2007 Tampa Bay Devil Rays season
| 2007 Tampa Bay Devil Rays | |
|---|---|
10th anniversary logo
|
|
| Major League affiliations | |
|
|
|
|
| Location | |
|
|
|
|
| Results | |
| Record | 66–96 (.407) |
| Divisional place | 5th |
| Other information | |
| Owner(s) | Stuart Sternberg |
| General manager(s) | Andrew Friedman |
| Manager(s) | Joe Maddon |
| Local television |
FSN Florida WXPX (Ion TV 66) |
| Local radio |
WHNZ WGES (Spanish) |
| < Previous season Next season > | |
The Tampa Bay Devil Rays' 2007 season, the 10th season in franchise history, involved the Devil Rays trying to improve on their 2006 season, where they finished last in the American League East Division, and managed to finish the season with a league-worst record of 69-96. During the offseason they signed Japanese infielder Akinori Iwamura to a three-year deal. Their manager was Joe Maddon who entered his 2nd season with the Devil Rays.
Although the Devil Rays again finished last in the division, they improved their record by five games, to 66-96. Their season attendance increased by 18,653 to 1,387,603. This marks the first time home attendance has increased in consecutive seasons. Joe Maddon's option years through 2009 were picked up by the club on September 8, 2007. The season was marked by incredible pitching performances by club ace Scott Kazmir and rookie James Shields, and the bats of club standby Carl Crawford; rookies Delmon Young, B.J. Upton and Brendan Harris; and free agents Akinori Iwamura and Carlos Peña. Several club single-season records fell during the course of the season.
This was also the last season with the team being named the Devil Rays. The team dropped the "Devil" from the name. Out of nowhere, the following year the team would win the AL East, beating the usual contenders, the Yankees and the Red Sox. The team would win the pennant, but lost to the Philadelphia Phillies in the World Series.
The Devil Rays opened their 2007 season April 2, on the road against the defending division champion New York Yankees. The bullpen blew a lead and Tampa Bay lost, 9-5, but came back to win the third game, 7-6 (the second of the opening series was rained out). They suffered a setback in the middle of April when new third baseman Iwamura, off to a hot start with a .339 batting average to that point, suffered an oblique strain and went on the disabled list. However, the team continued to play better than in past years, and on May 4 moved into a tie for second place, the latest that Tampa Bay had been that high in the standings since the 1999 season.
...
Wikipedia