For a long time, I've considered the Tampa Bay Rays to be baseball's little miracle, succeeding in the sport's toughest division -- the American League East -- despite low payrolls, low attendance figures and a stadium situation that remains unresolved.
That view is a little unfair, though, because in one sense, the Rays are no different from the New York Yankees or Los Angeles Dodgers or Houston Astros or Atlanta Braves -- they expect to contend for a World Series every season.
They have made the playoffs the past four seasons, but there always seems some surprise that they're doing it again.