Don’t look now, but the Tampa Bay Rays just tied the Baltimore Orioles in the win column at 91.
Tampa has two more losses, which means they are just one game back in the AL East.
The race for the division is on, and it has huge implications for the postseason.
The Rays were once seen as too far behind the O’s, but have been able to win eight of their last 10 and have made things interesting.
They have relied on an incredible bullpen that has been flawless recently.
Just look at what the unit has achieved, per The Athletic.
“The Rays’ bullpen has gone 34 straight innings without allowing an earned run,” they tweeted.
The Rays' bullpen has gone 34 straight innings without allowing an earned run.@RaysBaseball pic.twitter.com/59hwHdxVTl
— The Athletic MLB (@TheAthleticMLB) September 15, 2023
That’s unbelievable.
Shawn Armstrong, Colin Poche, Pete Fairbanks, Robert Stephenson, and Jake Diekman all have an ERA below 3.00 for the season, and Kevin Kelly is at 3.12.
Those six guys have done the heavy lifting for the Rays bullpen recently, but there are more arms that deserve recognition.
The foundation of every team that prides itself of being a contender is a dominant bullpen, and it’s fair to say the Rays have one.
After the Rays cooled off following their scintillating start, Baltimore took over the division and hasn’t looked back in months.
They should not relax, though, because the Rays are determined to qualify to the postseason as division winners and not as a Wild Card team.
There is a huge difference.
There are still a couple of weeks left of regular season to play, and anything can happen at this point.
NEXT: MLB Insider Comments On Wander Franco's Leave