While this team struggled in its early days, finishing in last place in the AL East every year from their debut in 1998 through 2007 — a stretch that saw them win 70 games exactly once — everything changed when they exorcised the Devil and became known as just the Rays.
Not only did the 2008 Rays finish first in the AL East with a 97-win team, but they vanquished the defending champion Red Sox in the ALCS and made it to the World Series.
While the Rays haven’t won it all yet, they transitioned from averaging 34 games back of first place in the East over their first 10 years to, over the 17 seasons, making the postseason on nine occasions, and the World Series in two of those years. They’ve developed their own stars, influenced other front offices and are a consistent force to be reckoned with.
Manager: Joe Maddon
Yes, Kevin Cash has since passed Joe Maddon as the franchise leader in games managed and career wins, but Maddon was the manager at the time the Rays changed their fortunes, seemingly for good — you don’t even get to the Cash era and its successes without Maddon paving the way. The first to post a winning record, to reach the postseason, to get to the World Series, to win manager of the year… Maddon is responsible for basically every positive first besides winning a World Series, but no other Rays’ manager has managed that yet, either.
(Photo by J. Meric/Getty Images)
Starting pitcher: David Price
Price pitched in Detroit, Toronto, Boston and Los Angeles, but he got his start with the Rays and spent half of his career there, too. The 6-foot-5 lefty was a force out of the gate, embarrassing his future franchise, the Red Sox, as a rookie reliever in the ALCS in 2008 with pitches they were incapable of catching up to, and just a few years later as a starter won a Cy Young while leading the AL in ERA. While Price’s post-Rays career was excellent, by ERA and WAR, he’s also the best pitcher in a surprisingly crowded Rays’ history.
(Photo by Doug Benc/Getty Images)
Reliever/closer: Fernando Rodney
Fernando Rodney spent just two of his 17 years in the majors with the Rays, but he packed so much into such a short time. Over 141 innings and 144 games, Rodney logged 85 saves, finished 120 games in total and produced a 202 ERA+ courtesy of a 1.91 ERA. The bulk of that production came from his fantastic 2012, in which Rodney posted a 0.60 mark and finished fifth in the Cy Young vote, giving him nearly a four-win season by WAR. For a starting pitcher, that’d be damn good, but for a reliever it’s astounding.
(Photo by Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images)
Catcher: Dioner Navarro
Dioner Navarro was once a top catching prospect, but then his bat didn’t fully come along, and he was never a star at pitch framing like some of his low-offense contemporaries were. What Navarro did do well, however, was call a game. His pitch-calling was always mentioned as the reason he stayed behind the plate – even as his bat said to find a spot on the bench. He spent five years behind the dish for the Rays when they first rose to prominence … largely because of the success of their pitching staff.
(Photo by A. Messerschmidt/Getty Images)
1B: Carlos Pena
A first-round pick of the Rangers, Pena was traded to the Athletics at 24 years old, then to the Tigers, then was released by Detroit and picked up by the Yankees, who released him in time for the Red Sox to come calling. Boston, too, would cut Pena, leaving the then-29-year-old available for the Rays in 2007, right before their — and his — turnaround. Pena would end up sticking with the Rays for five years, and he’d hit 163 homers (second in Rays’ history) while posting a .360 on-base percentage (third). His 39 homers in an All-Star 2009 led the AL.
(Photo by J. Meric/Getty Images)
2B: Ben Zobrist
Picking one position for Zobrist seems antithetical to who he was as a player: while with the Rays, he played in 1,201 defensive games, with 547 at second base, 404 in the outfield — at all three outfield positions — 229 at shortstop, 20 at DH, 17 at first and four at third. That all adds up to more than 1,201 for a reason, and it’s because Zobrist would be switched around repeatedly, as needed, in-game. That he did all of this while hitting .264/.354/.429 over nine seasons explains just how valuable he was to the Rays.
(Photo by Michael Zagaris/Getty Images)
3B: Evan Longoria
When Evan Longoria was drafted third-overall in 2006, the Rays never had a winning record, never mind made it to the postseason. He debuted in 2008, batted .272/.343/.531 with 27 homers and won AL Rookie of the Year honors. That playoff-less streak would be snapped the same year — those two items are related. Longoria was the first homegrown star for the Rays who knew nothing of the times before, an impact bat with Gold Glove-defense ended up ranked first in every other offensive category in franchise history … and second in defensive wins, too.
(Photo by J. Meric/Getty Images)
SS: Julio Lugo
Julio Lugo’s .287/.350/.421 line with the Rays might not jump off the page, but you have to remember that the era of the shortstop as a dominant offensive force took a break in the aughts. The loftiest average shortstop OPS from 2003-2006 was .740, and the lowest .718. In that period, Lugo’s with the Rays was .770, and he contributed with the glove, too. Despite the short stint — four seasons, two of them partial ones — Lugo ranks in the top-10 in Rays’ history for a variety of offensive stats, and was never more productive than in Tampa Bay.
(Photo by John Iacono/Sports Illustrated via Getty Images) (SetNumber: X73774 TK1)
OF: Carl Crawford
Carl Crawford’s post-Tampa Bay career might have focused more on what he didn’t accomplish than what he did, but those nine years with the Rays were magic. Crawford started out as a speed-first player at the age of 20, one who would do most of his development in the majors on a four-year-old team stuck in the muck. Two years later he’d blossomed into a genuine All-Star who led the American League in steals and triples on four occasions a piece, hit .301/.344/.461 during his seven-year peak and averaged around five WAR per season in that stretch.
(Photo by A. Messerschmidt/Getty Images)
OF: B.J. Upton
B.J. Upton was drafted second-overall in 2002 by the Rays as a shortstop, but would bounce around the diamond a bit, and find himself in center field long-term. A threat on the bases and, occasionally, a source of home run power, too, Upton’s career is an odd one for the Rays in that he hit his peak before the franchise turnaround: his 2007, in which he hit .300/.386/.508 with 50 extra-base hits and 22 steals was his best season at the plate, but he was still worth an average of 3.8 wins per year from 2007-2012.
(Photo by Doug Pensinger/Getty Images)
OF: Kevin Kiermaier
Kevin Kiermaier’s bat flitted between pretty good and a problem, but the glove was always there. One of the best outfield gloves going for the Rays or otherwise, Kiermaier produced an additional 17.5 wins above replacement defensively in his nine full seasons with the Rays. That’s first in franchise history ahead of Evan Longoria, and enough to make Kiermaier highly valuable despite a bat that averaged out to, well, average. Kiermaier was one of those outfielders who made it look so easy that sometimes you were not even aware of how special the defense was.
(Photo by Douglas P. DeFelice/Getty Images)
DH: Randy Arozarena
Randy Arozarena has a bat that defies his size, which made him a fit for the Rays in more ways than one. Despite standing 5-foot-10 and well under 200 pounds, Arozarena hit seven homers in just 23 games in his first stint with the Rays, then another 78 in three seasons and a partial one that followed. His on-base percentage is where his true power lies, as Arozarena wrapped his Rays’ tenure with an on-base 90 points higher than his batting average. Despite the brevity of his stint, he’s also the leader in being hit by pitches. Painful, but productive.
(Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
Honorable mentions:
- Kevin Cash (manager)
- Blake Snell (starting pitcher)
- James Shields (starting pitcher)
- Scott Kazmir (starting pitcher)
- Jake McGee (reliever/closer)
- Alex Colome (reliever/closer)
- Wilson Ramos (catcher)
- Fred McGriff (1B)
- Brandon Lowe (2B)
- Jason Barlett (SS)
- Willy Adames (SS)
- Greg Vaughn (DH)
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