The Rays have begun the offseason facing the potential exits of three notable free agents in catcher Travis d’Arnaud, outfielder Avisail Garcia and infielder/outfielder Eric Sogard. The low-budget club’s interested in re-signing all three, though any new deal would have to come at the right price, according to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times.
Among the trio, it may be d’Arnaud who’s in line for the richest contract. A somewhat lucrative offseason payday for d’Arnaud looked highly unlikely when the Rays acquired him from the Dodgers for $100K back on May 10. D’Arnaud was then coming off a fleeting run in Los Angeles, which claimed the former star prospect off waivers from the Mets after a disappointing, injury-filled tenure in New York.
Once d’Arnaud got to Tampa Bay, not only did his health hold up, but he gave the team a solution behind the plate. The 30-year-old slashed a respectable .263/.323/.459 with 16 home runs in 365 plate appearances as a Ray. He also threw out 28 percent of would-be base stealers, though Baseball Prospectus graded d’Arnaud as a below-average overall defender. Still, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see d’Arnaud land a two-year contract worth at least $5MM per season in the coming weeks, especially considering he’s among the most impressive choices in a so-so class of free-agent catchers.
Aside from d’Arnaud, Jason Castro and Robinson Chirinos, it’s slim pickings beyond the undisputed top backstop available, Yasmani Grandal. The lack of appealing and affordable alternatives could make it all the more important for the Rays to re-sign d’Arnaud, as Mike Zunino may be a non-tender candidate after a horrid year and Michael Perez has just 135 big league plate trips to his name.
Meanwhile, even if they lose Garcia, the Rays look to be in better shape in the corner outfield than they are at catcher. Austin Meadows and Tommy Pham should make for a more-than-capable top two in 2020, though Garcia looks like a solid option in his own right. After signing a $3.5MM guarantee with the Rays last winter, the former White Sox outfielder batted .282/.332/.464 with 20 homers and 10 steals across 530 PA. Along the way, the 28-year-old, righty-hitting Garcia held his own against both same-handed and southpaw pitchers alike. He was also something of a Statcast favorite, evidenced in part by a .344 expected weighted on-base average (compared to a .338 real wOBA) and a sprint speed that surprisingly ranked in the majors’ 90th percentile. The big-bodied Garcia’s athleticism helped him log quality production in the outfield, where he accounted for a pair of Defensive Runs Saved, a 2.2 Ultimate Zone Rating and three Outs Above Average.
Despite his strong work as a Ray, Garcia’s likely to face skepticism on the market from at least some teams. Age and 2019 performance are on Garcia’s side, but he hasn’t been particularly steady during his career. The White Sox, despite obvious holes in their outfield, non-tendered Garcia just a year ago. It was an understandable decision at the time, as Garcia was then coming off a replacement-level 2018 showing. Furthermore, in five of his seven extensive major league seasons, Garcia has racked up less than 1.0 fWAR. On the other hand, he was a 4.2-fWAR player in 2017. And while this year’s 1.8 doesn’t look spectacular, it’s satisfactory in light of the relatively low-cost deal Tampa Bay gave him.
Garcia’s now a member of a free-agent corner outfield class that also features the likes of Nicholas Castellanos, Marcell Ozuna, Corey Dickerson, Yasiel Puig and Brett Gardner. Sogard, meantime, is part of a jam-packed group of noteworthy unsigned players at the keystone, but he quietly enjoyed one of the best 2019 seasons of any free-agent second basemen. The 33-year-old easily recorded a career campaign, hitting .290/.353/.457 with 13 HRs and 2.6 fWAR over 442 PA. While Sogard did see his offensive production dive after the Rays acquired him from the Blue Jays in July (.839 OPS versus .732), he was still an adequate option in Tampa Bay.
Sogard’s just an offseason removed from having to settle for a minor league contract, but he just made a legitimate case for a guaranteed deal this winter. Whether the Rays will be the team that gives Sogard his next pact is up in the air, though. Brandon Lowe’s sure to start at second for the club in 2020 after an excellent but injury-plagued rookie season, but there could still be room for Sogard in a multi-positional role.
TB should trade Zunino and extend a contract offer to d’Arnaud.
Zunino has no value
Then they should non-tender him.
If NH was still the GM, I’d say Zunino would be a Pirate. But now I have no idea the direction they will go.
Only if they figure out what they have in their own catchers. Not good last year.
Since he’s a decent catcher and a candidate for a bounce back from a career worst yr, he has value but the contract numbers do hurt his value. He’ll bounce back to his career numbers for someone next yr.
When Garcia wasn’t holding his own, Prince Fielder’s wife was!
Michael Perez will be part of TBR’s catcher tandem 13 HR in 200 AB at AAA looks good. He needs time at MLB level.
We absolutely need Travis d’arnaurd formost (pay him) and should hope the Mgmt wants Garcia back if within budget. Though Sogard is a player that can hit and play many positions, we have Wendle, Mike Bruseau and many super minor league talent that must play formost. Zunino had more than enough chances to snap out of his horrible batting and issues in defense but couldn’t, and has a history of being terrible and not the catcher for the Rays DFA him ASAP.
Don’t need to dfa. Just non tender
Non tender Zunino and there’s 3/4 of the TD money. The only way I see Rays not re signing is if he insists 3 years because the rays just aren’t gonna do that
Wouldn’t mind Garcia on the Braves as long as the price is not to high
Where would he play? OF? Not sure he’s a great defender. If we do get him, how long and how much? We have quite a few prospects that are more interesting in my opinion…
Ultimately I just don’t see the Braves not keeping NM. I know we should buy him out, but gosh the Braves are predictable. If that’s the case, I don’t see the Braves making a move for another OF
Don’t be surprised if the Braves don’t go after d’Arnuad however… keep an eye on that. The love former top prospects and we will likely need a 2nd catcher and I don’t see the Braves going after the best at that position
With 32M guaranteed to just 3 players (KK, Snell, Morton) and a likely 8M bill for Pham (if they don’t move him), it’s hard to see the Rays keeping any of their FAs, or tendering contracts to Duffy, Roberson, et.al.
Not the end of the world. They’ll be some cheap RH power out there. The starting pitching core is strong, the bullpen more than palatable,
8 million billion? that’s a lot for one player
“8M bill” as in “8 million cost” or “8 million tab” or “8 million reward”…..
Or a guy named Bill whose worth 8 million……
The Rays are cheap, but not as cheap as you describe. They have to show a fair payroll for a small market team and I’m sure they will be criticized by all MLB if they don’t have at least a 70 mill for 2020. That leaves room for “little d” most importantly and Avasial Garcia hopefully, (or someone similar to him).
wouldn’t be surpised if these three are cheap enough for Tampa to bring back.
I think they realize TD is most important to come back. I don’t see Garcia or sogard returning
Agree…. with an outfield of KK, Meadows and Pham they only need to find a 4th outfielder who can catch the ball and hit enough.
Romine will likely get bigger guarantee than all but Grandal and perhaps Chirinos yet not mentioned…strange.
Zunino if he has any trade value is for cash or PTBNL.
Rays should focus on resigning Travis & non tendering Zunino.
Sogard could be resigned to a veteran minimum contract.
The new Baseball Ops guy for the Sox may have some talented Rays he might like to pursue. Sogard would be a nice 2 B fixture if Holt looks for greener pastures. Pham, if JBJ is dealt and Benentendi goes to CF-Phan would be solid in LF.
The Rays are very resilient and money smart–kind of like the Patriots…they have smart management. They are like a band of brothers. They are solid with the main staple–good pitching beats average to good hitting most of the time. Glasnow, Morton and Snell are well above average starters. They will be very tough next season.
I can’t see the Rays trading Pham unless they get a nice haul in return. He is a 3.5-4 WAR player with 2 years remaining. Even more importantly for the Rays, those 2 years should cost <$20 million total. That's very valuable to every team, but even moreso to the low revenue Rays.
I think you mean “in the meantime”