In 2007, Joe Maddon was named as manager of the Tampa Bay Rays. Maddon was charged with turning a franchise around that had lost 100 or more games in a season on three occasions since their inception in 1998. The Rays went 66-96 in Maddon’s first season at the helm, but it didn’t take a long time for the magic of Maddon to captivate the city of Tampa. In 2008, the Rays went 97-65 as they shocked the baseball world by making their first World Series appearance. Since then the small market Rays have had three more 90-plus win seasons including two postseason appearances and 2013 has that same feel as well.
Entering play today the Rays are 66-47 as they are two games behind the Boston Red Sox for first place in the American League East. The Rays are also currently owners of the top spot in the AL Wild Card race. Once is an accident and two is a trend, but clearly the Rays are one of the better teams in baseball since Maddon’s arrival.
The Rays are doing this with the third lowest payroll in Major League Baseball at just under $58 million as Maddon and Rays general manager Andrew Friedman have made it their business to get the most out of the talent that they can afford.
The Los Angeles Dodgers gave up on first baseman James Loney as they traded him to the Red Sox last season. Friedman signed Loney to a one-year deal last off-season for $2 million and he is having the best season of his Major League Baseball career. Loney’s .307 batting average leads the club and he is on pace to surpass his career high of 15 home runs. Injuries derailed third baseman Evan Longoria’s season in 2012, but he has returned in 2013 to the form that has made him a three-time All-Star. Longoria’s 22 home runs leads the Rays and he is also tied for 11th in the AL in the category.
With Friedman and Maddon leading the way, the Rays have prided themselves on developing talent as they don’t have the budget to compete with the Red Sox and the New York Yankees in the American League East. The Rays parted with starting pitcher James Shields in the off-season as he was traded to the Kansas City Royals, but in return they received outfielder Wil Myers who is one of the top prospects in baseball. Without the use of batting gloves, Myers has impacted this team since he was called up on June 17. Myers’ first career home run was a grand slam at Yankee Stadium which shows that he is not afraid of the spotlight. In just 41 games played this season, Myers has 8 home runs, 41 runs batted in, and he is sporting a .386 on-base percentage.
Friedman parted with Shields, but the Rays starting pitching hasn’t skipped a beat. Starting pitcher Matt Moore is tied for second in the AL in wins with 14 while relief pitcher Fernando Rodney is tied for sixth in the Junior Circuit in saves with 27. The Rays 3.80 team earned run average is sixth in the American League as they have done it for the majority of the season without 2012 AL Cy Young Award winner David Price who recently returned from the disabled list.
Since starting the season with a record of 14-18, the Rays are 54-29 and they not relenting in their pursuit of the Red Sox.
The Rays find themselves in Los Angeles this weekend for a three-game series against the Dodgers as both clubs have a legitimate shot of making the World Series in October. In contrast to the Rays, the Dodgers have the second highest payroll in baseball at $216 million. The Rays might not have the financial backing that the big boys of baseball do, but the winning results are still the same on the baseball diamond.
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