A bona fide flamethrower during his time with Tampa, Chris Archer debuted with Tampa in 2012, a year after he was in the minors and traded from the New York Mets.  Archer would begin an inconsistent career as he was often brilliant and often shellacked. 

Known for his four-seam fastball and slider, Scott Kazmir fanned many batters in a Tampa Bay Ray uniform.  

Carlos Pena would play 14 seasons in the Majors with the best run of her career coming with the Rays.  It was especially noteworthy, considering that it happened when most pundits wrote him off the game entirely.

James Shields made his Major League debut for the Tampa Bay Rays in 2006, and he would play there until 2012.  Starting 217 of his 218 Games, a Ray, Shields became an upper-end starter and certified innings eater for the team.