Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Jonathan Aranda

Rays Granted Fourth Option Year On Jonathan Aranda

By | at

The Rays have been granted a fourth option year on infielder Jonathan Aranda, according to a report from Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times.

Typically, players have three option seasons with one used each season during which the player spends at least 20 days on optional assignment in the minor leagues. A player is considered to be on optional assignment when on a club’s 40-man roster but sent to the minor leagues while not on a rehab assignment. Aranda, 27 in May, was added to the club’s 40-man prior to the 2022 season and has been optioned to the minor leagues in each of the past three campaigns, with at least 20 days in the minors each season. Under normal circumstances, that would leave him out of options headed into the 2025 campaign, meaning the Rays would have to expose him to waivers before attempting to return him to the minor leagues.

Occasionally, however, teams are granted a fourth option year on certain players, typically due to the player missing significant time with injury. MLB.com explains that players with less than five full professional seasons (defined as at least 90 days on a major or minor league active roster) are eligible for a fourth option year. That applies to Aranda, who played full-season ball for the first time during the 2021 season. Fourth option years are typically granted to teams on players who have missed significant time due to injury during their option years, which also applies to Aranda after he spent three months on the IL last year between multiple trips to the injured list.

The fourth option year affords the Rays additional flexibility regarding their positional mix this year as they look to bounce back from a difficult 2024 season. Yandy Diaz, Brandon Lowe, Danny Jansen, and Ben Rortvedt are the only players locked into Opening Day roster spots for the Rays who cannot be optioned to the minors, though that group will also include non-roster slugger Eloy Jimenez if he makes the team out of camp. With a number of intriguing youngsters in the upper levels of the minors like infielders Curtis Mead and Osleivis Basabe as well as outfielders Kameron Misner and Jake Magnum, it’s easy to imagine the Rays trying to maximize their roster by shuffling between those youngsters and their optionable major leaguers. Aranda is now included in that group, and with just 333 big league plate appearances under his belt to this point in his career it’s certainly feasible that the Rays utilize that fourth option year in the event he faces the sorts of struggles that many players do early in their big league careers.

That’s not to say Aranda doesn’t figure to be a key part of the club’s lineup, of course. The infielder currently figures to serve as the club’s Opening Day DH given the presence of Diaz and Lowe at first and second base respectively, but his solid .234/.308/.430 slash line (113 wRC+) in 44 games for the Rays last year was promising even for that role. More exciting than Aranda’s slash line was the improvements he made relative to 2023, as he cut his strikeout rate from 30.1% to just 22.4% while also hitting for more power has his barrel rate jumped from 5.3% to a fantastic 16.5%. That massive barrel rate would have been fifth in the majors last year if he had enough plate appearances to qualify and may not be entirely sustainable over a full season, but it’s simultaneously easy to imagine last year’s .264 BABIP coming up significantly given that it was a drop of more than 60 points relative to 2023.

Rays Notes: Tropicana Field, 40-Man Roster, Aranda, Morel

By | at

The Rays’ offseason has been dominated so far by uncertainty surrounding Tropicana Field in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton. It’s not currently clear when the Rays will be able to return to play at the Trop, if ever. While the Rays try and sort out alternate plans for at least the beginning of the 2025 season, however, local officials have been working on assessing the damage to the stadium and determining whether or not its worth fixing.

The city of St. Petersburg took a step toward potentially fixing up the stadium recently, however, as John Romano of the Tampa Bay Times writes that the St. Pete city council agreed last week to spend up to $6MM in order to create a temporary drainage system and waterproof exposed areas of the stadium. Romano adds that this mitigation process figures to take up to eight weeks, though the process (and the related spending) could be halted if the stadium is declared impossible to salvage. The decision to spend comes as an attempt by the city to protect itself from an insurance dispute; Romano suggests that the city’s claim could be disputed if additional rain causes damage during the evaluation process.

Even as the decision to combat potential future damage to the Trop is seemingly being made for insurance reasons, Romano suggests that the move indicates some belief by local officials that the stadium can be salvaged. The Rays are already scheduled to depart the stadium for a new one that will be constructed in time for the 2028 season, a reality that has led to some questions over whether the Trop will be repaired at all or if the Rays will simply find a temporary home for the next three seasons. In any case, the Trop is not expected to be ready in time for Opening Day 2025 and so the Rays will have to find a new home for at least the early part of next season regardless of whether the stadium can be salvaged or not.

In other off-the-field news, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reported some good news for the Rays today: embattled shortstop Wander Franco, who last played in August of 2023 due to ongoing legal proceedings regarding allegations against him of inappropriate relationships with minors, will not need to be reinstated from the restricted list this offseason. That means the club will not need to dedicate a 40-man roster spot to the 23-year-old this winter, a contrast from when he was on administrative leave. That should open up additional roster flexibility for the Rays throughout the offseason, although they’ll still need to make room on their 40-man roster for lefty Shane McClanahan, who has been on the 60-day injured list all season while rehabbing from Tommy John surgery.

Turning to baseball, Topkin notes that one of the biggest questions facing the club this winter is how best to deploy midseason trade addition Christopher Morel in 2025. Morel, 25, endured the worst season of his young career in 2024 as he slashed just .196/.288/.346 (82 wRC+) in 611 trips to the plate split between the Cubs and Rays. His results after coming to Tampa as part of the return in the Isaac Paredes trade were particularly brutal, as he hit just .191/.258/.289 in his final 190 trips to the plate. Much of that lackluster production with the Rays was due to a power outage; Morel hit just three home runs in 49 games with the club as compared to 18 homers in 103 games with the Cubs earlier in the season.

Overall, Morel’s production was not that of a quality regular last season, particularly due to his lackluster defense. While Morel has the versatility to play anywhere on the field, with reps in the majors at all three outfield spots, second and third base, and even shortstop, he’s been below average with the glove at all of those positions. While he likely profiles best as a DH, Topkin suggests that the club hopes to expand Jonathan Aranda’s role next year after he slashed .234/.308/.430 in 44 games in the big leagues this season. Aranda also profiles best as a DH, and Topkin suggests that the club figures to juggle Aranda, first baseman Yandy Diaz, and second baseman Brandon Lowe between DH and the right side of the infield in 2025.

The Rays tried Morel primarily at second base when he played in a position in 2024, but if Lowe and Aranda figure to get the lion’s share of starts at the keystone and DH Topkin suggests they could give him a look in left field. If Morel is able to revert to the offensive form he showed with the Cubs earlier in his career, whatever defensive shortcomings the youngster would have in an outfield corner would be more than made up for by his bat. In 2023, Morel appeared in 107 games for the Cubs and slashed an excellent .247/.313/.508 (121 wRC+) as their primary DH.

The young slugger has 63 home runs in just 372 games as a big leaguer so far, and despite his lackluster results this year actually posted career-best strikeout (26%) and walk (10%) rates. The Rays would surely love to see Morel combine that improved discipline with the power he showed in previous years, but even reverting to the .229 ISO, 31.6% strikeout rate form he flashed in his first two years with Chicago would constitute a major step in the right direction.

Injury Notes: Smith, Edman, Garcia, Aranda

By | at

The Mets placed reliever Drew Smith on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to June 24, before tonight’s win over the Yankees. The right-hander is dealing with an elbow sprain. It’s not yet clear how long he’ll be out or whether there’s a chance he’ll need to undergo surgery. It’s the second IL stint of the season for Smith, who missed around six weeks between late April and the start of June with shoulder soreness.

While there’s never a good time for a pitcher to battle shoulder and elbow concerns, it’s particularly poor timing in Smith’s case. The 30-year-old is a few months from his first trip to the open market. Smith misses enough bats to have a decent shot at a multi-year deal if he’s healthy. Between 2021-23, he combined for a 3.38 ERA while striking out more than a quarter of opposing hitters across 143 2/3 innings. That comes with a few more walks and home runs than ideal, but the former third-rounder has generally looked the part of a solid setup option. Smith has been effective this season when healthy, turning in a 3.06 ERA with 23 strikeouts over 17 2/3 frames.

A few more injury updates around the game:

  • The Cardinals have been without Tommy Edman all season. The versatile switch-hitter has had a longer than expected rehab after undergoing right wrist surgery last October. As he’d finally begun ramping up baseball activity, Edman hit another snag. Manager Oli Marmol told reporters this afternoon that Edman sprained an ankle while fielding a ground ball (relayed on X by Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat). While there’s nothing to suggest it’s a significant sprain, his rehab will be halted for at least a few days. Edman was slated to enter the season as the everyday center fielder. Michael Siani has taken hold of the position on the strength of his glove, but he hasn’t provided much offensively. Cardinal center fielders — mostly Siani, Victor Scott II and Dylan Carlson — entered play Wednesday with an MLB-worst .198/.241/.259 batting line through 268 plate appearances.
  • Astros starter Luis Garcia is likely to begin a rehab assignment with the team’s Florida Complex League affiliate this weekend (via the MLB.com injury tracker). He’s expected to throw two innings in what will be his first game action since undergoing Tommy John surgery last May. Garcia is coming up on 14 months since the procedure. He’ll likely need upwards of a month before he’s ready for MLB action but could be an option for Houston around or shortly after the trade deadline. Getting Garcia back would be the rare piece of positive injury news for an Astro rotation that has lost Cristian Javier, José Urquidy and JP France to season-ending surgeries.
  • The Rays’ infield depth took a hit this week when Jonathan Aranda landed on the minor league injured list. Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports (on X) that the left-handed hitter suffered an oblique strain and will be down between four and six weeks. Aranda has appeared in 18 big league contests with Tampa Bay this season, hitting .213/.288/.319 through 52 trips to the plate. He’s hitting .189/.336/.295 with a massive 37.9% strikeout rate in Triple-A. While Aranda hasn’t hit big league pitching in scattered looks over the last three seasons, this year’s Triple-A struggles are uncharacteristic. The 26-year-old is a career .312/.411/.535 hitter in more than 1000 plate appearances at that level. He’s in his final minor league option season and could find himself on the roster bubble next winter.

Rays Notes: Lowe, Diaz, Aranda

By | at

Rays outfielder Josh Lowe appeared to be nearing a return from the injured list after heading out for a rehab assignment earlier this month, but it appears the 26-year-old’s 2024 debut is once again on hold. Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reported earlier today that Lowe felt some tightness in his right hamstring and is now headed back to Tampa for an MRI, which is scheduled for Monday.

It’s another tough blow for Lowe, who impressed with a .292/.335/.500 slash line in 135 games with the Rays last season. It appeared Lowe was on track to be activated from the shelf as soon as this weekend to take over the everyday job in right field, but now those plans have been scuttled for at least a few days. Rays right fielders have hit an excellent .308/.361/.455 (145 wRC+) in Lowe’s absence, thanks primarily to surprisingly strong performances from Richie Palacios and Amed Rosario in a platoon at the position.

Even so, the return of Lowe to the club’s lineup would surely provide a boost for the Rays by allowing Rosario and Palacios to contribute elsewhere in the lineup, such as second base. The Rays have gotten minimal offensive production from the keystone this season, with their second basemen slashing a collective .227/.292/.299 (81 wRC+) so far this year while struggling youngster Curtis Mead has taken the lion’s share of starts at the position to this point.

Lowe isn’t the only big bat missing from the Rays lineup this weekend, as veteran infielder Yandy Diaz was absent from today’s lineup after being struck in the finger by a 99 mph pitch from right-hander Michael Kopech yesterday. Fortunately, Topkin reported last night that x-rays on Diaz’s hand were negative, indicating that the 32-year-old may be back in the club’s lineup in the near future. It’s been a tough start to the season for the veteran, as he’s slashed just .241/.303/.315 (87 wRC+) in his first 119 trips to the plate.

While his .278 BABIP to this point in the season is far below his career average of .323, Diaz’s 7.8% walk rate in 2024 would be a career low if maintained over the course of a full season and he’s offered little power with just five doubles and one homer to this point in the campaign. If the veteran can right the ship upon returning to the lineup and return to the form that earned him a sixth-place finish in AL MVP voting last year, it would be a huge boost for the Rays as they look to bounce back from a difficult start to the season that’s seen them go 13-14 while falling to fourth place in a crowded AL East division.

Also making his way toward a return to the big league lineup is infielder Jonathan Aranda, who’s been out for a little over a month after undergoing surgery to repair a broken finger back in March. As noted by MLB.com’s Injury Tracker, Aranda began a rehab assignment at the Triple-A level yesterday. It’s less than two weeks after Aranda had the pins removed from his finger thanks to the fact that Aranda was able to stay active throughout his rehab process.

If Aranda is nearing a return to action, it would give the Rays another left-handed option to complement the likes of Mead and Harold Ramirez both around the infield and at DH. Aranda hit a roughly league average .230/.340/.368 in 103 trips to the plate in the majors last year but impressed this spring with an excellent .371/.421/.571 line in 13 games prior to his injury.

Rays’ Jonathan Aranda To Undergo Surgery On Broken Finger

By | at

Rays infielder Jonathan Aranda suffered a broken ring finger while fielding a grounder yesterday and will undergo surgery to place a pin in his finger, reports Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. He’s expected to miss at least four to six weeks recovering. He’ll open the season on the major league injured list.

It’s an unfortunate setback for the 25-year-old Aranda, who’s torn through minor league pitching at every stop but hasn’t yet had an opportunity to carve out a regular role at the MLB level in a crowded Rays infield. He’d been slated for a largely regular role to begin the year, splitting time between designated hitter and perhaps at first base. He’ll now head to the injured list instead.

Aranda has logged 190 big league plate appearances, but they’ve come in short stints and with sparse playing time. He’s batted just .212/.311/.345 with four homers, an 11.1% walk rate and 28.4% strikeout rate in that time. That output pales in comparison to the production Aranda has turned in as a regular in the minors. He slashed .325/.410/.540 at the Double-A level before crushing Triple-A opponents at a .328/.421/.565 clip in 899 plate appearances over the past two seasons. He’s slugged 43 homers, walked at a 12.1% clip and fanned at a 20.8% clip in that 199-game sample of Triple-A action.

Aranda’s injury will likely open the door for more at-bats for righty-swinging Harold Ramirez and/or fellow right-handed-hitting Curtis Mead. The former has been a plus hitter in two seasons with the Rays, slashing .306/.348/.432 (123 wRC+) in 869 trips to the plate from 2022-23. There was considerable talk of a potential Ramirez trade over the winter, and while nothing can be fully ruled out prior to the season for a Rays club that’s ever-active on the trade market, Ramirez seems quite likely headed for a third straight year with Tampa Bay.

Mead, meanwhile, made his big league debut in 2023 and hit .253/.326/.349 in 92 plate appearances of his own. The 23-year-old Aussie has ranked as one of the game’s top overall prospects for the past couple seasons and carries a stout .296/.385/.520 slash with 13 homers, 29 doubles, a pair of triples, a 12.2% walk rate and an 18% strikeout rate in 377 Triple-A plate appearances. He’s a bat-first prospect who’s spent time at third base, second base and first base, with his bat-to-ball skills and plus raw power standing as his carrying tools. Since both Mead and Ramirez are bat-first players, slotting either into a semi-regular DH role could have some appeal for the Rays — at least until Aranda returns. That could set the stage for a potential DH platoon, while Mead could also platoon with lefty-swinging second baseman Brandon Lowe in the infield as well.

Manuel Margot To Undergo Elbow Surgery

By | at

The Rays announced that outfielder Manuel Margot has been placed on the 10-day injured list due to loose bodies in his right elbow. He will have surgery tomorrow with an expected recovery timeline of three to four weeks, though they say more will be known after the procedure has been completed. Infielder Jonathan Aranda has been recalled to take his place on the active roster.

The news is fairly unexpected, as Margot has been playing regularly, including taking five plate appearances just yesterday. But it’s possible that the issue has been dragging him down in recent weeks. At the end of June, he was hitting .260/.318/.378 for a wRC+ of 98, but his line since then is a paltry .213/.238/.279 and a 44 wRC+.

Margot is a glove-first outfielder but has been roughly league average at the plate in recent years. From 2020 to 2022, he hit .264/.320/.375 for a wRC+ of 99. He was right in line with that pace in the first half of the season but fell off steeply in the past six weeks or so, with his season-long line now at .249/.300/.354 for a wRC+ of 85.

Ideally, the procedure will allow him to heal up and get back into form for the final few weeks of the regular season and a potential postseason run. With his bat at that average-ish level, he can be a serviceable player overall thanks to other contributions. He racked up double-digit steals in each season from 2017 to 2021 and has long been an above-average defender, with career tallies of 42 Defensive Runs Saved, 59 Outs Above Average and a grade of 19.9 from Ultimate Zone Rating. DRS has soured on him a bit this year but he still has +4 OAA for the campaign.

With Margot out of action, the Rays figure to use Jose Siri, Josh Lowe, Luke Raley and Randy Arozarena as their regular outfield rotation, with Aranda and Harold Ramírez capable of stepping in at times as well. Their 72-49 record has them three back of the Orioles in the AL East but currently in possession of the top Wild Card spot in the league.

Rays Designate Yonny Chirinos For Assignment

By | at

The Rays have designated right-hander Yonny Chirinos, reports Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (Twitter links). The move is to open an active roster spot for left-hander Shane McClanahan, who has been reinstated from the injured list. Additionally, the club also reinstated infielder Yandy Díaz from the paternity list and optioned infielder Jonathan Aranda in a corresponding move.

Chirinos, 29, has been serving in a bulk role for the Rays this year, often following an opener. He’s tossed 62 2/3 innings over 15 outings, posting a 4.02 earned run average in that time. His 7.6% walk rate and 43.2% ground ball rate are each pretty close to league averages, though his 11.8% strikeout rate is barely half of the 22.7% mean for major league hurlers this year. His .244 batting average on balls in play and 76.5% strand rate have perhaps helped him keep earned runs off the board this year.

It’s likely that Chirinos has deserved worse results, as shown by his 5.52 FIP and 5.31 SIERA, but he has had better stuff in the past. From 2018 to 2020, he tossed 234 1/3 innings with a 3.65 ERA, striking out 20.9% of opponents while walking just 6% and keeping the ball on the ground at a 42.8% rate. But he then had a significant absence, primarily due to Tommy John surgery, missing over two years from August of 2020 until September of 2022.

The results haven’t been quite as strong since that injury layoff but it’s still a bit surprising to see the Rays cut him from the roster since pitching depth has been an ongoing challenge for them this year. Drew Rasmussen and Jeffrey Springs were each supposed to be part of the rotation but neither will return this year as both have undergone season-ending surgeries. Shane Baz underwent Tommy John surgery late last year and hasn’t been an option all year. Josh Fleming is also on the 60-day injured list as he deals with an elbow issue.

In addition to those serious ailments, the club has also had to navigate IL stints for McClanahan, Tyler Glasnow and Zach Eflin, though each are now active with today’s transactions. They form the rotation nucleus alongside prospect Taj Bradley. That still leaves the club one arm shy of a traditional five-man rotation, so there would seemingly be a role for Chirinos, though the Rays evidently have other plans. Perhaps they would simply prefer to deploy some bullpen games or call upon someone like Cooper Criswell to take over as a bulk guy.

It’s also possible that the Rays are confident in their ability to add pitching prior to the August 1 deadline. The list of names generally thought to be available in the next two weeks is very pitching heavy and the Rays have already been connected to some of them. If they are successful in lining up a deal, then their current rotation gap would only be present for a short time.

However they decide to proceed, it’s possible that this move was spurred by Chirinos no longer being optionable. He is in his final option year and was optioned a couple of times earlier this year but has now surpassed five years of major league service time. Players who go beyond that milestone cannot be optioned to the minors without their consent, meaning the Rays had to designate him for assignment if they wanted to remove him from the active roster.

The Rays will now have one week to trade Chirinos or pass him through waivers. Though his results this year haven’t been astounding, it’s possible some club is willing to bank on his past results, especially given the number if pitching injuries around the league. He’s making a modest $1.275MM this year, leaving about $521K left to be paid out. He can also be retained for one more year via arbitration, which should add to his appeal. In the event he clears waivers, he would have the right to elect free agency while retaining all that salary, a right held by all players with more than five years of service time.

Rays Make Four Roster Moves

By | at

The Rays announced four roster moves, including the selection of Javy Guerra’s contract and the call-up of infielder/outfielder Jonathan Aranda from Triple-A Durham.  Outfielder Josh Lowe has been placed on the family medical emergency list and right-hander Elvin Rodriguez has been designated for assignment.

Aranda will get his first MLB opportunity of the season, and a chance to follow up on his 32 games played in his 2022 rookie season.  The 25-year-old hit .192/.276/.321 over 87 plate appearances last year, and it becoming clear that Aranda has nothing left to prove at the Triple-A level.  Over 784 PA in Durham over the last two seasons, Aranda has crushed the ball to the tune of a .327/.418/.548 slash line with 34 home runs.

Beginning his career as a second baseman, Aranda has followed the path of many Rays prospects and become a multi-positional threat, getting a lot of playing time at third base, first base, left field, and a bit of shortstop time.  This gives manager Kevin Cash some flexibility in trying to figure out where to slot Aranda around the diamond, though it remains to be seen how long he’ll remain in the majors — hopefully Lowe returns quickly from his family situation, and Aranda could again be the odd man out.

Due to the Rays’ position-player depth at both the MLB and minor league levels, Aranda has been mentioned as a possible trade candidate if there’s no regular spot for him on Tampa’s roster.  Depending on how long he remains in the majors, this stint could serve as something of an audition for rival scouts in advance of the trade deadline, though it’s safe to assume that other teams have had eyes on Aranda in Durham for quite some time.

Not to be confused with 11-year MLB veteran reliever Javy Guerra, the Rays’ Guerra is the 27-year-old who converted to pitching after being a top-100 shortstop prospect during his time in the Padres’ farm system.  The Rays acquired Guerra from the Brewers in late April and he has a 3.60 ERA over five innings with Tampa Bay this season, though he was outrighted off the 40-man roster in May.

Guerra chose to accept the outright assignment to Triple-A rather than test free agency, and his 5.94 ERA over 16 2/3 innings in Durham isn’t quite reflective of his performance, given his secondary metrics.  His 23% strikeout rate and 9.5% walk rate aren’t spectacular, though his 58.3% grounder rate has been hurt by some unfortunate batted-ball luck, as Guerra has a .340 BABIP.

Bullpen churn is a staple of Tampa Bay’s pitching strategies, and Rodriguez hits the DFA wire just a day after being selected to the 26-man roster.  He looked very sharp in throwing 3 1/3 perfect innings in the Rays’ 2-1 loss to the Braves, but Rodriguez is now on his way out of the organization altogether, as Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports that Rodriguez will be released so he can sign with a team in Japan.  Somewhat curiously, this plan was in place before Rodriguez had his contract selected yesterday, but fortunately it looks like Rodriguez avoided any injury and got to bank a big league appearance before heading to Nippon Professional Baseball.

Rodriguez’s first seven MLB games came with the Tigers in 2022, when he posted a 10.62 ERA over 29 2/3 innings.  The Rays signed him to a minors deal in the offseason, but without a long-term spot available in Tampa Bay, the 25-year-old Rodriguez chose to take what Topkin calls “a lucrative offer” from an NPB club.

Checking In On The Rays’ Left-Handed Bats

By | at

Back in October, just after the Rays had been bounced from the postseason, president of baseball operations Erik Neander gave a press conference and outlined some goals for the offseason. One area targeted for improvement was the club’s performance against right-handed pitching. As a whole, the team hit .234/.305/.373 against righties, leading to a 99 wRC+ that indicates they were just a hair below average.

“I don’t think it’s in us to just stand pat and assume things will get better,” Neander said at that time. Cut to April and the club apparently decided that the standing pat thing wasn’t such a bad idea after all. They made no moves this offseason to add to their lineup. In fact, they subtracted from it, as players like Kevin Kiermaier, Ji Man Choi and Miles Mastrobuoni are now on different teams. Aside from signing Zach Eflin, all the club’s offseason additions were minor leaguers, with most of those being pitchers.

The MLB offseason was generally considered to be on the robust side, with many contracts going well beyond predictions, especially for the top free agents. It’s possible that the low-spending Rays simply got priced out of whatever plans they initially drew up for the winter. Whatever the reasons, the club didn’t bring in anyone from outside the organization and is relying on internal options, at least for now. The season is still young but the early results are encouraging, as the club is 14-2 and hitting a collective .276/.364/.544 against righties for a 155 wRC+ so far. Let’s dig in on the players individually.

Brandon Lowe

In the first few years of his career, Lowe had established himself as one of the key members of the Tampa lineup. He hit 14 home runs in the shortened 2020 season and added 39 more the next year. Over those two seasons combined, he hit .253/.346/.532 for a wRC+ of 141.

Unfortunately, he was hobbled in the health department last year. He made trips to the injured list due to lower back issues and a triceps contusion. He only got into 65 games and produced a diminished .221/.308/.383 slash line when on the field for a 104 wRC+. Early indications suggest that Lowe has put those injuries behind him, as he is off to a great start. He has five home runs in his first 14 games and is currently batting .310/.442/.690 for a 215 wRC+.

Wander Franco

Franco’s arc is fairly similar to Lowe’s. His track record in the majors isn’t as long, but he was considered the top prospect in the sport for quite a while and then performed well in 2021 while only 20 years old. But the switch-hitter was also snakebitten in 2022, making trips to the IL due to a quad strain and wrist discomfort. He only got into 83 games and hit .277/.328/.417 for a wRC+ of 116, still above average but not elite. But like Lowe, he seems to be healthy and in a good groove here this year. He already has four long balls and is batting .318/.366/.621 for a wRC+ of 176.

Taylor Walls

The switch-hitting Walls has always hit well in the minors but hasn’t been able to translate it to the majors. Coming into this year, his career batting line was .182/.281/.288. He’s off to a strong start here in 2023 though, batting .281/.378/.469 through 37 plate appearances for a wRC+ of 144.

Francisco Mejía

Mejía isn’t off to the same blazing start as some of his teammates. The switch-hitting catcher is batting just .167/.276/.208 through his first 29 plate appearances. He and Christian Bethancourt have been splitting the catching duties fairly evenly so far, but the right-handed-hitting Bethancourt is performing much better at the plate and could increase his share as the season goes along.

Luke Raley

Acquired from the Dodgers in a trade just prior to the 2022 season, Raley got into 22 games with the Rays last year but hit just .197/.306/.279. He’s still striking out at a 31% clip in 2023 but has hit three homers in just 13 games, leading to a .222/.310/.528 slash line and 131 wRC+.

Josh Lowe

Lowe has long been one of the club’s highly-touted prospects, having been selected 13th overall in 2016 and performing well in the minors. He got a two-game cameo in the big leagues in 2021 but struggled in his first meaningful taste of the majors. He hit .221/.284/.343 last year and struck out in 33.3% of his trips to the plate. He’s been far superior this season, cutting that strikeout rate in half to 16.7% and hitting three home runs in just 12 games. His current batting line of .359/.405/.718 amounts to a wRC+ 213.

Vidal Bruján

Long one of the club’s most significant prospects, Bruján has struggled badly against major league pitching. He had a batting line of .150/.207/.231 over 62 games coming into this year. The club was granted a fourth option for him, allowing them to send him to the minors on Opening Day, but he was called up when Jose Siri landed on the injured list. Bruján is hitting .333/.333/.333 through 15 plate appearances but has six strikeouts (a 40% rate) in that tiny sample.

Jonathan Aranda

Aranda got to make his MLB debut last year but didn’t crack the Opening Day roster here in 2023. He’s off to a nice start in Triple-A, hitting a couple of home runs for the Durham Bulls and drawing walks in a massive 24% of his 50 plate appearances. His current batting line is .250/.440/.444 for a 136 wRC+.

Kyle Manzardo

Manzardo isn’t yet on the 40-man roster but is one of the club’s top prospects and is playing in Triple-A, meaning a debut at some point this year is on the table. He has three home runs and a 10.4% walk rate for the Bulls so far this year, leading to a .262/.333/.548 batting line and 115 wRC+ through 12 games.

Greg Jones

Jones is on the 40-man roster but he’s in Double-A and therefore not likely to be at the front of the line for a call-up. He’s also not forcing the issue right now, hitting .167/.189/.417 through eight games for the Montgomery Biscuits.

________________________________

All of these numbers come with small sample warnings, as the Rays have only played 16 games thus far. Also, the strength of their competition has been fairly weak, as their 13-game winning streak to start the season came against the Tigers, Nationals, Athletics and Red Sox. When they finally faced a team that’s generally considered to be a contender by squaring off against the Blue Jays this past weekend, they went 1-2.

The fact that they demolished the pitching of rebuilding clubs like the Nats and A’s doesn’t mean that we can declare the situation resolved, but it’s encouraging nonetheless. Franco and Brandon Lowe aren’t likely to sustain these torrid streaks, but it’s a good sign that they are healthy and are making the 2022 struggles seem like temporary injury setbacks. Walls can’t suddenly be declared a superstar, but he’s considered a strong defender and any offense he can provide is a nice bonus. We also can’t say that Raley and Josh Lowe have cemented themselves as successful big league hitters, but they’ve shown tremendous promise in the minors and could be getting acclimated to big league pitching. Lowe’s much-improved strikeout rate is especially positive.

As the season goes along and the Rays face stronger competition, it’s entirely possible that this picture looks less glowing. However, the games all count the same and they already have 14 wins in the bank, which makes it highly likely they stay in contention up until the trade deadline. If they need to upgrade on any of the hitters in this group, they have a very strong farm system and should be able to bolster their left-handed options by making a deal or two. But if even one or two of these early developments start to seem more real, their urgency to do so will be lessened.

Each MLB Team’s Players On WBC Rosters

By | at

The World Baseball Classic is returning this year, the first time since 2017. The quadrennial event was supposed to take place in 2021 but was scuttled by the pandemic, now returning after a six-year absence. Rosters for the tournament were announced today and those can be found at this link. Here is a breakdown of which players from each MLB team are set to take participate. Quick caveat that this list is fluid and might be changed as more information becomes available.

Without further ado…

Angels

Astros

Athletics

Blue Jays

Braves

Brewers

Cardinals

Cubs

Diamondbacks

Dodgers

Giants

Guardians

Marlins

Mariners

Mets

Nationals

Orioles

Padres

Phillies

Pirates

Rangers

Rays

Red Sox

Reds

Rockies

Royals

Tigers

Twins

White Sox

Yankees

Show all

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

hide arrows scroll to top