Rays' Series Clubhouse: Just Chillin'

Baseball, as George Carlin famously reminded us, is different than football.

In football, you wear a helmet.

In baseball, you wear a cap.

In keeping with the spirit of Carlin's ageless monologue, football's locker room is a much different place than baseball's clubhouse.

We have all seen the mood in Super Bowl locker rooms, via NFL Films. It's tense. It resembles preparation for war. It's the setting for the head coach's most inspirational speech of the season.

What has it been like in the Rays' clubhouse during this World Series?

"Pretty much like a game any other time, April, July, September," Rays center fielder Carl Crawford said.

There's talk about fantasy football. There are college games on the television - pitcher J.P. Howell (Texas) and shortstop Jason Bartlett (Oklahoma) were into it pretty heavily two weeks ago during the Texas-OU game - and the thump-thump-thump of music from the speakers.

There's non-stop texting.

Of course, there is food in the back.

There's usually a card game, a few players working crossword puzzles.

Baseball, more than any other sport, features players accustomed to filling idle time, especially after years of practice while riding the minor-league buses. Keeping things normal - instead of reaching a fever pitch - is usually the desired emotion.

"I had it in my mind that our clubhouse would be a little different once the playoffs got going," Rays pitcher James Shields said. "And it has pretty much been exactly the same. I think that's a good thing."

Rays manager Joe Maddon said the addition of veterans, such as Cliff Floyd and Troy Percival, helped make Tampa Bay's clubhouse into a positive place.

"I'm a big believer in letting that room function as it wants to," Maddon said. "But you need the right kind of people to make it happen. It's not brain surgery or rocket science. It's just about some good, old-fashioned work ethic and values, then getting the right people to make it turn."

Rays catcher John Jaso, who made the trip to Philadelphia although not being on the postseason roster, said he initially wondered how his personality would fit. Perfectly, he soon learned. He said there are no cliques. Veterans hang out with young players. No one is excluded - and no one is spared from verbal abuse, either, if that's the occasion.

"It's very chill in our clubhouse," Rays utility player Ben Zobrist said. "Not a whole lot of hoopla. Everybody does the things they've been doing all year.

"I like to come in, get dressed, maybe grab a bite to eat, jump in the hot tub and get my muscles warm, get some early work in the batting cage. There's incredible electricity in World Series atmosphere. But you have to channel that energy."

There was a notable change in the mood before the Rays faced the Boston Red Sox last week in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series. First baseman Carlos Pena felt compelled to address the group, and he did so with Maddon's blessing.

Pena's message: Realize what's at stake here. Realize how far this team has come. Prepare accordingly. Don't have any regrets. Do what got us here.

"It's not that we needed a pep talk going into a Game 7," Rays right fielder Gabe Gross said. "But what Carlos said was dead on-point. It reinforced what we were about to do."

"Carlos was emotional from a positive standpoint," Rays outfielder Jonny Gomes said. "He wasn't getting us ready for a funeral. He was getting us ready for a celebration. That's all you can ask of a leader or a manager, to get you in the right mind-set and mood."

All season long, the proper mood has been set in Tampa Bay's clubhouse. The routine is unchanged, even on baseball's ultimate stage. Maybe that's the secret.