Tampa Bay Rays' Success is All Due to Pitching Coach Jim Hickey

The Tampa Bay Rays are about as famous for their personnel turnover as they are their pitching and defense. They are a small market team and don't have the financial resources of division rivals New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox to lavish on their players. They have even been known to lose managers due to financial considerations. Yet they compete, thanks in no small part to one of their longest tenured employees, pitching coach Jim Hickey. His ability to get the most out of pitchers and get them to buy what he's doing is perhaps unrivalled in baseball today.

According to the Bradenton Herald, "Hickey is more than just an image maker. He brings the dead back to life. If you are good, the Tampa Bay Rays pitching coach for the last nine years can make you great. If you are bad, he can cover up your weaknesses so well your mom and dad wouldn't even recognize you." The proof is in the numbers. The article went on to say, "In his eight previous seasons with the Rays, Tampa Bay leads the American League in strikeouts, opponents' batting average and is second in ERA. Last year, one poll ranked him the best pitching coach in baseball."

This year is no different. Hickey would face his greatest challenge as a pitching coach. Matt Moore would not be ready until June and even then he wasn't right. Alex Cobb would undergo Tommy John surgery. Both Jake Odorizzi and Drew Smyly would also spend time on the disabled list. The once formidable Rays staff of Alex Cobb, Matt Moore, Chris Archer, Jake Odorizzi and Drew Smyly was just, basically, Chris Archer and spare parts. This is where Hickey and the Rays are innovators because they never hesitate to experiment.

Statistically speaking, the third time through the lineup is when a pitcher gets hit the hardest. Tampa Bay started to pull pitcher, (sometimes even their ace) Chris Archer from games before they hit the third time through the lineup. Whether or not it works is up for debate. However, it's hard to argue with the numbers. The ragtag Rays' pitchers are second in the American League in ERA (3.71), team shutouts (12), strikeouts (1281) and first in batting average against (.238). The pitching, as always, has done its job.

Jim Hickey continues to work miracles no matter what the Rays upper management throws at him.