A baseball season is basically three sets of 2 month stretches. First, you have Opening day and the start of the season. Lots of hope, a lot of things to learn about every team. The Rays did very well in this time, and proved through both eye test and all supporting metrics suggested not only were the Rays good but near elite.
Next comes the middle through the All Star break until the trade deadline. Thanks to some annoying scheduling and about a dozen rain postponed games, the Rays played basically 2 months without an off day (only slight exaggeration).