Tampa Bay Rays relief pitcher Kevin Kelly (49) and catcher Francisco Mejia (21) celebrate after they defeated the Oakland Athletics at Tropicana Field. Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Rays couple a crazy stat with their hot start to season

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports
By Darryn Albert | Last updated 4/8/23

The Tampa Bay Rays are a bunch of fire-breathing dragons right now, and they are putting Major League Baseball on notice.

The Rays improved to a flawless 8-0 on Sunday with a dominant 11-0 victory over the Oakland Athletics. They held Oakland to just three hits in the entire game and improved their season run differential to a batty +46.

ESPN shared that the Rays’ run differential figure makes them just the third MLB team since 1901 to be +40 or better through the first eight games of the season. Nobody else has done it since the then-Cleveland Indians in 1999.

The 8-0 Tampa Bay Rays have a +46 run differential, the third team to have a +40 run differential or better through the first eight games of a season since 1901.

Tampa joins Cleveland (1999) and the White Sox (1955). pic.twitter.com/sbucCBEqNL

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) April 8, 2023

Tampa Bay is led by ace pitcher Shane McClanahan, and they have also gotten tremendous early-season starts from Jeffrey Springs (who earned the win on Saturday) and Zach Eflin.

Meanwhile, their offense has been cooking as well with Wander Franco homering three times in the first eight contests and Randy Arozarena hitting a sizzling .367 to pace the team.

The Rays close out their three-game series against Oakland on Sunday and then meet the struggling Boston Red Sox for a four-game set (meaning that their undefeated start may still continue further). They are also playing with incredible swagger and might just be the best show in baseball right now.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: