11 reason to root for the Rays; 5 reason to root for the Red Sox

Epic Carnival posted their Top 11 reasons to root for the Rays during the post season... As we gear up for what will certainly be an intense series with Tampa Bay, I thought it would be fun to share the list with The Bottom Line Nation...

The Rays List:

11. By losing the Devil from their name and becoming good, they make your older relatives think that something in the world still makes sense

10. There's a reasonable chance that you might be the most famous Rays fan

9. They are so young, the average player is only making 10 times your annual salary, not 100 - [ Evan Longoria turned 23 on Oct. 7th, Scott Kazmir, Matt Garza, BJ Upton and Dioner Navarro are 24... Carl Crawford is a seasoned veteran at 27 ]

8. With so many pro wrestlers in the fan base, not rooting for them might result in a chair shot - [ Who doesn't love the Hulkster, right? ]

7. This may be your last chance to root for an Upton without wincing

6. It's not like the other AL playoff teams are in any way redeemable - [ Not sure how to take this one. I guess the Sox are on their way to be hates like the Yankees of he 90's and NE Patriots of today - see No. 5 ]

5. Thanks to MLB's refusal to share revenue in any meaningful way, there's no chance they'll become a tiresome dynasty

4. Their god-awful Wacky Stadium brings back warm and fuzzy memories of bad multi-purpose stadiums from the past (Olympique, Kingdome, Astrodome) - [ Personally, I don't see this as a rason to root for the Rays... unless the hope is that a large fan base will force the old geezers in Florida to approve that cool new stadium the Rays deserve... ]

3. Many of their players aren't old enough to drink the liquor they are spraying

2. Until very recently , an incredibly economical jersey purchase

1. Every time a Mets Fan sees Scott Kazmir, he dies a little more inside

Bottom Line: If the Red Sox weren't in the mix, I'd be rooting for the Rays. It's a great story and lobve the parody they bring to the AL East... Yes, even Red Sox fans can get sick of the Sox and Yankees year after year... okay - just the Yankees.

Just like Angels series, this 7 game match-up is going to be exciting and intense... and to be honest, I'm a little nervous. But the Road to a Repeat has already been waaaaay more exciting than the collapse of the Cubs and the Phillies trouncing of the Brew Crew... and I'm looking forward to facing the Rays.

Here are my Top 5 Reasons the Red Sox are not a "non-redeemable, tired dynasty."

5. The road to the ALCS was not an easy one for the Red Sox. They've battled through multiple injuries to their "ace," then there was the Manny Saga, and they started their season in Japan. You can't say they haven't earned the right to be here... although John Lackey tried to.

4. The kids. It feels like Jacoby Ellsbury has been here for years, but he's actually in his rookie season and was a huge part of their September surge. Jed Lowrie replaced Julio Lugo at short and had the series winning hit last night. Justin Masterson went from successful starter to dependable set-up man after starting his 2008 season in Double A Portland.

3. Jason Bay. The guy had to replace Manny Ramirez, and the pressure just got more intense when the Sox earned a playoff spot. But while Manny continued to talk smack from LA, Bay quietly hit .293 with the Sox and cracked two ding dongs in his first two post season games... and then scored the winning run last night.

If you don't love this story, then your just plain dead inside.

2. Theo Epstein and the "Red Sox Way." Sure the Sox have an endless well of money, but Theo's philosophy has always been about breeding great players in the minors. This borderline dynasty was not built with cash, it was built on the success of kids like Dustin Pedroia, Jonathan Papelbon, Jacoby Ellsbury, Kevin Youkilis, Jed Lowrie and Jon Lester.

1. Speaking of Jon Lester... If the Rays are the number one story in baseball, Jon Lester is 1A. If you're a Sox fan, I don't need to say anything else...