Led by Evan Longoria and Chris Archer, a handful of Rays stopped by Kevin Cash's office in recent days and lobbied for outfielder Dayron Varona to be included in next week's trip to Havana, Cuba.
Varona, a native of Havana who defected to Haiti three years ago with his mother, is a minor leaguer and not a member of the Rays' 40-man roster. So, the Rays didn't have to include him in the traveling party.
Cash released the travel list Tuesday and it included one non-roster player: Varona.
"It means the world to me that (the players) did that," Varona said through an interpreter. "This is really the opportunity of a lifetime to be able to return to my homeland, and I just want to say thanks again to them and the front office for giving me this chance."
It is a once-in-a-lifetime trip for Varona's teammates, as well.
The Rays will be only the second major league team to play in Cuba since 1959. The Orioles played a game there in 1999. President Barack Obama is scheduled to attend the Rays' game Tuesday afternoon against the Cuban national team, and possibly throw out the first pitch, at Estadio Latinoamericano.
"For those two, three days I hope I can make time stand still and really, really to embrace it," pitcher Steve Geltz said.
The Rays have chartered two flights Sunday out of Tampa. The first one, leaving in the morning, includes team employees and guests. The second, leaving after the Rays' Grapefruit League game against the Orioles in Sarasota, includes the players, coaches, Cash and the front office staff.
The 34 players on the travel list include 14 pitchers, 10 infielders, seven outfielders and three catchers.
The pitchers are Matt Andriese, Andrew Bellatti, Brad Boxberger, Xavier Cedeno, Alex Cobb, Alex Colome, Danny Farquhar, Matt Moore, Enny Romero, Drew Smyly, Ryan Webb, Chase Whitley, Archer and Geltz.
The catchers are Curt Casali, Hank Conger and Rene Rivera.
The infielders are Tim Beckham, Logan Forsythe, Nick Franklin, James Loney, Brad Miller, Logan Morrison, Taylor Motter, Steve Pearce, Richie Shaffer and Longoria.
The outfielders are Corey Dickerson, Brandon Guyer, Desmond Jennings, Kevin Kiermaier, Mikie Mahtook, Steven Souza Jr., and Varona.
The only players not making the trip are pitchers Jake Odorizzi, who is scheduled to pitch Monday, and Erasmo Ramirez, who is scheduled to pitch in Fort Myers against the Twins the day after the Rays return.
The 28-man active roster for the game will be announced later, likely on Monday.
The starting lineup will look much like it did Tuesday during the Rays' 5-2 loss to the visiting Phillies with Morrison at first base, Forsythe at second, Miller at shortstop, Longoria at third base, Jennings in left field, Kiermaier in center, Souza in right, Casali catching and Dickerson as the DH.
Moore will be the starting pitcher.
"I think it's really cool," Moore said. "Some guys will get to go and not play, and that will still be awesome to be part of the game. For me to get to compete and go in there and do that is something I'll definitely appreciate from here on out."
Moore won't know much, if anything, about the members of the Cuban national team. He will be pitching in a stadium that holds 55,000, and most of those fans will be rooting for the home team.
"I would assume this is a friendly, as they say in soccer," Moore said. "But I don't think we're wanting to, 'Hey let's go take it to them,' any more than any other opponent that we step on the field with."
Moore and the rest of his teammates will be four weeks onto a five-week spring training schedule aimed at getting ready for the season.
Yes, Moore said, the Rays want to win. But, they can't lose sight of the goal to be ready for the April 3 season-opener against the visiting Blue Jays.
"Obviously we're going to put our best foot forward to win and we're still trying to get ourselves in shape for the season," Moore said. "I think we can accomplish all that and still be part of something that's pretty special."
Cash was excited Tuesday when he announced Verona was on the travel list.
"Without a doubt," Cash said. "My gosh, the guy's been over here for three years."
Varona has been almost as popular with visiting media as star players Archer and Kiermaier, as Spanish reporters and TV stations tell the story of the Cuban defector returning to his country to play baseball.
It will be interesting to see how he will be treated by his family, Cuban officials, baseball fans and members of the national team.
"With respect to my family, I hope they're happy to see me," he said. "It's been almost three years, about three years, since I've been away from the island. Really, I'm the only male in the family, so I really hope they're happy to see me. I know I will be.
"With respect to the Cuban people, I hope they see me as a fellow Cuban. I hope they give me applause and receive me well, like they would for their countrymen."