Rangers vs. Rays: B.J. Upton Must Come Up Big for the Rays

The Tampa Bay Rays are probably the most fun team to watch in all of Major League Baseball.

They are also arguably the most enigmatic team in the majors. For a variety of reasons, it's just hard to evaluate the Rays.

I think this has a lot to do with their offense. We certainly know the Rays are going to pitch well on a given day, but you just never know what they're going to do with the bats. When they lose, it's oftentimes because the bats failed to show up.

This is going to be an issue for the Rays as they prepare to face the Texas Rangers in the American League Division Series, which will start on Friday. The Rangers are once again underrated in terms of their pitching, and I for one take that to mean that runs are going to be at a premium in this series.

There are a number of players who could make a difference one way or another in this regard. But out of all of them, the one guy who sticks out to me is B.J. Upton, the Rays' center fielder.

Upton is just as enigmatic as the Rays are. He'll look brilliant for a week, and then hopelessly lost for a month. His only consistency is that he is inconsistent.

Lucky for the Rays, Upton has been consistent lately. After struggling for the majority of the year, Upton hit an impressive .333 in September, with five home runs in 20 RBI.

Much of this can be tied to Joe Maddon's decision to move Upton, um, up to the No. 2 spot in the order. He responded by tearing the cover off the ball for the better part of the month.

Presumably, Maddon will keep Upton in the No. 2 spot and will then hope that Upton still has some magic left. Or maybe he'll hope that Upton will recapture the magic from the Rays' run to the World Series in 2008.

If you don't recall, it was pretty much impossible to get Upton out in those days. He hit three home runs in the ALDS against the Chicago White Sox, and then hit four more in the ALCS against the Boston Red Sox. He was a one-man wrecking crew.

Then Upton went in the tank in the World Series against the Philadelphia Phillies. Coincidentally, the Rays lost.

Except, I don't view that as a coincidence. In a lineup that can severely lack some punch at a moment's notice, the Rays need their big boppers to be big boppers. Evan Longoria must do his part as well, but there's no escaping the feeling Upton is the shakier bet of the two.

If Upton can continue to be a force against the Rangers, the Rays' lineup will go from being a weak threat to being a formidable threat. It won't be great one through nine, but the top of the Rangers' lineup will learn to fear the top of their order.

Because, once again, we know the Rays can pitch. That could be all the Rays need in order to advance to the ALCS for the second time in four years. They're a good team, but they're a better team when Upton is swinging it.

Don't believe me? Look at the September they just had.