ST. PETERSBURG -- Kevin Cash is no longer the virtually unknown 37-year-old who'd never managed a baseball game at any level, yet was thrown into the deep end of the pool to skipper the 2015 Rays.
That was a lot to ask of the former journeyman catcher -- to sink or swim, not to mention replace the legendary Joe Maddon.
Cash is 38 now. There are hints of gray in his hair after a summer of on-the-job training, and, as he says, "what a difference a year makes."
Cash did a lot more swimming than sinking that year, a better-than-expected beginning for the youngest manager in the Major Leagues.