Rays High The Roof Beam, and Akinori: An Introduction.
Last year in October, I made plans to drive to New Hampshire, kidnap recluse 89-year-old author J.D. Salinger and take him to Fenway Park for Game 1 of the World Series between the Rox and the Sox, and while we were sitting in the right-field stands, say to him, “You can just be the catcher in the rye and all,” but he’d holler for the police, and I’d spend the Series in jail, so my plan was abandoned.
Yesterday’s Rox are today’s Rays.
Rox vs. Red Sox. Rays vs. Red Sox.
The Pet Rox have been succeeded by the Rays of hope. Kid Rox to Skid Rox. Devil Rays to Angel Rays. Raytober.
On Monday morning, the Rays began selling tickets online for the American League Championship Series. The tickets (30,000 for each game, although most, as in Denver, already were spoken for or given to friends) were gone within minutes. Many people who couldn’t get linked to the club’s website complained about the process, which allowed ticket brokers (scalping is legal in Florida) and Red Sox lovers (tens of thousands of retired New Englanders live in the Tampa area) to purchase tickets.
Welcome to our world, Rays bandwagon-jumpers.
On Friday night, for the first game, more Boston fans than Tampa Bay fans will be fresh- squeezed into Tropicana Field. (Did the Rays call the Rox for postseason ticket-distribution advice?)
Before last season, only the Rockies, the Rays, the Nationals, the Rangers and the Mariners had never reached the World Series. The Nats don’t count. The Rockies joined their expansionist peers — the Marlins and the Diamondbacks, who went on to win the World Series (Marlins twice) — and the Rays could.
Two decades ago, I would talk with sports columnists Tom McEwen of Tampa and Hubert Mizell of St. Petersburg about actively pursuing expansion baseball franchises for Tampa-St. Pete and Denver-Aurora. Tampa chose to not construct a stadium; St. Petersburg did. Finally, when expansion franchises were awarded on July 5, 1991, Denver (without Aurora) was selected, and Tampa and/or St. Pete were rejected.
St. Petersburg was stuck with a worthless domed stadium (still worthless), until baseball decided to add two more teams in 1995.
The Rox represent a state; the Rays represent a body of water. And for a long time the two franchises were connected as the worst in the game.
The Rox broke free of the Rays last season with 90 victories and two postseason series victories. The Rays won 66. This year the Rays won 97, the Rox 74.
Change-about.
Let the Rays enjoy it. The Rox had their turn.
The Rox had one of baseball’s lowest payrolls (approximately $55 million) in 2007, and the Rays have the second-lowest payroll (just under $44 mil) this season. The Rockies utilized 16 homegrown players much of last season, and the Rays have 15 players out of their farm system on their roster now.
The Rox relied on second baseman Kaz Matsui, from Japan. The Rays rely on second baseman Akinori Iwamura, from Japan. The Rox let Matsui go. The Rays should not let Iwamura go.
There is a link between the Rox and Rays. The one-time bench coach of the Rox is the Rays’ senior consultant, Don Zimmer.
Given all that information, we in Colorado (excluding those dippy Red Sox expatriates) must pull for the Rays to do what the Rox did — go to the World Series — and do what the Rox didn’t — beat Boston.
It will occur.
I actually wanted the Tampa Bay Rays of St. Petersburg to play the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Disneyland vs. Disney World. Angels vs. ex-Devils. But this will work.
Two colleagues, Boston baked bean backers, asked on Tuesday how I possibly could pick the Rays. “Because I am a professional.”
Here are the secrets:
The Rays are 23-2 (including the ALDS) at home when they attract crowds of more than 30,000, which is close to capacity (considering that thousands of seats are covered with tarps, obviously a tradition at Florida stadiums). So what? When more than 30,000 showed up for Sox-Rays games at The Trop, the Rays were 8-0. The only time they lost to Boston was when fewer than 30,000 were in the house.
The Rays are confident, have excellent young players, are getting good pitching and clutch pitching, and don’t know how to sell tickets properly, just like the Rox.
And the Rays will get revenge for the Rox.
Raise high the roof beam in the dome. Maybe J.D. will join me for a game.
Woody Paige: 303-954-1095 or wpaige@denverpost.com
