Rays' Pitcher Flashes Elite Upside in Season Debut

The Tampa Bay Rays saw a very encouraging start from their pitcher on Tuesday.

Sep 26, 2025; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; The hat and glove of Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Junior Caminero (13) in the dugout during the game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre. | John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images

With five games in the books for the Tampa Bay Rays, they have officially gone through their starting rotation once already this year, and they have a 2-3 record to show for their efforts. 

It has been a bit of an up-and-down start to the season for the Rays, who are just starting to get their feet wet in the 2026 campaign. Tampa Bay had their schedule start off with a brutal nine-game road trip to begin the season. That is certainly not an easy way to kick off the year, but the Rays are trying to make the most of it. 

While they might not have been able to win their series against the St. Louis Cardinals, they did take the first game against a talented Milwaukee Brewers squad. In the second game of the set, it was the return of southpaw Shane McClanahan to the mound. 

The left-hander hadn’t pitched in a game in the majors in two years, and his return has been one of the most closely monitored things for the franchise this winter. Fortunately, he has been able to have a relatively normal offseason program, and that is key for him to have success during the regular season. On Tuesday, the results might have been a bit mixed, but he did flash some of that All-Star upside. 

McClanahan Has Mixed Results 

Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Shane McClanahan | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

While there were undoubtedly a ton of emotions for him in the bottom half of the first inning, he was able to set down the Brewers in order while recording a strikeout in the first frame. That set the tone a bit for the next few frames, and McClanahan had a no-hitter going through four innings. 

With a 2-0 lead entering the bottom of the fifth inning, the southpaw got into some trouble, walking the leadoff batter. Following that, he was able to get a foul out, but then a base hit followed. Sal Frelick lined out to center field, resulting in two outs in the frame. 

Unfortunately, McClanahan then walked his second batter of the inning to load the bases, and then an RBI single ended up scoring all three runners on a throwing error by Cedric Mullins. 

That sequence would end up being the end of the southpaw’s day, but there were certainly some positives to his performance. Overall, he finished pitching 4.2 innings, allowing three runs, two of which were earned, and struck out four batters. Control was a bit of an issue for him with three walks, but it was overall a solid return for the left-hander. 

While it could take some time to fully get back into gear, Tuesday was a big step in the right direction.