First pitch: The secrets to success for these 3 surprising MLB teams

By Kevin Henry | Apr 24, 2023

Pittsburgh Pirates catcher Jason Delay (55) and second baseman Ji Hwan Bae (3) and shortstop Oneil Cruz (right) greet left fielder Bryan Reynolds (10) after all players scored runs against the Chicago White Sox during the fifth inning at PNC Park. Reynolds hit a three run triple and scored on an error on the play. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports /

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Tampa Bay Rays catcher Christian Bethancourt is congratulated by third base coach Brady Williams. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /

After 20-plus games, it’s still early in the 2023 MLB season. However, there are some teams who are surprising early.

Take a look at the MLB standings and you will likely see some teams near the top of their respective division standings that you might not have expected to be there back in spring training, such as the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Texas Rangers. Or perhaps you expected the team to do well … but not this well in your wildest dreams, such as the Tampa Bay Rays.

So what is helping this trio of teams win in the early part of the 2023 slate? Let’s look into some of the key reasons.

MLB secret to success: Tampa Bay Rays

Let’s start with the team that has caught everyone’s eye early in the year (except for the fans in the area who don’t venture to Tropicana Field to watch them play) — the Rays.

The Rays have been dominant in a pair of areas — winning at home and hitting the long ball. Entering Monday’s home date against the defending World Champion Houston Astros, Tampa Bay is 13-0 at home this season. The Milwaukee Brewers at 6-2 were the next-best team (before Sunday’s loss to the Boston Red Sox) when it came to defending their home turf, but the Rays have proven that they can make their stadium (despite averaging less than 18,000 per game) a hostile environment.

Tampa Bay is also pounding the ball this season, entering Monday’s play with an MLB-leading 48 home runs and slugging percentage of .537. Randy Arozarena’s blast off Chicago’s Dylan Cease on Saturday night gave the Rays home runs in each of their first 21 games of the season, an MLB record, and the Rays made it 22 with a pair of homers on Sunday.

Say what you will about the team’s early schedule (only seven games so far against teams with a record above .500), but the Rays are beating whoever they face … and flexing their muscles while doing it.

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