Why did the Devil Rays sign Alomar? One reason and one reason alone: publicity. Getting a great player like Alomar would certainly bring fans to the ballpark, especially as he approached 3000 hits. However, baseball-wise it made no sense. The Rays were firmly in their rebuilding process and signing a 37 year old infielder, even Alomar, and offering him the opportunity for regular time was about as counterproductive a move as they could possibly manage. The situation was exacerbated even more by the fact that the Rays had themselves a promising second base prospect, Jorge Cantu, fresh off of a huge season that saw him manage a .302/.335/.576 line with 22 home runs in 362 Triple-A plate appearances and a .301/.341/.462 line with 20 doubles in 185 PA’s for the Devil Rays, and the D-Rays were lined up to squeeze him out of playing time between the unimpressive trio of over-the-hill Alomar, Nick Green, and Alex Gonzalez. Cantu was far from a perfect player, with his plate discipline still needing quite a bit of work, but at just 23 years old he was part of the future of their team while Alomar and the others gave the Rays nothing but a few more people in the seats. Why were the Rays compromising their future just to sign Alomar?

On March 19th, Roberto Alomar’s outstanding major league baseball career came to an end. After making two errors at second base and striking out looking in the first inning alone of the Rays’ spring training game on March 18th, it sunk in for Alomar that he just couldn’t do it anymore. Bothered by a bad back that made the effects of aging only more pronounced, Alomar decided to declare his retirement in the suite of Rays owner Vincent Naimoli with Rays GM Chuck LaMar by his side. It was a sad way for his career to end, but a key moment for the Tampa Bay Rays franchise. Alomar was replaced by Cantu, who proceeded to have a huge year, managing a .286/.311/.497 line with 28 home runs and 117 RBI in 150 games, and Rays fans saw firsthand how the Rays could have a promising future if only they gave chances to their top prospects and began a true rebuilding process building around such players.

Following the 2005 season, the Naimoli ownership, which was obsessed with profits more than anything else was out and in came the Sternberg ownership which has defined itself through player development, and most importantly, victories. The Roberto Alomar retirement and Jorge Cantu’s subsequent breakout was a wake-up call telling everyone that would listen that building for the future through top prospects is the only way a bad team in baseball can find a way to take the next step. It’s ironic that it was the retirement of a player who had been among the best in baseball for quite some time to make that lesson sink in, but Roberto Alomar’s retirement served as a realization of weakness for not just him but the Devil Ryas organization and led to a passing of the torch that has left the Rays in the promising position they are today.

2004: Carl Crawford

Carl Crawford stole a career high 59 bases in 2004. (Credit: USA Today Sports)

In his second full season with the Devil Rays, Carl Crawford stole fans’ hearts with his offensive dominance and speed on the base paths. Hitting .296, Crawford led the Devil Rays in hits, 185, and runs, 104, for the season. Although he only notched 11 home runs and 55 RBIs in 2004, Crawford’s 19 triples gave him the most in the American League. But the highlight of 2004 for the speedy lefty batter was stealing a total of 59 bases, earning him not only the top spot in stolen bases in the American League but also marking a career high record for Crawford. With a fielding percentage of .996, a WAR of 4.6, and an appearance in the 2004 All-Star game, the left fielder undoubtedly deserved the BBWAA’s team MVP award. The combination of Crawford’s arm in left field and plate discipline, along with other top performers like Aubrey Huff, helped the D-Rays finish in 2004 with a 70-91 record. It was the first season Tampa Bay ever finished in fourth place, instead of last place, in the AL East, while the 70 wins represented a franchise-best as wel.

2005: Jorge Cantu

Jorge Cantu’s breakout season in Tampa Bay peaked as he set a team record of hitting 117 runs. (Credit: SI.com)

After signing with the Devil Rays out of Mexico in 1998, Jorge Cantu’s first full season in the majors was 2005, and what a season it was. Cantu finished the season hitting .286 with a .497 slugging percentage, belting 28 home runs among his 171 hits and setting a team record (since broken by Carlos Pena) by driving in 117 runs. Cantu also set a D-Rays record for the most multi-homer games with four. Dividing majority of his time between second and third base, Cantu supplemented his offensive efforts by bolstering the D-Rays’ defense after the sudden retirement of All-Star second baseman Roberto Alomar during spring training. Although Tampa Bay finished with a record of 67-95 in 2005, Cantu’s solid performance behind the plate could be witnessed during the D-Rays’ hot streak following the All-Star break, when they won 12 out of 16 games. Cantu’s breakout season made him an easy choice for the team MVP vote.

2006: Carl Crawford

Although 2004 was an eventful season for the left fielder, Crawford’s career reached new heights in 2006. Hitting a career high .305 with 18 homers, Crawford became the second player to ever increase his batting average and homerun totals in five straight seasons after the Cardinals’ Rogers Hornsby was the first player to do so from 1918-1922, as reported by MLB.com’s Bill Chastain. History likes to repeat itself, and Crawford led the American League in stolen bases, 58, and triples, 16, that season just like he did in 2004. But the team MVP was not the only award Crawford won during his powerful season, as he also earned his first Fielding Bible Award for his work in left field. Leading the American League in put outs in left field with 302, as well as a fielding percentage of .990, Crawford’s dynamic defense earned him a much deserved honor. Crawford would go on to win Fielding Bible Awards in 2008 and 2009 as well as he combined his impressive speed and hitting ability with incredible defense on his way to becoming one of the best players the Rays have ever seen.

Dominican Winter League Postseason: Leones de Escogido 9, Aguilas Cibaenas 0

This game was never really close, but quite a few Rays played big roles. For Escogido, Jorge Cantu slammed a 2-run homer in the 2nd to begin the scoring and Jesus Feliciano was great out of leadoff spot, going 2 for 4 with a walk, a stolen base, and 2 runs scored, while for Cibaenas, Manny Ramirez was their only player who could say he had a nice game, going 2 for 3 with a double. Other current and former Rays to appear in the game were Leslie Anderson for Escogido, who went 0 for 4 but actually drew a walk (yay!), and for Cibaenas, Hector Luna went 0 for 4, Omar Luna grounded out pinch-hitting for Ramirez with the game out of hand, and Bobby Livingston did not pitch well out of the bullpen for Cibaenas, allowing a hit and a walk while going just a third of an inning. One non-Ray that we have to note is Nelson Figueroa, who went 8 innings for the Leones allowing just 4 hits, striking out 7 while walking just 1.

Mexican Pacific League Playoffs Game 7: Aguilas de Mexicali vs. Algodoneros de Guasave (we’ll leave you in suspense regarding the score for the moment)

They had blown it. The Aguilas had built up a 3-1 series lead only to lose their next two games, and suddenly they were facing elimination. Then Mark Hamilton slammed a homer for Guasave and Mexicali fans realized that their team’s collapse might really be happening. But the Aguilas were too talented to let everything end like that. They rallied for 6 runs in the 2nd inning and 4 more in the 5th on their way to a statement 12-4 win to get them to the Mexican Pacific League Championship Series. Walter Silva gave the Aguilas 7.2 strong innings, Ricky Alvarez, Jorge Guzman, and Roman Pena and slammed home runs, and in terms of the ex-Rays, Wes Bankston went 1 for 3 with 2 walks and 2 runs scored, walking to start the 2nd inning rally, while Weber went 1 for 4 with a walk, an RBI, and a run scored.