Day off sparks speculation on Lugo
By MARC TOPKIN
Published July 24, 2006
ST. PETERSBURG - Julio Lugo insisted there was nothing wrong, that he was just getting the afternoon off. Manager Joe Maddon stuck to the same story, claiming, "I'm just giving him a day."
But with trade rumors involving the Blue Jays, Mets and now the Red Sox swirling, and with the deadline for nonwaiver deals a week away, it seemed an odd time for the Rays to keep their hottest hitter out of the lineup.
Lugo joked with reporters before the game that he had been traded, but the Rays said his absence from the lineup had nothing to do with a pending deal. There was some talk in the clubhouse that Lugo had felt weak due to flulike symptoms and other chatter that he had a sore finger, but his two-home run performance Saturday night seemed to indicate otherwise.
"I'm fine," Lugo said. "It's a day game after a night game. It's just one day. I'm all right."
Lugo left Saturday's game after the Rays took a 10-3 lead in the fifth, which started the speculation. He usually plays every day, so when he wasn't in the lineup Sunday, it took off from there.
"We had that nice lead (Saturday) so I thought it was the right time to get him out of there because he's been getting after it so hard," Maddon said. "He's just resting more than anything."
Maddon said Lugo could have pinch-hit Sunday and would be in the lineup tonight.
The Blue Jays remain the most likely destination for Lugo, especially because they have young pitchers to offer and cleared salary space by trading Shea Hillenbrand, though general manager J.P. Ricciardi said Sunday there was no deal in place. There are also indications that the Red Sox, despite solid play by shortstop Alex Gonzalez, have considerable interest in Lugo.
SEEING RED: With the Rays playing the Angels for the third time in the past two months, Maddon said the novelty of facing his former team has worn off. "I think it's getting to normalcy now," he said. He also said he hopes to not get ejected from a game, as he was during the first two series. "I really don't want to do that," he said.
NEEEEEXT, TWO MORE YEARS: The Rays officially exercised two-year options to keep radio broadcasters Andy Freed and Dave Wills through 2008.
"I think their chemistry together is terrific," senior vice president Mark Fernandez said. "Their passion for the game, as well as the team, comes across loud and clear. And the feedback we get on them has been great."
ABOUT SATURDAY NIGHT: The Rays tied seven team records and came close to a few others in Saturday's 13-12 win, which featured one inning (the fifth) in which they scored 10 runs and another (the seventh) in which they allowed nine.
As frustrating as it was for the Rays, it was historically significant: the fourth game in major-league history in which each team scored nine or more runs in an inning, and the first in more than 70 years, since Babe Ruth's Yankees beat the Philadelphia A's on June 3, 1933.
"I think that's all wonderful trivia-wise and minutiae-wise, but that gets lost on me a little bit," Maddon said. "I'm not a record-book guy. It was an interesting game. I'd prefer that hadn't happen, but it did."
The most impressive accomplishment was by Lugo, who homered twice in one inning, the 47th time it had been done. He was the 44th player; the second shortstop, joining Nomar Garciaparra; and the second Ray, joining Jared Sandberg.
MISCELLANY: Maddon said with Thursday off the Rays might skip Tim Corcoran in the rotation and start Scott Kazmir on regular rest Friday at Yankee Stadium. ... Carl Crawford recorded his AL-high 10th assist, matching his 2003 career high. ... Kazmir might want an attendance clause in his next contract since the Rays average about 3,500 more fans a game when he starts, 20,638, than otherwise, 17,112. ... Durham outfielder Darnell McDonald's hitting streak ended Sunday at 27 games. B.J. Upton was ejected after being called out on strikes in the fourth. ... Seahawks receiver Darrell Jackson, a Tampa native and former UF star, will take batting practice today. ... Tomas Perez's double was his first extra-base hit since June 18.