Rays Rumors

Rays Notes: Caballero, Diaz, McClanahan

By Anthony Franco | July 22, 2025 at 9:47pm CDT

Rays utilityman José Caballero has gotten trade attention from some other clubs, reports Francys Romero. The versatile infielder is operating as a backup behind Tampa Bay’s typical starting infield of Jonathan Aranda, Brandon Lowe, Junior Caminero and Ha-Seong Kim. Lowe went on the injured list this morning with ankle tendinitis, so Caballero drew into tonight’s lineup at second base. Taylor Walls will probably get the bulk of the playing time in place of Lowe, yet he was needed at shortstop today because Kim is day-to-day with lower back discomfort.

Caballero, 28 next month, has a light bat but provides value on defense and as a baserunner. He led the American League with 44 stolen bases last season, though he was also caught an MLB-high 16 times. Caballero is 32-39 as a basestealer this year. FanGraphs has graded him as an above-average overall baserunner in each of his three big league seasons. Caballero has also rated as a plus defender at each of second base, third base and shortstop.

The secondary skills have made Caballero an above replacement level performer in each of his three seasons. He has never provided much at the plate, however. The righty hitter owns a .218/.315/.310 slash with two home runs and an elevated 30.3% strikeout rate in 251 plate appearances this year. Caballero has never reached double digits in home runs nor hit above .230 in a season. He’ll qualify for arbitration for the first time this offseason as a Super Two player.

Tampa Bay wouldn’t get a huge return for Caballero. It nevertheless stands to reason they’d be open to offers, as he’s arguably a bit superfluous with Walls also on the roster. Whether to trade designated hitter/corner infielder Yandy Díaz is a much bigger question for the front office.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic suggested last week that the Rays are likely to hold Díaz, who is signed for another year and a half on a deal that also includes a 2027 club option. Romero hears similarly, posting that they intend to keep Díaz as they compete for a playoff spot. The Rays are half a game behind the Red Sox for the AL’s last Wild Card spot. Díaz has popped 16 homers with a robust .293/.352/.474 batting line this year.

Even as they’re in position to add before next week’s deadline, the Rays could hear teams out on their rotation depth. Drew Rasmussen and Ryan Pepiot make for a strong top two. It seems unlikely that they’d move Shane Baz. USA Today’s Bob Nightengale has reported that the Rays could consider offers on Taj Bradley, while Zack Littell is a potential trade candidate as an impending free agent. Dealing a starter would open a rotation spot for hard-throwing Joe Boyle, who is currently operating in a multi-inning relief capacity.

The Rays still await a return from ace Shane McClanahan. The two-time All-Star has not pitched in an MLB game since undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2023. He sustained a triceps nerve injury during Spring Training that cost him the first half. McClanahan had a setback last month and has now hit another speed bump — albeit one that seems fairly minor.

According to the MLB.com injury tracker, his minor league rehab assignment has been halted after he felt biceps soreness in his most recent appearance. Manager Kevin Cash told team reporter Ryan Bass that the biceps discomfort is unrelated to the triceps problem. Cash suggested McClanahan could resume a throwing program within a few days, but he won’t take the ball for his previously scheduled rehab start at Triple-A Durham on Thursday.

Rays Acquire Stuart Fairchild, Place Brandon Lowe On Injured List

By Steve Adams | July 22, 2025 at 12:37pm CDT

The Rays announced Tuesday that they’ve acquired outfielder Stuart Fairchild from the Braves in exchange for cash. Tampa Bay also placed infielder Brandon Lowe on the 10-day injured list with tendinitis in his left ankle. Right-hander Manuel Rodriguez goes from the 15-day IL to the 60-day IL to open a spot for Fairchild on the 40-man roster.

Atlanta designated the 29-year-old Fairchild for assignment just yesterday morning. He’s primarily been a pinch-runner and late-inning defensive replacement in the Braves’ outfield. Fairchild has played in 28 games but only come to the plate 55 times this year. He’s hit .216/.273/.333 in that tiny sample and is a career .223/.305/.384 hitter in 670 major league plate appearances overall.

Fairchild, a former second-round pick, has totaled 277 major league games split between the Diamondbacks, Reds, Giants, Mariners and Braves. He has well above-average speed (87th percentile, per Statcast) and can handle all three outfield spots, which has led to him carving out a frequent role as a fourth outfielder. He’s a right-handed bat who offers slightly above-average production against lefties but has struggled considerably in right-on-right matchups. Fairchild is out of options, so the Rays will have to carry him on the big league roster or else designate him for assignment once again.

Lowe exited the Rays’ game on Saturday with what was described at the time as plantar fasciitis. He hasn’t appeared in a game since. As such, the move can be backdated to July 20. That leaves the veteran second baseman time to be reinstated prior to the July 31 trade deadline.

In 350 plate appearances this season, Lowe is hitting .269/.320/.480 with 19 home runs, 11 doubles, three stolen bases, a 6.9% walk rate and a 25.4% strikeout rate. He’s in the final guaranteed season of his contract, though Tampa Bay holds an $11.5MM club option (with a $500K buyout) that seems overwhelmingly likely to be exercised.

The Rays aren’t clear-cut sellers, but there’s always a possibility of them moving some veteran pieces whose club control is dwindling. In that sense, Lowe is a speculative trade candidate who’d presumably appeal to clubs with second base needs (e.g. Giants, Astros). He can be traded even if he’s on the injured list, and as already mentioned, there’s a chance he’s back before the deadline has passed. There’s no guarantee Rays brass will even make Lowe available, but they do have several infield alternatives on the roster (e.g. Jose Caballero, Ha-Seong Kim, Curtis Mead, Taylor Walls).

Rodriguez, 28, has been a key setup arm for Tampa Bay when healthy, tallying 11 holds and a 2.08 ERA in 30 1/3 innings this season. He landed on the injured list due to a forearm strain in early June, and president of baseball operations Erik Neander indicated last week (via Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times) that Rodriguez isn’t expected back anytime soon. It’s still not entirely clear what his prognosis is, but the shift to the 60-day IL leaves him shelved into at least mid-August. Based on Neander’s comments and the fact that Rodriguez isn’t yet throwing, it’s fair to presume it’ll be a good bit longer than that.

Notable Draft Signings: July 18-19th, 2025

By Darragh McDonald | July 19, 2025 at 10:43pm CDT

Here’s a roundup of players from the recent draft who were signed or agreed to terms in the past two days. For an arbitrary cutoff, this post will focus on players taken before the second round or any later picks who signed a bonus of $2MM or more. Pre-draft rankings and scouting reports are provided by Keith Law of the Athletic, Baseball America, FanGraphs, MLB Pipeline and ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel.

The Cubs have signed outfielder Ethan Conrad to a bonus of $3,563,100, per Jim Callis of MLB.com. Conrad was selected 17th overall, a pick that comes with a $4,750,800 slot. Since the Cubs are saving over a million on their first-round pick, they should have lots of leeway to lock up the remaining players in their class.
The Tigers have signed shortstop Jordan Yost with a $3.25MM bonus, per Callis. Yost went 24th overall, a pick that comes with a slot value of $3,726,300. Per Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press, Detroit has also agreed to terms with their second pick, catcher Michael Oliveto. Selected in the competitive balance A round, 34th overall, his $2.45MM signing bonus is below his $2,827,300 slot value. Between Yost and Oliveto, the Tigers have saved close to a million bucks, which can be redirected to the other guys they drafted.
The Orioles have signed catcher Caden Bodine with a $3,113,300 bonus, per Callis. Callis also relays that shortstop Wehiwa Aloy has signed for $3,042,800. Bodine and Aloy were taken 30th and 31st respectively, with the compensation picks the O’s received for Corbin Burnes and Anthony Santander rejecting qualifying offers and signing elsewhere. Both bonuses were full slot value for their respective picks. The O’s also signed first-rounder Ike Irish to a bonus right around slot value, so they’ve played things pretty straight-up with their top three picks.
The Brewers announced that they have signed shortstop Brady Ebel, the son of Dodgers third base coach Dino Ebel. The younger Ebel was selected 32nd overall, the pick the Brewers received for Willy Adames rejecting a qualifying offer and signing elsewhere. That pick comes with a $2.97MM slot value. The signing bonus has not yet been publicly reported. [UPDATE: Baseball America’s Carlos Collazo reports that Ebel signed for a below-slot $2.75MM bonus.]
The Mariners have agreed to terms with 19 of their draft picks, reports Daniel Kramer of MLB.com. Top pick Kade Anderson’s bonus was previously reported. The M’s also gave catcher Luke Stevenson a bonus of $2.8MM and shortstop Nick Becker $2.75MM. Stevenson was taken in the competitive balance A round, 33rd overall. This bonus comes in just barely above the $2.76MM slot for that pick. Becker was selected in the second round 57th overall, a pick that comes with a slot of $1.64MM. Anderson’s bonus was about $700K under slot and it seems the M’s redirected those savings to get Becker to sign. Callis reported the Stevenson bonus earlier today.
The Yankees have signed shortstop Dax Kilby to a $2.8MM bonus, per Kiley McDaniel of ESPN. Kilby was selected 39th overall, though that was actually the club’s top pick. Their first-rounder was pushed back ten spots because they went over the third competitive balance tax threshold last year. Slot for the pick was $2,509,500, so they went a bit over to get him to sign.
The Rays signed outfielder Brendan Summerhill to a $1,997,500 bonus, per Callis. He was selected 42nd overall, in competitive balance round A. Slot value for that pick was $2,331,000, so the Rays saved a bit on this one. The Rays also went below-slot to sign first-round Daniel Pierce, so they have lots of extra powder for the rest of their class.
The Cardinals signed shortstop Ryan Mitchell to a $2.25MM bonus, per Ari Alexander of KPRC 2. Mitchell was taken in the second round, 55th overall. The slot for that pick is $1,720,300, so the Cards went about half a million above to get this one done. They saved close to a million when signing first-rounder Liam Doyle, so it seems some of those savings were used to ink Mitchell.

Photo courtesy of Dylan Widger, Imagn Images

Rays Agree To Deal With First-Round Pick Daniel Pierce

By Anthony Franco | July 18, 2025 at 10:35pm CDT

The Rays reached a deal with first-round pick Daniel Pierce, reports Jim Callis of MLB Pipeline. He receives a $4.3131MM signing bonus that is exactly $1MM below the slot value of the 14th overall selection.

Pierce is a slick-fielding prep infielder from Georgia. Pre-draft scouting reports from Baseball America, Kiley McDaniel of ESPN, Keith Law of The Athletic and MLB Pipeline all pegged the University of Georgia commit as a mid-first round talent. That’s right where Pierce was selected, although his bonus is closer to the slot value of the 20th selection.

Scouts consider Pierce to be a no-doubt shortstop with a chance to be an excellent defender. BA credited him with plus marks for his speed, arm strength and glove. Law puts an even louder plus-plus grade on both Pierce’s speed and arm strength. There’s more debate about how much he’ll produce offensively. Pierce had an improved senior season and has a solid batting eye, but scouting reports project him with fringe-average grades for both his hitting ability and power.

Cutting a slight underslot deal should allow the Rays to go above the slot values for a few later high school draftees. Tampa Bay went to the prep ranks with both of their second-round selections (Cooper Flemming and Dean Moss) and their third-round pick, Taitn Gray.

Latest On Rays’ Deadline Possibilities

By Anthony Franco | July 17, 2025 at 8:50pm CDT

The Rays stumbled into the All-Star Break. The Red Sox swept them in a four-game set at Fenway to conclude the first half. Tampa Bay has dropped 11 of their past 14 games. They’d climbed as high as 11 games above .500 in late June; they’re now just three over at 50-47.

Like many other fringe contenders, the Rays face a pivotal upcoming two weeks. They’ll play host to the Orioles and White Sox for very winnable series coming out of the Break. They’ll hit the road for sets in Cincinnati and a four-game series against the Yankees running through July 31. President of baseball operations Erik Neander acknowledged to Marc Topkin of The Tampa Bay Times that the club’s deadline plans will in part be shaped by how they begin the second half.

“We’ve got to make up some ground,” Neander said of a team that sits a game and a half behind the Mariners for the last AL Wild Card spot. “There’s a belief in this team. … But these are really big games that will have some sort of influence on our decision-making as the month draws to a close.”

Unsurprisingly, Neander expressed hope that the team plays well enough for the front office to add. “I’d like to think that just about anything I think this group is capable of over these few weeks will lead us in a position where we’re looking to at least improve somewhere on the roster, if not significantly so,” he told Topkin. “But we’ve got to go out and play well and win. If we don’t, or if we have a stretch the way we had the last couple of weeks going into the Break, that comes with all sorts of additional questions that I’d much rather not think about.”

The Rays rarely operate as strict buyers or sellers. Remaining consistently competitive while operating with bottom five payrolls requires an openness to listening on veteran players even in years where they’re simultaneously trying to add to the big league roster. Tampa Bay already made one notable trade this month, acquiring controllable setup man Bryan Baker from Baltimore for the 37th pick in last Sunday’s draft. They could continue to add to the bullpen and/or bring in a right-handed bat (ideally in the outfield).

At the same time, they’ll certainly get calls on their more expensive players. Chris Cotillo of MassLive reported last night that the Red Sox would be interested in Yandy Díaz if the Rays make him available. Boston has an obvious need for a right-handed hitting first baseman. Still, it’s not clear if the Rays will shop Díaz at all — much less to a division rival that currently sits 2.5 games above them in the standings.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic wrote this morning that the Rays would likely hold onto Díaz, who is signed at a bargain rate for another two and a half seasons. He’s making $10MM this year and is guaranteed $12MM for next season. There’s a $10MM club option for ’27 that would vest at $13MM if he takes 500 plate appearances next year. Díaz and the Rays initially agreed to the extension in 2023 and restructured it just this spring to guarantee his ’26 earnings while adding the option year.

Rosenthal argues the Rays may be reluctant to trade Díaz so soon after he agreed to a team-friendly extension. That said, one could’ve made a similar point regarding Tyler Glasnow — whom the Rays traded to the Dodgers a little over a year after he signed an extension. Rosenthal nevertheless suggests that Tampa Bay would be likelier to move second baseman Brandon Lowe or closer Pete Fairbanks if the team doesn’t play well coming out of the Break.

Lowe went on the injured list with left oblique tightness last week but could be reinstated when first eligible tomorrow. He’s making $10.5MM this year and controllable for another season on an $11.5MM club option. Lowe started the year slowly but has been on a tear since May and is up to 19 homers with a .272/.324/.487 batting line.

Fairbanks has a 2.75 ERA and has gone 15-18 in save opportunities over 36 innings. His strikeout rate has been trending down for a couple seasons, though, dropping to a career-low 20.7% clip. While Fairbanks is playing this year on an extremely affordable $3.667MM salary, his contract contains an increasingly expensive club option for 2026.

That initially came with a $7MM base value but contained up to $6MM in escalators. Fairbanks has already pushed the option price to $8MM by reaching 125 appearances over the past three seasons and topping 25 games finished this year. It’ll climb by another $1MM when he makes three more appearances, $1MM more with 18 appearances, and another $1MM with 23 more games. It’d jump by $500K apiece with three, eight, and 13 more games finished.

Unless he suffers a significant injury, Fairbanks should push the option value well into eight figures. That’d make him one of the highest-paid players on the 2026 roster. As long as they’re in the playoff picture, the Rays may view that as an offseason problem. This year’s salary can only climb by a maximum of $300K. Yet it’s a factor for a front office that needs to balance the short and long term as much as any.

Beyond Lowe and Fairbanks, the Rays seem likely to shop a starting pitcher. Impending free agent Zack Littell is the most obvious candidate, but USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reported over the weekend that they’re open to inquiries on controllable righty Taj Bradley.

The Rays have a strong rotation of Ryan Pepiot, Drew Rasmussen, Shane Baz, Littell and Bradley. Hard-throwing righty Joe Boyle is pitching in multi-inning relief, but Neander reiterated to Topkin that the Rays would be comfortable using Boyle as a starter if a spot opened. They’re also hopefully a couple weeks away from Shane McClanahan making his long-awaited return from injury.

Rays Select Joey Gerber

By Steve Adams | July 17, 2025 at 1:35pm CDT

1:35pm: Gerber indeed had an upward mobility clause in his contract, reports Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. That provision forces the Rays to either grant Gerber his release or add him to the 40-man roster if there’s another team willing to sign him to its own 40-man roster. Gerber seemingly had interest from another team, then, and forced the issue with the Rays.

1:15pm: The Rays have selected the contract of right-hander Joey Gerber and transferred fellow righty Hunter Bigge from the 15-day IL to the 60-day IL to clear space on the 40-man roster, per a team announcement. Gerber was immediately optioned back to Triple-A Durham, where he’d previously been pitching.

An addition to the 40-man and immediate option back to the minors — the A’s made the same move with outfielder Carlos Cortes yesterday — likely indicates that Gerber’s minor league contract contained a mid-July opt-out clause. Such provisions are common at the season’s midpoint and typically give the team 24 to 48 hours to decide whether to add the player to the 40-man roster or grant him his release.

Gerber, 28, made a brief major league debut with the 2020 Mariners — the team that originally drafted him in the eighth round back in 2018. He pitched 15 2/3 innings and logged a 4.02 ERA but with a dismal 9.7% strikeout rate against a solid 8.1% walk rate.

Gerber’s minor league run-prevention and strikeout numbers were excellent and would likely have gotten him a look in subsequent seasons had he remained healthy. That wasn’t the case. He missed all of 2021 following back surgery and pitched just one inning in 2022 due to a forearm strain that eventually resulted in Tommy John surgery that wiped out his entire 2023 campaign as well.

After a nearly three-year layoff from pitching, Gerber signed a minor league deal with the Yankees for the 2024 season. He pitched 33 1/3 innings of 2.43 ERA ball across four levels, fanning 28.2% of his opponents and issuing walks at a 12.2% rate. He didn’t get a call to the majors and wound up becoming a minor league free agent, ultimately signing with Tampa Bay in mid-December.

Gerber’s earned run average is up to 4.73 with the Rays in 2025, but his strikeout and walks numbers are better than they were in the Yankees’ system. He’s punched out a comparable 28.6% of his opponents but trimmed his walk rate to a much leaner 8.9% mark. The 93.8 mph Gerber is averaging on his four-seamer in 2025 is actually a half-mile improvement over the 93.3 mph he averaged during his brief debut effort with the 2020 Mariners.

This is the second of Gerber’s three option years. Now that he’s on the 40-man roster, he can be shuttled freely between the Rays’ major league club and Triple-A Durham affiliate both this year and next. He’ll be in the mix the next time the Rays need a fresh arm and could be an option to claim a larger role depending on what happens at the trade deadline.

Tampa Bay is three games over .500 and 1.5 back from a Wild Card spot. They’re generally expected to operate primarily on the buy side, but they rode a four-game losing streak into the All-Star break and are generally open to listen on veterans even during contending seasons. A trade of an impending free agent like starter Zack Littell, for instance, could push a current bullpen member like Ian Seymour or Joe Boyle into the rotation. Ace Shane McClanahan is on the mend from a triceps injury and could step into any rotation vacancy that opens up, but further injuries and/or a trade of a veteran reliever with dwindling club control (e.g. Pete Fairbanks, Garrett Cleavinger) could lead to additional opportunities for Gerber and other depth arms.

The 27-year-old Bigge’s move to the 60-day IL is a formality. He’s been out since May 1 due to a lat strain and has thus already spent more than 60 days on the injured list. He’s pitched to a 2.51 ERA in 32 1/3 MLB frames between the Cubs and Rays since making his debut with Chicago last year and being traded to Tampa Bay at the 2024 deadline. He resumed baseball activity late last month and will continue to work toward a late-season return.

MLBTR Podcast: Rays’ Ownership, The Phillies Target Bullpen Help, And Bubble Teams

By Darragh McDonald | July 16, 2025 at 11:58pm CDT

The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.

This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Steve Adams of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…

Rays owner Stuart Sternberg having an agreement in place to sell the team a group led by Patrick Zalupski (2:15)
The Rays acquiring Bryan Baker from the Orioles (10:00)
The Phillies targeting controllable relievers of the Twins and Guardians (20:00)

Plus, we answer your questions, including…

Which 2025 All-Star hitter and pitcher are most likely to be traded ahead of the deadline? (29:50)
Will the Red Sox trade an outfielder to upgrade another part of the roster? Could they get Joe Ryan from the Twins? What should Boston do with Tanner Houck? (36:15)
Could the Padres trade Dylan Cease and still compete, the way the Tigers flipped Jack Flaherty and still made the playoffs last year? What will the Friars add at the deadline? (51:50)
How will the Mets use Clay Holmes the rest of the way? (59:50)

Check out our past episodes!

Firings in Washington, Bad Braves, And An AL East Shake-Up – listen here
Depleted Mets’ Pitching, The Pirates Are Open For Business, And More! – listen here
The Braves Say They Won’t Sell, Jeimer Candelario DFA’d, And Injured D-Backs – listen here

The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff. Check out their Facebook page here!

Photo courtesy of Kim Klement Neitzel, Imagn Images

Rays To Play Home Games At Steinbrenner Field Throughout Playoffs

By Darragh McDonald | July 15, 2025 at 3:30pm CDT

If the Rays are able to engineer a deep postseason run, they will be allowed to stay at Steinbrenner Field. “Our rule has always been that people play in their home stadiums during the World Series Game,” MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said this week, per Marc Topkin of The Tampa Bay Times. “And I’m not of a mind to change that rule. I understand it’s a unique situation. It’s different, but that’s where they’re playing. That’s where they’re going to play their games.”

The issue has been a theoretical talking point for a while. Tropicana Field suffered significant hurricane damage in the offseason, making it unplayable for the 2025 season. The Rays made arrangements to move to Steinbrenner Field for the year. The facility is normally the home of the Tampa Tarpons, the Single-A affiliate of the Yankees.

The capacity of the field is a bit more than 10,000. During the 2024 season, all 3o MLB venues had a capacity of at least 34,000. This year, the Rays and Athletics are both playing in minor league parks on a temporary basis. As mentioned, the Rays had to move due to the hurricane damage to The Trop. The A’s are building a new stadium in Las Vegas but couldn’t work out a deal to stay in Oakland for the interim, so they are playing at Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento. That’s the home of the Sacramento River Cats, the Triple-A affiliate of the Giants.

For the Rays and A’s, playing in those venues was generally viewed as acceptable for the regular season but it was fair to wonder if the league would allow postseason games to be played at either spot. For the A’s, it quickly became a non-issue for this year as that club slipped in the standings. But the Rays have been in contention all year, having been in a postseason spot for much of the season.

Last month, it was reported by Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic that some preliminary conversations had occurred about what to do. Having playoff games in such a small venue would be less than ideal. “The league sets aside about 7,500 tickets for players, umpires, visiting teams, sponsors, broadcast partners, media and others” for World Series games, Rosenthal wrote last month. For pre-World Series games, the number is smaller but still notable. That lesser capacity would be a concern for the Players Association as well as the league, since players get a cut of gate receipts in playoff games. Beyond that, there would be concerns around the aesthetics of the broadcast as well as the straightforward logistics of getting all the media into the smaller facility and properly set up to cover the game.

But forcing a team to vacate its home turf for the postseason could be seen as a competitive disadvantage and it seems the league has opted to let the Rays stay. It may be a moot point, as they are not guaranteed to make the playoffs. They are currently a game and a half back of the Mariners for the final American League Wild Card spot. They would need to get the top Wild Card spot or win the East division to play any home games in the first round. Under the current playoff format, the top two division winners get a bye past the first round. The third division winner and the top Wild Card team each get to host the opening round for a best-of-three, with the two lesser Wild Card clubs being on the road for that entire series.

Last month’s reporting indicated that the league was comfortable with the Rays hosting the earlier rounds but was more concerned about the ALCS and World Series. It now seems that, if that becomes a reality, the league is willing to let the Rays stay at their temporary home and figure out how to make it work. Manfred tells Topkin that they will have conversations about potentially finding ways to add more capacity. “We’ll do the best we can to make the facilities good and service as many fans as we can,” Manfred said.

Marc Topkin of The Tampa Bay Times provides a bit more info on the Rays and their upcoming sale. It was reported this week that owner Stuart Sternberg has an agreement in principle to sell to a group led to Patrick Zalupski for $1.7 billion. Though that could become official as soon as September, Topkin notes that the transfer of power wouldn’t occur until the offseason. If the Rays manage to win the 2025 World Series, Sternberg would be handed the Commissioner’s Trophy.

Photo courtesy of Kim Klement Neitzel, Imagn Images

Stuart Sternberg Has Agreed To Sell Rays To Patrick Zalupski, Deal Expected To Be Final By September

By Darragh McDonald | July 14, 2025 at 4:15pm CDT

The sale of the Rays seems to be coming to fruition. A report from Evan Drellich and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic says that a sale has been agreed to in principle which would see the club be sold from current owner Stuart Sternberg to a group led by Patrick Zalupski. The deal is worth about $1.7 billion and is expected to be completed as soon as September. The report adds that Zalupski plans to keep the club in the Tampa area, with a preference for Tampa proper over St. Petersburg. The sale would need to be approved by 75% of MLB owners in order to become official.

It was reported about a month ago that Sternberg was in “advanced talks” to sell the team to Zalupski’s group. Shortly after that reporting emerged, Marc Topkin and Colleen Wright of the Tampa Bay Times spoke to hedge fund founder Trip Miller, who spoke of his desire to get involved in the bidding. It’s unclear if there was ever any chance of Miller’s group outpacing Zalupski’s, but it now seems basically confirmed that Zalupski’s group will be taking over.

As of a year ago, it seemed like Sternberg was going to stick around for a long time. He purchased the club in 2004 for $200MM. Since then, he has been trying to find a long-term home for the club so that the Rays could move on from Tropicana Field, which has long been viewed as insufficient and outdated for the major leagues.

Various proposals were floated over the years, including a creative plan which would have seen the franchise split its home games between Florida and Montreal. That was nixed but the Rays eventually put a plan in place to build a new stadium on the Tropicana Field site. Under that plan, the Rays would stay at The Trop through 2027 but would open the new facility in 2028. They had agreements in place with the city of St. Petersburg, Pinellas County and private investors for the $1.2 billion project.

That entire plan was thrown off the rails in October when Hurricane Milton swept through the area, doing significant damage to The Trop, particularly the roof. The Trop became unplayable for 2025 and the new stadium plan got delayed. Elections in October changed the composition of local government bodies, with the new paradigm less amenable to the Rays. The club made arrangements to play the 2025 season at George M. Steinbrenner field in Tampa. That seemed to not sit well with some Pinellas County officials, as Steinbrenner Field is in Hillsborough County.

The relationship between Sternberg and local officials seemed to sour, as he claimed the delays would lead to massive cost overruns. It was reported in March that the Rays would not be moving forward with the planned deal. That was shortly after it had been reported that league officials had been pressuring Sternberg to sell.

Now it seems the transition process is making quick progress and Zalupski’s group could be at the helm a couple of months from now. That’s notable timing, as there are key things to be worked out regarding the future of the franchise. It’s still unclear if the The Trop will be playable in time for the 2026 season. There’s also the usual baseball matters of payroll and things of that nature. And of course, new plans will need to be developed for a future stadium.

As mentioned, the report from The Athletic says Zalupski’s preference would be for the club to be in Tampa proper, as opposed to St. Petersburg. That is something that will have to be negotiated with local officials and private investors. If the club can chart a course towards a move into Tampa, there would be logic to that. It has been suggested by many that The Trop’s location isn’t highly accessible, which has contributed to the club’s poor attendance figures over the years, despite generally fielding competitive teams. A move to Tampa could help in that regard, though previous attempts to get the club into Tampa have not been successful.

Zalupski is the CEO of Dream Finders Homes, a publicly traded, Jacksonville-based developer that has built more than 31,000 homes across ten states. Forbes estimates his net worth at $1.4 billion, while his company’s valuation rests at $3.4 billion.

The timeline for the Rays will also have consequences across the league. Commissioner Rob Manfred has long insisted that expansion wouldn’t be a realistic possibility until the Athletics and Rays found new stadiums. The A’s are currently playing in West Sacramento but are expected to start playing in their new Las Vegas stadium by the 2028 season. If that plan progresses on schedule and the Rays get a new stadium plan in the works, then expansion will become a more realistic possibility.

Photo courtesy of Kim Klement Neitzel, Imagn Images

AL East Notes: Red Sox, Alcantara, Cabrera, Fried, Gil, Garcia, Rodriguez

By Mark Polishuk | July 13, 2025 at 10:59pm CDT

A ten-game winning streak has launched the Red Sox back into the playoff race, and all but confirmed that the club will be looking to buy before the trade deadline. Chief baseball officer Craig Breslow has stated that the Sox are looking at pitching options, and MassLive.com’s Sean McAdam opines that the Red Sox would likely prefer controllable pitchers in particular, so this new hurler could help support the club’s talent core for more than just the remainder of 2025. However, as of two days ago, McAdam noted that Boston hadn’t yet spoken with the Marlins about two controllable potential trade candidates — Sandy Alcantara and Edward Cabrera.

While there’s still plenty of time before the July 31 deadline for the Sox to inquire about either pitcher, the lack of interest to date might indicate that Breslow simply might have other pitchers on his target list. Alcantara’s past Cy Young Award-winning form makes him perhaps the summer’s likeliest trade candidate, yet the right-hander has struggled badly in his return from Tommy John surgery. Cabrera is arbitration-controlled through 2028 so the rebuilding Marlins might not see a reason to move him just yet, and certainly not for anything less than a massive trade return. Health is also a concern with Cabrera, as he left Friday’s start early due to elbow discomfort but might be able to avoid the injured list after a precautionary MRI came back clean.

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