Direction changed by beating the East

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - When he was hired to manage the Tampa Bay Rays, Joe Maddon knew if his club intended to be the best, it had to beat the best. Maddon knew if his Rays were going to succeed, they had to sink or swim in the treacherous waters of the American League East.

So, it seemed only fitting to the Rays manager that the 2008 American League Championship Series would be contested between Tampa Bay, the division champs, and the Red Sox, the wild-card entry from the East.

"I think from Day 1 that I had this opportunity to work here, people were always concerned about playing the American League East," Maddon said yesterday. "And I thought, what better place for young baseball players to learn how to become good major league players than to play in the best division."

Evidently, the high tide has raised their ship.

The bedeviling Rays went from worst (66-96) to first (97-65) this season to complete the third-best turnaround in AL history, winning the division by two games.

The Rays won the AL East by posting a 43-29 division record, which included winning records vs. three of their four division opponents: Baltimore (15-3), Toronto (11-7), and Boston (10-8). The Rays won nine times vs. the Sox by margins of one or two runs. Only the Yankees took their season series vs. Tampa, winning 11 of 18 games.

"Even when we were getting our butts kicked quite regularly, it was a wonderful place for us to learn how to play," Maddon said of his team's rapid development.

"Under those intense moments in front of that crowd against world champs, between Fenway and Yankee Stadium; and Toronto having the best pitching in the American League - both leagues. And then, of course, Baltimore, with their really outstanding offensive club."

Through it all, Maddon saw his team not only survive but also grow from its AL East crucible.

"We've had to battle through some very difficult teams," Maddon said. "We played these teams almost 80 times annually, and that's not easy. And that's the part, retrospectively looking at this, I guess to this point I'm most proud of is the fact that we were able to win this division."

Going for a repeat

He won a World Series ring in his postseason debut with the Red Sox last year, and Eric Hinske would like nothing more than to duplicate the feat with his new team, the Rays.

"He's been in first place longer than anybody in baseball," Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia said, noting the time Hinske spent in first place with the Sox last season and with the Rays this season.

Hinske, who told MLB.com he will not be on the ALCS roster, said there was one awkward moment against the Sox this season, when he tried to be a mediator during a bench-clearing brawl that erupted in the second inning of a 7-1 loss to the Sox June 5 at Fenway Park.

"It was a different situation for me, for sure," Hinske said. "Obviously, I'm on this team and these are my boys. Last year, we went to war together and we won a World Series. So what are you going to do?"

Rhody warriors

There'll be no conflicted feelings for the Rhode Island Rays: Tampa reliever Dan Wheeler, 30, of Warwick, and outfielder Rocco Baldelli, 27, of Woonsocket. While they grew up in the Ocean State as diehard Sox fans, Wheeler and Baldelli have switched allegiances. "It's going to be a lot of fun," said Wheeler. "Obviously, growing up a huge Red Sox fan from Rhode Island, now that I'm on the other end of it, I think the whole childhood-favorite thing is over. Now I've got to go out there and try to get these guys out and help my team go to the World Series, so it's going to be a lot of fun." Said Baldelli, "I understand all about the Red Sox and everything that goes on with the Red Sox. I enjoyed growing up in that area. We knew [the ALCS] was going to be big, but it would've been big for me no matter who we were playing." . . . In going from worst to first, the Rays have built a stronger fan following, drawing an average of 22,370 to home games at the 36,048-seat Tropicana Field. In years past, The Trop has been usually overrun by Red Sox Nation when the team journeyed south. This season, Rays fans have begun to seize the home-field advantage. "First round of the playoffs, there were probably 99 percent Rays fans in the building and that was nice to see," Baldelli said. "It gets annoying being a player on this team and you show up at your home field and there's Red Sox fans in the stands. You'd rather have the seats empty."

Michael Vega can be reached at vega@globe.com.