Tuesday night, I wrote 800 words about the Tampa Bay Rays. I don't know why I wrote 800 words about the Tampa Bay Rays. It was late and just seemed like the thing to do.
Then I lost those 800 words about the Tampa Bay Rays. And I've neither the time nor the Rays-related energy to rewrite the entire column. So instead you're getting 300-400 words, because the Rays are unique in at least one respect: They probably have eight starting pitchers.
Backing up a little, first I noticed that the Rays had three position players ranked among FanGraphs top dozen (American League division). Now it's three of 13, but whatever. Logan Forsythe and Evan Longoria have been better than I realized, and Kevin Kiermaier's fielding metrics are apparently off the charts. For what that's worth.
But what's really interesting is just how many viable starting pitchers the Rays have.
Currently, the big club's rotation consists of All-Star Chris Archer, Jake Odorizzi, Nate Karns, Erasmo Ramirez, and Alex Colome. Continuing a long-standing franchise tradition, all five are 27 or younger. Colome's been little better than replacement-level, but all five could pitch for a lot of teams.
And then there are the Triple-A Durham Bulls, whose rotation currently features Matt Moore. And Drew Smyly. And 25-year-old Matt Andriese, who lacks impressive stuff but has pitched brilliantly for the Bulls, with a tremendous strikeout-to-walk ratio and just two home runs allowed in 60 innings.
Purely in terms of major-league talent, the Rays might be one of the five best teams in the American League. But when (approximately) three of your dozen or so most talented players are in the minors -- two because they're still trying to get healthy, one because he just doesn't throw all that hard, you're obviously operating at a disadvantage.
What this means in the present is that the Rays aren't likely to finish the season in a rush. What this means in the future is that the Rays might be able to trade two or three starting pitchers for a hitter or two they so desperately need.
