The Rays

It has been 11 years since the Tampa Bay Rays first joined Major League Baseball as an expansion team for the start of the 1998 season. Since then they have always finished at the bottom of the difficult American League East being overshadowed by the big market New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox; that was until the 2008 season began. The 2008 season sent the Rays in a complete 180. After they dropped the Devil from their name and are now known as the Rays, Tampa Bay finished a regular season record of 97 and 65 going on to win the American League East for the first time in franchise history. They were able to do so due to the heavy hitting of Evan Longoria and B.J. Upton along with the arms of Scott Kazmir and Matt Garza. The Rays clinched a playoff birth and faced off against the Chicago White Sox in the American League divisional series. The Rays steam rolled through the series defeating the White Sox in three games advancing to the American League Champion Series against the Boston Red Sox. After being up three games to one The Rays found themselves one win away from the World Series. After blowing a seven to one lead in game five the Red Sox won game six and sent the series into a pivotal game seven. The Rays, once again the underdogs, defeated the Red Sox three to one behind Matt Graza, who became the ALCS most valuable player, advancing to the World Series against the Philadelphia Phillies.