The Rays Could Shine

While both The Rays and Diamondbacks are expansion teams, the Diamondbacks have seen a lot more success despite less youg talent.

The motto for every team is to try and keep their good young players to build around. However, despite having probably the most young players ready for the majors, the team remains a joke and a roll over team.

Their problem is that they have held on to too much of their young talent without going out and getting enough veteran talent either via by trade or the free agent market.

The Rays got a steal of a deal with the Mets in 2004 when they traded Victor Zambrano for Scott Kazmir. Kazmir is now a high rising star while Zambrano isn't even part of a team at the moment.

As a Met Zambrano posted a record 10-14 and spent a lot of time on the DL. The 23 year old southpaw Kazmir on the other hand is 35-29 with a 3.64 ERA in his young career.

The only other real threat in their rotation is 25 year old James Shields.

According to ESPN.com, the average age for a Rays player is just 26.1 years old and there are only two players on their current roster over 30 years old and one is their closer, Al Reyes who is 37, the other is 30 year old relief pitcher Gary Glover.

It is pretty well known that if you can knock one of those top pitchers early you can still win as the underbelly of their team will show up in the form of their bullpen.

The Rays great abundance of speedy outfielders with 23 year old B.J. Upton, 22 year old Delmon Young, 23 year old Elijah Dukes, 26 year old Carl Crawford, and 26 year old Rocco Baldelli.

What do they need all these young players for? You build around a group of young players, you don't carry all of them on your team. Their is a name for a team like that; Triple A.

In the outfield they also have Jonny Gomes, Chris Snelling, and Justin Ruggiano who are all in their mid-twenties.

If they want to keep Gome as their DH fine, but what about Snelling, Ruggiano, and one or two of their other big outfielders. They don't need all these players because they can't use all these players.

The only way to use them is to trade them. They should be used to acquire more pitching or another big name. Maybe trade for Johan Santana or a Miguel Cabrera.

Imagine how much btter the Ryas would be with Santana at the helm followed by Kazmir and Shields. That is a legit power three. Or imagie what an infield they can have, moving Akinori Iwamura to second, re-signing Carlos Pena to play first, having their pick of Ben Zobrist, Josh Wilson, or Brendan Harris at short at plugging Cabrera in at third.

But what about the free agent market? Did they forget they can go out and sign these players?
The player who commanded the most money last season was Crawford at a little over the four million dollar mark.

Trade players, sign free agents and strenghten that pitching with that abundance of quality infielders and even more so with their outfielders. Go out and sign relievers such as LaTroy Hawkins, Eric Gagne, Octavio Dotel, or Jeremy Affeldt. How about starters such as Bartolo Colon, Josh Fogg, Freddy Garcia, Eric Milton, or Carlos Silva?

With a ridiculously low payroll where A-Rod's contract is more than that of the Rays entire roster, you need to spend money to win. Not saying you need 15 million dollar players at every position, but more money needs to be spent.

Otherwise, where is that luxury tax money going that they are recieving to make their team better? Why start a franchise if you don't intend on improving it? Look at the Diamondbacks back in 2001 who had Schilling and Johnson on their roster at the same time as just two of he big names they had signed.

Young talent is great and important, but it is not only used to build around a franchise but to use to make your franchise better in trades and they have done a horrible job in trying to do that.
They have core players in place and are just two, three, maybe four moves away from becomming at least a .500 franchise if not better.

However, until they do this, The Rays can build a new stadium and give themselves a new name, but their look will not change as they will continue their losing ways.