Tampa had just one player hit over .300 and as a team the Rays hit just .248, good enough for 27th in baseball. Yet they still scored 802 runs, which was the third-best in the majors. A big reason for that is the fact that the Rays led the majors with 172 stolen bases, with Carl Crawford and B.J. Upton swiping 47 and 42, respectively.
A free agent at season's end, Crawford was terrific for the Rays, as he hit .307 with 90 RBI and 107 runs scored.
Another reason behind the Rays' success is their extreme patience at the plate. Case in point - Carlos Pena. The slick-fielding first baseman led the team with 28 home runs, but hit a mere .196. However, he managed to draw 87 walks and got on-base at a.325 clip.
The same thing applies to Ben Zobrist, who despite hitting .238, walked 92 times to post an OBP of .346.
Longoria, though, is as well-rounded a player as you are going to find in the majors. The third-year pro hit .294 with 22 home runs, 96 runs scored and team-high 104 RBI, in addition to playing a terrific third base.
However, Longoria missed the final 10 games of the season with a quadriceps injury and it showed as the Rays failed to score a run in three of those contests.
While Texas can also manufacture some runs, the Rangers score a majority of their runs in a different way and more often than not, Hamilton is in the middle of it. The former first overall pick, selected by the Rays no less, batted an AL-high .359, while smacking 32 home runs with 100 RBI and 95 runs scored.
If it's not Hamilton doing the damage then it is former AL MVP Vladimir Guerrero, picked off the scrap heap by Texas this offseason with a one-year, $6.5 million free agent deal. Guerrero showed that there was plenty left in that 35-year-old tank, as he hit .300 with 29 home runs and a team-high 115 RBI.
Nelson Cruz also enjoyed a breakout campaign, belting 22 home runs, despite a few stints on the disabled list.
If you are looking for a player to root for this postseason look no further than Rangers third baseman Michael Young, who in addition to being one of the most underrated players in the game, will be playing in his first postseason game after 1,508 regular season games since entering the league in 2000.
Young was again solid for the Rangers, hitting .284 with 21 home runs and 91 runs driven in.
It all starts at the top, though, with shortstop Elvis Andrus, who scored 88 runs and stole 32 bases, while getting on base 34-percent of the time.