The Shirts Off Our Back raffle can mean only one thing: the end of the season. (Photo Credit: Anthony Ateek/X-Rays Spex)

162 games have come to pass, and here I sit wallowing in sadness ― in order for me to watch October baseball, I’ll have to watch somebody else’s team. The season that started with such promise, at least in certain circles, is over with nothing to show but a round number in the win column.

Still, if you tweak your perspective, and view the past week though a different set of lenses, you’d be left with a pretty solid six-game set of baseball. Sure it may be too little too late, but who doesn’t like watching their team succeed in some capacity?

That said, it all came down to the season finale against the Toronto Blue Jays on Sunday. Tampa Bay scored nine runs in the first inning, the most in any inning this year, and finished off the 2015 season with an impressive 12-3 win. It became the second time in club history that the Rays scored at least nine runs in the first — the last time was June 25, 2008 against the Marlins (10 runs).

In the game, Joey Butler went yard twice, including in the first when he hit the team’s first and only grand slam of the season.

How could I forget Mikie Mahtook, who crushed a monster blast to left field. Butler and Mahtook brought the Rays rookie total to 57 home runs — the most by an American League club since the 2003 Indians (90), according to Elias Sports Bureau. Don’t look now, but Mahtook amassed a productive .290 BA/.349 OBP/.600 SLG/.949 OPS/.403 wOBA line in 110 plate appearances. Compare with Desmond Jennings, who put together a .268 BA/.324 OBP/.340 SLG/.664 OPS/.294 wOBA line in 108 plate appearances. If someone doesn’t get traded this winter, I’d imagine there could be an old fashioned battle for an outfield spot during Spring Training.

The run support was more than enough for Matt Moore, who posted six innings of one run/four hit baseball. It was the fourth consecutive quality start for Moore, who allowed four total runs in his last four starts. Moore walked four and struck out four, with Chris Colabello’s fourth inning homer being the only blemish against his record. Moore said the season-ending victory is something that will be fresh in the team’s mind when they look back on the year.

A good number of questions lay in the wake of the season finale. How will Matt Silverman fill the presumed hole at short? Will John Jaso return to the fold next season? How will the team attempt to build a dominant bullpen? …So on and so forth. What is known, Stu Sternberg will again put together another $70MM ball club — give or take a couple million — and most of the players will return in 2016. The rest, as they say, will reveal itself as the offseason unfolds.

I recapped the final week of play over at DRaysBay. You can relive the Rays’ 5-1 week by clicking the link.

Noteworthiness

— Logan Forsythe has been named a finalist for the Hank Aaron Award, given to the top offensive performer in each league. Fans can vote for him at mlb.com until October 11.

— Steven Souza Jr. thinks the Tampa Bay Rays can be a dangerous team next year with a couple of additions.

— Speaking for myself, I’ll be rooting for the Pirates and/or the Cubs in the NL, and the Royals and/or the Astros in the AL. Sure, I’d love to see David Price lead the Blue Jays deep into the postseason. However, I’d also like to see Ben Zobrist make it to the World Series. That being said, I’ll be putting together a few postseason series previews here and there, starting Thursday.

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