I pledge allegiance... to the Tampa Bay Rays?

With my 100th blog post, I'm going to officially declare my allegiance to the Tampa Bay Rays. I remember in 1998 when they were a new team with the Diamondbacks. I don't know what it was. Maybe it was because I knew they were going to suck really, really bad, and I thought it was funny. Maybe it was because their original roster of misfits was laughable (a 40-year-old Wade Boggs, Fred McGriff, and their ace was Rolando  Arrojo). I don't know. But I've always passively watched them. Maybe not as hardcore as the Cubs and Angels, the two teams I routinely root for.

This year is different, though. When I saw beat the Yankees in convincing fashion, I cheered. Not because I hate the Yankees, but because I was genuinely happy about this team. I'm absolutely in love with the roster. Carl Crawford is one of my five favorite baseball players, and the fact that he continues to get better is just scary. He's a lock to hit .300 and steal 50 bases. B.J. Upton is another future all-star with .300/30/30/100 potential. Not to mention, they have Evan Longoria, one of the top position player prospects in the game today. 

On top of that, they have some quality young pitchers. Scott Kazmir and James Shields both have ace stuff. Especially Kazmir, who has three full seasons in the bigs under his belt... and he's 24. Matt Garza and Edwin Jackson are both young and shown flashes of solid pro potential. And their bullpen may not be "Lights out, hang 'em up after the 6th inning," but Dan Wheeler, Al Reyes and closer Troy Percival are all seasoned veterans with big game pitching experience.

So why should I get excited about a team that's never won more than 70 games in a season? Potential? Because I like rooting for an underdog? Honestly... I have no idea. I do know that I'm absolutely in love with Crawford's skills. He's a tough guy who brings an old school flavor to the plate every single team he's up to bat. At 26, he'll surpass 1000 hits and 300 stolen bases this year. I love the fact that this team is going to absolutely piss off Boston and the Yankees all season long. I already made my predictions this year, and still don't think Tampa Bay is going to rattle off 90 wins and sneak into the playoffs. I'm just hoping that with all of their potential, things start falling into place. I'm a sucker for potential. That's why I root for the Cubs.