Pena: Accusations "totally ridiculous"

Rays 1B Carlos Pena didn’t know what to think when O’s reliever Dennis Sarfate started yelling at him during an eighth-inning at-bat, so Pena yelled back. When he found out later from teammates that Sarfate accused him of peeking at the catcher’s signs, Pena said it was “totally ridiculous” and Sarfate was “just making things up in his mind.’’
Sarfate refused to explain, and O’s catcher Ramon Hernandez said he didn’t know what the issue was since he hadn’t even put down a sign at the time.

Comments

[raysfan]

like magrane said, maybe sarafate should worry about hitting the strike zone instead of whining about what other people are or aren't doing. sarafate looked weak out there. what a wuss.

[tj]

Well somebody finally called out Pena on what he has been doing for a while now, including last season. He does sneak peaks back at the C when he(Pena) is getting ready to hit. I know a few scouts who have made this comment before. He just got caught this time.

[TJ]

tj - The O's catacher said he did not know what the pitcher weas talking about because he hadn't given any signs yet. Read the full article - it's really bizarre.

[tj]

My cousin is a advance scout the Rockies & has been here twice this season already. Last year made it out 5 times. He says its known in baseball circles that Pena does take little glances back, not neccesarily looking at catchers signs but to see location. Maybe he should be doing it more cause he isn't hitting very well so far.

[ben]

Magrane needs to get over himself. He was a AVERAGE pitcher at best. He had only 2 winning seasons in 8 in the big leagues, and a losing career record. 57-67 so he is a much better mouthpiece then actual pitcher. He certainly can talk a good game.

[keith]

Who Cares. This to me is another one of Baseballs famous un-written rules. I want players on my team to do what ever it is to win, short of cheating. Let the other teams worry about concealing their signs better.

[what?]

Magrane is the bomb. Just because he didn't have the best career doesn't know he doesn't know what he's talking about. I love how he breaks down pitching mechanics, etc........he does a great job of getting 'deep' into the little things that makes baseball so great.

[b]

If Pena has the time to glance back to see the catcher's signs, analyze it, and see the location, then look back at the pitcher to find the ball and hit it....more power to him then. That also means that all of these catchers are doing a terrible job of waiting to set up. If that is the case, then yea, prey on that weakness, just like batters try to see if a pitcher is gripping the ball differently before he releases it. But I don't really believe he is getting any real advantage even if he does glance back. You still have to hit the ball.

[ctya]

ben,

magrane is one of the best in the business, and the fact that he was an average major league pitcher is irrelevant.

[DB]

Everyone makes a big deal about stealing signs or picking them up. There is no rule in professional sport I'm aware of (assuming you're doing it with the naked eye) outlawing sign stealing. Just because pitchers don't like it doesn't mean it's a bad thing. Do a better job hiding or disguising the signs.

[JW]

Yes Magrane was an 'average' pitcher who started a world series game. wait, that doesn't really make sense. the guy knows more about baseball than they rest of us combined. so i'm just going to continue to watch and try to learn something; yall should do the same

[JH]

Magrane is on the same level as Tim McCarver...annoying and blinded by the truth. Tired of hearing him complain about the umpires helping the other team with bad calls. Hey JW...Denny Neagle started a world series game, so he's above average, right? LOL

[mike]

You're kidding right. Who in baseball doesn't try and cop a look at where the catcher is setting up while at bat? Keen sense of the obvious Sarfate.

[tired]

I'm tired of these whiny pitchers. Go old school on Pena if you think it's looking at signs and throw one at his head. Too much whining in baseball these days...........in the past they'd take care of it on the field.

[PrimeTime]

If it is truly a problem, the other team will put a pitch or two in his ear and he will stop. Another unwritten baseball rule.

That said, Go Rays! Fun season so far and the reinforcements are arriving this weekend. Very excited.

[CharlieRay]

JH this is not a shot at you but the Umpires have really been terrible. I would love to see the TV games use the K Zone. That would keep the Umpires on a evener keel. The replays have also shown the bad calling. I am not in favor of instant replay and know that it is a hard job to get it right all the time but the Rays need to get a break some ware.

[FISTER]

Look how far we've come! Other teams are upset with the Rays! I started noticing it when Youklis and Ortiz were getting miffed that the Rays pitchers were hitting the plate. Go Rays!

[Fister]

In just one month, BJ has had 5 calls go against him that were wrong and instant replay proves it.

[Tony]

Hey Ben, how many games did you win in the major leagues? And JH, if you are tired of hearing Magrane complain about the umpires then tell them to stop making ridiculous calls. My guess is that you guys are not Rays fans.

Magrane is among the best in the business at what he does. Honestly, he should be the Rays pitching coach because he clearly knows more about pitching than Hickey.

[Tony]

Hey Ben, how many games did you win in the major leagues? And JH, if you are tired of hearing Magrane complain about the umpires then tell them to stop making ridiculous calls. My guess is that you guys are not Rays fans.

Magrane is among the best in the business at what he does. Honestly, he should be the Rays pitching coach because he clearly knows more about pitching than Hickey.

[Bryan]

Hey TJ, if you want to defend the O's, go to Baltimore. I'm sure I-95 will get you there. I agree with others about the whinning, in the old days it was taken care of on the field. That being said, GO RAYS!!!!!

[Russ]

Why do the Rays announcers SUCK so bad??

[michael]

Why they suck? Because you keep listening to them! Who's the sucker?

[tj]

Cyta- Are you serious? One of the BEST in the business. Quit drinking the Kool-Aid. All he is worried about is making snide little funny remarks. Statts is the true professional of the two. He is quick to throw Delmon Young under the bus this season now that he isn't here. When last year he was greatest thing since sliced bread with all of his assists in the outfield because of his arm . And I don't want to hear about him being a problem in clubhouse, cause there are many guys in tons of clubhouses around the league who are "bad" guys. Gross will not have near as good of career as Delmoon. He doesn't have his bat, arm, or baseball intelligence of Delmon. Last year it was a Delmon Lovefest with Magrane. I'm not even really a Delmon fan but funny how things change when a player isn't on YOUR team. He is a good, solid player, no denying that.

[Sean]

TJ,

Joe is a Rays announcer. Why we he bad mouth a Rays player? Of course Delmon was the greatest thing since sliced bread. But in all honesty I don't see Delmon being the star he is projected to be. I think he will be an average major leaguer.

[Smell It]

SarFARTe BS that is. He threw 56 pitches in one inning alone. He needs to worry about throwing strikes.
Now, how do the rest of the beast of the AL east like smelling us from below, well, get use to the order.

Go Rays & peace out!

[young]

Look at the stats:

Delmon Young:
.265 BA
0 Homers
8 RBI
.314 slugging

Hinske:
.293 BA
6 Homers
15 RBI
.627 slugging