How the Rays made it to the ALDS
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HOUSTON -- Despite having the lowest payroll in baseball, the Rays expected to be here. They expected to make a run at one of the five American League playoff berths, and they believed they were good enough to compete against the AL's tough teams.
| Game | Date | Result | Highlights |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gm 1 | Oct. 4 | HOU 6, TB 2 | Watch |
| Gm 2 | Oct. 5 | HOU 3, TB 1 | Watch |
| Gm 3 | Oct. 7 | TB 10, HOU 3 | Watch |
| Gm 4 | Oct. 8 | TB 4, HOU 1 | Watch |
| Gm 5 | Oct. 10 | HOU 6, TB 1 | Watch |
Shop for postseason gear: But the Rays battled through multiple injuries to key players and used a franchise-record 57 players -- including 33 pitchers -- this season. After Wednesday’s 5-1 win over the A’s in the AL Wild Card Game, the Rays will get an opportunity to beat the best as they open the five-game AL Division Series on Friday at Minute Maid Field against the Astros, who many have picked as the favorite to represent the AL in the World Series.
Let’s take a look at how the Rays got to this point.
• Dress for October: Shop Rays postseason gear
Breakout seasons
The Rays are built on run prevention, but the emergence of Austin Meadows helped Tampa Bay become a complete team. The 24-year-old outfielder finished the regular season with 33 home runs, which tied Evan Longoria in 2009 for the franchise record for players under the age of 25. In fact, over the past 20 years, only one other AL player has matched Meadows’ .291/.364/.558 line before the age of 25. That player is Angels outfielder Mike Trout, who could collect his third AL Most Valuable Player Award trophy this season.
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Meadows led the way offensively for the Rays, but the breakout campaigns didn’t stop there. Brandon Lowe hit 16 home runs in the first three months of the season and made his first career All-Star Game. Lowe was a favorite to win the AL Rookie of the Year Award, but multiple injuries held him out until mid-September, ultimately ending his bid. Yandy Díaz, who was the hero on Wednesday with two home runs, came into the season with just one over 299 plate appearances, but he finished the regular season with 14 despite missing 2 1/2 months due to injury.
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On the pitching side, Tyler Glasnow won the AL Pitcher of the Month Award after posting a 1.75 ERA between March and April. Emilio Pagán led the team with 20 saves despite not making the Opening Day roster. And Yonny Chirinos and Ryan Yarbrough also played huge roles in the rotation.
Pitching, pitching and more pitching
While the hitting has come along over the past couple of months, the Rays don’t win 96 games without their pitching staff. Despite losing Blake Snell, Glasnow and Chirinos for long periods of time, the Rays finished with the best team ERA (3.65) in the AL.
“We’re built on pitching and preventing runs,” Rays manager Kevin Cash said. “We really try to attack hitters to the pitcher’s strengths. We’re not going to worry about what the hitters do well. Bet on ourselves.”
Charlie Morton led the way with a 3.05 ERA over 33 starts during the regular season, but the Rays relied on all 33 pitchers. They became the first team in Major League history to lead its league in ERA while using at least 33 pitchers.
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Key acquisition
The decision to trade Ryne Stanek and top outfield prospect Jesús Sánchez wasn’t an easy one for Tampa Bay. Stanek had been a huge part of the Rays’ success, and Sánchez was one of many blue-chip prospects in the organization. But when the opportunity to acquire Nick Anderson presented itself, the Rays pounced.
Anderson has developed into Tampa Bay's top setup man, and his fastball/curveball combination is one of the best in baseball. His 15.23 strikeout ratio was the third-highest mark in Major League history by a qualifying rookie reliever, behind the Dodgers’ Kenley Jansen (16.10) in 2011 and the Mariners' Edwin Díaz (15.33) in 2016.
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Having Anderson in the eighth inning allowed the Rays to slot Pagán into the ninth. Diego Castillo became a reliable option in the sixth and seventh innings.
“That acquisition, what he’s done,” Cash said. “I think when Nick got here, a combination of him and the way he performed really started to gel things.”
Road Rays
For most of the season, the Rays struggled to gain any momentum at Tropicana Field. They hovered around .500 before rattling off 15 wins in their last 17 home games. But through their struggles, the Rays seemed to thrive when playing on the road.
The Rays finished the regular season with a 48-33 record away from Tropicana Field, and they won Wednesday’s game at the Oakland Coliseum, which had a paid attendance of 54,005, a Wild Card Game record.
If they’re going to continue playing deep into October, they’re going to have to carry that same success into some of the most hostile environments in baseball. That task will start on Friday at Minute Maid Park.
“I think we all embrace it because we’ve been wanting to play in front of a big atmosphere all year,” Rays outfielder Tommy Pham said. “And I think everyone will probably agree with that. We like it.”