Are the 08 Rays the 69 Mets In Disguise?

For the first few months of the season, the Tampa Bay Rays were the darlings of baseball. While most people thought the Rays would be a vastly improved team this season, nobody was expecting the quick turnaround they've undertaken to get to the top of the AL East.

Still in the last few weeks, a lot of the hype surrounding the Rays seems to have died down. Even though they're still leading the AL East, the Manny Ramirez situation in Boston and the moves the Yankees made combined with the lack of moves in Tampa have once again knocked them off the front page. That doesn't mean Tampa is going to lose it's grip on the division, and thanks to some research done by Mark Simon of ESPN Research (which may or may not have included reading this post at OMDQ back in February), there are some signs that the Rays may end up winning the World Series this season. It turns out there are a lot of similarities between this Rays team and the 1969 Mets.

From Buster Olney's blog:

How are the 2008 Rays similar to the 1969 Mets?

On the 1969 Mets, the ace starter was 24-year-old Tom Seaver
On the 2008 Rays, the ace starter is 24-year-old Scott Kazmir
The 1969 Mets had a 61-101 record 2 years prior to winning the World Series (1967)
The 2008 Rays had a 61-101 record 2 years ago (2006)

The 1969 Mets had a closer, Ron Taylor, who had won a World Series (1964)
The 2008 Rays have a closer, Troy Percival, who has won a World Series (2002)
The 1969 Mets were 53-39 at the All-Star break
The 2008 Rays were 55-39 at the All-Star break
The 1969 Mets manager had a 3-letter first name (Gil) and a 6-letter last name (Hodges)
The 2008 Rays manager has a 3-letter first name (Joe) and a 6-letter last name (Maddon)
The 1969 Mets had a rookie as their primary third baseman (Wayne Garrett)
The 2008 Rays have a rookie as their primary third baseman (Evan Longoria)

Okay, I wasn't buying it until the Gil Hodges and Joe Maddon comparison, but now I'm convinced! To make things even eerier, I should point out that Simon failed to mention that both the Rays and Mets have four letters in their nicknames. It's fate, people.

Though despite all the similarities between those Mets of old and these Rays, there is still one glaring difference. The Rays are already in first place and don't have to make up a lot of ground to reach the playoffs. It was that momentum that the Mets built up in 1969 that helped catapult them to a World Series title much the same way that the Rockies run at the end of last season sent them to the World Series.

I still don't think the Rays are going to win the World Series this season, but if it does somehow happen, we can't say were weren't warned ahead of time.