The One Where We Discuss Longo’s Hammy, Briggy’s Future, And Miss Florida’s New Gig

A few links to get the week started…

• Marc Topkin has some good news on Evan Longoria’s hamstring. Longoria says “the leg is ready.” Of course, we have been burned before when we got our hopes up. And the Rays are still expected to “hold him out of early spring action.” [TampaBay.com]
• In that same column, Marc Topkin says “there was some chatter” last week about potentially trading Reid Brignac. He is out of minor league options and is a long-shot to make the team. [TampaBay.com]
• The Rays need to remove three players from the 40-man roster before deals with Luke Scott, Kyle Farnsworth, and Kelly Johnson can be finalized. Marc Topkin speculates on who might be the odd-men out. [TampaBay.com]
• Fernando Rodney is still telling people that he is close to a 2-year extension with the Rays. [Alden Gonzalez]
• Laura McKeeman is leaving the Rays as a sideline reporter for a national gig with Fox. She will be missed. No word yet on a potential replacement. [TampaBay.com]
• Those Michael Bourn-to-the-Rays rumors keep reappearing. Still hard to imagine the Rays giving up a draft pick for what would likely be a rental. [Jim Bowden]
• What about Bobby Abreu? [Jon Heyman]
• ESPN.com says the Rays have the third-best farm system in baseball, noting that the James Shields trade replenished a system that “had some setbacks” in 2012. They do note that the next impact bat after Wil Myers might be in low-A or rookie ball. [ESPN Insider]
• If you enjoy GIFs, here is a roundup of the best GIFs and images from the Super Bowl broadcast. [BI Sports]
• And congrats to Warren Sapp who was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. [JoeBucsFan]

[HAPPY HOUR] The One Where We Discuss Longoria’s New Camo Spikes, A Half-Naked Zobrist, And Miss Florida’s New Beau

Evan Longoria spoke to KicksOnFire.com about shoes and revealed this little nugget about what he will where on the field in 2013…

“I’m trying to get crazy this year.  I’m going to do type of camo [on the new shoe], whether it be regular camo or digi camo on the swoosh and on the whole tongue.  They’ve kind of phased out of the Shox, they’re not gonna make Shox anymore, so mine are… uh…Air Max, but I forget what the name is [it was the MVP Elite cleats], but anyways, I’m going to do something with a white bottom and some with a silver one, and go with a real dark blue with a baby blue and white combo.”

Here are a few more links to kick off the weekend…

• That picture above is Ben Zobrist and his son. It comes to us via MLB.com. [MLB.com]
• The Rays were apparently were one of Travis Hafner’s finalists. Can’t imagine they were offering very much for another left-handed DH. [Buster Olney]
• The Rays say they are willing to explore the Carillon area stadium proposal if they are also permitted to expand their search into Hillsborough. [BayNews9]
• Hillsborough County Commissioner Karl Hagan, who has long seemed like the only person that is actually trying to do something about the stadium situation is hoping to get leaders from both sides of the Bay to meet and discuss the future of the Rays. [TBO.com]
• The Rays have 5 players on MLB.com’s list of top 100 prospects, including Wil Myers at no. 4. [MLB.com]
• Here’s video of David Price being interviewed recently at a