Rays
MINNEAPOLIS — Almost a quarter of the way through the season, the Rays are both proud of their record and confident that better days are ahead.
Heading into a two-game series at Atlanta, the Rays are 21-18, only one game behind the first-place Yankees in the tightly packed AL East. They have stayed competitive under first-year manager Kevin Cash, despite placing a division-high 14 players on the disabled list in 2015.
“It’s been truly a team effort,’’ said 3B Evan Longoria, who is hitting .315 over his past 24 games. “And we haven’t been really counting on anybody coming back.