Rays Earn Well-Deserved Elite First Month of Season Grade
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Coming into the 2026 MLB regular season, the Tampa Bay Rays were a team that many fans and evaluators didn’t have high expectations for.
There were a lot of question marks surrounding their lineup and how the team would consistently be able to produce offense. Some people questioned their additions of Steven Matz and Nick Martinez to the starting rotation as well.
Through the first month of the season, all of those naysayers have been proven wrong. The Rays have been one of the best teams in baseball, owning a 22-12 record entering play on May 5.
Blowing away all expectations that were placed on them, it should come as no surprise that they are one of the highest-graded teams in the MLB by David Schoenfield of ESPN through the first month of the season.
Rays have earned elite grade for first month of season
He gave the Rays an A-, which the Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals also received. The only teams that received better marks were the Atlanta Braves, who got an A+, and the New York Yankees, who were given an A.
Thus far, Tampa Bay is thriving in close games. They are 6-1 in one-run games thus far, mixing clutch hitting with some timely pitching performances from a bullpen that has been sporadic at points.
However, one reliever who was struggling, Griffin Jax, has found his rhythm as an opener. In his last two outings, he has started the game in front of bulk inning pitcher Jesse Scholtens and the results have been magnificent.
In the lineup, the Rays are receiving incredible production from their Big 3 of third baseman Junior Caminero, first baseman Jonathan Aranda and designated hitter Yandy Diaz. The big question was who outside of those three would step up, and others have.
It’s over. We have the high ground.#RaysUp | #RaysWin pic.twitter.com/P6zT26S5XU
— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) May 5, 2026
Chandler Simpson has been a sparkplug with his contact-centric approach at the plate and elite speed. Jake Fraley and Jonny DeLuca had OPS+ numbers of 102 and 111 through their first 74 and 72 plate appearances, respectively, helping improve what was a woeful offensive outfield group in 2025.
Those three having success has certainly helped make up for Cedric Mullins, who has been one of the biggest free agent busts in the MLB to this point. He signed a one-year, $7.5 million deal and has a .127/.189/.225 slash line through his first 113 plate appearances with an OPS+ of 15 and -0.7 bWAR.
It will be interesting to see how long this current group can keep up this level of play, given some of the holes on the roster. But with so many teams in the AL underachieving, this scrappy Tampa Bay squad looks like it's here to stay.
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Kenneth Teape is an alumnus of SUNY Old Westbury and graduated in 2013 with an Honors Degree in Media Communications with a focus on print journalism. During his time at Old Westbury, he worked for the school newspaper and several online publications, such as Knicks Now, the official website of the New York Knicks, and a self-made website with fellow students, Gotham City Sports News. Kenneth has also been a site expert at Empire Writes Back, Musket Fire, and Lake Show Life within the FanSided Network. He was a contributor to HoopsHabit, with work featured on Bleacher Report and Yardbarker. Previously, he is a reporter for both NBA Analysis Network and NFL Analysis Network, as well as a writer and editor for Packers Coverage. You can follow him on X, formerly Twitter, @teapester725, or reach him via email at teapester725@gmail.com.