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2020 Tampa Bay Rays season

2020 Tampa Bay Rays
American League Champions American League East Champions
League	American League
Division	East
Ballpark	Tropicana Field
City	St. Petersburg, Florida
Record	40–20 (.667)
Divisional place	1st
Owners	Stuart Sternberg
Managers	Kevin Cash
Television	Fox Sports Sun Fox Sports Florida (Dewayne Staats, Brian Anderson)
Radio	Tampa Bay Rays Radio Network (English) (Andy Freed, Dave Wills) WGES (Spanish) (Ricardo Taveras, Enrique Oliu)
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The 2020 Tampa Bay Rays season was the 23rd season of the Tampa Bay Rays franchise. The Rays played their home games at Tropicana Field as members of Major League Baseball's American League East.

On March 12, 2020, MLB announced that due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the start of the regular season would be delayed by at least two weeks in addition to the remainder of spring training being cancelled.^[1] Four days later, it was announced that the start of the season would be pushed back indefinitely due to the recommendation made by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to restrict events of more than 50 people for eight weeks.^[2] On June 23, commissioner Rob Manfred unilaterally implemented a 60-game season. Players reported to training camps on July 1 in order to resume spring training and prepare for Opening Day in late July.^[3] The revised 60-game schedule was announced on July 6, with the Rays set to have Opening Day on July 26, and the regular season concluding on September 27. The revised Rays schedule was composed of 40 games against AL East opponents and 20 games against NL East opponents.^[4]

Due to the pandemic and the shortened season, Major League Baseball instituted certain rule changes which included the use of a universal designated hitter, a runner on second base to start extra innings, and a revised schedule.^[5] On July 30, the league and the union agreed that all remaining doubleheaders during the season would be seven innings.^[6] On September 17, the Rays clinched a spot in the playoffs for the second straight year. On September 23, the Rays clinched their third American League East championship and their first since 2010. They swept the Toronto Blue Jays in the ALWCS and beat the New York Yankees in the ALDS. The Rays would then go on to defeat the Houston Astros in the ALCS and advanced to the World Series for the first time since 2008. They lost in the World Series to the Los Angeles Dodgers in six games.

For the 2020 season, MLB instituted several new rule changes including the following:^[7]

• Single trade deadline – there would no longer be a waiver trade deadline later in the year.
• 26-man roster – rosters expanded from 25 players, but no team may carry more than 13 pitchers.
• Three-batter minimum for pitchers - a pitcher must face three batters in a game before they can be removed unless there is an injury or the end of an inning.

Further rule changes came into effect in response to the COVID-19 pandemic including the addition of the designated hitter in the National League, a shortened schedule, and in extra innings, a runner was placed at second base in each half inning.^[8]

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the regular season was shortened to 60 games, with teams playing 10 games against each other member of their division while also playing four games against each team in the corresponding division in the other league. The Rays played 10 games against each team in their division and 20 games between the teams in the National League East Division. On July 6, 2020, MLB announced the Rays' 60-game schedule, which began on July 24 and ended on September 27.^[9]

• ^a Games played at Sahlen FieldinBuffalo, New York.
• ^b Game played at Oriole Park at Camden Yards with the Rays as the home team.

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs; H = Hits; 2B = Doubles; 3B = Triples; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases; BB = Walks; AVG = Batting average; SLG = Slugging average

Source:[1]

Note: W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; SV = Saves; IP = Innings pitched; H = Hits allowed; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed; SO = Strikeouts

Source:[2]

Both games of the Wild Card Series were held at Tropicana Field, by virtue of the Rays being the higher-seeded team. In all succeeding rounds, all games were played at neutral-site ballparks in order to isolate the players during the pandemic. Each game of the Division Series and the American League Championship Series was played at Petco ParkinSan Diego, California.^[10] World Series games were played at Globe Life FieldinArlington, Texas, and were open for roughly 11,500 fans to attend.^[11]

• Tampa Bay Rays 2020 Schedule at MLB.com
• 2020 Tampa Bay Rays season at ESPN
• 2020 Tampa Bay Rays seasonatBaseball Reference