I don’t care who you ask. I don’t care what “expert” you think is the most educated on Major League Baseball coming into the season or throughout the year. The one expert no one asked was me. Justin DiSanto. No one asked my opinion on the Tampa Bay Rays coming into the season and it was a damn mistake. I don’t think anyone saw this coming except for me and a few of the boys who are also Rays fans. Die hard I might add. Unless, they get moved into Canada. If that is the case the Rays would lose a few of their only die-hard fans left standing on this Earth or even universe.

For now, we don’t have to worry too much about that. Instead we are concerned about the 2019 Tampa Bay Rays who are off to their best start in franchise history through 16 games with a 12-4 record.

Wondering what the AL East standings look like right now? Let’s take a look:

1. Tampa Bay Rays- 12-4
2. Baltimore Orioles 7-10
3. New York Yankees- 6-9 🙂
4. Toronto Blue Jays- 6-11
5. Boston Red Sox- 6-11

I bet none of these baseball “experts” saw this coming. I understand it’s only through 16 games, not even a quarter of the season through yet but the Rays right now also lead baseball in run differential with +38. That stat is no joke as it shows the Rays are almost as balanced as a team can get in the MLB right now and at the moment, do not look like they are in any position to slow down. They aren’t exactly hitting the shit out of the ball as they are 15th in baseball in runs scored with 78, but their pitching has held up their end of the bargain. With Blake Snell coming off of his beautiful Cy Young Award winning season, the addition of veteran Charlie Morton, young stud Tyler Glasnow, and a really balanced bullpen, if injuries don’t seem to fuck this up, the Rays are looking solid.

The Rays hitting is also nothing to sleep on like times in the past. With the addition of Austin Meadows from the Chris Archer trade last year, the Rays finally have a table setter who looks comfortable and can contribute on all faucets of the game. Meadows is currently tied for fifth in all of baseball with six home runs (and leading the team) while also leading the team in hits with 20, average (.357), on base (.438), slugging .732), and OPS with 1.170. Meadows has yet to play a full Major League season so there is some regression expected. For now, he looks like an early All-Star pick coming out of Tampa Bay. Tommy Pham is also having himself a solid year all around and has shown in the past that these numbers are sustainable. Pham is slashing .276/.403/.379 with two bombs, seven RBI’s, and a team leading five steals. The Rays obviously have Willy Adames at short, the best fielding center fielder in baseball in Kevin Kiermaier, super utility man Brandon Lowe, and Mike Zunino to balance out the rest of their line up.

Boys, girls, ladies, gentleman, this is the fucking year. I have to cuss because it shows my passion. I know my passion shows a lot and I apologize but someone needs to do it. Just like every year, this season is shaping up to be unique one and will be exciting to keep tabs on. For now, the Rays look great and hopefully they can sustain this success the rest of the way. Thank you and let’s go Rays! Sting em, Rays up, Rays up sting em baby let’s go!