Who are these guys?

They're the 3-0 first-place Rays, headed to Yankee Stadium full of confidence after sweeping the Tigers.

By KEVIN KELLY, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published April 5, 2002

ST. PETERSBURG -- Today is opening day at Yankee Stadium.

It will be loud. It will be chilly. It will be hostile.

[Times photo: Michael Rondou] Randy Winn passes Dmitri Young after his pinch-hit grand slam made it 9-0 in the fifth. The Rays hit four homers.

And it will be the team with the smallest payroll and average age in the major leagues -- which happens to be undefeated and in first place in the American League East -- playing a team with the biggest payroll, the most prestige and 26 world championships.

"When you have confidence," Rays outfielder Jason Tyner said, "there's a great chance of overachieving."

The Rays completed a three-game sweep against the Tigers with a 9-2 win Thursday before an announced 14,204 at Tropicana Field. It was the Rays' first sweep in a season-opening series.

Good vibes abound for a team off to its best start as it begins a six-game road trip to New York and Baltimore. The Rays haven't been three games over .500 in three years.

"The good teams? They do it over the course of a year," outfielder Greg Vaughn said. "We've just got to keep playing. It's early. Are we at a championship stage right now? No.

"But there's no reason our pitchers have to stop throwing the way they're throwing. And we don't have to stop playing the way we're playing."

The Rays lost 100 games last season, but they point to 24 wins in the last 47 games as evidence this early season success shouldn't be viewed as a surprise.

"I don't know what I expected," manager Hal McRae said. "We've been preaching that we were better than what people think we are. We've been preaching that we need to get off to a good start.

"But to say we were going to be 3-0? I didn't go that far."

Against the Tigers, the Rays showed promise in two areas that needed improvement from last year: pitching and offense.

Both were non-issues.

"The pitching has been outstanding," McRae said. "We've scored runs. We've played defense. We've been aggressive. We've turned double plays. We've done all the things that are necessary to win baseball games."

Ryan Rupe, bumped up a day so Joe Kennedy could pitch against the Yankees today, was at his best in his first outing of the season and complemented Paul Wilson's eight-inning performance the day before.

The right-hander, who likely would not be in the starting rotation had it not been for Nick Bierbrodt's control problems this spring, threw 99 pitches in seven scoreless innings against the Tigers.

Rupe allowed three hits while striking out seven and walking none, aided by a two-seam fastball perfected during the spring that has converted him into a ground-ball pitcher.

"I don't throw 99 mph and have the nastiest stuff in the world," Rupe said. "I've changed some things up, tried to give (teams) a different look. Hopefully it works out."

If the Rays continue hitting as they did Thursday, all any Rays pitcher needs to do is throw strikes.

Tampa Bay hit four home runs, including a pinch-hit grand slam by Randy Winn in the fifth that made it 9-0. Ben Grieve, Brent Abernathy and Chris Gomez also homered.

The Rays' four homers were one shy of a club record.

Tyner stole his first base of the season. And Steve Kent, Felix Escalona and Jorge Sosa, who allowed back-to-back homers in the ninth inning, made their major-league debuts.

"On one hand, it's still three games," Tyner said. "On another hand, it would be hard (not) to be this positive. With a young team, it's great to get off to a good start because some guys need confidence and it's great to get it."

Particularly after losing seven of their first eight games and 14 of their first 20 and finishing with the worst record in the majors last season.

"We got buried last year and that was a miserable feeling," McRae said. "After 20 ballgames we were buried. I thought it was important for us to get off to a good start. The first three games have been successful.

"That's not a start. That's the beginning of a start. I just hope to continue the way we've played."

Today's lineup

Rays