X-Rays Spex

A Below Average Rays Fan Blog

Tampa Bay Rays hot-stove outlook; important dates

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After a 96-win season, Kevin Cash and the Rays front office look to add to the roster during the 2019/20 offseason.

As the 2019 season came to an end on Wednesday, the busy 2019/20 hot-stove period commenced. Erik Neander, Kevin Cash, and the Tampa Bay Rays front office are now tasked with putting the final touches on a roster that can get the franchise back into the World Series after the wildly successful 96 win 2019 campaign.

There are several key dates during this roster-building period, which MLB Trade Rumors listed on Thursday.

November 2

  • Eligible players officially file for major or minor-league free agency

November 4

  • End of “quiet period” during which teams have exclusive negotiating rights with their free agents
  • Deadline to issue qualifying offers ($17.8MM) to eligible free agents
  • Deadline to exercise or decline options and opt-outs (unless sooner by operation of contract; Stephen Strasburg & Aroldis Chapman reportedly must decide by November 2)

November 11-14

  • General Manager Meetings (Scottsdale, AZ)

November 14

  • Deadline for qualifying offer recipients to accept or reject

November 20

  • Deadline for adding Rule 5-draft eligible players to the 40-man roster

December 2

  • Non-tender deadline

December 9-12

  • Winter Meetings (San Diego, CA)

December 12

  • Rule 5 Draft

January 10

  • Deadline to exchange arbitration filing figures if an agreement has yet to be reached

February 3-21

  • Arbitration hearing period

Mid-February

  • Spring Training commences

March 26

  • Opening Day

The Rays already made a couple of moves to clear space on the 40-man roster, outrighting LHP Hoby Milner and speedy OF Johnny Davis. Meanwhile, Travis d’Arnaud, Avisaíl Garcia, and Eric Sogard are now officially off the books, which has lowered the roster to 35 players. With the Rule-5 Draft approaching, Neander and Co. will have to figure out how many players will need to be protected.

Tampa Bay is also reportedly interested in re-signing Sogard, Garcia, and d’Arnaud, although any new deal would have to come at the right price.

Re-signing Sogard to the infield mix could push Yandy Diaz into the role as the right-handed complement to Ji-Man Choi and Nate Lowe. Garcia could see some time at DH or in right field, allowing for Austin Meadows, Tommy Pham, or other players to cycle through the DH slot on partial rest days.

d’Arnaud might have priced himself out of Tampa Bay’s range after his initial 92-game stint with the team. He was both productive and healthy in 2019 and now looks to be the second-best option on the free-agent catcher market after Yasmani Grandal. If d’Arnaud were to sign, elsewhere Mike Zunino would more than likely need to be retained as Michael Perez would be the Rays top in-house choice as the starting backstop.

As for other needs, the Rays might look at adding a big bat that can play every day. The first base/DH spot is the most logical space for such a player, particularly a consistent right-handed bat with pop. The team, which values roster flexibility, would likely seek a player with multi-positional versatility, of which there could be some interesting options on the free-agent market, namely World Series hero Howie Kendrick. Should they be content with a strict first baseman/DH, a free-agent like Jose Abreu could potentially be in play.

The Rays’ bullpen pitched well last season, and the team will likely bring back most of the arms for another season of restocking and reshuffling between the big league squad and Triple-A Durham. A healthy Jose Alvarado should also return to the mix. Expect Neander to add at least one veteran arm to the ‘pen even if just on a minor league contract.

The team’s playoff success isn’t likely to lead to any uncharacteristic moves, although the team will have more money to play with thanks to increased revenue by way of the updated TV contract with Fox Sports Sun, among other things. Neander could have another set of bold moves in-store in order to put the Rays over the top in the AL East.

As what promises to be an intriguing offseason continues to unfold, X-Rays Spex will continue to be on top of things.

Bloom to be hired by the Red Sox, Cash and Neander earn hardware, Kiermaier nominated for a Gold Glove

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Rays VP of baseball operations Chaim Bloom is “likely” to be hired by the Red Sox.

In a few days, once the World Series comes to pass, the Tampa Bay Rays interesting offseason plans will begin to take shape ⁠— we’ll have more on that starting next week. Unfortunately for a front office tasked with adding to the young core of players which won 96 games in 2019, the Rays will likely be without VP of baseball operations Chaim Bloom, who will be coronated as Boston’s head of baseball operations.

Bloom interviewed for the Red Sox GM opening, according to Chad Jennings and Ken Rosenthal (both of The Athletic). Jennings noted the process “seems to be coming to an end,” while Marc Topkin (Tampa Bay Times) added, “Bloom is “likely” to be hired by the Red Sox.”

Bloom, 36, had been in the mix for several high-profile executive jobs in recent years, most notably he was the runner-up to Brodie Van Wagenen in the Mets search for a new GM last season. The Twins and Phillies were also said to have considered Bloom for a GM role in recent years.

Bloom is a front office veteran with 15+ seasons of experience in the Rays front office. After starting his career as an intern in 2005, Bloom was promoted to the role of VP of baseball operations in 2014, with a “senior” title being attached to that role in 2016 when the club also promoted Erik Neander to GM.

Bloom doesn’t just have intimate knowledge of the Rays front office, he’s added his own ingredients to their secret sauce over the years. He now will bring some of those cutting edge concepts to Boston, one of the Tampa Bay’s fiercest opponents.

Even so, the Rays should be able to absorb his departure.

Based on the talent on the roster, as well as the clubhouse culture that’s been cultivated, there’s more than enough evidence that Tampa Bay will still be a threat in the American League for the foreseeable future. The problem is whether that will be enough with a Boston franchise that’s about to get a serious boost in Bloom.

Kevin Cash and Erik Neander are the recipients of a pair of awards

Speaking of the front office, Kevin Cash was honored as one of Sporting News’ award recipients, naming the Rays skipper American League Manager of the Year. Meanwhile, Erik Neander was named MLB Executive of the Year by the same publication. Cash and Neander were tasked with a roster chock-full of trade acquisitions and overlooked players, and ultimately led Tampa Bay to a 96-win season and an American League Division Series berth. Cash also deserves credit for guiding through an injury-plagued campaign — just two Rays appeared in over 140 games.

The Sporting News Manager of the Year award is not to be confused with the BBWAA awards which receive more coverage and recognition.

Kevin Kiermaier is a finalist for Gold Glove award

On Thursday, centerfielder Kevin Kiermaier was named a finalist for the AL Gold Glove award for American League centerfielders. He will compete against Jackie Bradley Jr. and Mike Trout.

Kiermiaer previously won the Gold Glove twice, in 2015 and 2016.

Having a shot at winning another Gold Glove is one of the best feelings for me from a personal standpoint. I always say I feel like I can control a game from centerfield as well as anyone in the game. Being a nominee gives me a shot at winning and I hope I’m fortunate enough to win a third Gold Glove.

— Kevin Kiermaier

Kiermaier appeared in 125 games this season (117 starts), and made just four errors in 260 chances, while also collecting six assists.

The SABR defensive index (SDI) has Kiermaier ranked highest of the three candidates at 6.3, with Trout at 4.4 and Bradley at -6.2. He also ranks first in defensive runs saved (DRS) with an AL most 13; Trout and Bradley were both -1.

Tampa Bay did not have any other finalists. While deserving, shortstop Willy Adames was overshadowed by Francisco Lindor, Marcus Semien, Andrelton Simmons. Adames was the top-ranked shortstop per the SDI at 9.9, with Semien following at 7.8, and Lindor at 2.9. Simmons was not ranked.

Tampa Bay Rays enter the offseason with a ton of optimism for the future

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Rays skipper Kevin Cash has a lot to look forward to going into the offseason.

A day after the Tampa Bay Rays 2019 campaign came to an end, Vice President of Baseball Operations Chaim Bloom, General Manager Erik Neander, and Manager Kevin Cash met with the media for their annual post-season press conference at Tropicana Field. As the players cleaned out their lockers in ahead the off-season, Bloom, Neander, and Cash note of their optimism going into the 2020 season.

There is an expectation for the young core of players to get even better after gaining another year of experience, including another postseason berth. Moving forward, the likely focus for the Rays brain trust will be more on the now than on the future, as they tinker with the roster to make a really good team even better.

We’re more equipped to compete with what we have right now. As thick as we are right now, I think we’re satisfied with the talent we have.

But I think it’s kind of in our DNA and our mode of preparation that we have an offseason with months to play with and think about things, and we can’t help ourselves but to think about how to make the team better. That’s our job, and we’ll do that. We’ll be open to things. But we do like our starting position here going into the winter.

— Erik Neander

With a team that has gone from 68 to 96 wins over a four-year period, not to mention an organization that has one deepest farm systems in the game, Tampa Bay is positioned well for a successful run.

With that in mind, Juan Toribio (MLB.com) listed his four key takeaways from the press conference, which you can read below:

Rays ready to build on postseason appearance

After their first postseason berth since 2013, the Rays enter the offseason as one of the early favorites to contend for the AL pennant in ’20. While they have difficult decisions to make this winter, the front office will operate with the sense that next year’s team is set to contend for more than just a postseason berth.

I think it’s much more that we’re putting ourselves in the territory where we’re expecting to be one of the most competitive and one of the most talented teams moving forward in the American League. And with that, the balancing of your near-term versus your long-term, it shifts a little bit to the present. And, really, that’s the goal.

— Erik Neander

Payroll operations

It’s no secret that the Rays don’t have the same payroll flexibility as some of the other clubs in the Majors, but they’re going to continue to be resourceful with what they have. Neander said that the Rays have “an idea” of what the payroll will be next season, which will help them in the free-agent market, but it isn’t necessarily a set number.

It’s kind of more of a range, but not something that we’ve gotten into too deeply. I think it’s important to survey the landscape and what our needs are and what’s available, what’s the inventory and then work backwards from there.

— Erik Neander

Medical update on Honeywell

Brent Honeywell entered the season as the team’s top pitching prospect, but setbacks from Tommy John surgery ended his season in June. Honeywell has now missed two full seasons, but he’s currently on pace to begin throwing at the start of the year. Honeywell was the only member of the 40-man roster to not pitch for the Rays this season, but the club is optimistic that the right-hander will contribute at some point next season.

The plan all along was that he wasn’t going to throw until around the new year and that remains the case. This kid is as intense and strong of a competitor as anyone we’ve been around, and for him to not taste competitive baseball for a couple of years is tough. But he’s going to get through this and we’ll see how he does once he picks up a ball.

— Erik Neander

Staff changes?

With a throng of job openings around the Majors, there’s always a chance that the Rays could have some turnover on their coaching staff. Rocco Baldelli and Charlie Montoyo both took managerial jobs last winter — with the Twins and Blue Jays, respectively — and some clubs could inquire about bench coach Matt Quatraro this winter.

Cash said that there could be some interest around the league for some of his staff members and front office personnel, though he’s optimistic about keeping his staff intact.

I don’t anticipate any changes. We have a really good group and a great staff. I think they do a really good job of keeping a positive vibe while helping players get better. There’s probably a lot of discussions out there right now. I would imagine that we have some people on our staff and within our organization that are looked upon very highly. I can’t thank this staff enough for the work this season.

— Kevin Cash

The Rays now will prioritize their own needs, like a catcher (if Travis d’Arnaud leaves), a right-handed power hitter (should Avisail Garcia leave), and a key bullpen piece or two.

Still, there is the feeling that the future looks better than ever which is a good place to be as the team looks to build on the successes of the 2019 campaign.

We’re putting ourselves in the territory, where we expect to be one of the most competitive, one of the most talented teams going forward in the American League.

— Erik Neander

Even in defeat, our gratitude for the Rays continues on

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  • The Astros swarmed right-hander Tyler Glasnow in the first inning, tagging him for four runs and a difference that could not be made up for. (Photo Credit: Tampa Bay Rays)

The Houston Astros struck quickly on Thursday, ultimately showing why they are the best team in baseball. Houston got key hits from their first four batters, and five of six, while scoring four first-inning runs en route to a 6-1 win over the Tampa Bay Rays. To the victors go the spoils, as Houston won the American League Division Series three games to two to end Tampa Bay’s postseason run, and advance to meet the Yankees in the American League Championship Series.

Many will dissect and/or recap the fifth game of the 2019 ALDS, and in all honesty, I’m pretty worn out from the month-and-a-half long spread of heart attack inducing ballgames, down the stretch, by the cardiac kids. For tonight, it’s okay to feel sad because of the outcome, but let’s make sure to celebrate OUR team for their onfield accomplishments, of which there were many.

Suffice it to say, this wasn’t our year. Sure, there was a ton of opitimism following their 90-win 2018 campaign, but with such a young core of relatively inexperienced players, a World Series run ultimately wasn’t in the cards. However, the Adames’ and Choi’s of the world proved that the 2019 Rays were a formidable opponent, so much so they won 99 games overall (96 regular-season games) in the same division as the Yankees and the Red Sox.

The Rays entered Oakland for the AL Wildcard game as the underdogs and defeated the Athletics to earn the privilege of playing against in the ALDS against the best squad in the game. That squad, the 107-game winning Astros, were predicted to shut down Tampa Bay in three games, and yet the Rays went toe-to-toe with Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman, George Springer, and a pair of immensely talented hurlers — one of which Tampa Bay knocked out of Tuesday’s game before the final out of the fourth inning.

What an impressive run. They were a fun team to be around, fun team to watch for 6-1/2 months. Can’t deny the fact that we came up short. You get a taste of this, you want to keep going. Today we kind of got outpowered — outpowered on the mound and obviously at the plate. But really, really proud of the guys.

— Kevin Cash

This season we watched guys like Willy Adames and Ji-Man Choi blossom into all-around solid players.

Plays like this make watching this 6-3 duo fun.

Besides Avisaíl García, Travis d’Arnaud, and Eric Sogard — all of whom are set to enter free agency — Tampa Bay will have the majority of its roster back in 2020. More importantly, this young core is now better because of the postseason experience. They should be around for a while. While 2019 was great, 2020 promises to be even better.

Rays outfielder Austin Meadows spoke to that after the game:

Something Dave Wills (Rays Radio) mentioned over more than a few occasions, the window of opportunity for this special group should be open for much longer than with previous rosters.

His radio partner, Andy Freed, reiterated that idea in a tweet referencing Winston Churchill.

They may not have shocked the world, but they are now certainly worthy of respect.

While I’m thinking about it, I’ve got to say, it was wholly refreshing to hear someone in the national media, namely AJ Pierzynski, acknowledge the WE are a great fan base. We get plowed over by so many people (including folks from the local media) so often, that an acknowledgment by someone with a far larger platform than, say, Marc Topkin was reaffirming. That’s really saying something when the local beat writer is more angsty toward the fan base than one of the most unbeloved former players in the game.

The New What Next

So what’s next? We here at X-Rays Spex will be pulling for Houston to first defeat the Yankees, then win it all. Who knows? Maybe one of us will whip together a series preview as we’ve done in the past.

Then, after a little time away, we’ll start crunching the numbers to see where the Rays fared well this season, and where they can improve moving forward. I’m sure we can expect some non-news news to come out of the Rays camp regarding Stu Sternberg’s cockamamie (his words, not mine) proposal, but we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.

At any rate, the blog will be updated regularly with applicable news among other things, so keep on reading!

TNWN: Rays look to win a third consecutive game against Houston

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A pair of orange roofs graced Tropicana Field on Monday and Tuesday, as the Rays defeated the Houston Astros at home. (Photo Credit: Tampa Bay Rays)

After a travel day Wednesday, the Tampa Bay Rays made their way back to Houston, where they will butt heads with the Astros one more time in the final game of the best of five American League Division Series. Houston won the first two games of the set, while Tampa Bay won a pair of elimination games at home. The victors will face the Yankees in the American League Championship Series, starting Saturday.

The Rays enter play 3-0 in elimination postseason games this season and are 8-4 overall. They have dominated the series beyond the Justin Verlander/Gerrit Cole innings in Houston. With Verlander and Cole on the on the bump, Houston outscored Tampa Bay 8-0. Yet beyond that, in all the other innings of the series, the Rays have outscored Houston 17-5.

As Bradford Doolittle (ESPN) noted, the numbers all swing the Rays’ way. Tampa Bay has a 6-4 edge in homers in the series. They have that 17-13 edge in scoring. They have more walks, a better on-base percentage, a better slugging percentage. The Astros have been outplayed.

It is not clear if Yandy Diaz will be available. Diaz left Monday’s game with left foot soreness, and did not play on Tuesday. In his place, Matt Duffy collected two hits on Monday, while Joey Wendle hit an RBI double on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, the Rays pitching staff has limited Houston to 1-9 with runners in scoring position (.111 BA) over the last two games — something they hope to continue on Thursday. Put another way, the keys to any presumptive victory will be timely hitting, run prevention, and quality pitching.

Even though Tyler Glasnow is set to make his second postseason appearance (more on him below), Rays manager Kevin Cash acknowledged Wednesday that there will again be an all hands on deck approach to pitching in the series finale, with all of the team’s 12 pitchers available for this contest, including both Blake Snell and Charlie Morton (who pitched Monday) on short rest. In the bullpen day on Tuesday, not a single Tampa Bay hurler threw more than 29 pitches. The same can be expected from A.J. Hinch and the Astros.

The New What Next

Tyler Glasnow (6-1, 1.78 ERA) will make his second and final ALDS appearance, pitching opposite of Gerrit Cole (20-5, 2.50 ERA).

Tyler Glasnow will be pitching on an extra day’s rest after throwing 4-1/3 innings on Friday when he gave up four hits including a two-run homer to Jose Altuve. He struck out five. He is 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA in one career start against Houston in regular season play, but 0-1 with a 4.15 ERA and a 1.82 WHIP in the postseason.

Gerrit Cole was historically dominant in the second game of the ALDS when he fanned 15 — an Astros franchise playoff record — in his 118-pitch, 7-2/3 inning outing. Cole is 0-2 with a 3.51 ERA in four career starts against the Rays, 0-1 with a 3.55 ERA in two 2019 starts against Tampa Bay, and 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA and a 0.65 WHIP in postseason play. Key Matchups: Jesus Aguilar (3-8, 2 RBI, BB), Ji-Man Choi (2B, HR, 4 RBI, BB), Travis d’Arnaud (4-4, 2B, HR, 2 RBI, BB), Yandy Diaz (2-3, HR, RBI), Tommy Pham (9-18, 2 2B, HR, 4 RBI), Daniel Robertson (2-6), Joey Wendle (3-7, 3B, 3 RBI)

You can read about the series in our preview, while the starting lineup and Noteworthiness are below.

TNWN: Rays vs Astros — an ALDS preview

Rays ALDS Game Five Starting Lineup

  1. Meadows LF
  2. Pham DH
  3. Choi 1B
  4. d’Arnaud C
  5. Sogard 2B
  6. Garcia RF
  7. Wendle 3B
  8. Kiermaier C
  9. Adames SS

Noteworthiness

— The Rays will be hosting three more official watch parties on Thursday in the Tampa Bay area. The first pitch is slated for 7:00, and the locations of the parties are below.

— Ever wonder about the cognitive dissonance between very wealthy people, like Rays principal owner Stu Sternberg, and, well…pretty much everyone else? Me too!

According to an article by Harren Walker (Vice), UC Berkeley psychologists Paul Diff and Dacher Keltner have done a number of studies over the past 10 years that suggest that the more material wealth an individual accumulates, the less likely that person is to have compassion and empathy for other people, and to use their wealth to help others in need.

Walker continued:

Upper-class individuals are also worse at recognizing other people’s emotions, and they’re less likely to pay attention to the people they’re interacting with.

— Harren Walker

In other words, Sternberg is living in a world where the realities of the majority of the Rays fan base do not match up with his own. Is he delusional for thinking that baseball fans in Tampa Bay and Montreal will glom onto his cockamamie leverage proposal to split the Rays between two cities for half a season? From a clinical perspective, there’s a strong possibility of that.