José Caballero Notches 25th Stolen Base, Joins Tampa Bay Rays Icons in History Books

By swiping his 24th and 25th bags of the season Tuesday night against the Boston Red Sox, José Caballero achieved a feat the Tampa Bay Rays had only seen from Carl Crawford, B.J. Upton and Josh Lowe.

Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Tampa Bay Rays shortstop José Caballero (77) steals second base against Boston Red Sox shortstop Trevor Story (10) in the fifth inning at Fenway Park. | David Butler II-Imagn Images

BOSTON — José Caballero proved himself to be a force to be reckoned with on the basepaths the moment he reached the big leagues, stealing 26 bases as a rookie with the Seattle Mariners in 2023.

He has more than kept up that pace since getting traded to the Tampa Bay Rays.

After swiping an AL-leading 44 bags in 2024, Caballero entered Tuesday with the most stolen bases in MLB with 23. He immediately added to his total against the Boston Red Sox, stealing second after he singled to left in the top of the second.

The 28-year-old utility man drew a walk in the fifth, then stole second base. On top of bringing his season mark up to 25, it set the stage for him to get Tampa Bay on the board later in the inning.

Caballero is now one of four Rays players ever to record back-to-back seasons with at least 25 stolen bases, according to StatMuse.

Carl Crawford stole at least 25 bases every year between 2003 and 2010, while B.J. Upton did it each season from 2008 to 2012. Josh Lowe posted back-to-back 25-stolen base seasons in 2023 and 2024.

Caballero is sitting at 92 career stolen bases through 298 games. His 69 steals in a Rays uniform are tied with Miguel Cairo for ninth-most in franchise history.

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