ST. PETERSBURG -- Even in their best years, the Rays aren’t necessarily known for their offensive firepower. Pitching and defense tend to win the day for Tampa Bay.
But the Rays have featured sluggers like Carlos Pena. They’ve had speedsters like Carl Crawford. They’ve had young stars like Evan Longoria, Randy Arozarena and Junior Caminero. They’ve had talented players like Ben Zobrist who can do it all. And they’ve had some guys, like Dan Johnson and Brett Phillips, come out of nowhere to deliver in the biggest moments.
And those players have delivered some impressive offensive performances. Here are five of the best single-game showings by Tampa Bay hitters in franchise history.
1. Evan Longoria, Sept. 28, 2011, vs. Yankees
Longoria’s stat line does not tell the story here, of course. Tampa Bay’s franchise player went 2-for-5 with a couple of walks, two homers and four RBIs. But you know the story by now, right?
This was Game 162 of the 2011 season, one of the most memorable days in franchise (and recent baseball) history. The Rays completed their wild comeback to capture an American League Wild Card spot thanks to their incredible play and a Red Sox collapse, and the greatest player in team history helped punch their ticket with two of the biggest swings the club has ever seen.
The Rays entered the eighth inning trailing the postseason-bound Yankees, 7-0. They scored a couple of runs but still trailed by four when Longoria came to the plate with two outs. Then, he injected life back into the building by launching a three-run homer, cutting the Rays’ deficit to one.
After some Dan Johnson magic sent the game to extras in the ninth, Longoria came up clutch again in the 12th, ripping a walk-off homer just over the lowered left-field fence to send the Rays back into October. How do you know it was the best offensive performance in team history, no matter what the stat line says? There’s a statue outside Tropicana Field commemorating it.
2. Carl Crawford, May 3, 2009 vs. Red Sox
Crawford had plenty of memorable games during his nine seasons with the Rays, but none more impressive than what he accomplished in this game. The outfielder went 4-for-4 with a walk, which is a strong day. He had one RBI, but he didn’t record an extra-base hit.
What made this game so special? The fact that Crawford had six stolen bases, without getting caught once. His six steals tied a Major League record, and it hasn’t been accomplished since. This was technically not a great “hitting” performance, but it’s one of the most impressive single-game feats by a position player in Rays history.
3. Ben Zobrist, April 28, 2011 (Game 1), at Twins
There’s definitely no surprise that one of the best single-game performances in franchise history came from Zobrist. The utility man went 4-for-6 with a homer and eight RBIs in a 15-3 win in the first game of a doubleheader against the Twins.
Getting four hits in a game is impressive enough, but the real highlight of Zobrist’s performance was his eight RBIs, which remain the Rays' franchise record.
4. Junior Caminero, May 31, 2025, at Astros
The Rays’ 16-3 win in Houston was an offensive eruption, as they racked up five homers among their 18 hits. It was a memorable day on the mound, too, as Zack Littell threw their first complete game in five years. A lot happened, including one of the defining performances of Caminero’s breakout season.
Caminero went 4-for-5 with two homers, two doubles and four RBIs. He became the first player in franchise history to have at least four extra-base hits and at least five RBIs in the same game, and his 12 total bases matched the franchise record. It was an all-around display of dominance at the plate, a hard-hitting performance amid a 45-homer, 110-RBI season that cemented Caminero as one of baseball’s rising stars.
5. Travis d'Arnaud, July 15, 2019, at Yankees
d’Arnaud’s three-homer game against the Yankees in 2019 was nothing short of remarkable -- and historic. The Rays have had a handful of three-homer games, but the fact that d’Arnaud’s third homer was a dramatic three-run shot in the top of the ninth off Aroldis Chapman makes this one stand out.
d’Arnaud led off the game with a homer. Two innings later, he hit his second, launching it almost to the same spot as the first. After drawing a walk in each of his next two plate appearances, the stage was set for d'Arnaud to be the hero against Chapman, and the catcher delivered with his go-ahead homer, capping his 3-for-3 night.
d’Arnaud became the first catcher to hit three homers out of the leadoff spot, as well as the first catcher to hit three home runs against the Yankees in a single game.