Ray-dy To Go?

The Rays are picked by some experts as the AL Wildcard, otherwise known as the second team in the Eastern division (I mean really, does anyone remember the last time the team WASN’T in the almighty division?), or even as the division winner. The writers have been enamored by the alleged young and speedy Rays for years now, starting with the ’07 season. They went on and on about how Crawford and Longoria were going to join the ranks of Albert Pujols and Joe Mauer.

In 2008, it seemed like all the predictions were true. That season was amazing, with the only fluke being their performance in the World Series (the pitiful loss to the Phillies, who weren’t that amazing that year). But, last season they were decidedly ordinary, going 84-78 as opposed to ‘08’s colossal 97-65. While they get many kudos to that, I’d point to their home record. The past two years, the Rays have had losing records on the road (32-49, only Toronto, Baltimore and Cleveland were worse).
In the 2.5 games they have played so far (the third is going on as I write this they are winning 2-1 over the O’s in the bottom of the 4th) as they had an Opening Day a day later than everyone else, and two after their East rivals, the Rays have barely given us a glimpse of how their season will go. Playing the Orioles doesn’t really give an accurate way to base predictions off of. I do like to wait for the season to start for predictions, even if it does violate the concept. The Rays have an amazing roster this year that is more mature than two seasons ago, and has the capability to go all the way if they don’t stutter like a fourth grader asking out his first girl when they play juggernauts of the American League. This is the window of opportunity, much like the Boston Celtics had. Age, contracts, and the business of baseball are bound to get in the way after this season. It’s a now or never situation.
The Rays have the components of a championship team: speed from Crawford, the athletic ability from Longoria and versatility from all-around monster Ben Zobrist (who is about to blow up). The roster is filled with their homegrown talent, they just need to execute in a professional manner that can win games. The first games that they have had this season have been one run nail bitters, and the luck won’t always been on their side with such close games. The team needs to realize that even if it gives more tension, it’s not always in the best interest of their record. They were 20-25 last year in one run games, and history could very easily repeat itself.
To avoid this, the pitching staff needs to be on point. As a whole, they have good stuff, but they can crumble as they lack the leadership that this almost individual sport requires. Even though they are never on the field together, the pitching staff needs to unite and have a legitimate leader (either James Shield or Matt Garza) that can motivate and lead the team discussions on the opposition before games.
At the end, it really is just a random combination of guts, glory, and some major amounts of good fortune. Can the Rays do it? Yes. Will they? That’s for the next 159.5 games to decide.