This story was excerpted from Adam Berry’s Rays Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
TAMPA -- Memorial Day is an early mile marker in the Major League season, the first time it feels acceptable to look at the standings and search for some sort of meaning.
And after extending the Majors’ longest active winning streak to six games on Monday night, the Rays are … right in the middle.
While they’ve climbed above .500 (27-26) for the first time since early April, they have the eighth-best record in the American League -- seven teams ahead of them, seven teams behind -- and the 15th-best record in the Majors.
The Rays have topped out at three games over .500 and fallen as far as five games under. If those numbers sound familiar, it’s because that was their exact range as they hovered around the break-even point and finished 80-82 last season.
The Rays figured they’d learn a lot about this year’s team during the first third of the season. Their optimistic outlook is that this could play out more like 2018, when they mostly held their ground until it all came together down the stretch, and less like last year. There's plenty of time left to find out.
For now, let’s hand out some awards to review the first third of the Rays’ season.
MVP: Jonathan Aranda
Brandon Lowe leads the team with 10 homers and is tied for the team lead with 29 RBIs, and it’s no coincidence his recent hot streak coincides with the team’s best stretch. But Aranda has been their most productive hitter overall in his long-awaited breakout season. Starting most days at first base, Aranda is batting .302/.381/.491 with seven homers, nine doubles and 28 RBIs in his first 48 games while leading the team in WAR and OPS+.
Cy Young: Drew Rasmussen
Rasmussen is expected to max out around 150 innings this season, part of the reason he’d mostly been limited to five innings before going six scoreless each of the last two times out. But he’s sure making the most of the innings he’s got. Rasmussen has put together a 2.60 ERA and 1.00 WHIP with 43 strikeouts against 12 walks in 52 innings over 10 starts. What separates Rasmussen is his consistency, despite the Rays being only 4-6 in his starts. He’s allowed more than three runs once (four on April 24), he’s failed to complete five innings just once (4 1/3 IP on May 6), and he’s permitted one run or less in six of his outings.
Top relievers: Pete Fairbanks, Garrett Cleavinger
This was a tough pick, resulting in a split decision. Manuel Rodríguez has been pretty nasty, too, sporting a 2.13 ERA and a 0.91 WHIP. Fairbanks’ peripherals aren’t quite as impressive, as he’s walked 12 batters in 22 innings, but he’s gotten the job done with a 2.05 ERA with 10 saves in 11 opportunities over his first 23 appearances. And Cleavinger has simply been lights-out, aside from Carlos Correa’s home run on Monday night. The lefty has almost flown under the radar despite owning a 2.14 ERA, a 0.81 WHIP and more than six times as many strikeouts (25) as walks (four).
Top rookie: Chandler Simpson
It might have been Jake Mangum, if not for a late-April groin strain. You could argue for Kameron Misner, who has been quietly excellent in center field while hitting for some power. But the pick here is Simpson, who is hitting .295 with 14 steals. Simpson has room to grow, especially in the outfield, but considering he had only just been promoted to Double-A this time a year ago, what he’s doing -- and how he’s doing it his way -- is quite impressive.
Best development: Defense shining
Aranda’s success and the performance of the aforementioned rookie outfielders have been highlights. But there were some questions about Tampa Bay’s defense heading into the regular season, including some from the coaching staff, and the Rays have eased a lot of those concerns, especially in the infield. Only the Angels have turned more double plays, and the Rays rank among the Major League leaders in Defensive Runs Saved so far this season. It takes pitching and defense to create the Rays’ run-prevention foundation, and they’re consistently getting the latter at a high level.
Worst development: Not hitting lefties
We’re not counting the extended absence of Shane McClanahan, since his injury took place in Spring Training. And this one flaw incorporates several early issues: Junior Caminero’s inconsistent hitting, Yandy Díaz’s uneven performance, Danny Jansen’s rough start at the plate, Christopher Morel’s continued struggles and Curtis Mead’s difficulty carrying his strong spring into the regular season. The Rays entered the week batting just .212/.289/.319 against left-handed pitchers this season, good for a .608 OPS that ranked 27th in the Majors. They’ve still managed to go 8-8 against lefty starters, oddly, and their performance against lefties should improve if/when Jonny DeLuca and Ha-Seong Kim get healthy, Caminero finds his footing and Díaz’s numbers get back to his career norms.