Shane McClanahan's Elite Pitching Following Injury Should Have Every Rays Fan Excited

The Tampa Bay Rays are off to a great start this season. Leading the American League East is a huge bounce-back from the year prior, when the club missed out on the postseason. Plenty of thanks for the team's recent success go to the pitching staff, including the return of ace Shane McClanahan. 

After being out of action for over two years due to injury, the Rays left-hander has had an incredible resurgence in his return this season. After undergoing Tommy John surgery in August of 2023 that sidelined him for two seasons, McClanahan received bad news during the ramp-up to the 2025 season in spring training. He suffered left triceps nerve irritation that ultimately made him extend his time away from major league action to 972 days. 

But since his return, he has been nothing but incredible. In his first nine starts this year, McClanahan has posted a 5-2 record and a 2.82 ERA, placing him in the top 10 pitchers in the American League. Across 44.2 innings pitched, his 47 strikeouts are also another great indicator that he hasn’t missed a beat on the mound.

In Monday’s start against the Baltimore Orioles, McClanahan picked up a career milestone as he threw his 500th career strikeout, and the way he is performing following all the time missed, it won’t be the last milestone he finds. 

It feels like McClanahan is a shoo-in for Comeback Player of the Year once the season comes to an end, but why stop there? He easily could find himself making his third All-Star team appearance this season, but most importantly, help the Rays get back to the postseason in 2023, the year things started going wrong for him. 

With pitchers like McClanahan and Nick Martinez, who is an early Cy Young candidate this season, Rays fans have plenty to be excited about during what seems like a down year for the American League. If the Tampa Bay front office decides to be aggressive at the upcoming MLB Trade Deadline this summer to give more support to this terrific pitching staff, which already has the best team ERA in the AL, and only second across the MLB, only to the Atlanta Braves, Rays fans might want to keep their plans open in late October.