Alex Cobb has been named the Opening Day starter for the Tampa Bay Rays. The decision by manager Kevin Cash came down to him or Chris Archer, and the Rays made the clear favorite for the opening day starter as Cobb. The Rays have arguably one of the top rotations in the AL East and Cobb is the ace of the staff. There's a potential that Cobb could be a 15-20 game winner this season if his health permits. Last season, Cobb posted a 10-9 record with a 2.87 ERA in 27 games. Also, he flirted with a no-hitter that went into the eighth inning against the New York Yankees last season. Another statistic within his last two seasons is Cobb has posted a 2.82 ERA in 49 starts which is second best to Felix Hernandez and Chris Sale during that time. The rotation will be Alex Cobb, Chris Archer, Drew Smyly, Jake Odorizzi and a TBA until Matt Moore returns from his injury.
Kevin Cash on naming Alex Cobb as the opening day starter: "He was extremely excited," Cash said. "I kind of expected him to say, 'Yeah, okay, whatever.' But he was pumped. And you look back and you're like, 'Man, he's had some good pitchers here that maybe he's had to wait in turn for Shields and Price and those guys.' I think he looks at it as being an honor, because there have been some good ones here in the past that have done it."
Alex Cobb on his reaction: "I definitely think taking the ball on opening day comes with a lot of responsibilities, whether you want to embrace that or not," Cobb said. "There's going to be a lot of eyes looking at you and judging you, how you go about your business. Younger guys will all want to be in that position to have the ball on opening day, so they're going to watch how you go about your business and try to replicate that."
This is the first time since 2007 the Rays haven't named an opening day starter such as Scott Kazmir, James Shields and David Price. Also, the Rays are the first team in MLB to have for the past 13 years an opening day starter under the age of 30.