ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The undefeated Tampa Bay Rays are off to baseball's best start in 20 years.
It’s not just that the Rays are 9-0, but they handed out nine beatdowns. Tampa Bay has hit a Major League Baseball-best 24 home runs, and they scored 75 runs while allowing only 18 runs to score.
“Yeah, It’s impressive,” Rays outfielder Luke Raley said. “A lot of power has been shown. Our starting pitching has been phenomenal. Bullpen has been really good when they’ve gotten the opportunity. It’s exciting to watch and be a part of.”
The Rays are the first team to win its first nine games since the 2003 Kansas City Royals. They have also won every game by four or more runs.
That streak is the longest at any point of the season since ten wins by the 1939 New York Yankees.
“We haven’t even talked about it,” Rays pitcher Shane McClanahan said. “We’re just here to play our brand of baseball. Which is super team-oriented and loose. We have fun with each other. Go out there and have a blast.”
“I’m sure you can ask 80% of the guys here and they don’t know what we’re accomplishing right now,” Rays catcher Christian Bethancourt added. “That’s a good thing. We’re not thinking, just going out there, trying to win the ball game, and do our best on the field.”
The all-time best start to a season is 13-0 by the 1982 Atlanta Braves and 1987 Milwaukee Brewers.
The Rays begin a four-game series Monday night against the Boston Red Sox at Tropicana Field.
