Imagine....Buster Posey could have been a Ray

You have to think about it, don't you? Buster Posey and Evan Longoria in the same lineup?

And it could have EASILY been a reality, right? Rays sitting there with the 2008 #1 overall pick in the draft. With a crying need for solid answer at catcher. And right there in the same state, a legend in the making at FSU.

But for whatever reason, the Rays passed deciding instead to take prep SS Tim Beckham, who may eventually become a great player. And the rest is history. After the Pirates, Royals and Orioles also passed for various reasons on picking Posey.

I know the rumors were that Posey's salary demands would be a ridiculous $8 million. And that they had just paid David Price $5.6M the year before. But Posey ended up signing for a reported $6.2M and Beckham ended up signing for $6.15M. He almost has to hit big for them now. And he may, but this team could have been LOADED.

Anyway, this is for my friends down in St. Pete. It's supposed to ease the pain of thinking about what might have been. Or maybe, it's what little gloating I can do right now. Not sure.

Although, the Rays are doing pretty darn good on their own right now, one of the best managed teams in baseball. Except for this gaffe.

And it's a good excuse to get a great old tune posted on the blog for my wife, who loves John Lennon.

I changed the words a bit to make it more timely and relevant, but here it goes.

Imagine...Buster as a Ray ( to the tune of Imagine by John Lennon )

Imagine there's no Buster
It's easy if you try
No Posey here in 'Frisco
Rays could had him if they'd have tried
Imagine Buster in the Trop
Playing for the Rays

Imagine there's no budgets
Rays draft Posey #1
No reason to draft Tim Beckham
And the bonuses would be equal too
Imagine Buster and Evan
Together in St. Pete (ya ha, aaaahhh)

You may say that I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I know some days Rays fans join us
Thinking Posey coulda been a Ray

Imagine No John Jaso
Kick Navarro in the can
No need for Kelly Shoppach
Buster Posey coulda been your man
Imagine Buster and Evan
Together In St Pete (yo hoo, eewww)

You may say that I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I know some days Rays fans join us
Thinking Posey coulda been a Ray

And it's St. Pete, ESPN. Not Tampa / St. Petersburg. Not Tampa. Not Tampa Bay.

Also in the Imagine category is imagine that my pre-season prediction for a Rays v. Giants World Series is still in serious play at this late juncture of the season.

NOW THAT'S AWESOME!!

Here's the better version of Imagine by John Lennon