Over the next couple of weeks, we will be having a look at some of the contracts the Rays have on their roster right now. We will start off with one of the worst contracts in franchise history, Pat Burrell’s 2 year contract for $16 million. At the time this signing happened last year, the media world considered this deal a steal. Not so much now. This deal is now just taking up space in the Rays always tight payroll.

Burrell is due to make $9 million next year in the final year of his deal. If Pat the Bat doesn’t want to be forced out of baseball, he will have to produce this year. If the Rays can get a deal for Burrell, the Rays need to take it in a heart beat. Let Willy Aybar DH. I thought he is the better hitter in the first place, before they signed anyone. Hopefully we only saw a one year slump and he will be great next year. We can make all the excuses we want for Pat Burrell’s season long slump, but he looked terrible all year. He looked late and he looked like he was just waving at the ball all year.

I think it is safe to say that the Rays will not pursue Burrell after the 2010 season.

Contract details from: Cot’s Baseball Contracts

Tomorrow we will have a look at Carlos Pena’s contract.

When you first look at it, most people will see the name Derek Shelton and ask who he is. Per the Heater, Shelton has been the Indians hitting coach for the last 5 seasons and was let go with when Eric Wedge was released.

The concerning part is the Indians offense struggled last season. The Indians did have good stats during his tenure. At 39, he goes along with the Rays young theme. Hopefully he can turn around our offense and be a fresh face for the Rays.

The Rays really did not give anyone an idea of what they would do for hitting coach since Hendu was let go, but none of the speculation I had seen even mentioned Shelton. I guess we can only wait and see how this will play out.

There is not much to say about the third base position for the Rays. Evan Longoria has it locked up for the foreseeable future and we have good backups. There is not much to say about the third base position, so onto the depth chart:

2010 Third Base Depth Chart:

1. Evan Longoria

2. Willy Aybar

3. Sean Rodriguez

With that, we will go ahead and move on to the shortstop position. There is much speculation on whether the Rays will trade Jason Bartlett. He is up for free agency at the end of the season, so many people think trade him now while you can get value for him. The Rays would need to get a major league shortstop back, because trading Bartlett would seriously hurt our middle infield for next season since, if Bartlett is traded, we would be losing Aki and Bartlett. Onto the depth chart.

2010 Shortstop Depth Chart:

1. Jason Bartlett

2. Sean Rodriguez

3. Ben Zobrist

Waiting in the Minors

1. Shawn O’ Malley

2. Tim Beckham

3. Tyler Bortnick

Over the next couple weeks I will go position by position and preview what the Rays should do this offseason, and we will start with catcher. Catching is quite possibly one of the most shakey positions on the Rays, as there is no depth and the Rays do not have a legitament starter, just four backups.

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Jason Beck of MLB.com has a good article about Edwin Jackson and his past with the Tampa Bay Rays.  As Rays fans know, the Edwin Jackson we watched most times out to the mound was a little less sucessful than the one that is currently pitching for the Detroit Tigers.   That isn’t lost on Edwin as well. 

Joe Maddon, as is typical of him, stuck with Edwin Jackson and kept his a starter when the numbers weren’t there.  He could have been stuck in the bullpen, a la Jason Hammel.  But, Joe stayed with him.  And, while the Rays aren’t getting the benefit of the results, Edwin seems very appreciative of the faith.

“They gave me an opportunity, especially when I could’ve gone to the bullpen,” Jackson said. “He stuck his neck on the line to keep me starting, and I was thankful for that.”

And, how does he feel about meeting up with som many ex-teammates? 

“It’s definitely a good feeling to be back with some of the old teammates and old friends,” Jackson said. “It’s like a family reunion all over again. We’ve been catching up, having a lot of fun.”

Last season, Eric Hinske played a key role in the success of the Tampa Bay Rays.  Now, he’s on the way to the dreaded Yankees to help them keep the Rays at bay. 

The New York Yankees traded a couple of minor league players, 23-year old pitcher Casey Erickson and OF Eric Fryer to get Hinske, who was batting .255 with one home run and 11 RBI with the Pirates.  The Pirates also give the Yankees $400,000 to help cover the remainder of his salary.

Last season, Hinske hit .247 with 20 home runs and 60 RBI with the Rays.  And, as a result of this decent season, the Pittsburgh Pirates signed him to a 1-year $1.5 million dollar contract in the off season.

AAA – The Durham Bulls were crushed by Buffalo 8-1. Starter Wade Davis allowed five runs (two earned) on eight hits while striking out four. He was tagged with the loss, dropping his record to 6-4 on the season. Offensively, LF Jon Weber and 2B Henry Mateo each had two hits for the Bulls.

For results from Montgomery, Charlotte and Bowling Green, check out http://raysallday.com.