For the first time in several years, the Rays look to have the bulk of next season’s core already in place before the offseason begins, writes Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. And while it’s obvious that nothing can ever be firmly ruled out with the Rays as pertains to the trade market, owner Stuart Sternberg tells Topkin that he believes much of the current talent will be in place for the foreseeable future. “It looks like a chunk of the infield is there,” says Sternberg. “It looks like the outfield is there. … If (Michael Perez) continues to show what he’s shown to this point, you’ve got your catchers in place.”
The Rays have seen well-regarded prospects like Jake Bauers and Willy Adames rise to the Majors this season, while they’ve added Tommy Pham, Austin Meadows and Christian Arroyo, among others, to the fold via the trade market over the past year. Sternberg notes that there’s some uncertainty on the pitching staff, at least in terms of the roles of individual pitchers, but he notes that the Rays have no intention of deviating from their experimental “opener” role and the blurring of the lines between starters and relievers. To the contrary — Sternberg believes that several other teams will adopt the strategy next season.
Here’s more from the AL East…
- Barring a significant turnaround, Drew Pomeranz’s disastrous season will likely leave him on the outside looking in when the postseason arrives, writes Evan Drellich of NBC Sports Boston. But the 29-year-old lefty isn’t blaming his struggles on poor health in spite of some notably diminished fastball velocity (as pointed out by Drellich). Rather, Pomeranz feels the source of his struggles is “clear-cut,” explaining to Drellich that he’s worked with Red Sox VP of pitching development Brian Bannister and determined that his release point is “short of what it’s been the last two years.” That may seem an overly simplistic explanation for a pitcher with a 6.34 ERA on the season, and after last night’s poor relief outing it’s clear that even if Pomeranz is aware of the issue, he’s still been unable to correct the flaw on a consistent basis. The impending free agent will have just under seven weeks to get back on track in an effort to not only improve his chances of making the postseason roster but also to salvage some of his free-agent stock in an otherwise nightmarish season.
- Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com runs through a number of topics still facing the Orioles as they enter the next phase of their rebuild. Notably, Kubatko writes that the O’s don’t view righty Mychal Givens as “untouchable” in trade talks — a departure from their previously reported line of thinking — though they’re still not keen on dealing the power-armed 28-year-old, who can be controlled through 2021. Givens’ 4.73 ERA through 59 innings isn’t much to look at, but fielding-independent metrics give him a more favorable review, and he’s averaging nearly 10 punchouts per nine innings. Kubatko also examines what could be an open competition for shortstop in 2019 and beyond, the team’s outfield mix moving forward and Austin Wynns’ potentially rising stock.
- Curtis Granderson tells Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet that clearing revocable trade waivers — as he reportedly did earlier this week — doesn’t mean much “except that there are possibilities,” all of which are out of his control. Nicholson-Smith speculates that the Indians could look into a Granderson pickup now that July acquisition Leonys Martin is sidelined with no timetable for a return. Granderson has a superlative clubhouse reputation, and Blue Jays manager John Gibbons tells Nicholson-Smith that “everything is true, and maybe more” regarding the veteran outfielder’s impact in that regard. Granderson, who clubbed his 10th career grand slam last night, is hitting .242/.339/.436 with 11 homers, 16 doubles and a triple against right-handed pitching in 2018. The return in a trade would be modest, at best, but he’d be a nice bench option for a contending club.
Its not Pomeranz Release point, its the fact he needs tommy john
It’s not Pomeranz release point, it’s the fact that he needs to be on a rocket ship to the sun
Unless he needs surgery, he’ll be wanted by multiple clubs but his price is clearly at the bottom. If he misreads the market, he’ll still be looking for a job in May.
Pom has been injured since he was traded to the Redsox. I know he won 17 games last yr but it wasn’t felt like 17. I hope the Redsox don’t resign him, but will he have anyone calling?
Who cares about pitcher wins!
Its about club wins and he continues to put the Sox behind each and every time he pitches then his personal performance doesn’t matter.
I don’t know which person on here said it, but when I heard about Joe Kelly giving up the triple, I immediately thought of meatball!
The Sox bullpen is it’s Achilles Heel.
No more meatballs please
Spoken like a true Phillies fan…
Triples I can live with. Part of the game. Home runs and walks are the true Achilles heels of most teams.
Granderson’s defense is very very bad. He is a DH/PH.
Thank you
I’m sure all the contending teams looking to land him would only view him as a pinch hitter
Pom can’t admit the truth. It isn’t the release point. Good luck with that theory and getting that next contract.
Pom needs to take a clue from Anibel Sanchez last year and ask to be sent to AAA so he can get several starts and try to get right. He still gets all his $$$ and can come back in Sept if he shows increased velo and better command.
Well Pom’s arm is pretty much toast. Call your doctor and see if TJS is available and hook onto a team with a 2yr/5-10 mil deal, like what evo, smyly, and Pineda did with their respective teams.
Just having Granderson on the bench can help a team to win. I hope he finds himself on a contender going for it….
Please Yanks why are we twiddling our thumbs can we just get Granderson already instead of running Walker and Robinson in the OF??
I don’t get it either, the Yankees could probably get him and some of his salary for a guy they’ll be losing in the Rule 5 draft anyway. It just seems like such a perfect fit.
Because they division race is OVER! Cashman knows that and is just going to wait for Judge to get healthy. There is no way they are catching the Red Sox.
stat heads have taken over. time for a few new rules. this opener crap has to go. if you don’t like baseball the way it is then dont watch. until then I want to see starters and balls hit up the middle be a hit. I am all for improving the sport but we can do that without fundamentally changing it.
I remember when relievers were only for mop up duty…good times. And the “modern day” shift has been around forever. Eddie Mathews got shifted in all the time. Blame the hitters for trying to pull everything instead of taking what the pitcher gives them
You’re contradicting yourself. You say don’t watch if you don’t like how things are, but then proceed to complain about the current state of the game. Where do you stand?
You must have been outraged when pitchers started throwing overhand
Get off my lawn.
Need an OF? Lefty stick with some pop? Granderson is your guy. Go get.
Pomeranz needs to go back with the A’s where he was very successful as a reliever…
Good clubhouse guys are always a need, and one that can still hit and run some should be of interest to multiple contenders.
Grandy won’t cost much in prospect capital, so I could see any of the Yankees, Indians, A’s, or D-Backs being interested.
His release point has gotten him to the point of release.
Rays have done the opener thing better than I anticipated, but it won’t become the norm around the league. Why? Because no free agent pitcher is going to sign up for that kitschy nonsense–Rays don’t go after good free agents, so point is moot for them. I don’t see this working too well in future–pitchers need to develop. The position players look solid for the future! Glad they actually decided to *play* them (other than Meadows, who has proven all he needs to at aaa).
I think if cashman wanted granderson he would have obtained
him in the happ trade pretty cheap, they were short in the outfield then