I just taped today’s HBT Daily and in it we played the “dead or alive” game. I declared the Tampa Bay Rays dead. I did so based on how poorly they’re playing, how injured they are and the fact that they don’t have the horses or dollars to make big changes in the middle of the season.
David Schoenfield of ESPN is a bit more statistically-oriented than me, and he made the case today in more compelling statistical terms:I looked up all teams over the previous 10 seasons that had won between 22 and 24 of their first 60 games. This provided a list of 26 teams off to bad starts similar to the Rays.
Only one of the 26 teams finished with a winning record and the average final record of those 26 teams was 67-95. Devil Rays, indeed.Schoenfield says it’s time to trade David Price. I can’t say he’s wrong.