The Tampa Bay Rays are one of the hotter teams in baseball over the last couple of weeks. They have risen in the American League East and are within spitting distance of one of the Wild Card spots. A number of factors have been behind this ascent. With the Rays, however, it comes down to pitching. The club is firing on that most important cylinder.
The Rays just finished a series in the Lone Star State in which they split a series with the Houston Astros, one of their rivals for the Wild Card spots in the American League. The Rays won a three-game series in Florida against the Astros, so a split of the four-game series in Houston is not the end of the world. This series showcased how the Rays can sustainably translate their momentum for the rest of the season.
Pitching is Powering the Rays
Even though the Rays dropped the final game against the Astros 1-0, the game was a tight affair from the very beginning. Hitting was at a premium and the Rays boast a collection of arms that are pitching extremely well. The Rays have a 3.48 ERA, ranked 7th in MLB. In their last 10 games, the Rays have a 1.52 ERA. Sunday’s loss maintained a stretch in which the Rays pitching staff has gone 13 straight games allowing four or fewer earned runs. In those 13 games, the Rays are 9-4. The pitching staff will be further improved once Shane McClanahan returns from his injury.
Zack Littell and Ryan Pepiot Deserve Recognition
The most impressive part is someone like Zack Littell. He is a reliever-turned-starter, posting a 3.86 ERA in 12 games this season. It wasn’t all that long ago when Littell looked lost when he was struggling with the Boston Red Sox. He has turned his career around since coming to the Rays. Littell is not going to strike out a boatload of guys, but he moves the ball around well.
And a Littell complete game
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— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) May 31, 2025
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Ryan Pepiot is another pitcher who has experienced success this season. Pepiot was acquired in the Tyler Glasnow trade, and the Rays are looking prescient in light of Glasnow’s injury issues with the Los Angeles Dodgers. His 3.21 ERA is backed up by a 19.9% strikeout rate, 7.1% walk rate, and 37.1% ground ball rate. Having said that, Pepiot’s hard-hit rate and xERA are both a little concerning. With a 4.24 FIP, fans should be watching Pepiot closely to ensure he maintains this pace during the rest of the regular season.
The Rest Of The Pitchers Aren’t Too Bad Either
Drew Rasmussen is toting a 2.33 ERA and a respectable 3.60 FIP through 11 starts this year. Shane Baz and Taj Bradley each have a ton of talent and can take the next step if they keep working on their command and improving their walk rates. The Rays bullpen is doing a solid job of locking down these games. Pete Fairbanks is the closer you’ve never heard of, while Eric Orze and Manuel Rodriguez are stepping up in the middle innings. Orze has a sub-1 ERA in 22 1/3 innings. Rodriguez has shouldered a pen-leading 26 1/3 innings and boasts a 2.39 ERA and 21 strikeouts with four walks.
Can They Keep This Up?
The Rays can forge an identity based on pitching. The series in Houston was especially satisfying because the Rays supported their pitching staff with a strong offense. They tallied seven home runs in the series and bludgeoned the Astros bullpen. Pitching coach Kyle Snyder merits an incredible amount of praise for the work he does with an ever-rotating group of arms. The powerful lineups in the AL East need to take heed of this overbearing pitching staff. The lineups of the Baltimore Orioles and Toronto Blue Jays should be heating up before long. They will join the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees in representing a big challenge to this pitching staff, but it’s a challenge they should be able to handle.
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