Bleacher Report Recognizes Rays’ 2023 Regular Season

The 2023 Rays Get Their Plaudits

Not much will be going on with the Rays prior to the start of free agency. Why not remind downtrodden fans about just how good their 2023 regular season was? Bleacher Report felt so optimistic that they noted, “Had this been a five-year ranking instead of three years, Tampa Bay surely cracks the top 10.”

A Wild Season

As mentioned, the 2023 Rays started the season winning their first 13 games! They had a 14-game home winning streak at the beginning of the season. Having said that, they were wheezing down the stretch of the marathon regular season. They suffered a trio of starting pitching injuries and were fighting to hold onto the division. A star shortstop was placed on administrative leave and served as a precursor of what eventually would occur. Jeffrey Springs suffered an injury that led to a second Tommy John Surgery in his career, and Drew Rasmussen and Shane McClanahan missed valuable time.

An Extremely Bitter Ending

Their opponent in the best-of-three AL Wild Card series would be a team finding momentum at just the right time. The Texas Rangers did just enough to back into the playoffs before punching the Rays in the gut. The Rays committed an uncharacteristic four errors in that opening game and looked like a team that knew their fate was sealed. Thanks to Nathaniel Lowe for helping the Rays score their only run in the two games! Randy Arozarena batted .375 over the two games, and we know what eventually happened to him. Ditto for Issac Paredes. Nearly everyone else went into an ill-timed offensive slump. Zach Eflin posted a career-best 16 wins, pitching to a 3.50 ERA over 177 2/3 innings and a 120 ERA+ in 31 games. No matter, as Eflin melted down in the worst possible moment during a do-or-die Wild Card game against the Rangers.

The Last Word

This writer vociferously disagrees with any classification of the Rays as being in proximity to the “best.” The 2023 Rays actually represented the full regression of a team that was in the World Series three years prior. They went from being in the World Series to losing in the Division Series, losing in the Wild Card, and once again losing in the Wild Card. The regular season is meaningless when you fail to back up the results in the postseason.

Having said that, the 2023 Rays also represented the last time this club played meaningful games in October. Rays fans are awaiting new ownership and a new chapter in franchise history. The Rays are not far from making a run at the postseason in the American League. Imagine where this team would be if the bullpen were just a little more precise during critical stretches this season? If they turned around their fortunes in key games against the Cleveland Guardians and the New York Yankees, then the narrative would be completely different. Continued health in the starting rotation and an offense that avoids a boatload of strikeouts will be key again next season.