Pat Burrell Signs Two-Year Deal With Rays, Ending His Phillies Career

I arrived home today at 3:01 to check my text messages (I had forgotten the phone today).

I opened it up and saw four new messages. Three were from people I know, and one was from the MLB alert messages. I opened the message, getting ready to quickly delete it like I do to my other ones. But then I stopped myself. I don't always read these things, asking myself why I even signed up for them, but this time I read it all the way through. I read all the way to the where it told me what time it sent the message to me.

The message was there to alert me Pat Burrell was now a member of the Tampa Bay Rays.

We've all been expecting he would sign elsewhere ever since Raul Ibanez joined the Phillies, but I was still caught off guard. There was always a glimmer of hope inside me hoping he would somehow, some way, resign with the Phils. I knew it couldn't happen, but I hoped it would.

Today, it finally became official that Burrell was leaving. As I said above, he is now a member of the Rays. He signed a two-year deal worth $16 million. He will likely serve as a DH.

This likely ends Pat Burrell's career as a Phillie. He'll likely never come back, because the Phillies won't want him in two years. He'll only be able to play DH. Right now he could probably still play the field, but in two years, he likely will not be able to.

There were many highs and many lows to Pat Burrell's career as a Phillie.

He started out as a highly-touted first overall pick who gently made his way into the league as a first basemen in 2000. His bad fielding at the position led to his transition back to left field for the rest of his career.

His best season came in his third season in 2002, when he had 37 home runs and 116 RBI. He was never an average hitter, as his .282 average was the best of his career. After the '02 season though, his production dropped off. He had an abysmal 2003, hitting just .209 with 21 home runs and 64 RBI.

In 2004, his production rose a bit, but was nothing to write home about. He ended up with 24 home runs, 84 RBI, and a .257 average.

Then 2005 came, and the magic struck again. He finished with a .281 average, 32 home runs, and 117 RBI, a career best.

In 2006, the average dropped again, yet Pat the Bat kept his power game going, producing  29 home runs and 95 RBI. Then in 2007 he had almost the exact same year, hitting just two average points higher, hitting one more home run, and driving in two more runs.

His final season, 2008, started out with a bang. He looked like he would be in the running for MVP, yet a rough stretch in May and June killed his chances. He finished the year with 33 home runs and 89 RBIs.

As you can see, all throughout his career, Burrell has gone through many "funks" where he plays terrible. He watches pitches go by too much, and he just doesn't look right when at the plate. But when Pat's on his game, he's one of the most lethal hitters in baseball.

Us fans in Philadelphia booed the left-fielder for most of his slumps and his off years. We never appreciated his skills and what he really brought to the table. Even after his terrific 2005 season, fans didn't trust him to consistently help the team.

But in 2006, things started to come around. For some reason, the light switch clicked; we all started to love Pat the Bat. The continuous boos were replaced with mostly cheers and applause.

In 2007, the support grew even bigger. It came to a point where it was almost everyone who was on his side.

Then came 2008, where Pat became an icon in the city. The fans loved him for everything he did. Even in his slumps, they pulled him through it.

At the World Series parade, he was out-cheered and out-chanted by only Charlie Manuel. It was obvious how much the fans loved Pat.

But it was even more obvious how much he loved them back. He never once, even in his slumps when he was booed, said anything negative about the fans. He understood where they came from. He bleed Philly.

I think we all know Burrell would have loved to have come back to play for the Phillies. Yet, the Phillies wanted to go in a different direction, and they did. That's their choice, and I'm okay with that.

I suppose Pat is too, but he's going to miss the city when he opens next season in front of a much different fan base in Tampa Bay. He's going to miss us, just like we're going to miss him.

But there's one great thing about the signing; he signed with the Rays. The Rays. Do you know what that means? You probably don't...

On April 3 and 4, the Phillies will play two exhibition games at home, like they always do. But this year, the Rays are the team coming to town.

How about that folks? A game against Pat Burrell, in Citizens Bank Park, where the score doesn't even matter. And it's the first game of the year at CBP. It'll feel just like a regular game, but nobody will be too upset with the outcome.

It's a perfect way to mark the true ending of Pat Burrell's career as a Phillie.

Good-bye, Pat.