OK, we've got the second best record in the AL and one of the top 5 records in the MLB.  This would lead us to believe that we have more than the typical “obligatory” All Star candidate, but who should they be?

From a purely statistical standpoint, the only players we have in the top 5 of any statistical category are Pena with 9 HR, Sonnanstine with 6 wins and Crawford (3rd in runs, T-4th in hits, T-1st triples, T-5th SB).

Here’s the rub:  Pena is hitting .215, Sonnanstine has an ERA north of 4.5 and with all those top 5 stats, CC is only hitting .282 with an OBP of .315.  Is Navarro close enough in AB to be considered?

What do you think?

So, this is the last weekend for a while where we are able to watch the Rays on TV without a blackout on a Satruday or Sunday.  Over the next 5 weeks, there are 6 Saturday and Sunday games that aren't on TV (in the Tampa market, even with MLB package).  Most are home games, which might mean the intention is to get people our of their living rooms and into the stadium.  Why exactly does this happen and how do they choose which games to broadcast and which not? 

I just noticed that in this weeks ESPN Power Rankings, the Rays are ranked 6th.   I'm not sure what criteria they use, other than ESPN writer's opinions, but its pretty cool anyway.  I beleive that this is the second time that the Rays cracked the top 10 on this list, I think they made it when they had that 14 game winning streak a few years ago.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/powerranking?season=2008&week=6