BALTIMORE \u2014 The Rays get a respite this week from their two-month barnstorming tour of America, though their stay at home will be brief.<\/p>\n
Between arriving home Sunday night, playing three games against the A\u2019s and leaving again Thursday afternoon for a 10-game trip that leads into the All-Star break, there won\u2019t be time for much beyond unpacking, doing laundry and stuffing it all (plus some extra clothes) back into a suitcase. <\/p>\n
Unless you have connections, sending out dry cleaning could be a risk.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s unfortunate our schedule isn\u2019t as balanced home and away, but it also is what it is and we can\u2019t change anything about that,\u201d veteran starter Drew Rasmussen said. \u201cIt took an act of God to get us out of the Trop. So it\u2019s not like anyone did any one action that is causing all the chaos that we\u2019re dealing with. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe schedule has been out, and we\u2019ve known that this was coming for a long time. So, I just think everyone\u2019s had the opportunity to mentally prepare for what we\u2019re about to go through, and I think it\u2019ll make us better at the end of it.\u201d<\/p>\n
After Sunday\u2019s series finale in Baltimore, the Rays will be six games into a stretch of 35 of 47 (74.4%) on the road, with only 12 (!) at home from June 23-Aug. 18.<\/p>\n
That portion of their schedule was already a bit road-heavy, but after damage from Hurricane Milton to Tropicana Field forced the Rays to spend this season playing outdoors at Steinbrenner Field, two adjustments made in collaboration with Major League Baseball made them even more frequent fliers. <\/p>\n
Six of the upcoming road games (July 4-6 in Minnesota and Aug. 4-6 in Anaheim, California) originally were scheduled to be played at home. <\/p>\n
A fan holds up a sign that says “Rays are hotter than a Florida summer” before the start of a game against the Baltimore Orioles earlier this month at Steinbrenner Field. [\u00a0LUIS SANTANA | Times\u00a0]<\/p>\n
But with the weather in Tampa less comfortable and definitely less accommodating this time of year, those series were flipped. The Angels visited in April and the Twins in May, so the Rays get to make the summer trips.<\/p>\n
One byproduct is an August trip to the West Coast that now extends to 12 games \u2014 a journey so long it includes two off days (in Seattle and San Francisco) and another after returning home.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe didn\u2019t make the schedule,\u201d starter Ryan Pepiot said. \u201cWe\u2019re still playing baseball games. Rather than riding in our own cars to the field, we take the bus. Our travel accommodations don\u2019t stink, so it makes it a lot easier. … There\u2019s going to be times where we get in at 2, 3 in the morning, but we have a job to do and we\u2019re not going to make any excuses. What happened to our stadium, no one could have planned for that. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe schedule is going to help us out so we\u2019re not playing doubleheaders all the time (due to rainouts) or playing in the middle of the summer in Florida all the time in that heat.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Explore all your options<\/a><\/p>\n That is a benefit even manager Kevin Cash acknowledged.<\/p>\n \u201cThe 12 o\u2019clock (home) games, it\u2019s hot,\u201d he said. \u201cSo, maybe the guys might appreciate not playing in the heat like this.\u201d<\/p>\n Obviously, spending that much time on the road \u2014 even with the benefits of plush chartered jets, five-star hotels (with a hospitality suite), private ground transportation, meal money and senior director of team travel and logistics Chris Westmoreland handling all the details, delays and other hitches \u2014 still can be challenging.<\/p>\n Coordinating for wives\/ girlfriends\/kids \u2014 who have to travel separately from the team \u2014 to join them is rewarding but can be taxing. As can keeping track of family and friends in those road cities that want tickets or to meet before or after games.<\/p>\n Even where to be when, with specific times to have their suitcases in the hotel lobby for transport straight to the airport and for buses to the stadium. Though the Rays were still in Baltimore Saturday, Westmoreland sent out the itinerary for the next trip to Minnesota, Detroit and Boston.<\/p>\n There are some practical concerns, too: \u201cFinding good places to eat on the road is probably the biggest challenge of all,\u201d pitcher Taj Bradley said.<\/p>\n But the players say they are ready for it (starting Saturday with a majors-best 19-13 road record) and won\u2019t be sidetracked from their main goal, even when spending a lot of time in their gray pants and batting first.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve been through a lot of stuff off the field,\u201d outfielder Josh Lowe said. \u201cWhether it\u2019s the hurricane to not knowing where we\u2019re playing to the whole potential sale of the team now, I think we do a good, really good job of taking care of business and worrying about keeping the main thing the main thing.\u201d<\/p>\n Added starter Shane Baz, \u201cIt\u2019s just such a good group. It\u2019s like we don\u2019t even really talk about it. It\u2019s just kind of show up and play ball and get on the bus and get on the plane.\u201d<\/p>\n Several players said they expect intangible benefits from being on the road, which if true could provide a major boost as the team battles through the second half seeking a return to the playoffs.<\/p>\n \u201cEven though our group has become incredibly close over the past couple of weeks, I think it\u2019ll help bring us closer,\u201d Rasmussen said. \u201cWe spend more time on a bus, on an airplane, in hotels. <\/p>\n \u201cOne of the things about being at home is everyone goes home to their own families, so you don\u2019t necessarily spend as much time as you would think at home with each other. But when you\u2019re on the road, that\u2019s when you can really bond and become closer as a group.\u201d<\/p>\n Added infielder Taylor Walls, \u201cIn this clubhouse we love one another, so it\u2019s pretty easy to get along, get to the field early, chat it up, do whatever it takes. I don\u2019t think that\u2019ll be a problem, to be honest.\u201d<\/p>\n Rays bosses and players have cited that improved camaraderie as one of the reasons the team has played better this season. So, that extra bonding time has value.<\/p>\n \u201cThis group is so close and we\u2019re having such a good time that if we do go on the road, guys are getting a drink after the game, getting coffee in the morning, playing video games together in the hotel, just finding ways that you know you\u2019re away from home but you\u2019re still having a good time with the guys that are in here,\u201d veteran second baseman Brandon Lowe said. <\/p>\n \u201cIt makes the road trips not feel as long. It makes them a whole heck of a lot easier when you enjoy being with a group that you\u2019re with. These guys are your brothers, whether you want them to be or not. I see these guys more often than I see my wife. It\u2019s just one of those things that you\u2019re in close contact, you\u2019re in close quarters with these guys for (six-plus months). … So, you better get in close, you better have fun. And we\u2019re doing a good job of that.\u201d<\/p>\n Today<\/p>\n at Orioles, 1:35 TV\/radio: FanDuel Sports Sun; 95.3-FM, 620-AM<\/p>\n \u2022 \u2022 \u2022<\/p>\n Sign up for our Sports Today newsletter<\/a> to get daily updates on the Bucs, Rays, Lightning and college football across Florida.<\/p>\n Every weekday, tune into our Sports Day Tampa Bay podcast<\/a> to hear reporter Rick Stroud break down the biggest stories in Tampa Bay sports.<\/p>\n Never miss out on the latest with your favorite Tampa Bay sports teams. Follow our coverage on X<\/a> and Facebook<\/a>.<\/p>\nRays catcher Danny Jansen, left, congratulates pitcher Ian Seymour after Seymour closed out a victory over the Red Sox earlier this month in Boston. [\u00a0MARY SCHWALM | Associated Press\u00a0]<\/p>\n
The Rays’ Junior Caminero reacts after scoring on Jake Mangum’s RBI single during a game against the Astros in May in Houston. [\u00a0ERIC CHRISTIAN SMITH | AP\u00a0]<\/p>\n