SEATTLE — The Rays have ample and obvious cause to rave about the tremendous job of pitching being done by closer Alex Colome, who rolled into Friday's late game against the Mariners sharing the American League lead with 15 saves and on a streak of converting 10 straight.
But ask around and you hear even more reasons to be impressed — the sense of calm he provides from the mound no matter how leveraged the moment, the team-first approach that drives everything he does, the mentoring of young teammates he has started.
And, most telling, his absolute willingness, if not insistence, to pitch whenever needed, adamant on making himself available even after heavy workdays, to the point where the Rays sometimes have to tell him no, take a day off.
"I like to be on the mound," Colome said. "If I feel good, I'm going to pitch."
That he has done very well. He has grown into and relished the job he took over unexpectedly when Brad Boxberger was injured in March 2016 — having just been transitioned to relief work the previous July 2015 after a so-so big-league introduction as a starter (6-5, 3.56) — and thrived as one of the game's best closers, converting 52 of 57 saves with a 1.95 ERA, earning a '16 All-Star selection. The only slight issue has been working multi-inning saves, and after talking with manager Kevin Cash they agreed to keep it primarily to occasional four-out situations.
"I told you last year I had it 100 percent in my mind when I go into a game," he said. "And this year I feel better (about it) than last year."
Not only does Colome, 27, take the ball whenever the Rays ask but even sometimes when they weren't planning on doing so.
Like Monday in Texas, coming off a season-high 35-pitch, two-inning outing in Sunday's 6½-hour marathon. Colome insisted after an afternoon catch he was good to go if needed, and when pitching coach Jim Hickey called down in the eighth, Colome was adamant in telling bullpen coach Stan Boroski he would finish the job. He worked an 11-pitch ninth inning.
"If I have to pitch four, five days in a row I can do it because I'm working every day," Colome said. "I go to the gym, I take care of my arm. When I say I'm good to pitch, I'm good to pitch. It's like because I want to be more of a man than the other guys. If I say I'm good, it's because I can pitch.
"Maybe some people think it's crazy that I want to do more. I don't — I have to take care of my arm for next year and the future. I'm not crazy. But if my arm feels good, I have to pitch."
That want-to mind-set is admirable, even more so when you consider Colome hasn't made any big money yet, playing for $547,900 this year (a raise of only $26,200 after having his contract renewed) with the riches of arbitration (and thus accompanying trade rumors) looming after this season. And he's not one of those guys who only makes himself available when it looks like an easy save.
All this together makes for interesting conversation about what his mates find most impressive.
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Explore all your optionsFor starter Chris Archer, it's that team-first attitude.
"You can tell he takes it personal when he's on the mound," Archer said. "If there's guys on base, he's not going to let them score (just two of 14 inherited runners). With some younger guys, they might be just focused on other things like throwing strikes or who they're facing.
"But Alex Colome is a dominant force in the league. And a lot of that has to do with who he is as a person — his ethics, his morals and his character. …
"He's all about the team. He's not all about Alex. … If you have 25 guys like that on your roster, it's going to be a successful season."
For Hickey, it's the way Colome has reached out to rookie relievers such as Jose Alvarado and Diego Moreno.
"We have some young Latinos here, and I see him on a daily basis whether it's off to the side or having a meal and kind of mentoring these guys, talking to them after their outings," Hickey said. "That's been very impressive, and it's unsolicited from us."
For starter Jake Odorizzi, it's how routinely Colome completes the task, showcasing a dastardly cutter that has so much depth it can look at times like a slider.
"It's like clockwork — you bring him in and he does his job," Odorizzi said. "He has that mentality now, and when he comes in the game we kind of assume it's over with. What he's been able to do transitioning from a starter to a bullpen guy to a closer is pretty impressive. That's his job now, and he does it really well. Plus it helps that he's got one of the best pitches in baseball that's not talked about."
For Cash, it's the cool and confidence-building approach Colome takes.
"There's like a calming that comes into the dugout when he's on the mound," Cash said. "He provides so much confidence for our team. We have so much confidence in him to go get three outs or five outs, whatever's asked of him."
For Colome, it's just what he does. And as often as he can.
Marc Topkin can be reached at mtopkin@tampabay.com. Follow @TBTimes_Rays.