Re: [翻譯] ESPN - One Last Look

看板Rays作者NatsWang5566 (國民的王)時間14年前 (2010/03/23 13:53)推噓11(11推 0噓 12→)

留言23則, 7人參與討論串2/2 (看更多)

Pena and Crawford are two of the centerpieces of a team that is talented enough to make the Yankees and Red Sox sweat all the way to October. And both those men sense this particular group has a special, confident vibe that could make these Rays all the more dangerous. After the frustrations of last year's third-place finish, this crew seems to have reconstructed its '08 mojo. "I think we were too demanding of ourselves last year," says Pena. "And that's not a good energy. I'd rather have this team just be relaxed, and expecting good things because we know we can. You see the difference? You don't have to talk it, just know it. And I think this team is in that position this year." Pena和Crawford是兩位在這支能讓洋基及紅襪緊張到十月的隊伍中的重要人物。而他們都能感覺到隊上有種奇妙且自信的氣氛，能讓這群Rays變得更危險。在去年一些挫敗而拿到第三名後，這些人似乎又找回了08年的魔力。 Pena說：「我想去年大家對自我的要求太高了。這不是件好事。我倒希望球隊能放輕鬆，等著好事發生，因為我們知道我們能辦到。你看到這個差別了嗎？你不用講就能看得出來。而我想這支隊伍今年正是這樣。」 The Rays hit the field these days with the aura of a club that doesn't wonder anymore if it's good enough to hang with the behemoths. And they've sure played like it this spring. They won nine games in a row at one point, and their 12-6 record is the best in the Grapefruit League. Hardly a day goes by, it seems, without some media invader firing questions at them about the sense of urgency they're supposed to feel to win this year. But to hear Crawford talk, if there is some kind of urgency, it's creating a force for inspiration, not more pressure. Rays最近到球場時圍繞著一股氣氛，大家不再去想球隊所處的地方是否是在一群怪獸隊伍之中。而他們春訓表現就像是如此。他們有一波九連勝，而12-6的戰績是春訓聯盟中最好的。很少有一天沒有媒體來問他們是否覺得今年非贏不可。但聽看看Crawford怎麼說：即使有一種非贏不可的感覺，卻是一種正向的激勵，而不是壓力。 "If this is going to be my last year here, I want to win," he says. "I want to go out on top. I feel like this team is just starting to build something good. It's not like we're going to go back to losing 100 games every year. So if this is going to be my last year -- and I know Carlos feels the same way -- I want to go out on a positive note." Crawford說：「如果這是我在這的最後一年，那我想贏。我想在最好的時候離開。我感覺這支隊伍正準備要開始作一番大事業。我們看來不會再回到過去那樣單季百敗的樣子。所以如果這是我的最後一年──我知道Pena跟我想的一樣──我希望能有個好的註腳。」 What lies beyond this year isn't their problem. But that's when life will start getting challenging for all the talented people they'll leave behind -- in their clubhouse and their front office. The most oversimplified part of this team's story is that this is not a win-or-else season for anyone except the free agents who won't be here anymore. 今年之後就不是他們的問題了。而接下來才開始是剩下的這批能人們的挑戰。包括球員和經營者。在這個故事中，最被忽視的部分是對於大部分人──除了這些FA──來說，這不是個不贏球就再見的球季。 Evan Longoria isn't going anywhere. Ben Zobrist isn't going anywhere. The best young starting rotation in the American League isn't going anywhere. And a new wave of incredible young talent (Desmond Jennings, Jeremy Hellickson, Tim Beckham and a cast of dozens) is roaring toward the big stage. So this team will be no fun to play against for years to come. But the record payroll, north of $70 million, being invested in the 2010 Rays? You won't be seeing that again, since Sternberg has made it clear it'll be U-turning back toward the 50s next season. And, well, then what? Longoria不會走。Zobrist不會走。美聯中最好的年輕先發陣容不會走。而一批有著驚人才華的年輕人正準備登上舞台(D. Jennings, J. Hellickson, T. Beckham和一打剩下的) 所以這支隊伍以後也不是好惹的。但這創紀錄，比70M還多的2010年薪資呢？不會再出現了。因為Sternberg講得很清楚，明年會倒退到50M。所以呢？ If they can drag more people into the seats, then "we'll have more [money] to play with," Silverman says. And it really is that simple. "We'll never have as much as the Red Sox or Yankees," he says. "There's really no point in beating that dead horse. … We understand our limitations, and we work within those parameters. But we don't deny the connection between attendance and revenues, and the corresponding investments we can make for our organization." 如果他們有更多觀眾的話，那「我們就有更多錢能花了」Silverman說道。而真的就是這樣簡單。他說：「我們永遠不會像紅襪或洋基那樣有這麼多觀眾。再講幾次也沒什麼意思。我們知道極限在哪裡，而我們在能力所及的範圍內努力。但我們不會否認進場人數和收入的關係，還有隨之而來對隊伍的投資。」 So what happens if it turns out they can't ever convince at least a league-average number of people (roughly 30,000 a night) to stream through their gates -- not this year, not any year? No one ever quite answers that question. But you have to wonder. This team has been run about as intelligently and creatively these last few years as any organization in sports. But there are only so many postgame ZZ Top concerts any franchise can stage before it begins to question whether the problem is the stadium, the location of the stadium or the market itself. So don't ignore those stories welling up in Tampa, over on the other side of the bay, about possible locations for a new ballpark closer to the population center. But for now, Sternberg told a media gathering earlier this spring, "the team isn't going anywhere. We're in St. Petersburg, and that's where we play." 所以如果他們最後還是達不到聯盟平均(三萬人)呢？今年沒有，以後也沒有的話呢？沒有人確定的回答這個問題，但你得好好考慮。這支球隊的運作可以說是比所有的職業運動球隊來得更聰明且有創意。但也只有這麼多的賽後ZZ Top演場會能在這支球隊思考問題到底是出在體育館，地點，還是市場大小前舉辦。所以不要忽視近來在海灣另一邊，Tampa內的傳聞，關於建一座更靠近人口中心的球場一事。但至少現在，Sternberg在今春和媒體們講：「我們哪裡都不去。我們在St. Petersburg，這是我們打球的地方。」 But if that's where they play and that's where they're going to play for the foreseeable future, then it can only mean one thing: The jugglers will have to keep on juggling for a long, long time. "We feel like we've got a very talented team in 2010," Friedman said. "But we also think we're well-positioned going forward to remain competitive. Obviously, we can't compete against the Yankees and Red Sox and be competitive 10 out of 10 years. That's just Math 101. So it's incumbent upon us to manage our roster accordingly." 但如果這裡是他們現在和未來會待的地方，那就說明了一件事：這群雜技團得要繼續耍特技一段好長好長的時間。 Friedman說：「我覺得我們在2010年有一支才華洋溢的隊伍。但我也認為我們可以繼續保持競爭力。很顯然地，我們不能要求每年都和洋基及紅襪一樣強。這是基本的算數。所以只能靠我們來對球隊陣容作出適當調整。」 Which means there are going to be more Carl Crawfords and more Carlos Penas who play out their free-agent years and move on. Can't help that. And there are going to be more Scott Kazmirs and Akinori Iwamuras who get traded before they ever get to that point. Can't help that, either. 也就是說，以後還會看到更多的Crawford及Pena，跳進FA市場一去不回。沒辦法。也會有更多的Kazmir及岩村，在拿到FA前就被交易掉。這也沒辦法。 And, especially, that parade of young impact players heading for the big leagues can't ever stop -- because that part of the operation, Friedman says, is "more important for us than any other team in baseball." (Why? Uh, let's just say the Yankees and Red Sox won't be dropping payrolls into the $50 million range any century in the near future.) 此外，年輕新人的補上完全不能中斷。因為這是球隊運作的一部分。Friedman說：「這對我們來說比聯盟中任何一隊都還要重要。」(Why？嗯，洋基和紅襪到幾個世紀後都不會把薪資降到50M) So this is a team that can devote only so much focus on the here and now -- because it can't ever stop looking over the horizon at the there and beyond. "We're constantly looking at things on many different levels," Friedman says. "And we have to -- to make sure that we don't fall off the cliff and have to take six, seven, eight years to build back." The Yankees won't ever have to think that way. The Red Sox won't ever have to think that way. But the Rays have no choice but to think that way. So welcome to their season of urgency. Their clocks might be ticking. But beware the urge to jump to those way-too-easy conclusions. That ticking might turn out to be more trouble for the rest of the AL East than it is for the dollar-challenged little juggernaut that's still walking tall in the Land of the Giants. 所以這是支只最多只能投注這麼多心力在現在的球隊。因為他們沒辦法不去關心未來。 Friedman說：「我們一直在關注各等級聯盟中的事情。我們必須如此，才能確保不會摔到谷底，然後要花六、七、甚至八年來重建。」洋基永遠不會需要這樣思考。紅襪永遠不會需要這樣思考。但Rays沒有其他的選擇。所以歡迎來到他們這緊迫的一年。時鐘正在走。但別太早跳到簡單的結論。時間或許會對其他美東隊伍造成更多麻煩，而不是這隻沒錢卻在在巨人之地闊步行走的小巨人。 (全文完) -- ※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc) ◆ From: 64.106.84.177

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