Celebrating the 20th anniversary of Winter Meetings that helped shape the present-day Rays

On December 12, 2004, the Devil Rays struck a deal with the Toronto Blue Jays. It was a Winter Meetings transaction that would have a lasting impact on the Tampa Bay franchise, but not necessarily the impact that was expected.

The exchange between the two AL East clubs involved relief pitcher, Chad Gaudin and former MLB catcher, Kevin Cash. The Florida State alumni would only appear in 13 games for the Devil Rays, but his time clearly led to his future occupation. Today, Cash is the longest-tenured MLB manager and winningest coach in Rays franchise history.

Kevin Cash began his baseball journey with the Florida State Seminoles

Before the Rays manager entered a role in the MLB, he was an acclaimed catcher for the Florida State Seminoles. The Tampa native slashed an impressive .317/.430/.576 with 14 home runs in his junior year of college. Due to this great success at a prime position, the 21-year old was signed as a non-drafted free agent by the Toronto Blue Jays.

Cash began the 21st century in the minor leagues and the young athlete was promoted to Double-A in only three seasons. His best season in the Toronto farm system was with the Single A+ Dunedin Blue Jays in 2001. The skilled backstop led the league in doubles that year, accumulating 27 two-base hits.

He finally reached the the Show in 2002 when the Blue Jays called him up for seven exhibitions. Cash's big league career started on a rough note however, and he was never quite able to gain momentum.

His best season came in 2008 with the Boston Red Sox, but he still accrued a -0.1 WAR over 60 games. Over the entirety of his playing career, Kevin Cash produced a disappointing -3.1 WAR.

Despite his lack of success on the field, Cash undeniably made a good impression on the MLB as a gifted leader, especially towards the Rays front office. As a result, the Rays hired Kevin Cash to lead the club as their manager in the offseason of 2014.

Rays front office signs Kevin Cash as their manager in 2014

Following the signing of their new on-field coach, Rays owner, Stu Sternberg said, "We are fortunate to have such a talented individual, and Tampa Bay native, to lead our club as we strive to achieve new heights as a team and organization."

In Cash's tenure as the Rays manager, he has certainly gone above and beyond those "new heights". Since his first day at the helm, the Rays have manufactured an 819-699 record with one World Series appearance in the shortened 2020 season.

Additionally, the intuitive manager has been awarded two Manager of the Year awards in 2020 and 2021. Regardless of his great success, Cash continues to lead this team like it's his last season on the field. As we progress towards this year's edition of the Winter Meetings, we are incredibly blessed to have him in command of our clubhouse.