My Two Cents: Team Meeting, Speedy Rookie Changes Narrative for Red-Hot Rays

SAN DIEGO, Calif. — When the Tampa Bay Rays flew out of Tampa a week ago, they were a fragile mess. They had just lost five of six games to archrivals Boston and New York and were only 9-13 despite playing 19 of their first 22 games at home.

They looked lifeless in a 5-1 loss to Arizona to start this road trip, but then had a nice comeback win in extra innings on Wednesday. And when the game was over, something important — something very important — happened.

With the clubhouse doors closed, several voices spoke up in a players-only meeting. It was a ''clear the air'' moment. Just a few players spoke — but everyone listened. The message was that they were good baseball players, and that good things will happen if they just keep working hard.

They haven't lost since. They beat Arizona twice and then swept a San Diego Padres team that was 12-1 at home before the Rays arrived.

Suddenly, all is well.

“It won’t probably be very elaborate. It was just a couple of guys talking after the win we had in extra innings (on Wednesday),'' Rays pitcher Shane Baz said Saturday when asked about the meeting. "Just motivating everybody and encouraging everybody to keep doing our part and things will start going our way, It was quick. I don’t really want to elaborate on who talked, but it was good. There were a few, and it was a great thing. It was perfect.

“It’s just the game of baseball. Sometimes you feel like you play really good and then you still get a loss, and other times you kind of sneak out a win even though you may not necessarily deserve it. You just have to keep grinding, and that was the message. Let’s just keep playing, and everybody do their part.’’

Since Wednesday night, the Rays are playing great baseball in every phase. The pitching has been sensational, holding the hard-hitting Padres to just three runs in three games during the streak. They were helped by outstanding defense, as well. The Rays haven't made an error since Wednesday and since then, they've also made about a dozen highlight-reel plays both in the infield and outfield.

Toss in just enough timely hitting and being major threats on the base paths, and the wins are coming in bunches. The flight home to Tampa on Sunday night had to be much more fun than the flight out here.

And the team meeting had a lot to do with it.

"It was just the best thing to say it out loud for everybody to hear,'' pitcher Taj Bradley said. "We're sectioned off a lot of the time, with the hitters knowing what they have to do, and the pitchers know what they have to do. As long as the mesage is presented to everybody, you can be self-assured that we all are going to do our jobs to the best of our abilities.

"There wasn't an elephant in the room or anything like that, it was just more about the task at hand. And I think you've seen that all week. We're playing really good baseball, and the wins are starting to pile up. I figured they would, but it was a good thing that it got said.''

There's a second component to this winning streak as well. And that's center fielder Chandler Simpson, the rookie sensation who's considered the fastest player in baseball. Everyone in the Rays' organization knew he could run, but he's also been a terrific hitter — he's hitting .400 so far (12-for-30) with five runs scored and three RBIs. He's also made several dramatic catches in the outfield, most notably stealing a home run from Manny Machado on Saturday night.

He's been an instant spark, which is one thing. The other is how he goes about his business, like a true pro, even though he's only got a week and change in the big leagues on his resume.

"He's had quite the impact already,'' Rays manager Kevin Cash said. "The bat-to-ball, we were confident with him coming up, but the way that he's come in against some elite relievers, some elite starters, nothing seems to phase him and he's just continuing to get more confidence as he goes. He's been helping us with our offense and our defense, both ways.''

Simpson has been part of a new wave of outfielders that are getting playing time out of necessity. Richie Palacios had a finger injury in the spring and then in his first game back, he hurt his knee and will be out at least a month. Right fielder Josh Lowe (oblique) got hurt on Opening Day, and center fielder Jonny Deluca (shoulder) went down two weeks ago. They're all on the injured list, and Jake Mangum joined them earlier last week with a groin injury.

Simpson has been pressed into duty, and he's thriving. He's had a hit in all eight games so far, the fourth-longest streak to start a career. (Rocco Baldelli has the record with 11.) Everyone loves the kid. The winning certainly helps, because it sets the tone for more fun and frivolity in the locker room. It's all blending together nicely — and now they just need to keep it up. They are off on Monday, and start a three-game set at home Tuesday against the Kansas City Royals.

"It's really good, just to see some wins,'' said shortstop Taylor Walls, who hit his first home run of the year during Sunday's 4-2 win. "This road trip, things are starting to fall our way, and it's nice to see. Chandler has been a big part of that. He continues to impress. Everybody knew about his speed, but he also has the ability to impact the game offensively and defensively. Today, him adding that insurance run (in the ninth inning) was huge.

"He's come up in some huge spots and came up big. He impacts the game in all three phases. That's what this team is built on. When you're name's called, you deliver. He impacts the game in a positive way.''

The Rays are back to .500 now at 14-14. They've passed the Baltimore Orioles and Toronto Blue Jays this week during the winning streak, and are in third place in the American League East. No one is going nuts in the division — they're just a game behind Boston and three behind the Yankees — and it's still very early.

But this winning streak — fueled by a quick get-together that helped free up some minds and Simpson's immediate impact — has re-set the season for the Rays. They're right back in the thick of things now, and they need to continue to play good baseball in every phase.

We've seen every bit of that during this five-game winning streak on the road, their first since 2023. Arizona and San Diego are really good teams, and the Rays plowed right through them.

They're feeling good about themselves right now.

And that's a good thing.

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