I am a huge Devil Rays fan and I cant wait for this year to being. We have some awesome newcomers, some elite players, and a veteran or two. I truly think that we can make a run for the playoffs this year if we do well against the teams in our division. I think it will be impossible to beat out the Red Sox, but other teams are not that good anymore. Here are some reasons why our team is going to be so much better than years before.

1)Batting
We have so many talented players I just cant believe it. After hitting over 20 homers last year and stealing 20 bases, B.J. Upton comes back to us playing outfield and will dominate the plate. Our leader, Carl Crawford will be the leading base stealer in the American League and will hit 15-20 home runs as well. He is so fast and can cover the outfield like no other. Carlos Pena is going to hit just as many home runs as he did last year and lead our team in the power categories. He will be a batter that everyone is afraid of.

2)Pitching
Our starting lineup may be the youngest in baseball along with the SF Giants, but 3 of them are going to be great someday. Scott Kazmir already is great and won 13 games last year and struck out 239 batters. He had the most K's in the American League. He will win 15-17 games this year I'm sure. James Shields is our 2nd man, and won 12 games last year along with striking out 189 batters. That is a pretty good 1-2 punch if you ask me. Our third man we received in a trade with the Twins in which we gave up Delmon Young. Matt Garza is his name. If you haven't heard of him, then look out because he will win 12-13 games this year as a rookie and be the best rookie pitcher in the AL. We also acquired a veteran closer in Troy Percival that I know won't let us down when we need him. Look out for our pitching to be sharp.

3)Youth
Along with Matt Garza, we also have a man named Evan Longoria. He is one of the top 3 prospects in baseball right now and is going to play 3rd base for us this year. He is replacing Akonori Iwamura who will be moving to 2nd. He will hit 25 homers and win rookie of the year and will prove how great he really is. In fact, we are the youngest team in baseball and that means less injuries and more playing time for everyone. If not this year, we will be great in the years to come

WATCH OUT FOR THE DRAYS!

Learn more about this author, Stuart Appley.
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