ST. PETERSBURG – On the day Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman was to meet with the media to outline what the team will look for at the upcoming Winter Meetings, the Tampa Bay Rays pulled off a deal in advance of the December 7-10 gathering in Indianapolis.
Catcher Kelly Shoppach was acquired from the Cleveland Indians for a player to be named later, to be decided by December 20, and will be added to the 40-man roster as soon as a corresponding move is made. He made $1.9 million last season and is arbitration eligible.
The 29-year old gives the Rays a veteran backstop that has some power. He belted a dozen homers for the Tribe in just 271 at-bats. Despite hitting just .214 in 2009, Shoppach added 14 doubles and 40 RBI in 89 games. In 2008 he led all American League catchers with 21 home runs, and his 32 homers over the last two seasons are tied with Joe Mauer for second most in the AL behind Mike Napoli (40).
Shoppach broke in with the Red Sox in 2005 playing in nine games before being sent to Cleveland as part of the trade that sent Coco Crisp, David Riske and Josh Bard to Boston. The Indians also received Andy Marte and Guillermo Mota.
The Texas native is the second catcher the Indians have traded since the trade deadline at the end of July, sending Victor Martinez to the BoSox. With an influx of young players acquired in both the Martinez and Cliff Lee deals, Shoppach became expendable due in part to the salary he will likely command next year.
At the present time the Rays have five catchers – Shoppach, incumbent starter Dioner Navarro, Shawn Riggans, John Jaso and Jose Lobaton, who was claimed off waivers from the Padres. There are also reports the team is negotiating with Greg Zaun, who finished the season with the big club after coming over from the Orioles.
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Rays’ Manager Joe Maddon will host “Thanks-mas” for the fourth consecutive year, December 14-17 at four Salvation Army shelters in the Tampa Bay area. He will prepare a traditional Italian holiday feast for hundreds of needy citizens and with the help of coaches and employees, Maddon will shop, cook and serve the food.
Over the past three years more than 2,000 individuals in need have been served. The four locations, dates and times are as follows:
Monday, December 14
5:00 p.m.
Sallie House, 740 Lafayette Street North, St. Petersburg
Tuesday, December 15
5:30 p.m.
Bradenton Salvation Army, 1204 14th Street West
Wednesday, December 16
4:30 p.m.
St. Petersburg Salvation Army, 1400 4th Street South
Thursday, December 17
5:30 p.m.
Tampa Salvation Army, 1603 N. Florida Avenue
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More than 200 volunteers from the Tampa Bay Rays and the Tampa Metropolitan Area YMCA, organizers from KaBOOM! and residents of the Riverview community will join forces on Friday, December 4 to build a new, safe playground at the YMCA Camp Cristina. The new playground’s design is based on drawings created by children who participated in a Design Day event in October.
The new playground will provide the more than 70 children who attend Camp Cristina every day during the school year and the 300-plus who attend each day during the summer with a great place to play. Currently, the children do not have a playground to play on. The playspace is the first built by KaBOOM! and the Tampa Bay Rays, and one of more than 150 projects KaBOOM! will lead across the country in 2009 in an effort to provide a great place to play within walking distance of every child in America.
Friday, December 4
9:00 AM – Kick off and volunteer deployment
11:30-1:30 PM – Best time to view playground under construction
3:00 PM – Ribbon-cutting ceremony to dedicate new play area
(Note: all times approximate)
It will be held at the YMCA Camp Cristina, 9840 Balm Riverview Road, Riverview, FL 33578
where Rays’ Principal Owner Stuart Sternberg; President Matt Silverman; players B.J. Upton, Dan Wheeler and Grant Balfour; and coaches Tom Foley, Jim Hickey, Derek Shelton and Dave Martinez will take part.
(INformation from the Rays contributed to this report)
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