Bullish for USF
Manager Joe Maddon had the Rays wearing USF Madness T-shirts for batting practice Monday to draw attention to the Bulls' bid to make the NCAA Tournament field. "Based on the fact that the Bulls are in the running and the fabulous job Coach (Stan) Heath is doing up there, 12 conference victories, we thought it was time to throw our support their way," Maddon said.
Elliot at the mike
INF Elliot Johnson was eager to step in front of the ESPN cameras to do his best impersonation of broadcaster Tim Kurkjian. Johnson said he had the voice down, but needed a little work on his delivery. "It was really funny," Kurkjian said. "Hilarious." See the video at tampabay.com/blogs/rays
Substitution of the day
Held to one hit through seven innings, the Rays "benched" 3B coach Tom Foley and had 1B coach George Hendrick move over, then got two hits and a run.
Who is this Ray?
He played at North Carolina State and Oklahoma State. He was a first-round pick by Seattle in 2007. He made his big-league debut in 2010.
The dish
Rays vs. Twins
When/where: 1:05; Charlotte Sports Park, 2300 El Jobean Road, Port Charlotte
TV: MLB Network
Tickets: Reserved seats $19-27, berm/boardwalk $9. Available through raysbaseball.com and Ticketmaster, at Tropicana Field and Charlotte Sports Park box offices, Tampa team store
Gates open: 11 a.m.
Directions: Driving time from the bay area is 1½-2 hours. Suggested route: I-75 south to Exit 179 (Toledo Blade Road), west 6½ miles (crossing U.S. 41) to El Jobean Road (S.R. 776), right 2 miles, complex on left
Parking: $10, lots open 10:30
Rays information: Toll-free 1-888-326-7297 (FAN-RAYS)
Pitchers: Rays — Jeff Niemann, Jhonny Nunez, Ricky Orta, Ryan Reid, Wilking Rodriguez, Albert Suarez, Marquis Fleming; Twins — Scott Baker, Brian Duensing, Glen Perkins, Matt Capps, Phil Dumatrait, Matt Maloney, Daryl Thompson, Jeff Gray
Heads-up
There's competition for rotation spots, but RHP Jeff Niemann said he'll put no more emphasis than usual on his first spring outing.
On deck
Wednesday: at Yankees, 1:05. Rays — James Shields; Yankees — Hiroki Kuroda
Upcoming schedule
All games 1:05 unless noted
March
10: at Red Sox (7:05 )
11: Pirates
12: Twins
13: at Orioles
14: Marlins
15: Phillies
16: at Jays
17: at Pirates
18: Red Sox
19: Off
20: at Marlins
21: Yankees
22: at Pirates
23: Jays (7:05 )
24: at Twins (3:05 )
25: Marlins
26: at Twins
27: at Red Sox (1:35 )
28: Pirates (7:05 )
29: at Phillies
30: at Pirates
31: Red Sox
April
1: at Orioles
2: Twins*
3: at Twins
4: vs. Future Rays, 1:40, at the Trop.
* Value game, $2 off
Who is this answer: INF Matt Mangini