Carl Crawford 2002-2010

On the 9the Day of Christmas, The Boston Red Sox stole from me……Well Rays’ fans he’s going, going, gone! Our greatest nightmare has come true! By the time you read this it will be morning and the dreaded Boston Red Sox will have bought and signed Carl Crawford for a whopping $142 million for seven long agonizing years. I casually logged on to ESPN to see this atrocity on the front page. Personally on an unrelated note, yesterday was one of the best days of my life regarding news in the college football world. Of course, true to form the sports gods who let me experience one of the greatest days in sports yesterday couldn’t wait till midnight to start screwing with me again.  I won’t mention my other team affiliations, but I’m a fan of some historically mediocre teams so life isn’t always so grand. Anyway, as if the kick in the crotch wasn’t enough rumors have it Jason Bartlett will be dealt to the San Diego Padres for not one, but two relief pitchers both of whom are just extra Chad Qualls; cheap bodies that aren’t mature enough to make an impact. This signing goes to show you that the Rays need to find a way to win or else their legacy will be nothing more than being a professional farm system for the Red Sox and Yankees. I know Carl Crawford is a first, but this sets a bad precedent. How many more times will this happen in the future? I love Carl Crawford and I don’t blame him for wanting to get paid what he’s worth. As fans we just have to now deal with the harsh reality of having to stomach his new uniform for the rest of his career makes me want to jump off a cliff. I mean at least if he signed with the Angels I could jump on that bandwagon seeing as how Kazmir, Rodriguez, and Maddon all had ties with that organization. But this is just wrong. We all knew this was coming, but I just wasn’t ready for it. So pending a miracle between now and by the time everyone wakes up. You’re looking at the newest enemy to the Tampa Bay Rays and their quest for a World Series title; Carl Crawford. Hopefully, I’m having a nightmare and these area all lies. If not, don’t bother waking me up. Screw tomorrow and the rest of this week!

Meet Chef Joe Maddon from 5-11 p.m. Thursday Dec. 9

So what is our leader Joe Maddon doing during this off season? Well, Creative Loafing for Tampa Bay reports he’s connecting with the fans by playing guest chef at 717 South this Thursday, December 9^th from 5-11 p.m. and as a special treat the guest bartenders will be played by Rays coaching staff such as Tom Foley, Jim Hickey and Derek Shelton, their senior adviser Don Zimmer, and Rays TV personality Todd Kalas . So if you’re interested come on out and meet Maddon and the crew for a night of sure mad plaid madness!