Why The Rays Have A Good Chance To Win The World Series

There's been a lot of talk about the Post Season lately. Why wouldn't there be? It's one of the most exciting times in America. This is around the time where people decide who they think will win the World Series. A lot have their pick on the Phillies, rightfully so. Some have the Twins to win it. A lot on the Yankees, purely based on the fan base. Being a Rays fan myself, I won't say the Rays are primed to win it. They have some tough competition ahead of them. However, I will go through some of the things that make this team worthy of a World Series win.

Dynamic Offense: The Rays get their runs in ways that American League teams and even some National League teams cringe at. They might not have the greatest offense or the most power heavy offense, but they sure as hell have a dynamic one. They have some decent power, but not enough for pitchers to be careful with. They have a .250 team batting average, no where near the best in the league. So how do they score runs you ask? Well for one, despite that not so good batting average, they lead the league in walks. You'd think a young team would be more aggressive, but it's quite the opposite. They have 24 more walks than the Yankees, who are in second place in that category. Might not be a lot, but it all factors in when they steal more bases than any other team in baseball. 166 times the Rays have stolen a base this year. In fact, they're the only team in the top 5 that are currently in postseason contention. The Rays run very well, and it's not just stolen bases. I can't give you stats on how well they run the base paths when they hit the ball, but if you know this team well enough, they stretch singles into doubles and doubles into triples more easily than any other team. Like I said before, they can hurt you with the long ball. Evan Longoria, BJ Upton, Carl Crawford and even Ben Zobrist can take you deep.

Pitching: 5 Reliable starters are hard to come by. The Rays never really had an ace of a pitcher along the lines of Roy Halladay or Cliff Lee. What they do have are starters that will give you a quality outing every time out. They won't dominate, but they won't roll over either. While their starters have scuffled a little bit, they seem to be getting right back on track lately. The pitching staff overall is third in the AL in ERA, and second when it comes to play off contenders with a 3.85. The bullpen is one of the most dominant bullpens in the league. Dan Wheeler, Grant Balfour, Joaquin Benoit, and Rafael Soriano are all dominant relievers. Add that with one of the most reliable youngest starting rotations, that's a recipe for success.

Defense: In 2008, the first thing everyone noticed when the Rays were winning was the defense. They had spectacular defense. In 2010 it is no different. They're sixth in Major League Baseball for fielding percentage at .987. The defense is a big reason why the pitching has been stellar. Without the defense, the Rays would not be where they're at right now.

Experience: Is this really necessary? I was arguing with my friend the other day who's a Yankee fan and said the Rays don't have the experience to go deep in the playoffs. I disagreed with him. There may not be a lot of experience, but there is some and I don't think anyone has told the Rays they can't go deep into the postseason despite the lack of experience. I don't think they worry about it.

Key Players:

BJ Upton - Ask the Red Sox fans if they remember the thrashing this guy gave them in the ALCS two years ago. It was nasty. He was a big reason why they beat the Red Sox then. His line in the 08 postseason was .288/7/16. In the ALCS it was .321/4/11. He did some serious work then. If the Rays are going to be able to compete with power heavy teams, they're going to need this guy. I honestly think he could match that performance. You might look at his .239 batting average this year and cringe, but he's hit .260 in August and .271 in September. Add that with the 11 home runs after the all star break, and I think he might be hitting his stride. 10 of those home runs have been in August and September. He's been getting better. After that visit with the hitting coach, it looks like it's paying off and it couldn't have happened at a better time.

James Shields: What a down year for Big Game James. It's been quite disappointing, but I decided to dive deep into the stats. This guy really has lived up to his nick name regardless of the 4.96 ERA and 32 home runs given up. Against the New York Yankees this year, he's 2-1 with a 3.35 ERA in 6 starts. Against Texas he's 1-1 with a 2.57 ERA in 2 starts. He faced Minnesota once this year and pitched 6 innings, gave up 4 ER, and got the win. A respectable outing. He's been pretty good against top contending teams, and it seems like he pitches his best in the clutch. How fitting! His postseason stats live up to his name also. 2-2 with a 2.88 ERA in 4 starts. If Maddon decides to use him as a starter in the post season, it could be an amazing decision. It would be kind of disappointing not to have the only Rays pitcher with a World Series win on the roster. It really would be a shame.

Evan Longoria: They need their major run producer to do exactly that. Produce runs. He only batted .194 in the 08 post season but he did hit 6 home runs and drove in 13 RBI. They need him to be at his best when the playoffs come around. The Rays lack in reliable power except for this guy as Pena has been struggling. If the Rays are going to have any chance at winning the World Series, Longoria will need to step it up.

David Price: The only pitcher close to an ace the Rays have gotten is this guy. Considering this is his first and only spectacular season, we can't call him an ace yet. Regardless, Price needs to be the reliable starter he has been all year. He was battle tested in the 2008 postseason and performed extremely well for a young guy in that position. Now with 2 full seasons under his belt, Price will have to take a shot at starting in the Playoffs.

Carl Crawford: The man that gets everything started. They will NEED Crawford to do what he has all year. Get on base, get in to scoring position, and score. However, considering he has 87 RBI, driving in runs would definitely help also. This man is the catalyst of the Rays this year. He will need to be exactly that in October.

If the pieces come together, the Rays will be one scary team to face. They have so much potential, and being a young team won't be much of a problem as people think. It didn't stop them in 2008, and with a little bit more experience now, they could definitely take the whole thing. The Rays are the most exciting team in baseball doing everything right. That's why they can compete with hundreds and millions of dollars that the Yankees and Red Sox have. Don't expect them to roll over in the post season.