Tampa Bay Rays: Glimmering with Hope During Spring Ball

As Spring Training is coming to a close and the regular season is just a few short weeks away, the Tampa Bay Rays have some bright spots that are definitely needed if they are going to make a post season run in 2010.

The emergence of Desmond Jennings and Matt Joyce has to make Rays fans smile. Both of these rookies will platoon right field and both have performed very well in the Spring.

Jennings totes a .600 average in five plate appearances. Although this is limited action, his hits have been solid and because of his past success at all minor league levels in previous years it appears that this is not a fluke.

Joyce, who was the biggest question mark heading into the spring because of his lack of commitment and work-ethic issues, has arguably been the nicest surprise. He has a .417 average with two RBIs and two doubles. The Rays need a bat in right field badly, especially one who can hit right handers. If Joyce can keep this up into the regular season, one of the Rays biggest weaknesses might be solidified.

Another option for right field is moving Zobrist back there. While he doesn’t have the greatest arm, his speed and athleticism can cover a ton of ground. This might happen because of the play of Reid Brignac, who in 24 at-bats is batting .417 and has 13 RBIs. He is making a case to play every day for the Rays, as he is picking up right where he left off last year.

Another BIG bright spot for the Rays has been the play of B.J. Upton. He started off the spring much like he played for the entire 2009 season, but the last two weeks has been tearing it, including a two-homer, three-RBI day. His average stands at .269 in 26 plate appearances with five runs. It appears his swing is back and his shoulder is healthy. Clearly, the Bossman needs to have a big year to make the Rays lineup as potent as possible.

From the pitching end, the fifth starter battle has been of some debate at the Rays camp. The favorite was Wade Davis; however, he has not pitched well and Andy Sonnanstine has done much better. While I think Davis will win the battle because of how he pitched at the end of last year, Sonnanstine's emergence as competition and a good fill in spotter is something that you can never feel bad about.

Also, Carlos Hernandez has had a good showing so far this spring. This adds more invaluable depth to the starting pitching/long-relief category. He’s issued a 3.17 ERA in his almost five innings of work. At best, it’s a good story for a kid who has worlds of talent and has had bad luck with injuries.

Lastly, something I wouldn’t worry about. David Price’s ERA is atrociously high, 6.74, in limited action. It is obvious the Rays are wanting to limit his innings as he prepares for the long haul. However, despite his high ERA, his walks are down, which means that he is getting closer and closer to hitting his spots and staying in the strike zone.

The emergence of some of these players will determine how the regular season goes for the Rays, as well as the moves forward in perhaps one of the most critical offseasons in the Rays brief history. If the Rays have people that can produce at every position, and adequate backups and depth in case of injury, the more likely they will be fighting with the Yanks and Sox for a postseason birth. With these signs from spring training, it seems that this will be the case.