Rays All-Star Game History

With the All-Star Game upcoming later on tonight, it’s time to take a look back at the history of the Tampa Bay Rays in the Midsummer Classic.

With the exception of 1999, the Rays only had the one obligatory from their inception in 1998 through 2007. Since that point in time, the Rays have had a minimum of two players each year, topping out with five players in 2009. Carl Crawford has the most treks to the game with four, in 2004, 2007, 2009, and 2010.

Overall, Rays hitters are 7-26 with three doubles, one home run, two RBIs, and two stolen bases. Rays batters have also walked three times, while striking out on nine occasions. The pitching staff has made a total of six appearances spanning seven innings, having given up only three hits and one walk while striking out three batters. Scott Kazmir was the winning pitcher for the American League in 2008, pitching the fifteenth inning in an epic game that lasted four hours, fifty minutes.

In 2009, Carl Crawford won the All-Star MVP award on a night where he went 1-3 with just a single, marking the first time that a position player won the award without either scoring or driving in a run. Crawford managed to seal the honors by robbing Brad Hawpe of a home run in the bottom of the seventh inning, preserving a 3-3 tie.

Despite their brief existence, the Rays have managed to make an impact upon the All-Star game. Perhaps the two representatives this year, David Price and Fernando Rodney, will add to the history.