Ben Zobrist News

I thought one of the key moments that led to the Tampa Bay Rays' demise came in late May, when Akinori Iwamura hurt his knee in a game at the Marlins.

As previously, noted the Rays have 4 pitchers throwing for the Phoenix team in the Arizona Fall League, along with middle infielder Shawn O'Malley and catcher Nevin Ashley .

The Rays have traded Akinori Iwamura to the Pirates for right-handed reliever Jesse Chavez.

The Baltimore Orioles elected not to pick up the 2010 club options on third baseman Melvin Mora and catcher Chad Moeller among several moves announced by the team on Thursday.

The Rays moved quickly to re-sign OF Gabe Kapler because they could. The Rays liked how he hit , how he played defense, how he ran, how he prepared, how he hustled, how he set a good example for the young players.

In the last thread, GomesSweetGomes raised a good point about Gabe Kapler 's plate appearances versus right-handed pitchers.

According to an AP report, the Tampa Bay Rays have re-signed one half of their Double-Gabe right field platoon, welcoming back Gabe Kapler.

Today is the deadline for submission of MVP ballots at the Baseball Bloggers Alliance .

Drivers Cat Manzi and Jason Bartlett were injured Saturday in an accident during a race at Freehold Raceway.

There were possibilities elsewhere, but Derek Shelton said he couldn't pass on the chance to coach a Tampa Bay Rays lineup that led the majors in stolen bases and set club records for home runs, walks and runs this season.

Ben Zobrist looks to be part of a three way platoon in 2010 One of the more interesting story lines of this offseason, to me at anyway, will be the competition for the last remaining bench spot*. *This is barring any major trades or signings before opening day The Rays came into 2009 with a fairly strong bench consisting of Ben Zobrist , Gabe ...

I like the Rays bullpen, but they need to add a closer or add two more good arms or both.

All that's left to do now is sit back and watch. After a history-making 2008 season, the Rays couldn't recapture that magic to vault them back to the postseason in '09. So while the Yankees, Angels, Phillies and Dodgers duke it out in each league's Championship Series to eventually crown a World Series champion, all Tampa Bay's players can do is ...

2, 2009 in St. Petersburg, Fla. Rays' Jason Bartlett scored on the hit. Catching for the Yankees is Jorge Posada.

Acquiring a new catcher is probably the top priority this off-season. Gregg Zaun may not return, Dioner Navarro turned back into a pumpkin, and the other 40-man options are reserves at best.

Some fans felt as though the Rays had quit on the season when Scott Kazmir was dealt to the Angels on Aug.

Shields could afford to smile, putting a good finish on his disappointing year by working eight strong innings in the 5-3 victory over the woeful Orioles that ensured the Rays of their second winning record in franchise history.

The Rays had many players with strong seasons this year, which even adds more to why the Rays clearly had a good enough year, but CC put up a career year.

ST. PETERSBURG a ' Ben Zobrist has done it all for the Rays this season, both at the plate and in the field, and for his efforts was voted the team's 2009 Most Valuable Player by the Tampa Bay chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America.

The Rays will take on the Yankees again tonight, with rookie RHP Jeff Niemann making his final start of the season.