On January 8,2012,Cash announced his retirement as a player. He was announced as an advance scout for the Blue Jays during the 2012 season. [61]
Managing
After the 2014 season,Cash was a finalist,alongside Jeff Bannister and Tim Bogar,for the Texas Rangers manager role. He was ultimately the runner-up to Bannister. [66] On December 5,2014,the Tampa Bay Rays hired Cash as their manager,succeeding Joe Maddon and becoming the youngest manager in the MLB. He was chosen over Royals bench coach Don Wakamatsu and Raul Ibanez. [67] Cash's initial contract was for $5 million over five years. [68] [69]
In 2015,Cash had more replay challenges than any other MLB manager with 54,but also had the lowest success rate with 31.5%. [70] He was also the only manager to have more than 10 challenges within the first two innings. [71] His first ejection as a manager came on April 16,following an unsuccessful replay challenge. [72] The Rays finished with an 82–80 record that year. [73]
In June 2016,the Rays went through an 11-game losing streak. [74] By mid-August Tampa Bay was 127–155 under Cash. Despite this,Rays owner Stuart Sternberg came out in support of his manager. [75] Instead,the Rays fired hitting coach Derek Shelton on September 6. [76] Cash greatly improved his success rate on replay challenges,becoming the 11th most successful manager with a 59.2% overturn rate in 2016. [77] The Rays finished with a 68–94 record that year. [78]
On July 2,2017,Cash fractured his ankle while running. He managed the game that day and remained with the team. [79] By August 30,the Rays were 214-244 under Cash,though he was still expected to return as manager. [80] The Rays finished with an 80–82 record,a 12-win improvement over the 2016 season. [81] Following the 2017 season,pitching coach Jim Hickey,bench coach Tom Foley,and assistant hitting coach Jamie Nelson left their positions. All three had been in place under Joe Maddon. [82]
In 2018,Cash's Rays introduced the concept of the opener,a relief pitcher who would pitch to the first few batters of a game before giving way to a pitcher who can pitch for multiple innings. Tampa Bay first tried this new approach with Sergio Romo on May 19,and then again on May 22 and 23. [83] By August,the team's openers had a combined 3.97 ERA against the 4.15 league average. [84] Other MLB teams soon adopted the strategy. [85] [86] He also became known for his unorthodox substitutions. On June 26,Jose Alvarado pitched to a batter in the ninth inning,then moved to first base for an out,before returning to the mound to face the next hitter. [87] Cash did it again on July 25,when he had Romo temporarily move to third base in the ninth inning. guided the Rays to a 90–72 record that year;however,Tampa Bay still missed the playoffs. [88] On October 9,2018,it was announced that the Rays had extended Cash through the 2024 season with an additional option year. [89]
During the 2018 Winter Meetings in December,Cash told the media that the Rays would continue to deploy an opener in 2019. [90] On April 7,2019,he had left-hander Adam Kolarek temporarily play first base so he could stay in to pitch against two left-handed batters. [91] On July 24,he orchestrated the same maneuver. [92] Red Sox manager Alex Cora was so confused by the move that he went onto the field four different times to get clarification from the umpire;only one pitch was thrown over a 21-minute period. Boston completed the game under protest over concerns of illegal substitutions. [93] The Rays clinched the American League Wild Card on September 27 [94] and finished in second place in the AL East with a 96–66 record. [95] Tampa Bay defeated the Oakland Athletics in the Wild Card Game [96] then fell to the Astros in the Division Series. [97] He was named American League Manager of the Year by Sporting News for leading a team with a $53 million payroll to a playoff berth. [98]
On September 1,2020,New York Yankees pitcher Aroldis Chapman threw a pitch that narrowly missed the head of Rays batter Mike Brosseau. After the game,Cash warned the Yankees that "I got a whole damn stable full of guys that throw 98 mph. Period." [99] Cash received a one-game suspension for his comments. [100] The 2020 Rays finished first in the AL East,and advanced to the 2020 World Series via playoff wins over the Toronto Blue Jays (2–0),Yankees (3–2),and Houston Astros (4–3). [101] The Rays went on to lose the World Series to the Los Angeles Dodgers (4-2). [102] In a controversial decision in game six,Cash removed starting pitcher and former Cy Young award winner Blake Snell from the game in the sixth inning while holding a 1–0 lead. Snell had only allowed two hits while striking out nine batters. While the move was typical of the season long strategy for the Rays,many were critical of the decision to bring in reliever Nick Anderson. [103] A normally dominant Anderson may have been overworked,having pitched over 14 innings in the 2020 playoffs. [104] Mookie Betts doubled with a runner on,setting up World Series MVP Corey Seager to drive in the go ahead runs. This move sparked controversy from many members of the media,fans,and some players,including Snell himself. [105] Cash said after the game "I guess I regret it because it didn't work out. But I feel like the thought process was right... Every decision that's made,that end result has a pretty weighing factor in how you feel about it. If we had to do it over again,I would have the utmost confidence in Nick Anderson to get through that inning.". [103] Cash was recognized with the American League (AL) Manager of the Year Award for his team's accomplishments. [106]
On September 25,2021,the Rays clinched their second straight division title. Cash said about the accomplishment "We've proven we're the best team in the American League for six months. Let's keep grinding,and let's do it for one more month and then see where we go.". [107] In the 2021 American League Division Series,they faced the Boston Red Sox,who they had beaten eleven out of nineteen times that year. The Rays won the first game,but Boston won the next three,with back-to-back walk-off wins,to advance to the next round. [108] However,Cash was awarded his second Manager of the Year award,marking the first time that an AL manager won it in consecutive years. [109] [110]
On September 30,2022,the Rays clinched a postseason berth,securing the tiebreaker against the Toronto Blue Jays. [111] Cash led the Rays to a 90-72 record in 2022. [112] However,they were swept 2–0 by the Cleveland Guardians im the 2022 American League Wild Card Series. [113]
The Rays courted controversy during the team's annual LGBTQ+ Pride Night in 2022,when at least five players opted out of wearing a Pride-themed logo and cap. Cash said that the controversy did not divide the team,but provoked internal conversations within the organization. [114] [115] A year later,after an MLB directive banned teams from having players wearing Pride-themed patches and logos,Cash spoke in support of Pride Night:"We welcome our LGBTQ+ community —not just today. It's an everyday thing. We want everybody to come out here and feel safe at the ballpark." [116]
The Rays started the 2023 season on a 13-game winning streak. [117] Cash's team finished second in the American League East with a 99–63 record. [118] They were again swept in the playoffs,losing two in a row to the Texas Rangers in the 2023 American League Wild Card Series. [119] Cash ended the season with a 739–617 record and five consecutive playoff berths. [120] He also finished third in Manager of the Year voting,finishing behind Brandon Hyde of the Baltimore Orioles and Bruce Bochy of the Rangers. [121] On February 8,2024,the Rays announced that Cash and baseball operations Erik Neander were both signed to multi-year extensions. [122] On May 4,2024,Cash got his 755th career win,the record for most wins by a Tampa Bay Rays manager passing Joe Maddon. [123]
