Rays' path to playoffs: How the underdogs did it again

HOUSTON -- At one point Friday night, Corey Kluber moved to a corner of the visitors' clubhouse at Minute Maid Park, away from the spraying champagne and beer showers, and smiled as the Rays’ post-clinch party raged on. The veteran starter has taken part in plenty of similar celebrations, but experience doesn’t dull the enjoyment.

“There are people who play for a long time who don't get a chance to do that,” Kluber said. “I think you don't take it for granted each time you do.”

Nor do the Rays take their run of success for granted. This will be their fourth consecutive trip to the postseason, extending a franchise record. The traveling party has changed considerably since 2019, from year to year and within each season, but their end destination has remained the same.

The Rays join the Astros, Braves, Cardinals, Dodgers and Yankees as the only clubs to have reached the playoffs each year from 2019-22, and the National League Wild Card-contending Brewers are attempting to join that group as well.

Zooming out even further, this is Tampa Bay’s eighth postseason berth in the last 15 seasons, something only the Dodgers (12), Yankees (11) and Cardinals (10) can top. Making that accomplishment even more unlikely? According to MLB Network research, the Rays have had a bottom-five payroll in 14 of those 15 seasons.

“It's unbelievable. I think it's a testament to this organization as a whole,” starter Tyler Glasnow said. “I just think it's been amazing, the depth we've had. One guy goes down, another man steps up. It's been awesome. It's just been a really good organization to be a part of.”

Glasnow has been a part of the Rays’ last four postseason teams, but there’s been a ton of turnover on the roster. Of Tampa Bay’s top 12 players in 2019, as ranked by Baseball-Reference WAR, only half even played for this year’s team: Brandon Lowe (limited to 65 games this season), Kevin Kiermaier (63 games), Glasnow (debuted Wednesday), Yonny Chirinos (two appearances), Ji-Man Choi and Yandy Díaz.

How have the Rays managed to maintain a consistently high level of performance with a constantly evolving roster?

They churn out homegrown talent like Shane McClanahan and Wander Franco. They make smart trades like the ones that brought in Randy Arozarena, Drew Rasmussen, Jeffrey Springs and Isaac Paredes. They identify less-heralded players and get the most out of them, as they’ve done with Jason Adam and Harold Ramírez, among many others. And they build up a ton of depth in the process.

“From the top down, they're good at evaluating talent,” said reliever Pete Fairbanks, one of those savvy pickups in 2019. “Then you bring the talent in, and you give them a message of, 'Hey, this is why you're good. Now go do it.' And you do that cycle over and over again, and you kind of have the recipe for where we are right now.”

And that culture has not changed. Lefty reliever Brooks Raley, in his first season with the Rays, praised manager Kevin Cash, pitching coach Kyle Snyder and the entire staff for creating an environment where players feel comfortable.

“I think the staff is special. … New players all the time, new faces all the time,” Raley said. “They just kind of continuously find ways to find impact players. We've got some really good ones in here. … So don't knock the talent here, just because the salaries aren't the same, you know what I mean? The talent in this room is special. We've got a guy [in McClanahan] who started the All-Star Game this year. So, there's plenty of talent running around here, and I think everybody knows that.”

Similarly, president of baseball operations Erik Neander credited principal owner Stu Sternberg -- "There’s not a better owner to work for,” Neander said -- for establishing a culture that’s allowed the Rays’ front office to be creative and take chances other clubs might not.

“There's a lot about the environment that he's set up, established and has supported that has made a lot of this possible,” Neander added. “The trust that he has in us, the confidence, and not just to say it, but to back it up, it's a big part of why we've been able to achieve what we've been able to achieve.”

They don’t take it for granted, either.

“Really just proud of this group and glad they have this moment,” Neander said. “Hopefully, there [are] bigger moments ahead.”