For Rays’ Randy Arozarena, an info boost leads to an All-Star turn

ST. PETERSBURG — Rays outfielder Randy Arozarena wasn’t joking when he sat at his locker after a June 2022 game and said the only pitchers he knew about were those on his team, the fellow Cubans in the majors and Yankees ace Gerrit Cole.

For the others, Arozarena simply would ask the velocity of their fastball and let his skills take over from there. That often was good enough, certainly during his remarkable 2020 record-smashing rampage through the postseason — which established his penchant for delivering in the biggest moments — and in compiling 20-homer, 20-steal performances the past two years.

But Arozarena is doing things differently this season, adopting a more informed and data-driven approach to his game that has led to him producing on a notably more consistent basis.

“That information, it helps me play a little bit better in a lot of different ways,” Arozarena, 28, said via team interpreter Manny Navarro. “There’s some information that I like to learn that I may not have thought about before, and I just relied on my talent.

“But now that this game is changing a little bit, I’m learning a little bit more. I’m not perfect. I don’t know this game entirely. And I’m still trying to learn a little bit.”

His quest for more information became apparent at the start of spring training, when Arozarena asked team staff for a deep data dive on how pitchers were getting him out, broken down by count, pitch type and location.

“Everybody’s on their own clock of what the game dictates,” hitting coach Chad Mottola said. “Some people dive right in on the numbers. He’s always been a little hesitant to overthink the at-bats. But I think it was time for him to do it. And I’m very happy that he has.”

When Scott Boras talks ...

But Arozarena’s interest started before then, stemming from several lengthy meetings over the past year and a half with agent Scott Boras, who stressed the benefits of additional preparation.

Boras talked to Arozarena about finding ways to simulate the feelings he had in performing — and succeeding — on the big stage into his daily routine. That led to identifying specific areas of his game that could be improved, such as strike-zone control, with Boras citing examples of how other clients were helped.

“I think information now comforts him,” Boras said.

One of Arozarena’s biggest areas of improvement is plate discipline, obvious by his increased walk totals (45 in 86 games; 46 in 153 last year) and on-base percentage (.386 vs. 327).

Overall, through Friday, he was hitting .278 with a team-leading 16 home runs and 58 RBIs, and an .855 OPS.

A Classic performance

Arozarena’s improved play coincides with a rise in popularity, much of it traced to his leading-man performance for Team Mexico at this spring’s World Baseball Classic.

“Randy probably was that iconic player for this tournament for us,” general manager Rodrigo Lopez said. “And definitely, I think Randy got the empathy of all the people in Mexico.”

Arozarena was a star on the field and with the fans, the combination of his performance, playful personality and personable interaction — such as wearing boots and/or a sombrero for batting practice — elevating him to somewhat rare status as a global star from the Rays.

“He embraces it all,” said ESPN Home Run Derby broadcaster Eduardo Perez, a former Ray. “He is relatable. I think people love the genuineness that he has. …

“Yeah, he plays in a small market, but he has made it a big one and a big stage.”

Arozarena’s election by the fans to a starting spot in the American League lineup for Tuesday’s All-Star Game — he and Yandy Diaz are just the sixth and seventh Rays to be voted in over 26 years — and his selection as the third-ever Tampa Bay player to compete in the derby are telling.

Big Papi energy

So, too, are the mobs of people at home and on the road screaming his name so they can get a photo — preferably in his now-famous arms-crossed pose — or an autograph.

“I got to play (in Boston) with David Ortiz — different market, different time, lots of differences — but the way that fans react to Randy is very similar to how fans reacted to David Ortiz,” Rays manager Kevin Cash said.

“We’ve had a lot of good players come through this organization. But when we go on the road, there are people that are buying a ticket to go see Randy play. There are masses of people waiting outside our buses to get a picture with him, talk to him, just see him. And that’s pretty cool. … After a game in Boston, there were all Mexican flags, and Team Mexico jerseys. He walked out like he was a freakin’ rock star.”

Cash, for lack of a better phrase, says Arozarena has the “it” factor.

“There are certain guys that have that,” said ESPN’s Karl Ravech, who also will be calling Monday’s derby. “There’s something about Randy, when he walks into a room, you recognize there’s somebody who deserves attention.”

The Rays certainly felt so in establishing, then expanding, the Randy Land seating area behind leftfield for Friday games.

Unlike some big-name players, Arozarena said he enjoys the attention from the fans.

“It feels really good to be able to see that and feel the love and support that they always give out to me,” he said. “It helps me, gives me a little bit of energy, helps me be a little bit more explosive out there on the field. It makes me feel that I have the energy to give them right back. The word I like to use is ‘transmit.’ I like to transmit the same energy that they give me. I like to give it right back, and then it helps me play a little bit better.”

Genesis of ‘The Randy’

The pose — or, more fitting, “The Randy” — has become an identifying characteristic.

The arms-crossed gesture started in spring 2022 as a friendly exchange with Kat Lucas, the Rays’ manager of game presentation, as he chided her for being too serious.

When Arozarena joined the Mexican team for the Classic, he decided to break out the pose, doing it after hits (and in a full stop around third base during his home run trots) and key plays, or even in just good moments.

It spread quickly, videos surfacing within days of kids across Mexico crossing their arms, and then literally around the world. It’s still going, showcased by the LSU baseball team celebrating its College World Series championship, and as the intro for one of the contestants in the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest.

“It’s really good to see kids, whether I inspire them to do it or if they just aspire to be a little bit better,” Arozarena said. “It helps me to kind of keep doing it and keep the pose going forward. It’s just another person that thinks of me when they’re doing it.”

Ultimately, beyond the gestures and the fan-friendly antics, it will be Arozarena’s performance that matters most in helping the Rays win — especially in the postseason — and, between now and his free agency in 2027, securing a massive contract. (He is making $4.15 million this season in the first of four arbitration-eligible years.)

“He is so thirsty for information,” Boras said. “And he’s really into why great players are great, and how they do it.”

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