When the Rays traded 26-year old lefty starting pitcher Scott Kazmir to the Los Angeles Angels last August 29th the skeptics dogged them saying that they were just dumping salary. But Kazmir has been pretty awful for the Angels this season. He has pitched in 16 games (all starts) for the Angels this season and he is 7-8 with a 5.98 ERA and a 1.57 WHIP. In that trade with the Angels for Kazmir, 25-year old Sean Rodriguez was the player to be named later. He has played in 67 games for the Rays this season and he is 57 of 208 (.274 avg, .743 OPS) with 33 runs scored, 6 homers, 30 RBIs and 7 stolen bases. Rodriguez is pretty much the starting 2B for the Rays right now and he is an asset both in the field and with a bat in his hands. The Rays also got 22-year old lefty starting pitcher Alex Torres and 22-year old lefty swinging 3B Matt Sweeney from the Angels for Kazmir. Torres has started 17 games in AA-ball this season and he is 8-3 with a 2.90 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP. He has a very nice upside. Matt Sweeney is struggling so far in the minors for the Rays this year. He has played in 74 games in A+AA-ball so far this season and he is 60 of 266 (.226 avg, .659 OPS) with 30 runs scored, 7 homers and 37 RBIs. This trade looks like a big win for the Rays.

3B Evan Longoria and LF Carl Crawford will be in the starting lineup for the American League as they were voted in by the fans. Longoria will be appearing in his third All-Star Game. He has played in 79 games this season for the Rays and he is 91 of 310 (.294 avg, .868 OPS) with 48 runs scored, 12 homers, 56 RBIs and 12 stolen bases. Crawford has been super hot as of late as his numbers look even better than Longoria’s so far. He has played in 77 games for the Rays this year and he is 95 of 297 (.320 avg, .874 OPS) with 61 runs scored, 7 homers, 41 RBIs and 29 stolen bases. This will be Crawford’s 4th All-Star Game. 24-year old lefty starting pitcher David Price was selected for the pitching staff and he could be the starting pitcher in the game. He has started 16 games for the Rays this year and he is 11-4 with a 2.42 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP. Price has only given up 87 hits in 107 2/3 innings this season as he’s missing quite a few bats. This will be the first All-Star game for Price. The Rays should be well represented by this trio of young stars.

UPDATE: (7/7/2010) - A.L. manager Joe Girardi has selected 30-year old righty reliever Rafael Soriano to replace Mariano Rivera who needs some time off. Soriano has played in 33 games (0 starts) for the Rays this season and he is 2-0 with 23 saves, a 1.65 ERA and a 0.83 WHIP. He has only given up 20 hits in 32 2/3 innings this season as he has been unhittable this year. Soriano deserves this honor and he might be able to effect the outcome of the All-Star Game as he will likely be pitching late.

30-year old righty swinging shortstop Jason Bartlett has played in 48 games this season for the Rays and he is 42 of 182 (.231 avg, .657 OPS)with 25 runs scored, 1 homer, 22 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. But Bartlett played in 137 games for the Rays last season in which he was 160 of 500 (.320 avg, .879 OPS) with 90 runs scored, 14 homers, 66 RBIs and 30 stolen bases. Personally I would just give him his starting job back despite the solid play of Reid Brignac in his absence. It’s looking more than likely that 24-year old lefty swinging Reid Brignac will be platooning with 25-year old righty swinging Sean Rodriguez at 2B for now. Brignac has played in 51 games for the Rays this season and he is 44 of 145 (.303 avg, .788 OPS) with 22 runs scored, 2 homers, 23 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. Rodriguez’ bat has caught fire due to the regular P.T. he was getting after Bartlett got hurt. Rodriguez has played in 45 games for the Rays this year and he is 36 of 125 (.288 avg, .800 OPS) with 23 runs scored, 4 homers, 21 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. But he’s a wild swinger as he has already whiffed 41 times this season while only walking 5 times. It’s still possible that the Rays could entertain trading Bartlett if Brignac and Rodriguez continue to hit well which would save them some cash and net them some decent prospects or help for the bullpen.

26-year old lefty swinging catcher John Jaso probably thought he would be spending most of the 2010 season in the minors with Kelly Shoppach and Dioner Navarro above him on the depth chart. But, Kelly Shoppach got injured which opened the door for Jaso to join the Rays and he appears to have kicked the door down. Jaso has played in 7 games for the Rays so far this season and he is 6 for 14 (.429 avg, 1.386 OPS) with 2 runs scored, 2 doubles, 1 homer and 6 RBIs. His homer came off Ricky Romero of the Blue Jays who is one of the best lefties in the A.L. Jaso is showing great discipline while in the batters box too as he only has whiffed 1 time this year while walking 5 times. Jaso will probably get to keep playing quite a bit because of both his own play and because of how poorly Dioner Navarro is playing this year. Navarro has played in 14 games for the Rays this season and he is 6 for 44 (.136 avg, .367 OPS) with 4 runs scored, 1 double and 2 RBIs. The Rays should ride the hot hand and continue to play Jaso for the time being.

Carl Crawford is off to a great start early in this 2010 season for the Tampa Bay Rays.  Whether it is hitting a homerun, stealing a base, or sacrificing a runner over, Crawford has been doing a little bit of everything for the Rays.  He is swinging a very good bat so far, with a .327 BA (18/55), 2 HRs, 10 RBIs, 12 Rs, 6 SBs, .381 OBP, and a .545 SLG.  Crawford is a big reason why the Rays are off to such a good start at 11-4 near the top of the AL East.  The New York Yankees are currently a half game up with an 11-3 record, but the Rays have been just as impressive as the Yankees.  They have been much better than the Boston Red Sox, who many still believed had the edge over the Rays still.  It is still very early, but the Rays definitely look like the favorite to beat out the Red Sox this season for the Wild Card, or perhaps even the AL East Division Title.  Their four-game sweep over the Red Sox has set the tone early in the season that they are no longer going to take a backseat to the Yankees and Red Sox and they are out to prove their 2008 AL Pennant was no fluke.  Look for the Rays to be near the top of the AL East all season long.