I am still trying to catch up on all of the different trades that the Rays made this offseason. There should be some sort of player directory created for fans watching the games early in the season. Maybe some printable info graphics on the team website that contain really awesome facts about the players. The same thing will likely take place at several of the Rays Minor League stadiums this spring, but minor league fans cope with change a little bit better than some of our Major League counterparts.
A few of the really highly regarded prospects that the Rays picked up from the A's, in the Zobrist trade, and the Padres, in the Myers trade, seem like they are actually a year or two away from playing for my Durham Bulls squad. However, it is never too early to start picking up some of their cards.
One player I am looking forward to seeing in the not to distant future is first baseman Jake Bauers from the Will Myers trade. Here's a look at his numbers after roughly 150 minor league games...
While the power is not there yet for a corner infielder I like the average and on-base percentage. At just 19 years old in A ball there is still time for Bauers to get bigger and stronger and improve as a hitter. In the meantime, I am going to go ahead and start looking for a few of his cards. I found one really cool autograph this past week that was dirt cheap.
This is a Leaf product, but they did a good job of hiding the fact that it is a non-licensed product. Really, it's a pretty cool card. Die-cut, autograph, sweet design. I was happy to find out that one of the newest Rays had an autograph, but was really happy with the looks of the card too. The High Ceiling autographs set is actually a pretty cool little collection of signatures if you are into minor leaguers. Some of the signers include Tyler Kolek, Alex Jackson, and Joey Gallo.
