Pitchers
The Tampa Bay Rays are a Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise based in St. Petersburg, Florida. They play in the American League East division. The first game of the new baseball season for a team is played on Opening Day, and being named the Opening Day starter is an honor, which is often given to the player who is expected to lead the pitching staff that season, [1] though there are various strategic reasons why a team's best pitcher might not start on Opening Day. [2] The Rays have used fifteen different Opening Day starting pitchers in their twenty-six seasons. Since the franchise's beginning in 1998, the fifteen starters have a combined Opening Day record of seven wins, ten losses (7–10), and nine no decisions. [3] [4] [5] [6] "No decisions" are awarded to the starting pitcher if the game is won or lost after the starting pitcher has left the game.
Chris Archer and James Shields holds the Rays' record for most Opening Day starts with four. Archer has one win, two losses, and one no decision, while Shields has one win, one loss, and two no decisions. [3] The all-time record for a Tampa Bay starting pitcher winning an Opening Day game is one, shared by Steve Trachsel, Albie Lopez, Victor Zambrano, James Shields, David Price, Chris Archer, and Shane McClanahan. [3]
Overall, Rays starting pitchers have a combined 5–7 record at home and 2–3 when they are away for Opening Day. [3] [5] In 2004, the Rays opened the season against the New York Yankees at Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan. [3] [7] Although that game was not played in Tampa Bay's actual home of Tropicana Field, it was still considered a home game for the Rays. [3] [7] Tampa Bay beat the Yankees 8–3 in that game, giving starting pitcher Victor Zambrano the win. [7]
| Season | Each year is linked to an article about that particular Rays season. |
| W | Win |
| L | Loss |
| ND (W) | No decision by starting pitcher; Rays won game |
| ND (L) | No decision by starting pitcher; Rays lost game |
| Pitcher (#) | Number of appearances as Opening Day starter with the Rays |
| * | Advanced to the post-season |
| ** | Won the American League Championship Series |
Daniel Ryan Johnson is an American former professional baseball first baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for six teams, over ten seasons, as well as one season in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), but never held a Major League starting job for an entire season. He is perhaps best known for hitting a dramatic two-out, two-strike home run for the Tampa Bay Rays in the bottom of the ninth inning of the last game of the 2011 season, also known as Wild Card Wednesday. That home run tied the game, which the Rays eventually won, sending them to the playoffs. His clutch hitting for the Rays, along with his red hair and beard, earned him the nickname "The Great Pumpkin".
Kevin Forrest Cash is an American professional baseball manager and former player who is the manager of the Tampa Bay Rays of Major League Baseball (MLB). Previously, Cash played catcher in MLB for the Toronto Blue Jays, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, and Houston Astros. As a player, Cash was listed at 6 feet 0 inches (1.83 m) and 200 pounds (91 kg); he batted and threw right-handed. He was the bullpen coach for the Cleveland Indians before being hired as the Rays' manager in December 2014. Cash was the American League Manager of the Year in 2020 and 2021, the first AL manager to win the award consecutively. Cash will enter the 2024 season as the longest-tenured manager in MLB.
Roberto Heredia Hernández is a Dominican former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cleveland Indians, Tampa Bay Rays, Philadelphia Phillies, Los Angeles Dodgers, Houston Astros, and Atlanta Braves.
Opening Day is the day on which professional baseball leagues begin their regular season. For Major League Baseball (MLB) and most of the American minor leagues, this day typically falls during the first week of April, although in recent years it has occasionally fallen in the last week of March. In Nippon Professional Baseball, this day typically falls during the last week of March.
Masahiro Tanaka is a Japanese professional baseball player for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). From 2007 through 2013, he played for the Eagles in NPB. Tanaka was posted by the Eagles after the 2013 season to be signed with the New York Yankees in Major League Baseball (MLB) and signed a seven-year, $155 million contract, the fifth-largest deal ever given to a pitcher at the time. He made his major league debut in 2014 and played for the Yankees through the 2020 season, before deciding to return to Japan.
The 2008 Major League Baseball season began on March 25, 2008, in Tokyo, Japan with the 2007 World Series champion Boston Red Sox defeating the Oakland Athletics at the Tokyo Dome 6–5 in the first game of a two-game series, and ended on September 30 with the host Chicago White Sox defeating the Minnesota Twins in a one-game playoff to win the AL Central. The Civil Rights Game, an exhibition, in Memphis, Tennessee, took place March 29 when the New York Mets beat the Chicago White Sox, 3–2.
The 2008 New York Yankees season was the 106th season for the New York Yankees franchise. The Yankees hosted the 2008 All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday July 15, 2008. It was the 83rd and last season at the original Yankee Stadium prior to the team's move to a new ballpark just north of the current stadium. It also marked the first season since 1993 that the Yankees failed to make it to the playoffs. Also, it would also be the first under a new team skipper, former team catcher Joe Girardi, who assumed the managerial role in the offseason. The next active playoff streak belonged to the NHL's Detroit Red Wings who made the playoffs every year since 1991 until it was broken in 2017.
The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in the Tampa Bay area. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. The Rays are one of two major league clubs based in Florida, alongside the National League (NL)’s Miami Marlins. Since its inception, the team's home ballpark has been Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida.
Jeremy Robert Hellickson is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Tampa Bay Rays, Arizona Diamondbacks, Philadelphia Phillies, Baltimore Orioles, and Washington Nationals. Following the 2011 season, Hellickson was named American League Rookie of the Year. In Tampa Bay, Hellickson was nicknamed "Hellboy" by local fans and media.
Christopher Alan Archer is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Tampa Bay Rays, Pittsburgh Pirates and Minnesota Twins.
Blake Ashton Snell is an American professional baseball pitcher for the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Tampa Bay Rays and San Diego Padres.
Brent Lee Honeywell Jr. is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Tampa Bay Rays, San Diego Padres, Chicago White Sox, and Pittsburgh Pirates.
The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) East division. Since its inception, the team's home venue has been Tropicana Field.
Yonny Enrique Chirinos Mejias is a Venezuelan professional baseball pitcher for the Miami Marlins of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Tampa Bay Rays and Atlanta Braves.
In baseball, an opening pitcher, more frequently referred to as an opener, is a pitcher who specializes in getting the first outs in a game, before being replaced by a long reliever or a pitcher who would typically be a starting pitcher. Pitchers employed in the role of opener have usually been relief pitchers by trade. The strategy was frequently employed in Major League Baseball (MLB) by the Tampa Bay Rays during the 2018 season, when it was adopted by other teams as well.
The 2020 New York Yankees season was the 118th season for the New York Yankees. The Yankees played in Yankee Stadium in the city's northern borough of The Bronx and were led by Aaron Boone in his third season as team manager.
The Rays–Red Sox rivalry is a Major League Baseball (MLB) rivalry between the Tampa Bay Rays and Boston Red Sox clubs. The rivalry intensified in 2008, after the two clubs had their first postseason meeting in the ALCS. Since then, both teams have won the American League (AL) East division a combined seven times in the past 13 years. While the rivalry is more recent than the storied Yankees–Red Sox rivalry, it has been called one of the most competitive in modern baseball.