The Tampa Bay Rays have a chance to become the first team in major league history to go from worst to first in consecutive seasons.
All year long, teams in the larger markets — such as Los Angeles, Chicago, Boston and New York — have been chasing the 88-60 Rays. So how does such a young, inexperienced, cheap team come from nowhere and overtake the Evil Empire and Red Sox Nation? The answer isn't that the Rays win in spite of their age and low payroll. They win because of it.
The Rays nearly doubled their payroll this year, jumping from $24 to $44 million, but still remained the second most frugal team in the majors, behind only the notoriously stingy Florida Marlins. For the Rays, limits on spending cause management to rely on young players, many of whom play for the league minimum salary of around $400,000.
It takes three years of major league experience before a player is eligible for arbitration — a period during which many players earn far below their market value — and then a wait of three more years to qualify for free agency. During these six years, players will almost inevitably reach their peaks, which generally occur between the ages of 26 and 30.
The fiscally savvy Andrew Friedman took over the then-Devil Rays in 2005. Since then, he has changed the face, the name and the talent of the organization. Friedman entered baseball with a Wall Street background, having been an analyst with Bear Stearns. When he stepped in, the Rays had already assembled some strong young talent, including starting pitcher James Shields and outfield studs Carl Crawford and Rocco Baldelli. Friedman also walked in on the heist of the decade, as former Devil Rays brass swung a deal for lefty starting pitcher Scott Kazmir from the New York Mets.
Friedman recognized where his team could improve and made the necessary changes at no cost. He saw the statistic of run prevention as an exploitable market inefficiency and traded the uber-talented outfielder Delmon Young for strikeout artist Matt Garza and defensive-specialist shortstop Jason Bartlett. Last year, Friedman shrewdly acquired first baseman Carlos Pena, who the Yankees and Sox had both released. Not only is Pena a defensive whiz who boasts an OPS higher than that of David Ortiz, but he is also the highest-paid player on the team at a meager $6 million.
Friedman knew coming into the season that prospect Evan Longoria would man the hot corner, and he has proven to be one of the top defensive third basemen in the league. Because of that, the Rays were also able to upgrade at other positions by sliding Akinori Iwamura to second base and shifting B.J. Upton to center field. The Rays' Defensive Efficiency Rating, a statistic that measures the percentage of balls in play that a team's defense converts into outs, has shot from a deplorable .662 to a league-leading .717, marking the biggest jump from one season to the next in baseball history.
Tampa Bay's pitching staff features nothing but young talent as well, headed by Shields, Kazmir and Garza. After that, the Rays turn the ball over to their tremendously improved bullpen, led by Grant Balfour and J.P. Howell.
But that's not all. Believe it or not, this is the worst team the Rays will assemble for years to come. They have a stacked farm system and hold several of the biggest assets in all of baseball in Longoria and Upton, whose salaries are cost-controlled for the foreseeable future. Also, prolonged winning raises attendance and revenue without fail.
People may write off the Rays this year for their inexperience. People may label them a fluke. But next year they'll be even better and more experienced. And the best part is, they won't have to spend a dollar to improve.
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Jeremy Greenhouse is a sophomore who has not yet declared a major. He can be reached at Jeremy.Greenhouse@tufts.edu.
