Rays Reliever Should Win Comeback Player of the Year Award

If the results of the Major League Baseball Players Association’s poll is to be believed, then the winner of the 2026 American League Comeback Player of the Year award will be Yordan Alvarez of the Houston Astros. And if that does indeed, happen, a member of the Tampa Bay Rays will have been sorely overlooked. Against literally all expectations, the Rays enjoyed an extraordinary 2026 season, winning the American League pennant and reaching the World Series for only the third time in franchise history. Along the way, they received some outstanding contributions from players who had been largely overlooked elsewhere.