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Art Deco · 11-20-2025, 05:19 PM

Record: 52-29
1st place, AL East, 8 games up on Baltimore.

There was definitely some concern coming into the season and coming off a World Series win with numerous players leaving for free agency, losing 2/3 of our outfield, our closer, a starting pitcher and both catchers. But instead of a rebuild it's been a reload as the Rays boast the best record in the AL and trail only Cincinnati (55-27) for the best record in MLB. All those offseason holes have been filled adroitly, with Ryan Cermak blossoming as a full-time OF, Lazaro Montes and Jose Ramos putting up combined all-star numbers as a platoon, Will Klein thriving in the closer's role and the Ike Irish/Dom Keegan pairing a hit behind the plate.

Here's how things look around MLB at the midway point:

It's been a real team effort on offense as we don't have anyone among the league leaders but everyone is pulling their weight. There are a couple of Rays starters among the pitching leaders which we'll get to shortly.

The team has been largely consistent throughout the season with only one mini-slump. The offense has been quite decent and homer-centric, while the pitching has been the class of the league as you can see above.

As mentioned, nobody is truly tearing it up offensively (Meadows and Williams lead the club in WAR but a lot of that comes from their gloves), but quite a few players are doing just fine. The one big exception is our big star Junior Caminero, coming off seasons of 6.8 and 5.1 WAR and giving us only 0.3 in the first half. He should get untracked at some point so that's a plus - I think. Hays is likely going to be DFA'd soon, perhaps in favor of Lara, who was just called up and is a high-average speed guy that could play instead against lefties.

The Bradley/McGee/Smith combo might be MLB's best threesome and although it was a shame to lose Schwellenbach to injury after pitching so well, Misiorowski has been solid even if his overall numbers aren't that hot - he's pitched much better in his last 4-5 starts. Sheehan has been a solid back-end guy. As mentioned Klein has been a quality closer, and the unsung heroes of the staff have been Horton and Mercedes, both excelling in multi-inning relief roles. Lopez though has been dreadful and like Hays on offense, a likely candidate for replacement.

The farm system may not be spectacular but it is solid, and has a pretty good amount of depth with three more guys making MLB's top 500. Cuebas has backed up his elite prospect status with good numbers in the DSL but he's of course several years away. Closest to the bigs is 2025 top pick Schoolcraft, who just returned from a minor injury. The 2-way guy still needs to refine his mound repertoire and while he boasts 65 MLB power (now, not potential) and 18 HR so far this year, that goes with 40 contact (45 potential). He's still a potential 70/60/45 pitcher though so his progress in that department will determine his arrival.

11-20-2025, 05:19 PM	#243
Art Deco Hall Of Famer Join Date: May 2020 Posts: 7,602	2029 Midseason Review Record: 52-29 1st place, AL East, 8 games up on Baltimore. There was definitely some concern coming into the season and coming off a World Series win with numerous players leaving for free agency, losing 2/3 of our outfield, our closer, a starting pitcher and both catchers. But instead of a rebuild it's been a reload as the Rays boast the best record in the AL and trail only Cincinnati (55-27) for the best record in MLB. All those offseason holes have been filled adroitly, with Ryan Cermak blossoming as a full-time OF, Lazaro Montes and Jose Ramos putting up combined all-star numbers as a platoon, Will Klein thriving in the closer's role and the Ike Irish/Dom Keegan pairing a hit behind the plate. Here's how things look around MLB at the midway point: It's been a real team effort on offense as we don't have anyone among the league leaders but everyone is pulling their weight. There are a couple of Rays starters among the pitching leaders which we'll get to shortly. The team has been largely consistent throughout the season with only one mini-slump. The offense has been quite decent and homer-centric, while the pitching has been the class of the league as you can see above. As mentioned, nobody is truly tearing it up offensively (Meadows and Williams lead the club in WAR but a lot of that comes from their gloves), but quite a few players are doing just fine. The one big exception is our big star Junior Caminero, coming off seasons of 6.8 and 5.1 WAR and giving us only 0.3 in the first half. He should get untracked at some point so that's a plus - I think. Hays is likely going to be DFA'd soon, perhaps in favor of Lara, who was just called up and is a high-average speed guy that could play instead against lefties. The Bradley/McGee/Smith combo might be MLB's best threesome and although it was a shame to lose Schwellenbach to injury after pitching so well, Misiorowski has been solid even if his overall numbers aren't that hot - he's pitched much better in his last 4-5 starts. Sheehan has been a solid back-end guy. As mentioned Klein has been a quality closer, and the unsung heroes of the staff have been Horton and Mercedes, both excelling in multi-inning relief roles. Lopez though has been dreadful and like Hays on offense, a likely candidate for replacement. The farm system may not be spectacular but it is solid, and has a pretty good amount of depth with three more guys making MLB's top 500. Cuebas has backed up his elite prospect status with good numbers in the DSL but he's of course several years away. Closest to the bigs is 2025 top pick Schoolcraft, who just returned from a minor injury. The 2-way guy still needs to refine his mound repertoire and while he boasts 65 MLB power (now, not potential) and 18 HR so far this year, that goes with 40 contact (45 potential). He's still a potential 70/60/45 pitcher though so his progress in that department will determine his arrival.