http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/a/aubremi01.shtml Everyone knows our chances of resigning Los are slim, and devoting the kind of money he will command is probably not a good idea for the Rays anyway.  Our in house options at first are not great. We can move Zobrist there, and go with Joyce in RF and Rodriguez/Brignac at 2B, assuming we keep JB.  That also means that Jennings has to be healthy enough to play LF everyday. But Joyce has not proven he is ready yet, and Jennings has yet to show he can stay healthy. Plus it seems like a waste to put Zobrist at 1B when he has the arm and speed to anywhere on the diamond. Aybar could potentially play full time, but he is never going to hit 30 home runs or drive in 100.  We do not have someone in the minors who can fill step in for Los, at least not next year (Sweeney is not ready).  It really seems like we will need to make a move to fill the 1B spot next year. 

We know the Rays are not going to pay a lot for a free agent 1B who can match Pena's production. That means the only hope we have is finding someone who is seriously undervalued but with the right opportunity could break out. When we acquired Los, he was a former first round pick that had bounced around in a few organizations but never really found a home. Mike Aubrey has a similar story, although he has a lot more injury problems than Los did. Still, he was formerly a top rated prospect (won the Golden Spikes at Tulane) who has good power potential if he can stay healthy. Aubrey recently cleared waivers and was sent to Norfolk. He played college ball at Tulane with AF, so the front office should have plenty of info about him. He is stuck in Baltimore with little chance of making the show this year, but he has shown that he is a capable major league 1B when healthy. We need someone to step in next year, why not him?

I can't imagine we would need to give up much for him, hell we could have claimed him off waivers if we wanted. Here is a guy who we can get for cheap and still has potential to be a star in the bigs if given the right opportunity. Is there any reason we shouldn't take a chance on this guy?

Has anyone been to the new stadium yet? I am going tomorrow and trying to figure out the best place to sit. Does anyone know how far up the field and main levels are? I am trying to figure out how they compare to lower box seats at the trop. Any input would be appreciated. It is going to be great watching the Rays beat the hell out of the Yankees in their new (empty) stadium.