Fantasy Forces:
C-Toby Hall (27)  Had he played anywhere else, the hype from Hall's arrival last year would have been equivalent to that of Mark Prior or  Sean Burroughs and considering the way his season started it's probably a good thing.  The International League's MVP '01 before his callup, Hall hit just .206 during his first two months as the full-time signal caller and was sent back to Durham.  And this time the trick worked as Hall came back to the big club and put up a .309 average over the final two months.  Hall possesses a keen eye for the strike zone and rarely strikes out.  Given his age, a bust out may be in the works for '04 but he will be one of the best fantasy catchers in '03 as well.  
1B-Aubrey Huff (26)- If anyone understands Hall's frustrations it's Huff, who made his own less-than-stellar debut a year earlier.  Following his lackluster rookie campaign and a spring traing injury, the big lefty spent the first two months of '02 at Durham before a late May callup.  By the time he was finished, Huff led the big league club in nearly every primary offensive category and more importantly proved he is no longer a defensive liability.  With a big frame and bigger swing, Huff can be tough to strike out as long as he is patient and will be a yearly .300/30/100 hitter in the near future, while '03 will bring him another step closer to that.  
SP-Joe Kennedy (23)- Though there aren't a lot of bright spots presently on the Devil Ray's pitching staff, Kennedy is surely one to be noticed after following up an impressive rookie campaign with an even better performance, leading the D'Rays in nearly every pitching category including wins, albeit with only 8.  Armed with an array of fastballs and a 12-6 curveball and with a shadow bigger than most, the southpaw has pinpoint accuracy and can strike out hitters with any of his top pitches as long as he has command of them.  While his current team won't allot him many wins, he is on his way to being one of the top young lefties in the game as long as he can stay in shape.  If you play with errors, however, beware as he fumbled his way to 10 in '02.

Supporting Cast:
RF-Ben Grieve (26)  What happened?  Who could have seen it: "Can't Miss" out of high school, second overall pick in '94, Southern League MVP in '97, AL ROY in '98; everywhere he went an award or label followed him.  But now a new label has found him- "Missed".  What we didn't know was that he was a slow, inadequate fielder who strikes out once every four ABs and can't hit LHPs.  In the final year of his inflated contract, it's do or die for Grieve.  Given his age and previous success, some believe there is still hope but whether he can harness enough aggression to release his best tools remains to be seen and playing in Tampa surely isn't the place to find out.  
CL/RP-Travis Phelps (25)  Phelps has some bigtime stuff but lacks the command to make it work for him, pitching himself into trouble more often than getting out of it.  Still, with the departure of Yan to Texas and the club without a true closer, Phelps will be given more than a couple save attempts along with Colome.  Wins don't come easy for the Devil Rays and saves tend to come even harder for their closers.

Past Their Prime:
2B-Marlon Anderson (29)   Signed as insurance for Abernathy, Anderson has spent more of his once promising career down than up.  With the Phillies finally out of patience, Tampa may be a last chance.  Even on a non-contender it doesn't look good; he lacks the discipline to be a consistent everyday hitter as well as the skills to help out in the field where second base is his sole duty.  The best of Anderson's career is behind him.  
DH-Greg Vaughn (37)   Despite plummeting production in recent years, thanks to baseball's guaranteed contracts, the aging, immobile veteran keeps finding himself in the Devil Rays lineup.  Clearly the highest paid player on the roster, Tampa Bay will once again demand to get the most from him unless some poor sap relieves them of his salary, which is highly unlikely.  While his value as a hitter has long since disappeared, his power is now following closely behind.

Risky Business:
2B-Brent Abernathy (25)  With a solid rookie campaign that warranted giving him the full-time job, Abernathy put his job on the line with a dismal follow-up.  Abernathy is a fast, slap hitter who has shown the ability to get on base without a walk but has very little ability beyond that.  He will leadoff but any slump will slide him to the back of the lineup or worse.  In a make or break year, the signing of Marlon Anderson should provide enough of a fear factor to boost Abernathy closer to his rookie year production. 
CL-Jesus Colome (25)  As with Phelps, Colome has closer potential and will be given a bulk of the rare save opportunities in Tampa.  But like Grieve and Abernathy, he followed up rookie success with a sophomore slump, watching his ERA balloon uncontrollably, along with his stuff.  The tall RHP has shown better control in the past and could be a quality stopper in time but not in '03.  Note also, the mental effects a horrible accident recently in his homeland may hinder his coming season.

The Final Cut:
Depending on how they approach Pinella's first season, there is good chance the Devil Rays will have their most successful campaign in '03.  While the fiery skippers presence won't lead them to their first winning season, his potential as developer far excedes any win total this year.  Though 100 losses isn't out of the question, the fruits of Tampa Bay's patience will begin to ripen.  Homegrown talents such as Hall, Huff, Kennedy, Baldelli, Sandberg, Crawford and Brazelton will make a presence this year with Hamilton on the horizon as the losing image slowly begins to give way to success.