Navarro Good, Bullpen Better, C.C. Best

The two biggest question marks coming into this season have, by all means, been the two biggest surprises so far. Dionar Navarro came into this season with a make or break attitude hell bent on proving to every one that he more then belongs to be in the Bigs. Average fielding and sub-par hitting had him closer to the exit than his locker, and after another freak accident where he had to get stitches in his hand slipping in the dugout, it looked like just another mishap that has seemed to follow him through out his career. But since coming of the DL he has been nothing short of fantastic. In four games he has gone 6 for 14 with 2 walks and 3 R.B.I.'s. Not to mention the starting pitchers he's caught in those games have all looked quite impressive. He has almost single handily kept the team in competition over those games.

I say almost because the biggest surprise by far has been the pen. After setting records for worst relief pitching in baseball history, the Rays now hold the title of best bullpen in the majors with an E.R.A. at 3.4, and if you were to take Reyes out of the equation it would about 2.9. Hats off especially to Scott Dohman, who has been more then effective as both a long reliever and a situational pitcher. But to be the best you have to beat the best, and after a slow start there is no one hotter right now than Carl Crawford. Last night he hit two triples and a single to extend his hitting streak to 13 games and give the Rays (and my fantasy team) the boost it most desperately needed.

What is really impressive though is that during this streak, 12 of those games have been multi-hit games and 6 have been three hitters. As of now Carlos Pena is really the only one slumping and I think Maddon giving him a night off will be good for him, and I do believe he will bounce back shortly. So hopefully the team can keep this winning streak rolling and when you can get production from you superstars and your "scrubs" then only pennants can follow. Wait, did I just say that?