The Tampa Bay Rays started the 2023 MLB season in an impressive fashion, winning their first 13 games. But the way they are ending it is the complete opposite.
The Rays have been handed a quick postseason exit, being swept in the best-of-three NL Wild Card series by the Texas Rangers. The failure to make some noise in the postseason didn’t sit well with manager Kevin Cash.
“It’s frustrating, but it’s part of the game,” said Cash during a press conference.
Tampa Bay looked like the best team in MLB until July when they started falling off. However, they still managed to win 99 games, the second-most in franchise history. But they couldn’t get anything going against the Rangers, allowing 11 runs and managing just one.
Cash is pleased that the Rays at least managed to get on the scoreboard. Before that, Tampa Bay was riding the second-longest scoreless streak in the postseason in MLB history, including the 2022 postseason, with 33 innings in which they failed to get a single run. They were dangerously close to tying and possibly breaking the unflattering record of 34 scoreless innings held by the Los Angeles Dodgers (1966 to 1974).
“I’m glad we scored a run because if not we’d have been talking about that a lot,” Cash added. “Look, our bats just didn’t come to life.”
