Cabby Road

 

So...the 2024 Tampa Bay Rays had their firesale in the midst of a winning streak. They're 5.5 games back from a wild card spot, barely above .500, and they still intend on competing to some degree. They'll just be doing it without Randy Arozarena, Zach Eflin, Isaac Paredes, Shawn Armstrong, Jason Adam, Amed Rosario, Aaron Civale and Phil Maton. Who combine for 5.3 WAR, 21% of the team's overall 25.8 WAR. 

That is the essence of the Cash-era Rays teams. They gave up a ton of players and yet there's still an outside chance this team could compete. Not 100% guaranteed, as...just in the AL East alone there's two definite wild card competitors, and that's without getting into the usual AL West scrum and the two fighting AL Central guys. But it hasn't been ruled out. They're still winning games.

And right now they're playing the Houston Astros, another team I do not like. Yet somehow I have found myself rooting for the Rays, solely because I'd rather the Rays win games right now than the Astros. The Stros won the first match, getting a nice start out of Yusei Kikuchi because...of course they fixed him, but there's more to come. And hopefully the Rays can level things and prevent against a boring playoff schematic.

But like...I do realize they don't have a whole lot to work with at the moment. With Paredes gone and Richie Palacios hurt, the team's next most valuable hitter is Brandon Lowe, who's hitting his usual .250 with 35 RBIs in 61 games. I'm surprise Lowe didn't leave this season, solely because I'm surprised the Rays still think there's more left for him to do there. Keeping Yandy Diaz I get, there wasn't a good enough suitor and Diaz is probably the team's biggest star right now. But Lowe may never match up to his 2019 debut, and they have to come to terms with that.

Meanwhile, Jose Caballero, who broke out last year as a base-stealing super-ute with the Mariners, is continuing that tradition, with some excellent defensive play and 12 steals. Caballero isn't the greatest hitter but his contact skills aren't bad. And considering who was supposed to be playing SS around now for Tampa, having a nonproblematic, fun, versatile shortstop isn't the worst thing. The Rays this year have been ruled by guys like Caballero, Palacios and Ben Rortvedt, just subtle hitters with good defensive skills who don't have to do a hell of a lot but get the job done. Though, unsurprisingly, Christopher Morel already has 2 homers as a member of the Rays. The reclamation project has begun.

There could be more for the Rays to do this year, especially considering that Jeffrey Springs is back, but I'm not too certain they'll factor a great deal into this season's endgame. They'll be a decent spoiler that could sneak in, but they're not the alpha anymore, and they know it.

Coming Tomorrow- The thing about debuting in your early 20s is that it takes a little while for you to mature into a useful everyday player. But it does happen eventually, as the Nats are learning.