Through the opening month, how is Steinbrenner ‘playing?’

TAMPA, Fla. – This is no secret the current baseball season for the Tampa Bay Rays is evolving into a series of unique challenges. Aside from constructing a competitive team and the continued quest to regain glory from recent seasons, the Rays are now in a new house.

Because of roof damage from Hurricane Milton last October that resulted in evacuation from Tropicana Field, their home since coming in the American League in 1998, the Rays were quick to scramble and find a suitable facility. When the New York Yankees’ spring training site in Tampa at George Steinbrenner Field met essential criteria, the Rays moved quickly to secure the location and fill the necessity of finding a site for 2025 home games.

Immediately, pitchers and hitters had to adjust from the indoor site of Tropicana Field to an open-air facility in west Tampa and with a fraction of a major league stadium volume (10,046 is the capacity for Rays home games). After 31 games into the season, and a mark of 9-13 at Steinbrenner, players and coaches are quick to assess this immediate period of adjustment.

“(Steinbrenner) is a variable park,” said Rays’ second baseman Brandon Lowe. “The biggest thing we have learned is that this is a park with no grandstands. There is nothing in the outfield and nothing to cut the win. So, the wind swirls. At one time, the wind could blow straight out and the next inning, it could blow straight in. If you catch the wind right and hit a ball (at 95 miles per hour exit velocity), it could go out. If you catch the wind the wrong way, it doesn’t matter how hard you hit the ball, it will die. It’s a constant adjustment to know what you are doing.”

One factor which might influence play is not physical components but structured and prescribed elements. That would include the dimension down each the right field and left field foul line. With a distance of 318 feet down the left field line and 314 down the right field line, this expanse is designed to replicate Yankee Stadium. Beginning with the original stadium built in 1923 to the current facility, the short porch down the lines remains a unique feature of this Bronx landmark.

That was demonstrated during the recent home stand against Kansas City.

With two outs in the Royals’ sixth during an eventual 8-2 Kansas City win on May 1, Bobby Witt, Jr. loped a fly ball near the 314-foot marker in the right field corner. The ball curled around the foul ball and barely dropped over the fence for a home run. In nearly every other major league park, that would have been caught or eluded the right fielder.  In this case, the wind was not a factor, but the traditional dimensions of a storied and respected facility played into Witt’s ball.

“It depends on how the wind plays,” said pitcher Ryan Pepiot, who echoed Lowe’s observation. “When the wind blows in, you play small. When the wind blows out, you play big. Really, it’s just any other ballpark. We knew the dimensions of the park when we came in and knew we had to make adjustments. This place is more wind-dependent on how it plays.”

At the same time, Steinbrenner is gaining a reputation as a launching pad. In games through May 1, 48 home runs have been hit in the park and that ties Yankee Stadium for the most currently in the game. As a pitching staff, the Rays have surrendered a major league-high 39 bombs in games home and away.

On the diamond … the brief three-game stand at home with Kansas City was disastrous. Not only did the Rays rarely score (three runs in the series and shut out on April 30) but the team was swept for the second time this season. In dropping an 8-2 decision to the Royals before 8,794 at Steinbrenner Field on Thursday afternoon, starter Shane Baz was not effective. In absorbing the defeat, Baz surrendered a career-tying seven runs, and yielded a career-high five extra-base hits. “(The Royals) came out swinging and I have to make better quality pitchers,” he said afterward. “I never settled in and never took advantage of the defense. It’s on me and I have to bear down and just make better pitches.”  … in the Royals series, the Rays scored only those three runs and prompted manager Kevin Cash to acknowledge, “we are getting too many empty at-bats. I felt we let pitchers settled in at times. We had too many early outs and not competing in the at-bats in which we are capable of doing.”

This weekend … the Rays now move to Yankee Stadium for the coming weekend and then quicky return home to face the Phillies and Brewers during an up-coming 6-game home stand. … in the opener of the New York series on Friday night, look for righty Ryan Pepiot (2-3, 4.24 ERA) taking on lefty Max Fried (5-0. 1.19). On Saturday, it’s righty Zack Littell (1-5, 5.03) facing right-hander Clarke Schmidt (0-1, 5.52). In the Sunday afternoon finale, Taj Bradley (2-2, 4.58) opposes right-hander Will Warren (1-1, 5.63).

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