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Moriarty9 · 01-18-2009, 11:26 PM

Devil Rays set Opening Day roster
Pedro will take moung in season opener tomorrow
April 4, 1999

BALTIMORE — The Tampa Bay Devil Rays finished their inaugural season tied for last place in the division, but believe they have a roster that can improve on that this time around.

The Devil Rays will open up the 1999 season here tomorrow to start a three-game set with the Baltimore Orioles before heading home for three games with the Boston Red Sox, and then embarking on an eight-game road trip. Although 11 of their first 14 games will be on the road, and highly touted outfielder Carlos Beltran will be out until May with a back injury, Tampa Bay manager Christian O'Neal is confident his team can perform this April.

"We've got some good ballplayers here and I think we'll do okay," O'Neal said. "I don't want to come off as arrogant or necessarily quote Dick Williams, but I think this club will win more games than it loses; so long as these guys play hard everyday and we don't suffer major injuries to key players."

There's an old saying in baseball that good pitching will beat good hitting, and Devil Rays pitching coach Brian Hoskins likes his staff.

"We have some good young arms with Pedro (Martinez), (Kevin) Millwood, and Livan (Hernandez), and a young veteran workhorse in Aaron Sele to put us in a good position with the rotation," Hoskins said. "And as far as the bullpen goes, we have a number of strong arms down there and they're all competing for roles."

O'Neal plans to start the season with Martinez on the mound for tomorrow's opener against the Orioles, followed by Millwood, Sele, Hernandez, and fifth starter Chad Ogea.

Martinez went 13-12 with a 3.45 ERA, striking out 290 batters in 240 1/3 innings last season. The flamboyant young ace has made comments about "cashing in" on a $1 million bonus if he wins the Cy Young Award.

Millwood was acquired by Tampa Bay from the Atlanta Braves at the trade deadline last year and was very impressive in his 11 appearances with the Devil Rays. Millwood finished the year at 13-7 with a 4.12 ERA, but went 6-2 with a 2.97 ERA with Tampa Bay.

Sele suffered a serious back injury last June, knocking him out for the rest of the year. He filed for free agency and appeared to be heading elsewhere before agreeing to a one-year, $8.2 million deal with the Devil Rays. Sele likely settled for the one-year deal in hopes of raising his markey value with a healthy season.

Hernandez was a pleasant surprise for the Devil Rays last year, going 14-15 with a 4.08 ERA in 33 starts at the age of 23. The Cuban-born hurler proved himself to be an innings eater (220 1/3 innings) and kept his team in most games. Hoskins said he thinks Hernandez can be a dominant pitcher if he makes the right adjustments.

Ogea was acquired in the expansion draft and was initially pencilled as a member of the starting rotation for last season before the acquisitions of Martinez and Jeff Fassero. Ogea spent much of the year in the minor leagues but did make a couple appearances for Tampa Bay, including one start. In his big league career, mostly with the Cleveland Indians, Ogea has gone 18-12 with a 4.33 ERA and 1.33 WHIP in 61 games, 43 starts.

Vic Darensbourg starts the year as the only left-handed pitcher on the Tampa Bay staff, working out of the bullpen. Darensbourg, 28, made 29 appearances last season, going 2-0 with one save and a 1.21 ERA in 22 1/3 innings.

Free agent acquisition Todd Jones will be the Devil Rays' closer this year. Jones went 4-4 with 33 saves and a 4.73 ERA in 58 games with the Detroit Tigers last season. He has 93 saves in 298 big league appearances with a 3.45 career ERA.

Right-handed relievers Rich Garces, Danny Graves, Byung-Hyun Kim, and Paul Quantrill will serve as the set-up men and middle relievers this season.

01-18-2009, 11:26 PM	#82 (permalink)
Moriarty9 All Star Starter Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 1,855 Thanks: 9 Thanked 3x in 3 posts	Devil Rays set Opening Day roster Pedro will take moung in season opener tomorrow April 4, 1999 BALTIMORE — The Tampa Bay Devil Rays finished their inaugural season tied for last place in the division, but believe they have a roster that can improve on that this time around. The Devil Rays will open up the 1999 season here tomorrow to start a three-game set with the Baltimore Orioles before heading home for three games with the Boston Red Sox, and then embarking on an eight-game road trip. Although 11 of their first 14 games will be on the road, and highly touted outfielder Carlos Beltran will be out until May with a back injury, Tampa Bay manager Christian O'Neal is confident his team can perform this April. "We've got some good ballplayers here and I think we'll do okay," O'Neal said. "I don't want to come off as arrogant or necessarily quote Dick Williams, but I think this club will win more games than it loses; so long as these guys play hard everyday and we don't suffer major injuries to key players." There's an old saying in baseball that good pitching will beat good hitting, and Devil Rays pitching coach Brian Hoskins likes his staff. "We have some good young arms with Pedro (Martinez), (Kevin) Millwood, and Livan (Hernandez), and a young veteran workhorse in Aaron Sele to put us in a good position with the rotation," Hoskins said. "And as far as the bullpen goes, we have a number of strong arms down there and they're all competing for roles." O'Neal plans to start the season with Martinez on the mound for tomorrow's opener against the Orioles, followed by Millwood, Sele, Hernandez, and fifth starter Chad Ogea. Martinez went 13-12 with a 3.45 ERA, striking out 290 batters in 240 1/3 innings last season. The flamboyant young ace has made comments about "cashing in" on a $1 million bonus if he wins the Cy Young Award. Millwood was acquired by Tampa Bay from the Atlanta Braves at the trade deadline last year and was very impressive in his 11 appearances with the Devil Rays. Millwood finished the year at 13-7 with a 4.12 ERA, but went 6-2 with a 2.97 ERA with Tampa Bay. Sele suffered a serious back injury last June, knocking him out for the rest of the year. He filed for free agency and appeared to be heading elsewhere before agreeing to a one-year, $8.2 million deal with the Devil Rays. Sele likely settled for the one-year deal in hopes of raising his markey value with a healthy season. Hernandez was a pleasant surprise for the Devil Rays last year, going 14-15 with a 4.08 ERA in 33 starts at the age of 23. The Cuban-born hurler proved himself to be an innings eater (220 1/3 innings) and kept his team in most games. Hoskins said he thinks Hernandez can be a dominant pitcher if he makes the right adjustments. Ogea was acquired in the expansion draft and was initially pencilled as a member of the starting rotation for last season before the acquisitions of Martinez and Jeff Fassero. Ogea spent much of the year in the minor leagues but did make a couple appearances for Tampa Bay, including one start. In his big league career, mostly with the Cleveland Indians, Ogea has gone 18-12 with a 4.33 ERA and 1.33 WHIP in 61 games, 43 starts. Vic Darensbourg starts the year as the only left-handed pitcher on the Tampa Bay staff, working out of the bullpen. Darensbourg, 28, made 29 appearances last season, going 2-0 with one save and a 1.21 ERA in 22 1/3 innings. Free agent acquisition Todd Jones will be the Devil Rays' closer this year. Jones went 4-4 with 33 saves and a 4.73 ERA in 58 games with the Detroit Tigers last season. He has 93 saves in 298 big league appearances with a 3.45 career ERA. Right-handed relievers Rich Garces, Danny Graves, Byung-Hyun Kim, and Paul Quantrill will serve as the set-up men and middle relievers this season.