These are the teams the Rays are challenging with their record start

ST. PETERSBURG — Fred “Sure Shot” Dunlap sure had a busy season back in 1884.

Signed to play for the St. Louis Maroons in the new and short-lived Union Association for a $3,400 salary that made him the game’s top-paid player, the star second baseman — who was ambidextrous and said to often play without a glove — was a key cog in the team’s sizzling 20-0 start to a dazzling season.

Then in mid-June, the 25-year-old took over as player/manager when original manager Ted Sullivan decided he’d rather work for the Kansas City Cowboys team that joined the league as an in-season replacement for the Altoona (Pennsylvania) Mountain City squad that folded.

That double duty didn’t deter Dunlap, the pride of Philadelphia, from a successful season. He went on to hit .412 with an impressive (relative to the time) 13 (of the team’s 32) home runs and 39 doubles in 101 games as the Maroons, owned by league founder Henry Lucas, rolled to a 94-19-1 record. (The Association lasted just one year; the Maroons moved to the National League, then folded after two rough seasons.)

Why does any of this matter?

Because in the Rays’ stunning, record-setting start to the season (11-0 through Tuesday) they have challenged and thus brought attention to some of the Maroons’ 139-year-old marks, as well as others from teams from the more recent past.

“It’s definitely cool to get a chance to be part of history,” Rays outfielder Josh Lowe said.

Here is a look.

1884 St. Louis Maroons

The Maroons’ showing in the one and only season of the Union Association was — given that the statistics are recognized by Major League Baseball — quite historic.

The first 13 of their 20 straight wins were by four or more runs, a record the Rays were chasing in rolling up their first nine that way before beating Boston 1-0 on Monday. No other team started a season with more than four straight such wins.

The Maroons, naturally, also had a remarkable run differential, a record plus-458 for the 114-game season that seems likely to never be challenged.

Consider that the Rays’ plus-63 run differential through 11 games (scoring 83, allowing 20) is the best in baseball’s modern era (since 1901). But they rank only third all time, behind the Maroons (plus-106) and the 1884 New York Gothams (plus-73), and just ahead of the 1876 Hartford Dark Blues (plus-59).

This is the second time the Maroons have been in the news in recent years. Their 20-0 start in 1884 was the best mark to start a season in the four major pro sports until 2015, when the NBA’s Golden State Warriors broke it by winning their first 24.

1939 Yankees

On their way to a 106-45-1 record and four-game sweep of the Reds in the World Series, Joe DiMaggio, Bill Dickey, Joe Gordon and friends set a modern-day record for dominance at any point of the season. They won 10 straight (from Aug. 20-28) by four or more runs, a mark the Rays came up one short of.

1981 A’s

While the focus has been on the offense, the Rays’ pitching staff also made some history through 11 games by allowing a franchise-low 20 runs. That was impressive — with fewer runs allowed by their pitchers than home runs hit by their batters — but far off the record. The 1981 A’s allowed only 14 runs in their first 11 wins, led by a rotation of Mike Norris, Rick Langford, Matt Keough (later a Rays scout), Steve McCatty and Brian Kingman.

1982 Braves/1987 Brewers

The modern-day record for wins to start a season is 13, shared by two teams that share some history.

After a 13-0 start under manager Joe Torre, the 1982 Braves with Phil Niekro, Dale Murphy and Bob Horner went 76-73 the rest of the way to win the National League West at 89-73 but got swept in the NL Championship Series by the Cardinals.

The Brewers had an even worse ending. After winning their first 13 and 17 of 18, Tom Trebelhorn’s Brewers a week later started a skid of 12 straight losses and 18 in 20 games. Despite strong seasons from Paul Molitor and Robin Yount, and starter Teddy Higuera, the Brewers finished 91-71 and third in the AL East.

The Rays joined four other teams in winning at least their first 10. The 1981 A’s won 11, and the 1955 World Series champion Dodgers (whose roster included Jackie Robinson and Don Zimmer), 1962 Pirates and 1966 Indians each won 10.

Among the teams that won nine were the 2009 Royals, who featured a rookie pitcher (who debuted on May 1, after the streak ended) named Kyle Snyder, now the Rays’ pitching coach.

2000 Cardinals

With Jim Edmonds and Mark McGwire leading the way, the 2000 Cardinals bashed their way to a franchise-record 235 homers during a 95-win, NL Central championship season. That included an MLB-record 29 home runs in their first 11 games, a mark the Rays tied on Tuesday. Of those 29, the Rays have had three games with four or more each, including the comeback win at Washington on April 4, when they hit three in the ninth inning for the first time in franchise history. Notably, the 29 homers were by 11 different players.

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