Where Can the Rays Improve Defensively in 2022?
This past season was unique for the Rays in that they excelled at scoring runs (857 or 5.29 per game, second in MLB) as well as preventing runs (651 or 4.02 per contest, fifth in MLB). Being that the Rays have always been a tremendous team at run prevention, how can Tampa Bay improve there in 2022?
One area where the Rays can definitely take a step forward is on the defensive end. On Thursday, three Rays in Joey Wendle (third base), Kevin Kiermaier (center field) and Randy Arozarena (left field) were named Gold Glove finalists. And you can make an argument that catcher Mike Zunino and outfielder Manuel Margot could have been finalists too.
As a whole, Tampa Bay excelled in all facets of the game. According to Sports Info Solutions, the Rays were fourth in MLB in defensive runs saved with 71, behind only Texas, St Louis and Houston.
To no one’s surprise, the Rays were extremely strong up the middle. Tampa Bay saved 25 runs at shortstop, most in MLB, and had 18 in center field, second best in the game. And the Rays had nine runs saved behind the plate, which was tied for fourth best in the sport. The Rays also had the best left field defense, and were in the top third of the league in right field defense.
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However, Tampa Bay was in the bottom half of the league at first base, second base and third base. Now some of that may be attributed to positioning. That has nothing to so with shifts. In fact, the Rays had 13 runs saved defensively when shifting, and were a negative one run saved when not shifting. Does that mean that Tampa Bay should have shifted more, or did their pitchers missed spots and it led to lesser results? That’s harder to say and something the organization looks at going into the offseason.
In addition, Tampa Bay doesn’t only rely on DRS to determine defensive effectiveness. The organization uses several different metrics and its own internal review and combines all of that data to review defensive performance. For instance Brandon Lowe had -7 runs saved defensively but was seen internally as a better defender than that, and his range appeared to improve as the year went on.
Tampa Bay seemed to have a tougher time in terms of defensive production at the corners. While Yandy Diaz was solid at first base as he was a neutral defender (0 runs saved), he was -9 at third base. So where Wendle was well above average, Diaz was below that. And while Diaz was good at first base, Ji-Man Choi graded out to -4 runs saved at that spot.
Even in the outfield the Rays have some room for growth. Margot and Brett Phillips were above league average at every position they played in 2021. However, while Arozarena was Gold Glove caliber in left field, he was -4 runs saved in right field. Austin Meadows, who played more in the outfield after Nelson Cruz was acquired was negative in terms of defensive runs saved in both corner outfield spots.
Some of that can improve through defensive positioning in-season and off-season work by the individual players. Perhaps the Rays also will upgrade defensively by roster changes. We mentioned in a previous post about Josh Lowe, Vidal Brujan and Taylor Walls and whether those three players could help next year.
Finding that balance between improving defensively and not impacting the offense will be one of the challenges for Tampa Bay during the off-season. Annually Tampa Bay has been in the top third of the league defensively the past several seasons, and that’s not likely to change in 2022.
