Durham Bulls vs. Columbus Clippers (defending National Champions)Wednesday & Thursday, 7:05
Team & ticket info
There is nothing small about Tampa Bay's minor-league system.
The Triple A-Durham Bulls clinched its fifth consecutive title with a 4-1 win against Norfolk (Orioles) on Friday night. Durham's recent success can be attributed to Charlie Montoyo, who has managed the team for five consecutive seasons.
In addition, Durham has won 10 division titles in its 14 years as a Rays affiliate.
"That's our life blood between scouting and the minor-league developmental process," Rays manager Joe Maddon said. "It's what we need to be all about. Having been a minor-league grunt for so many years, I really appreciate all that. I understand that, I get it and I think it's great.
"We've been able to homogenize what we've been doing here the last couple of years. We've had some really severe meetings, not this spring training, but the one before, and had everybody involved. We tried to unify our base running, our outfield, our middle infield, our hitting and really try to get on the same page throughout the organization."
The results were evident this season.
Tampa Bay called up 14 players from Durham this season, while four others started on the major roster before being sent down. Click here for more.
