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Yandy Diaz

Rays Activate Ji-Man Choi, Option Ian Gibaut

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The Tampa Bay Rays activated first baseman Ji-Man Choi ahead of today’s action, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (via Twitter). Ian Gibaut has been optioned back to Durham. 

Choi missed the minimum ten games for a sprained left ankle. He is a key cog in the middle of the Rays lineup. With little margin for error in a top-heavy American League, the Rays could stand to get a little more production from him after a .266/.351/.423 first half. 

For now, manager Kevin Cash will rotate Choi with Nate Lowe, tweets Topkin. Lowe would most naturally be used as a roster replacement for Choi, but Cash is also prepared to use Lowe at third base, where he’s spent time in the minors. For now, they simply don’t want to take Lowe out of the lineup as the 24-year-old has hit .291/.355/.509 with 3 home runs in 15 games. That kind of production out of the first base spot would go a long way in helping the Rays secure a spot in this year’s playoffs. 

With the Rays, however, everything is fluid, and one day’s cleanup hitter could be back in Triple-A the next. Yandy Diaz also figures to play a prominent role in the corner infield rotation as the regular starter at third now that he’s discovered a power stroke (.278/.351/.477 on the year). Two other third base options remain on the shelf: Matt Duffy and Daniel Robertson are close enough to returning that each of them could be on rehab assignments by next week, per Topkin (Twitter links). 

Gibaut has a fairly high ceiling as a bullpen piece, but his first taste of the majors was short: one appearance, two innings, two earned runs, two walks, two strikeouts, one hit. 

Rays Place Yandy Diaz On 10-Day IL

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The Rays have placed third baseman Yandy Diaz on the 10-day injured list, Juan Toribio of MLB.com tweets. Infielder Daniel Robertson will come up to take the roster opening.

Diaz has been dealing with hamstring tightness that hasn’t resolved quite as rapidly as had been hoped. The club obviously felt it could no longer afford to carry an unavailable players.

There’s little reason at present to think that Diaz will be sidelined for more than the minimum, though it’ll all depend upon how the muscle heals up. The Rays will hope for a swift return for the 27-year-old, who has been everything they hoped for and more since arriving via trade.

Diaz has racked up 248 plate appearances of .286/.363/.502 hitting and 11 home runs on the season. That’s just the sort of output the Tampa Bay organization got last year from Robertson, but he scuffled to open the current campaign and ended up on optional assignment. There’s now a bit of a window for him to reclaim a MLB role, though there isn’t as much opportunity with Joey Wendle back in action.

Rays Activate Yandy Diaz From 10-Day Injured List

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The Rays announced some roster moves this morning, including the activation of infielder Yandy Diaz from the 10-day injured list.  Nate Lowe, called up just yesterday from Triple-A, is on his way back to the minors in a corresponding move.  The Rays also optioned right-hander Adam Kolarek yesterday, but Kolarek is now making a quick return to the big leagues since southpaw Jose Alvarado has been placed on the family medical emergency list.

Diaz hit the IL on May 23, with a retroactive placement to May 20, with a left hand contusion after being hit by a pitch from the Yankees’ Chance Adams.  While Diaz was reportedly still feeling some soreness in his hand, a brief stint in extended Spring Training camp seems to have done the trick, and the corner infielder will now make his return to Tampa Bay’s lineup.  Acquired as part of the three-team trade that sent Jake Bauers to Cleveland last December, Diaz has hit an impressive .256/.339/.500 with nine homers over 180 plate appearances in a Rays uniform, delivering on the promise that his hard-hit ball statistics indicated during his time with the Tribe.

Lowe’s latest turn in the Show lasted only a day, as the slugging first base prospect now has a .263/.310/.316 slash line over 42 PA this season.  It stands to reason that Lowe will continue to be shuffled between the majors and minors as circumstances warrant, though the Rays will surely keep an eye on his service time so as to gain an extra year of team control over the youngster.

Rays Notes: N. Lowe, Kolarek, Diaz, Perez

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The Tampa Bay Rays have optioned lefty Adam Kolarek to Triple-A, per MLB.com’s Juan Toribio (via Twitter). Kolarek has been largely effective in the Rays pen this season, but the demotion is less likely about performance as it is part of the workaday fluidity of Rays roster management. Kolarek heads to Durham as the current league leader in appearances with 29, though the 19 2/3 innings he has amassed speaks to his type of usage. After a couple of spotless stretches, Kolarek has been touched up for runs in four of his last seven appearances, though it’s notable that Kolarek faced less than five batters in each of his clean appearances, where he tends to falter when pushed beyond that mark. When facing five hitters or more this season – something he’s done nine times – Kolarek surrendered runs seven times, including seven consecutive dating back to mid-April. When Kolarek’s deployment is limited to less than five batters, he’s been tagged for an earned run only once in 20 outings this season.

  • With the lefty headed to Durham, Nate Lowe will join the big league club for the second time this season. The team has made the moves official. Lowe’s first stint with the team led to four starts at first base and five as designated hitter in early May. In that short sample stint, he hit .257/.289/.314 without a long ball. With Triple-A Durham he’s put up numbers more commensurate with expectations – .257/.390/.424 – though he has yet to tap into home run power at either level after blasting 27 bombs across three levels last season. Ji-Man Choi has been just okay at first for the Rays so far, so there may be room for Lowe to make his mark if can arrive hot to St. Petersburg. Still, the Rays value their flexibility, and Lowe profiles similarly to Choi at first/DH. Lowe is in the lineup today, set to bat fifth and play first while Choi DH’s and hits cleanup.
  • Lowe’s presence is largely to make up for the injured Yandy Diaz, who has been a big part of the Tampa offense since being acquired from Cleveland this winter. Diaz has been out since May 20th with a left hand contusion. His comeback trail begins today, however, as he heads to Port Charlotte for extended Spring Training, tweets Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. The Cuban-born Diaz produced more pop than projected for a groundball hitter through the seasons’s first two months. Nine home runs is the cover story, but his underlying power numbers are equally impressive (.500 SLG, .244 ISO). While such a prodigious power jump seems likely to regress to the mean at least somewhat, Diaz’s power surge has nonetheless preserved the approach the made him attractive to the Rays in the first place: above-average hard hit rate (44.1%), low strikeout rate (18 K%), and lots of walks (11.1 BB%). It bodes well that these numbers have held the line despite Diaz already eclipsing a new career high in plate appearances (180) while seeing a significant drop in BABIP (from .371 in 2018 to .263 in 2019). Every game matters for the Rays, who have been without impact at-bats with Daniel Robertson manning the hot corner in Diaz’s stead. Robertson, 25, owns an insufficient .207/.316/.293 slash line through 150 at-bats in 2019.
  • In other recovery news, Michael Perez could begin a rehab assignment by early next week, per Topkin (via Twitter). An oblique injury has limited the Rays backup catcher to only 15 games this season. Starter Mike Zunino is now back, but stand-ins Erik Kratz and Travis d’Arnaud have both struggled to put together productive at-bats. Through 39 career games at the big league level this year and last, Perez owns a .274/.328/.385 line with one career home run. That might not light your world on fire, but it would still represent a pretty sizeable upgrade over the production the Rays have received from their catchers of late.

 

AL East Notes: Red Sox, Estrada, Diaz

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Though the Red Sox have hammered out extensions with free-agents-to-be Chris Sale and Xander Bogaerts in recent weeks, president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski strongly suggested that the team won’t be negotiating any additional deals, Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald reports. The team has no ongoing discussions, per Dombrowski, who added that he is “pretty certain” there will not be another extension brokered this season. The Sox initially placed an Opening Day deadline on wrapping up negotiations, though the Bogaerts deal was announced a few days into the season. As Dombrowski explains, talks with Bogaerts were advanced enough that the team was confident they wouldn’t linger into the season.

A bit more from the division…

  • The Yankees will recall infielder Thairo Estrada to replace Troy Tulowitzki on the active roster tomorrow, MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand reports (via Twitter). That all but confirms that Tulowitzki, who strained his left calf muscle in today’s game, will land on the 10-day injured list (as skipper Aaron Boone had already said was likely). Estrada, 23. missed much of the 2018 season after being shot in the hip during a robbery attempt in his native Venezuela prior to the season. The promising young infielder thankfully survived without serious damage and even returned to the field for 18 late-season games and another 19 games in the Arizona Fall League. Ranked as the team’s No. 19 prospect on MLB.com, Estrada hit .301/.353/.392 at the Double-A level in his last full season in 2017.
  • The ankle injury suffered by Yandy Diaz in Tuesday’s game doesn’t appear to be serious, and the Rays are confident he’ll be able to return to the lineup Friday, writes Juan Toribio of MLB.com. Diaz could have been available off the bench but didn’t appear in today’s game against the Rockies. The 27-year-old is off to a fast start with his new organization, having slashed .333/.440/.619 with a homer and three doubles through his first 25 plate appearances after being acquired from the Indians organization in the Jake Bauers/Edwin Encarnacion three-team swap this offseason.

AL Notes: Davidson, O’s, Kelley, Gonzalez, Rays

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To no one’s surprise, the rebuilding Orioles have been extremely quiet this offseason, focusing more on front office, player development and analytics hires while also piecing together a coaching staff under new GM Mike Elias and manager Brandon Hyde. However, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com tweets that Baltimore does have some interest in free-agent corner infielder/designated hitter Matt Davidson, who was non-tendered by the White Sox earlier this winter. Davidson, 28 in March, more than doubled his career walk rate last season, drawing a free pass at a 10.5 percent clip after walking in just 4.3 percent of his plate appearances in 2017. However, the increase in patience came with a bit of a dip in power, and strikeouts remained a severe issue (33.3 percent). In all, the slugger hit .228/.319/.419 with 20 big flies in 496 plate appearances. Davidson has 46 home runs in his past 939 PAs but is still a work in progress at the plate. He could potentially give Baltimore some pop off the bench, and his right-handed bat could help to shield Chris Davis from opposing lefties as the veteran attempts to rebound from a catastrophic 2018 season.

More from the American League…

  • Right-hander Shawn Kelley has been connected to a few teams in recent weeks, but it doesn’t sound as if he’ll be back with the Athletics in 2019. Agent Mike McCann tells Ben Ross of NBC Sports California that while his client has had contact with several teams this winter, Oakland isn’t one of them. Fancred’s Jon Heyman recently tweeted that Kelley has heard from 10 clubs this winter, so the righty should find his way onto a roster in the coming weeks. Kelley, who’ll turn 35 in April, posted a 2.94 ERA with 9.2 K/9, 2.0 BB/9, 1.29 HR/9 and a 30.2 percent grounder rate in 49 innings between the A’s and the Nats in ’18 — his third sub-3.00 ERA in the past four seasons.
  • Adrian Gonzalez worked out for the Tigers, Royals and Diamondbacks this past week, tweets J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group. The five-time All-Star, who is hoping to continue his career in 2019, batted .237/.299/.373 with six homers in 187 plate appearances with the Mets last season before being cut loose. Detroit would seem to have the most playing time available for the soon-to-be 37-year-old Gonzalez, though he could certainly serve as a veteran bat off the bench in either Kansas City or Arizona. The two American League teams are, of course, a better on-paper fit given that Gonzalez could spend some time at DH in either spot.
  • Yandy Diaz projects as the likely starter for the Rays at first base following the DFA of C.J. Cron and the trade of Jake Bauers (which brought Diaz to Tampa Bay), writes Juan Toribio of MLB.com. Many fans and pundits alike raised an eyebrow when the Rays shipped out Bauers, long one of the organization’s top prospects, to acquire the 27-year-old Diaz, who has yet to prove himself at the game’s top level. Vice president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom spoke of Diaz’s upside with the bat, however, specifically touting Diaz’s ability to hit the ball with authority — a point that has long been written about as Diaz has recorded highly intriguing exit velocity numbers. Toribio notes that the Rays feel that, given Diaz’s penchant for hitting the ball hard, they can coax more power production out of him. Ji-Man Choi figures to serve as the primary designated hitter for the Rays and the top alternative to Diaz at first base, Toribio adds.

AL East Notes: Rays, Diaz, Bauers, Tribe, Elias, Jays

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Some items from around the AL East…

  • Thursday’s three-team deal between the Rays, Indians, and Mariners was a very notable swap for all sides, and while payroll concerns were a big factor for Seattle and Cleveland, the Rays’ role was apparently more baseball-centric, and all the more interesting given the team’s long-standing admiration for first baseman Jake Bauers.  As Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes, Bauers had long been seen as the Rays’ projected first baseman of the future, and the 23-year-old only just made his big league debut in 2018.  New acquisition Yandy Diaz, however, adds a bit more positional flexibility as well as a right-handed bat to Tampa’s roster.  “Jake’s pretty special to us and our high opinion of him doesn’t change….We like him a lot,” Rays senior VP of baseball operations Chaim Bloom said.  “This was one (deal) where there was no high-fiving, just something we thought really made sense for us going forward. The Indians are getting a hell of a player. It’s going to be fun to watch his career progress.”
  • In more details on the trade, Topkin reiterated that Edwin Encarnacion isn’t likely to be flipped from the Mariners to the Rays, even though Seattle could very well trade Encarnacion elsewhere before Opening Day.  That fits with a report from Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer, who said that Encarnacion wasn’t originally a part of any talks between the Rays and Indians, who were initially planning to just swap Bauers for Diaz in a regular two-team deal.  Hoynes also “would not be surprised” if the Tribe acquires a veteran bat for pinch-hitting or part-time DH duty, to get some playing time when Carlos Santana is at first base and Bauers is deployed as a corner outfielder.
  • Mike Elias’ contract with the Orioles may be a five-year deal, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com has heard, though Kubatko noted that this hasn’t been confirmed by the organization.  It isn’t unusual, of course, for teams to not publicly release details on executive contracts.  Five years isn’t an uncommon contract length even for a first-time GM like Elias, especially given the large amount of work he faces in overseeing what should be a very extensive rebuild.
  • The Blue Jays are known to be looking for some veteran rotation help, though they apparently weren’t “serious bidders” for the recently-signed Charlie Morton or Lance Lynn, Sportsnet.ca’s Ben Nicholson-Smith writes.  Morton signed a two-year, $30MM deal with the Rays that includes an option year, while Lynn reportedly got a three-year, $30MM commitment from the Rangers.  It would be somewhat surprising if Toronto signed an experienced starter to such a contract, either in price or perhaps anything longer than two years, given how the Jays are in a rebuilding phase.  The Blue Jays reportedly at least checked in on Lynn, though it isn’t surprising that they balked at giving him a three-year deal.  Toronto’s lack of moves on the pitching front makes them a team to watch as various hurlers continue to come off the board, particularly if the team is also weighing offers for Marcus Stroman and Aaron Sanchez.

Mariners, Indians, Rays Strike 3-Team Swap Involving Edwin Encarnacion, Carlos Santana

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The close of the Winter Meetings brought with it a interesting three-team trade — authored by none other than Seattle dealmaker Jerry Dipoto, who was apparently operating from a hospital bed. The Mariners have added slugger Edwin Encarnacion while sending recently acquired first baseman Carlos Santana (Encarnacion’s former teammate) to the Indians in the deal. The Rays, too, involved in this swap. They’ll pick up corner infielder Yandy Diaz and righty Cole Sulser from the Indians and send first baseman/corner outfielder Jake Bauers to the Indians

Beyond the players involved in the trade, a reported $5MM will go to the Mariners from the Rays. Seattle, meanwhile, will send a reported $6MM on to the Indians and will also acquire the Cleveland org’s competitive balance pick in next year’s draft. It’s a Round B choice that currently sits at No. 77 — though the exact order of next year’s draft will be altered slightly by the compensation and draft penalization for teams signing players who have rejected qualifying offers. Regardless, the Mariners have likely added a top 80 selection to their slate of picks next summer.

Needless to say, there are some varying considerations at play here. Cash is king with regard to the notable veteran sluggers, who are certainly the most recognizable players in this deal. Encarnacion is owed $24MM through the 2019 campaign (including a buyout on a club option), while Santana’s deal promises him $35MM through 2020 (also with an option buyout).

It’s far from clear that Encarnacion will remain in Seattle when all is said and done. To the contrary, in fact, he may well go to Tampa Bay in a separate swap, per Scott Miller of Bleacher Report (via Twitter), though Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times emphasizes there’s nothing “in place or lined up” in that regard (Twitter link). With the M’s looking to shed payroll and boost their talent reserves, they’ll surely be willing to spin off Encarnacion — to the Rays or another rival — if there’s a favorable offer. After all, the organization already acquired and dumped Santana this winter.

Both Encarnacion and Santana will be looking to recover from relative down seasons. The former, 35, slashed .246/.336/.474 with 32 home runs last year, still a productive campaign but not to his usual standards. He’s seen mostly as a DH at this stage of his career, but can still line up at first base on at least a part-time basis. The 32-year-old Santana, meanwhile, turned in a .229/.352/.414 batting line and swatted 24 long balls in 679 plate appearances with the Phillies, who signed him after out-bidding the Indians but soured on the fit this winter. He’s regarded as a solid performer at first and still draws walks at an impressive clip; in 2018, in fact, he took 110 free passes while going down 93 times on strikes.

Working out the math for Seattle, the team will end up sending out $1MM while paring $11MM in obligations, resulting in a net savings of $10MM. They’ll only have one year of Encarnacion to deal along elsewhere, but they’ll also pick up the draft selection for their trouble.

The Indians, meanwhile, will open some additional 2018 payroll space by shedding the big hit on Encarnacion. Santana will cost more ($29MM) in the aggregate, but it’s spread over multiple years. The money from the M’s is split into $2MM and $4MM payments, Paul Hoynes of the Plain Dealer tweets. Plus, there’s the post-2020 buyout. All said, there’s now added cash hung on the 2020 and 2021 ledgers. Presumably, the club is also pleased to bring back a long-time franchise stalwart. Of course, now that Bauers is on hand along with Santana, there are now new trade possibilities here as well. First baseman Yonder Alonso, who’s owed $8MM in 2019 along with a $1MM buyout on a 2020 option, could end up on the move, though Bauers could also factor in the outfield mix and the team could utilize Alonso and Santana as a first base/DH pairing.

On the Rays’ end of the swap, Bauers was long considered a top prospect but clearly wasn’t seen as a key piece for the club. Diaz will enter an ever-changing infield mix in Tampa Bay after a strong 2018 showing in which he posted .797 OPS figures at both the Triple-A (426 plate appearances) and MLB (120 plate appearances) levels. In addition to possessing some of the game’s most impressive biceps and the ability to line up at third base as well as the corner outfield, Diaz will come with six seasons of future control. Rays exec Chaim Bloom says the club likes the versatility and the upside that comes with the 27-year-old (video link on Twitter from Topkin). Sulser, 28, has yet to reach the bigs, but will presumably factor into a deep Rays relief corps after throwing 105 innings of 3.51 ERA ball with 12.3 K/9 and 3.6 BB/9 at Triple-A over the past three seasons.

Jon Heyman of Fancred (Twitter links), Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (all Twitter links) and Joel Sherman of the New York Post (Twitter links) were all at the forefront of the reporting on this news.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Indians Rumors: Encarnacion, Diaz, Alonso, Santana, Myers, Kluber, Bauer, Kipnis

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The Indians continue to explore trade scenarios involving their veteran players, including some three-team proposals involving Edwin Encarnacion, Yonder Alonso, and Yandy Diaz, Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.  The three-team discussions are mostly about unloading salaries, which is why Corey Kluber and Trevor Bauer have “for the most part” not been involved in the multi-team talks, Hoynes notes.  In general, Cleveland is exploring any and all possible options with their veteran players as the team looks to thread the needle between staying competitive in 2019 while still freeing up payroll space both for next season and in the future.

The Tribe was linked to Carlos Santana in trade rumors yesterday, and a reunion with their former first baseman would be possible if Cleveland was able to offload Encarnacion or Alonso in another trade (or potentially maybe even the same trade, if the Mariners were also involved in a three-team swap).  Santana has already changed teams once this winter and continues to be a popular trade target given that the Mariners are another team looking to cut payroll.  In the latest update, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal tweets that Santana could possibly be traded over the next few days.

If Santana did return to Cleveland, some financial juggling would likely have to take place due to the money involved with all of the first basemen.  Santana is owed $40MM over the next two seasons, while Encarnacion is owed $25MM through 2019 (a $20MM salary in 2019 and a $5MM buyout of a $20MM club option for 2020) and Alonso $8MM in 2019, plus a $9MM vesting option for 2020 based on plate appearances and a clean physical.  In reports from earlier this week, Hoynes suggested that the controllable Diaz could be added to a deal involving one of these larger salaries in order to make the salary hit more palatable for another team.

Speaking of big contracts, Hoynes also notes that Cleveland has been “linked” to Padres first baseman/outfielder Wil Myers in trade rumors.  That would be an even more surprising addition for the cost-conscious Tribe to make, and it would require even more salary-shifting given that Myers is owed $64MM through the 2022 season.  It isn’t clear if the Indians were strongly pursuing Myers or just doing their due diligence in overall talks with the Padres.  Hoynes mentions that the Tribe has interest in some of the MLB-ready young players in San Diego’s organization, though there has been “little headway” in those discussions.

There has also been “little interest” in Jason Kipnis as the Tribe tries to market the veteran second baseman/outfielder.  Given that Kipnis has posted below-average hitting numbers in each of the last two seasons, it isn’t surprising that the Indians are struggling to find a trade partner, especially given the $17MM remaining on Kipnis’ contract.

Rays, Indians Discussed Trade Of Edwin Encarnacion, Yandy Diaz

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The Rays have had trade discussions with the Indians about first baseman/DH Edwin Encarnacion and infielder Yandy Diaz, Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports (two links).  It isn’t clear if these talks extended beyond anything but due diligence, and Hoynes said that if such a deal is explored, it might come as a second step after other offseason moves for the Tribe.  To wit, the Indians would likely have to first deal Corey Kluber or Trevor Bauer to free up enough money on the books so the club could potentially eat some of Encarnacion’s salary to facilitate a deal with Tampa Bay.

It would certainly be eye-opening to see the Rays, of all teams, take on a player like Encarnacion who carries such a significant (if short-term) financial commitment.  Encarnacion is owed $20MM in 2019, and there is a $5MM buyout on a $20MM contract option for his services in 2020.  If Cleveland didn’t absorb any of that money, it stands to reason that the Rays would send along one of their higher-paid players back in the deal to help offset salary.  While financial concerns might be paramount in such a trade between two smaller-market teams, Hoynes also suggests that the Tribe could look to acquire some needed bullpen help from a Rays team that is deep in relievers.

The inclusion of a controllable young player like Diaz would also help sweeten the pot for a club taking on Encarncion’s contract.  Diaz, 27, has shown some intriguing potential at the plate over 299 Major League PAs, displaying some excellent exit velocity numbers, though also struggling at times to avoid hitting grounders.  Diaz has been a third baseman for much of his pro career, though he has enough experience at first base, second base, and all three outfield spots that he fits the Rays’ preferred mold of a versatile, multi-position asset.

With the Tribe looking to get some high-priced veterans off the payroll, it would fascinating to see another low-payroll team like the Rays emerge as a trade partner.  Encarnacion would certainly be a fit for the team’s search for another first base/DH type, as his big right-handed bat would perfectly complement the left-handed hitting Ji-Man Choi and Jake Bauers (the incumbent DH and first baseman).  Since Bauers is still ticketed as the Rays’ first baseman of the future and Choi has years of control remaining, Encarnacion would represent a short-term rental for a Tampa club that has designs on contending in 2019.

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