Pitcher Matt Garza helping Rays roll

One of the reasons that I thought before this season that the Rays were at least a year away — and predicted Tampa Bay to finish last in the AL East - was the trade that sent outfielder Delmon Young to Minnesota for pitcher Matt Garza. My opinion was that Young, despite his reputation as a head case, had the talent to be a star very quickly, while Garza had to figure some things out after struggling in two big-league stints. Now I look and see that Garza’s ERA in 16 games (15 starts) last year was 3.69, and wonder how I thought that. I’m sure I looked at the same stats at the time, and I’m just baffled trying to imagine what I thought I saw. Young, for his part, has been OK for the Twins - his one homer in 276 at-bats and 90 OPS+ notwithstanding, the 22-year-old has improved his plate discipline, plays a decent (if sometimes sloppy) left field and hasn’t made any wrong-reason headlines. But it’s Garza, at 6-4 with a 3.76 ERA, who looks like the star of this ... (link)