On March 31 1998, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and Arizona Diamondbacks debuted as the two newest clubs in Major League Baseball. Both franchises began their franchise histories playing at home.
The Diamondbacks, with Buck Showalter at the helm, hosted the Colorado Rockies at Bank One Ballpark and lost 9-2. Rookie first baseman Travis Lee went 3-for-4 in his big-league debut and collected Arizona’s first hit and first home run, connecting off Colorado starter and winning pitcher Darryl Kile in the sixth inning. Andy Benes, signed as a free agent after 11 seasons with San Diego and St. Louis, allowed five runs in 6.1 innings and took the loss.
The results were no better across the country at Tropicana Field in Florida, where the Devil Rays, under Larry Rothschild, lost an 11-6 decision to the Detroit Tigers. Lefty Wilson Álvarez, signed as a free agent, gave up six runs in 2.1 innings in his Devil Rays debut. The big story of the day for Tampa Bay fans was local boy Wade Boggs, who graduated H.B. Plant High School in Tampa, hitting the first home run in franchise history—a two-run shot off Tigers lefty Justin Thompson in the sixth inning.
The 39-year-old Boggs had already spent 16 seasons in the majors with the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees. He had won five batting titles and led the American League in OBP six times with Boston, then won a World Series title with the Yankees in 1996. He joined the Devil Rays as a free agent in 1998 and played his final two big-league seasons for his hometown team. He collected his 3,000th hit on August 7, 1999, and retired soon after with 3,010 hits, a career .328 average and .415 OBP.
the pre game ceremony for the rays however was fantastic as Hall-of-Famers Ted Williams, Stan Musial, Al Lopez, and Monte Irvin throw out ceremonial first pitches, Wilson Alvarez, the losing pitcher, hurls the first pitch in franchise history – a ball to Detroit’s center fielder Brian Hunter.
