The dates stand out glaringly. June 10th, July 31st, December 13th, December 21st, January 18th, and May 10th. These six days, spread across two seasons and a crucial offseason largely account for the position the Tampa Bay Rays are in today, staring down October baseball for the first time since 2013. Sure, any number of crucial dates will get lost in this discussion, but if you want to know how the Rays, who sport the leagues lowest payroll, put together a team that has already won 95 games, then look no further than these six dates.
On the morning of July 31st, 2018 the Tampa Bay Rays stood at 54-53, 20 games behind the first place Red Sox and on track for another middling season, the type that Rays fans had gotten used to over the past five seasons.