ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Thursday night's American League Division Series Game 5 loss was not the ending the Rays and their fans wanted. 

Tampa Bay is headed to the offseason while Houston moves on to the ALCS to take on the New York Yankees for a chance to advance to the World Series. 

Still, there is no denying the Rays pulled off a great season that included a playoff series with two raucous crowds at Tropicana Field.

"What they did the two games here was unbelievable. It helped us win games," Manager Kevin Cash said of the fan support. "Just like it helped Houston win games in their ballpark."

After 90 wins and no playoffs in 2018, the Rays and their $63 million payroll won 96 games this regular season, seized the American League wild card from the favored Oakland A's and pushed the highly-favored Astros to a deciding game in the ALDS. 

So what's next for the Rays? More of the same said Rays principal owner Stu Sternberg.  

"When fans get hold of it they see what a great game it is and how much it has to offer," Sternberg said of the Rays' playoff run. "It brings people together and it’s everything I could’ve imagined and wanted to be 

"So it’s really heartwarming and then some to see the fans respond the way they did."  

And they really did respond. 

Fans packed Tropicana Field for Games 3 and 4, with 32,251 and 32,178, respectively. And plenty of fans turned out for watch parties Thursday night across Tampa Bay.  

"This was heartbreaking," said Rays fan Holly Davis while leaving the Straub Park watch party. "It was, we were at every playoff game they ever played here and it’s just heartbreaking to have them lose now when we were so close." 

For a few days, at least, there was little talk of Montreal. Tampa-St. Pete stadium woes were pushed back for a moment. It was just baseball, the Rays and the excitement of the playoffs. 

So what's next?

An offseason of player and personnel moves as always. Payroll discussions. Maybe Hillsborough County reopening stadium discussions with the team.

More groups salivating for a shot and redeveloping the Tropicana Field site? Rays' brass cozying up to potential ownership groups in Montreal over a split-home idea? 

Time will tell. But for the players, they believe the best is yet to come.

"The success we had this year proved to a lot of us how good we are," said pitcher Tyler Glasnow. "I think that's a big step but I think, two, just being in the big leagues one year longer everyone's got the experience and we're all so young. I think even if we have the exact same team, I think we're going to go really far next year."

Pitchers and catchers report in just 124 days.