Bubble Burst?

For weeks and even months now people have been waiting and waiting, patiently, for the Tampa Bay Rays to come back down to earth. They have just been playing too well to be the same team that you could pencil in annually for about 100 loses.

"They will cool down after the all-star break."

"They will fall behind the Red Sox when Ortiz comes back."

"They won't stand a chance once the big guns restock at the trade deadline."

Well, here we are, mid August. Don't look now but those same Rays have a 4.5 game lead over the Boston Red Sox in the AL East. They have rode excellent pitching and youthful pop at the plate all the way to one of the best records in all of baseball to this point.

The one thing the Rays have not faced, however, is adversity. Sure, a guy may miss a couple games here or there with some minor stuff, but they have not had that major injury to really set them back. That is until now.

The Ray placed two time all-star left fielder Carl Crawford and rookie of the year favorite Evan Longoria on the DL Monday. For the first time this season the Rays will have two gaping holes in their line-up for a minimum of 15 days, in the case of Crawford likely many more.

It will be interesting to see just how they handle this setback. All year they have gotten little contributions from their "role players" but never before have they been put in the position where they were going to be relied upon to help carry the offense. Guys like Eric Hinske, Gabe Gross, and Rocco Baldelli are going to have some big shoes to fill if the Rays are going to hold their ground on top of the AL East.

Can they do it? I have been one of the many counting them out all year but for some reason they just refuse to lay down. This the real test. It is time for the Rays to stand up and show the world whether they are going to be a true contender or just a team that put together one hell of a start to a season but couldn't finish.

Its A Dunn Deal

The Arizona Diamondback today acquired slugging outfielder Adam Dunn from the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for four minor leaguers. Dunn, who had to go through waivers before being traded, was batting .233 with 32 homeruns at the time of the trade.

This is a good move for the Dbacks as they need to add some pop to the heart of their lineup if they are to keep up with the likes of the LA Dodgers, who are now rolling on the hot bat of newly acquired Manny Ramirez.

Phelps Two for Two!

The foursome of Michael Phelps, Garret Webber-Gale, Cullen Jones, and Jason Lezak brought home the gold medal for the USA in the 4x100. It will go down as one of the most exciting swimming relays in Olympic history, as an arrogant French team (who had bashed the USA prior to the games) saw their lead diminish in front of their eyes on the final length of the pool. Jason Lezak brought up the rear for team USA and not only caught up with the French but gave the Americans the 8/100ths of a second victory.

This means that Michael Phelps is well on his way to beating American Mark Spitz's record of seven gold medals in the 1972 Munich Olympics. Many regarded the first two events that Phelps would compete in as his most difficult challenges to breaking Spitz's record, and with these now under his belt it should be clear sailing the rest of the way. It is the Olympics, however, and surprises are almost guaranteed to happen, so stay tuned to see if Phelps will be victorious.