Tampa Bay Rays Set DH-Era Record for Shutouts by an American League Team

With the conclusion of Monday night's 1-0 victory over the New York Yankees, the Tampa Bay Rays' pitching staff recorded its 21st shutout of the 2014 season. Per MLB Stat of the Day, this is the highest number of times an American League team has shut out their opponent in a single season since the designated hitter was introduced in 1973.

Monday's contest represented the staff's second scoreless performance in less than a week's time, and was the 11th shutout recorded since the All-Star break. Only the St. Louis Cardinals have held their opponents to zero runs scored as many times as the Rays, and the next best number in the American League is the Texas Rangers, who have recorded 17 shutouts this season.

This record has clearly proven to be a team effort, as the Rays surprisingly haven't had a starting pitcher, other than Drew Smyly, go the distance on his own to shut out the opposing team this season. Although David Price recorded two complete games before being traded to the Detroit Tigers, he was unable to prevent the opponent from scoring at least once on both occasions.

A 3.47 team ERA has certainly played in the Rays' favor, as only the Seattle Mariners (3.05), Oakland Athletics (3.25) and Baltimore Orioles (.346) have better marks in the American League. Tampa Bay has also held opponents to a .233 batting average, which is just five points shy of the AL-leading Mariners at .228.

Despite the strong pitching performances, the Rays are at risk of finishing below the .500 mark for the first time since the 2007 season—back when they were still the Devil Rays. The fourth-place Tampa Bay squad currently boasts a record of 74-9 with nine games remaining. 

All stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference unless otherwise specified.