Rays' all-time retired numbers

Tampa Bay opened its doors to Major League Baseball in 1998 as the expansion Tampa Bay "Devil Rays," and the franchise already had a retired number in place before ever playing a game.

That's because Jackie Robinson's number had already been retired by every team in baseball. In recognition of his legacy, Robinson's number was retired "in perpetuity" on April 15, 1997, never to be worn again in the Major Leagues.

Only two numbers worn by Tampa Bay personnel have been retired by the franchise.

The Rays do not have defined criteria that must be met for a number to be retired. Suffice it to say, if the Rays organization sees fit to retire a player's or a coach's number, they have made a special contribution to the team.

Wade Boggs, 3B: No. 12
Number retired: April 7, 2000
Boggs has an outstanding .328 career batting average and he won five batting titles during his 18-year Major League career that included stints with the Red Sox, Yankees and Devil Rays. On Aug. 7, 1999, he became a member of the elite 3,000-hit club when he homered off Cleveland's Chris Haney at Tropicana Field. Boggs retired as a Devil Ray in 1999 and served as the team's hitting coach through the 2001 season. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2005.

Jackie Robinson: No. 42
Number retired: 1997
In 1947, Robinson broke baseball's color barrier by integrating the sport. He overcame numerous obstacles off the field, and he helped lead the Brooklyn Dodgers to six pennants and one World Series championship. The six-time All-Star was National League Rookie of the Year in 1947 and NL Most Valuable Player in 1949. In 1997, the 50th anniversary of his debut, every team in baseball retired his number. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1962.

Don Zimmer, Coach: No. 66
Number retired: April 6, 2015
Zimmer spent 65 years in professional baseball, 56 of those in the Major Leagues as a player, coach and manager. He reached the postseason 19 times, won six World Series rings, and spent the last 11 years of his life as the Rays' senior baseball advisor -- his longest tenure with any of the 14 clubs that employed him. "Zim" and his wife, Soot, called the Tampa Bay area home since the late 1950s.