‘Break a window, don’t burn down the house’: The Rays’ culture of innovation – The Athletic

Their most defining qualities are also the most timeless — pitching, defense, and timely hitting, which in this case happens to be in the form of home runs. They have a manager in Kevin Cash that they’ve entrusted to make the right moves at the right time. They’ve demonstrated a knack for finding the right players, a product of strong scouting. They’re not afraid to make trades, such as the deal that landed breakout star Randy Arozarena, even if every transaction means accepting the chance that it will not work out. In an era defined by aversion to risk, they win in part because they’re willing to miss. They are, in many ways, old school.

This is how they might be seen if they weren’t the Rays.

But because they are, their reality is obscured by a portrait that has been as enduring as it is one-dimensional. Theirs is a barebones operation, with few big names and fewer fans, which makes them reliant on analytics in order to make…