| 2007 Tampa Bay Devil Rays | |
|---|---|
| League | American League |
| Division | East |
| Ballpark | Tropicana Field |
| City | St. Petersburg, Florida |
| Record | 66–96 (.407) |
| Divisional place | 5th |
| Owners | Stuart Sternberg |
| General managers | Andrew Friedman |
| Managers | Joe Maddon |
| Television | FSN Florida WXPX (Ion TV 66) |
| Radio | WHNZ WGES (Spanish) |
TheTampa Bay Devil Rays' 2007 season, the tenth season in franchise history, involved the Devil Rays trying to improve on their2006 season, where they finished last in theAmerican League East, and managed to finish the season with a league-worst record of 66–96. During the offseason they signedJapaneseinfielderAkinori Iwamura to a three-year deal. Theirmanager wasJoe Maddon, who entered his second season with the Devil Rays.
Although the Devil Rays again finished last in the division, they improved their record by five games, to 66–96. Their season attendance increased by 18,653 to 1,387,603. This marks the first time home attendance has increased in consecutive seasons. Joe Maddon's option years through 2009 were picked up by the club on September 8, 2007. The season was marked by incredible pitching performances by club aceScott Kazmir and rookieJames Shields, and the bats of club standbyCarl Crawford; rookiesDelmon Young,B.J. Upton andBrendan Harris; and free agentsAkinori Iwamura andCarlos Peña. Several club single-season records fell during the course of the season.
This was also the tenth and last season with the team being named the Devil Rays. The team dropped the "Devil" from the name. The following year, the team would win the AL East, beating the usual contenders in the Yankees and the Red Sox. The team would win the pennant, but lost to thePhiladelphia Phillies in theWorld Series.
The Devil Rays opened their 2007 season April 2, on the road against the defending division championNew York Yankees. The bullpen blew a lead and Tampa Bay lost, 9–5,[1] but came back to win the third game, 7-6 (the second of the opening series was rained out). They suffered a setback in the middle of April when new third baseman Iwamura, off to a hot start with a .339 batting average to that point, suffered an oblique strain and went on the disabled list.[2] However, the team continued to play better than in past years, and on May 4 moved into a tie for second place, the latest that Tampa Bay had been that high in the standings since the 1999 season.[3]
The Rays trailed off going into May, falling eventually back into last place, but surged into their series inOrlando, Florida, against theTexas Rangers, which they swept. After the series with the Rangers, they won only one of the next seven games, skidding to a then season low, nine games below .500.
After a 9–4 win against theDodgers to improve their record to 33–40 on June 24, the Devil Rays went on to lose 11 straight games and went on to lose 13 of 14 games since the Dodgers series and went into theAll-Star Break 34–53. After the break it wasn't much better losing 3 games out of 4 against the Yankees in their 1st series after the break and went on to lose 8 straight games between July 21 to 28. The low point of that losing streak were two dismal losses to the Yankees. One game losing 17-5 and the other 21–4. The Rays' lack of pitching between their two aces and closerAl Reyes led to the coining of the idiom, "Kazmir and Shields, then off come the wheels."
For the Devil Rays it was a July to forget but things were getting better in August. Improvements made to the bullpen at the trade deadline led to shorter losing streaks and, eventually, more series wins. On August 11, Starting pitcherEdwin Jackson pitched the Devil Rays 1st complete gameshutout of the year in a 3–0 win against the Rangers. On August 25, PitcherScott Kazmir went 8 innings with a career high 13 strikeouts in a 14–3 win against theOakland Athletics and in that series the Rays took 3 of 4 games out scoring the A's 33 to 9 in the last three games of that series. The hot streak continued with a sweep of the tailspinningBaltimore Orioles and series wins at the Yankees and home against the Orioles and the Blue Jays before finally losing 2 of 3 at theBoston Red Sox and splitting a 4-game series at theSeattle Mariners.
Their September upswing ensured that they would finish the 2007 season with a better record than the 2006 season. They did, however, hobble into the end of the season, with Carl Crawford's season-ending groin pull in late-September contributing to a 5-13 finish. They did win their final game of the season, though, giving hope for next year.
Andy Sonnanstine broke a team record with seven consecutive strikeouts on June 10 in a victory over theFlorida Marlins, his first win of the season.
On September 3,Carlos Peña broke the club single-seasonhome run record, previously 34, held byJosé Canseco (1999) and Aubrey Huff (2003). Peña's 35th was a two-run homer offJim Hoey in the seventh inning of a 9–7 victory over the Baltimore Orioles. On September 16, he became the first Rays player to hit 40 home runs in a season, the 40th being a leadoff homer coming offJarrod Washburn in the 4th inning of a 9–2 victory over theSeattle Mariners. His 45th home run came offDustin McGowan in the 5th inning of a 5–4 loss to theToronto Blue Jays; it was the second of back-to-back homers, followingJorge Velandia's second homer of the season.
On September 27, Peña took theRBI record, previously set byJorge Cantú at 117 in 2005. He tied it with an RBI single in the 1st inning for his 117th, and broke it with a solo home run in the 5th inning for his 118th. Both RBIs were offChien-Ming Wang in a 12–4 loss to theNew York Yankees. He finished the season with 46 home runs, 121 RBIs and a 1.037OPS (.411OBP, .627SLG, both Rays season records), becoming the first Devil Ray to finish a season with at least a 1.000 OPS. Peña went on to winComeback Player of the Year honors for the American League.
Carl Crawford approached the 1,000-hit plateau, but a groin pull in late September ended his season early, leaving him stuck at 990 career hits. He hit his 1000th hit on April 11, 2008.[4] This was not be the first four-digit hit milestone for the club;Wade Boggs got his 3,000th hit while with the team in 1999. His injury, however, did not prevent him from finishing the season with a share of the ALstolen base title withBrian Roberts of the Baltimore Orioles. Both players finished the year with 50, marking the fourth time he's led or shared the lead in that category for a year.
Delmon Young became the first Rays rookie to play in every game of a 162-game season, setting a team record for mostat bats taken in a season with 645. He is the second Rays player ever to play in every game in a season, after Aubrey Huff in 2003. Young was held from the lineup for the last game of the season after not hustling to first on a ground ball during the previous game, but apologized for not giving that game his all and entered the final game as a mid-game replacement. At the end of the season, he was considered a leading candidate for theAL Rookie of the Year award.
On September 10, Scott Kazmir became the first Rays pitcher to record 200 strikeouts in a season, in a 1–0 victory over the Boston Red Sox. His 200th strikeout victim for the year wasCoco Crisp. He ultimately claimed the A.L. strikeout title, finishing the year with 239. (Aone-game playoff permittedJake Peavy to take the MLB strikeout title with 240.) Kazmir is also the first D-Ray starter to finish a season with at least 10 strikeouts per 9 innings (10.41).
During the course of the season, Scott Kazmir became the first Rays starting pitcher to log enough starts and innings to begin compiling rate-based team all-time pitching records, such asERA.
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boston Red Sox | 96 | 66 | .593 | — | 51–30 | 45–36 |
| New York Yankees | 94 | 68 | .580 | 2 | 52–29 | 42–39 |
| Toronto Blue Jays | 83 | 79 | .512 | 13 | 49–32 | 34–47 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 69 | 93 | .426 | 27 | 35–46 | 34–47 |
| Tampa Bay Devil Rays | 66 | 96 | .407 | 30 | 37–44 | 29–52 |
| Team | BAL | BOS | CWS | CLE | DET | KC | LAA | MIN | NYY | OAK | SEA | TB | TEX | TOR | NL | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baltimore | — | 6–12 | 5–3 | 3–4 | 1–5 | 7–0 | 3–7 | 0–7 | 9–9 | 4–4 | 2–7 | 11–7 | 4–6 | 8–10 | 6–12 | ||
| Boston | 12–6 | — | 7–1 | 5–2 | 3–4 | 3–3 | 6–4 | 4–3 | 8–10 | 4–4 | 4–5 | 13–5 | 6–4 | 9–9 | 12–6 | ||
| Chicago | 3–5 | 1–7 | — | 7–11 | 11–7 | 12–6 | 5–4 | 9–9 | 4–6 | 4–5 | 1–7 | 6–1 | 2–4 | 3–4 | 4–14 | ||
| Cleveland | 4–3 | 2–5 | 11–7 | — | 12–6 | 11–7 | 5–5 | 14–4 | 0–6 | 6–4 | 4–3 | 8–2 | 6–3 | 4–2 | 9–9 | ||
| Detroit | 5–1 | 4–3 | 7–11 | 6–12 | — | 11–7 | 3–5 | 12–6 | 4–4 | 4–6 | 6–4 | 3–4 | 5–4 | 4–3 | 14–4 | ||
| Kansas City | 0–7 | 3–3 | 6–12 | 7–11 | 7–11 | — | 5–2 | 9–9 | 1–9 | 6–4 | 3–6 | 4–3 | 5–4 | 3–4 | 10–8 | ||
| Los Angeles | 7–3 | 4–6 | 4–5 | 5–5 | 5–3 | 2–5 | — | 6–3 | 6–3 | 9–10 | 13–6 | 6–2 | 10–9 | 3–4 | 14–4 | ||
| Minnesota | 7–0 | 3–4 | 9–9 | 4–14 | 6–12 | 9–9 | 3–6 | — | 2–5 | 5–2 | 6–3 | 3–4 | 7–2 | 4–6 | 11–7 | ||
| New York | 9–9 | 10–8 | 6–4 | 6–0 | 4–4 | 9–1 | 3–6 | 5–2 | — | 2–4 | 5–5 | 10–8 | 5–1 | 10–8 | 10–8 | ||
| Oakland | 4–4 | 4–4 | 5–4 | 4–6 | 6–4 | 4–6 | 10–9 | 2–5 | 4–2 | — | 5–14 | 4–6 | 9–10 | 5–4 | 10–8 | ||
| Seattle | 7–2 | 5–4 | 7–1 | 3–4 | 4–6 | 6–3 | 6–13 | 3–6 | 5–5 | 14–5 | — | 4–3 | 11–8 | 4–5 | 9–9 | ||
| Tampa Bay | 7–11 | 5–13 | 1–6 | 2–8 | 4–3 | 3–4 | 2–6 | 4–3 | 8–10 | 6–4 | 3–4 | — | 5–4 | 9–9 | 7–11 | ||
| Texas | 6–4 | 4–6 | 4–2 | 3–6 | 4–5 | 4–5 | 9–10 | 2–7 | 1–5 | 10–9 | 8–11 | 4–5 | — | 5–5 | 11–7 | ||
| Toronto | 10–8 | 9–9 | 4–3 | 2–4 | 3–4 | 4–3 | 4–3 | 6–4 | 8–10 | 4–5 | 5–4 | 9–9 | 5–5 | — | 10–8 | ||
| 2007 Tampa Bay Devil Rays | |||||||||
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Pitchers
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April
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May
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June
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July
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August
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September
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Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
| Pos | Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | Dioner Navarro | 119 | 388 | 88 | .227 | 9 | 44 |
| 1B | Carlos Peña | 148 | 490 | 138 | .282 | 46 | 121 |
| 2B | Ty Wigginton | 98 | 378 | 104 | .275 | 16 | 49 |
| SS | Brendan Harris | 137 | 521 | 149 | .286 | 12 | 59 |
| 3B | Akinori Iwamura | 123 | 491 | 140 | .285 | 7 | 34 |
| LF | Carl Crawford | 143 | 584 | 184 | .315 | 11 | 80 |
| CF | B.J. Upton | 129 | 474 | 142 | .300 | 24 | 82 |
| RF | Delmon Young | 162 | 645 | 186 | .288 | 13 | 93 |
| DH | Greg Norton | 75 | 202 | 49 | .243 | 4 | 23 |
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
| Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jonny Gomes | 107 | 348 | 85 | .244 | 17 | 49 |
| Josh Wilson | 90 | 263 | 66 | .251 | 2 | 24 |
| Elijah Dukes | 52 | 184 | 35 | .190 | 10 | 21 |
| Rocco Baldelli | 35 | 137 | 28 | .204 | 5 | 12 |
| Josh Paul | 35 | 105 | 20 | .190 | 1 | 9 |
| Ben Zobrist | 31 | 97 | 15 | .155 | 1 | 9 |
| Raul Casanova | 29 | 79 | 20 | .253 | 6 | 11 |
| Jorge Cantú | 25 | 58 | 12 | .207 | 0 | 4 |
| Jorge Velandia | 14 | 50 | 16 | .320 | 2 | 11 |
| Joel Guzmán | 16 | 37 | 9 | .243 | 0 | 4 |
| Dustan Mohr | 7 | 16 | 2 | .125 | 1 | 2 |
| Justin Ruggiano | 7 | 14 | 3 | .214 | 0 | 3 |
| Shawn Riggans | 3 | 10 | 1 | .100 | 0 | 2 |
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| James Shields | 31 | 215.0 | 12 | 8 | 3.85 | 184 |
| Scott Kazmir | 34 | 206.2 | 13 | 9 | 3.48 | 239 |
| Edwin Jackson | 32 | 161.0 | 5 | 15 | 5.76 | 128 |
| Andy Sonnanstine | 22 | 130.2 | 6 | 10 | 5.85 | 97 |
| Jae Weong Seo | 11 | 52.0 | 3 | 4 | 8.13 | 28 |
| J.P. Howell | 10 | 51.0 | 1 | 6 | 7.59 | 49 |
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jason Hammel | 24 | 85.0 | 3 | 5 | 6.14 | 64 |
| Casey Fossum | 40 | 76.0 | 5 | 8 | 7.70 | 53 |
Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | W | L | SV | ERA | SO |
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| Al Reyes | 61 | 2 | 4 | 26 | 4.90 | 70 |
| Gary Glover | 67 | 6 | 5 | 2 | 4.89 | 51 |
| Brian Stokes | 59 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 7.07 | 35 |
| Shawn Camp | 50 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7.20 | 36 |
| Juan Salas | 34 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3.72 | 26 |
| Scott Dohmann | 31 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3.31 | 26 |
| Dan Wheeler | 25 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 5.76 | 26 |
| Grant Balfour | 22 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6.14 | 27 |
| Jon Switzer | 21 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 8.05 | 13 |
| Jay Witasick | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6.61 | 8 |
| Jae Kuk Ryu | 17 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 7.33 | 14 |
| Ruddy Lugo | 11 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 9.28 | 8 |
| Chad Orvella | 10 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 14.63 | 6 |
| Tim Corcoran | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6.75 | 6 |
| Jeff Ridgway | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 189.00 | 0 |
| Josh Wilson | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 |
LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Montgomery, Columbus
