One of the emerging themes in the early days of the 2019 Tampa Bay Rays season is the club’s impressive start on the basepaths. Through Tuesday’s win over the White Sox, the team has 14 steals, one behind the Seattle Mariners for the most in baseball.
No team other than the two surprise (well, TB is a surprise to some…) American League upstarts has reached double-digits in terms of thefts this season.
Even more impressive for the Rays: they are a perfect 14-for-14 in those attempts. As such, the team already has earned a league-leading 2.6 Baserunning runs, per FanGraphs, a solid margin over Seattle in second (1.