My Two Cents: Sense of Urgency Pervades For Rays, Even at Start of Long Baseball Season
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Rays principal owner Stuart Sternberg remembers what last September was like — and it was fun. Winning does that.
“You come off last year, and I spent September with 90 wins, 90-something wins, then 100 wins, and we’re starting at zero today,'' Sternberg said Friday before the Rays' season opener at Tropicana Field. "So we have a long way to go. When you have expectations and belief that you can have 100 wins again, that’s a good feeling to have.
"But we’re not sneaking up on anybody this year. In (2020), in the shortened season we had the best record in baseball, and last year we had 100 wins. I feel great about it.''
One down.
The Rays won their season opener on Friday, getting past the Baltimore Orioles 2-1 thanks to a pair of sacrifice flies and some great pitching. It was a good start, though a few more timely hits would have been nice. But it is a win, and as I make my writing transition from college football and college basketball back to major-league baseball, I know not to take one game too seriously. Not with baseball, because it's a long, long season.
One down, 161 to go.
This is not college football, where it's just one game of 12 and they all matter quite a bit. It's not even college basketball, one of 35 along the way to March.
But there is this, too, about the first week of the baseball season. They need to win this week — and win a lot — because this is a golden opportunity to get off to a hot start. They get seven games in seven days against the Orioles and the Oakland A's, the two teams projected to finish at the bottom of the American League standings. The over/under wins total on the Orioles is 62.5, and it's 68.5 for the A's, the two AL bottom-feeders.
So is there a sense of urgency? Absolutely.
April wins count the same
There is a misguided form of logic that says September games are more important than April games, but that's pure bunk. A win is a win, and they all count the same. And the fact of the matter is that this week is the easiest of all 26 weeks on the Rays' schedule.
So make hay while you can. Because you don't get it back.
This 2022 season, which started a week late because of the lockout, sets up nicely for the Rays. They were supposed to start with a road trip to Boston and Toronto, but those six games got pushed back to the end of the year (Boston) or close (Toronto).
So instead, the Rays got to open the season in the comforts of Tropicana Field, in front of a lively crowd on Opening Day, even though there wasn't a lot to cheer about from an offensive standpoint.
And what they proved Friday is that not a lot has changed with this Rays team. The pitching was great, even in the tense moments, and they scratched out just enough to win, especially in the eighth inning with one great at-bat after another.
''That's us,'' was Kevin Cash's line, and he's exactly right. For several years now, the Rays have been doing all the little things well. That's why they won 140 games total in 2020 and 2021, which was 15 more than anyone else in the always-tough American League East.
It's what they do, and it's who they are.
And everyone — from the first guy on the roster to the last — is fine with that.
Team-first mentality more than a catch phrase
Rays catcher Mike Zunino is the perfect example of that. He spent a good five minutes talking about team culture after the game. That culture defines what this Rays team is all about. Especially in this division, the Rays can never compete with dollars, thought they do have their highest payroll ever this season.
So they compete by working hard to do all the little things well. They have ''superstars in the making,'' guys like Wander Franco and even, to some extent, Randy Arozarena. Franco had three hits Friday and started the eighth-inning rally. Arozarena beat out an infield hit to keep it going.
And the Rays won the game when manager Kevin Cash pinch-hit for Zunino, his reliable starting catcher, replacing him with back-up catcher Francisco Mejia, because they liked his ability to make contact with Orioles right-hander Jorge Lopez.
Mejia drove a ball to left field, and Ji-Man Choi, who had a huge eight-pitch walk in the inning, scored the winning run.
Top to bottom, a team effort. The Rays used 19 guys to win the game, and they all mattered. And Zunino, who came out of the game, was the first to talk about how everyone contributes.
They all WANT to play, which is what you want in your players. But they also want their teammates to succeed, too.
"We're going to use 1 through 28 for as long as we can do that,'' Zunino said. "Like our bullpen guys, they were great and I think we used all but one of them. And with (Mejia), no doubt, that was great.
"That's a perfect example of knowing we've got to be ready, and it gives us a peace of mind too in knowing that you've got a chance to see the field every day. You never kick your feet up. You stay locked in, and he did that.''
Even Shane McClanahan, Friday's Opening Day starter, buys in to that. He left with one out in the fifth after throwing 68 pitches, and admitted he would have liked to have stayed in longer.
That's not how it works around here, though, and he was fine with it. Sure, he's a competitor, but he also know that whoever comes in behind him is going to get the job done, too.
Just like Friday. McClanahan was really good, and so was the bullpen.
"No matter how bad I wanted to stay in, I know it's early,'' McClanahan said, grinning a bit when asked about wanting to get through the fifth. "It's a smart decision early in the year.''
Sure, it's early. One down, and the joy of baseball is we get to do it again on Saturday. Opportunity knocks. The AL East is a bear, and wins are hard to come by. So stack them up when you can.
Related stories on Rays baseball
- RAYS BEAT ORIOLES: The Tampa Bay Rays showed many of their best traits on Friday, beating the Baltimore Orioles 2-1 in front of a sellout crowd at Tropicana Field. They got four-plus shutout innings from starter Shane McClanahan, scratched out the go-ahead run in the eighth with several great at-bats and rode a bullpen to the finish line. CLICK HERE
- McCLANAHAN START BY THE NUMBERS: Shane McClanahan turned in a solid performance during the Tampa Bay's season opener on Friday. He lasted 4 1/3 innings and didn't allow a run, doing a good job of working out of trouble. CLICK HERE
- RAYS 2022 SCHEDULE: Here is the complete Tampa Bay Rays schedule for the 2022 season, with dates, locations and game times. This will be updated constantly with results and links to game stories, plus any adjustments to the schedule will be made here in real time as well, so bookmark this story and refer to it often. CLICK HERE
- OPENER SOLD OUT: The Tampa Bay Rays are set to start their 25th season on Friday, and they'll do it in front of a sell-out crowd at Tropicana Field when they take on the Baltimore Orioles. Game time is 3:10 p.m. ET, with several pregame ceremonies, including the unveiling of the 2021 AL East championship banner. CLICK HERE
- RAYS POSTSEASON HISTORY: The Tampa Bay Rays have made the playoffs seven times since 2008, and have won two American League pennants, Here's what they've done all-time in the postseason. CLICK HERE
Tom Brew is the publisher of Inside The Rays, and has been with the Sports Illustrated/FanNation network for three years. He is an award-winning writer and editor who has spent most of his four-decade career at the Tampa Bay Times, Indianapolis Star and South Florida Sun-Sentinel. He has written four books.