Tommy Pham is set to earn $4.1-million in his first time through the arbitration process.

Outfielder Tommy Pham won his arbitration case against the Tampa Bay Rays and is set earn $4.1-million rather than the $3.5-million figure that the team had submitted. This marks the fifth consecutive arbitration case the Rays have lost after going 6-0 under the ownership of Stu Sternberg.

Tampa Bay took a chance on Pham at the trade deadline, and the late-blooming outfielder did not disappoint upon joining the Rays, slashing .355 BA/.452 OBP/.623 SLG/1.075 OPS with seven home runs and 22 RBI in the final 37 games (174 plate appearances) of his 2018 campaign. All told, he has now posted a .279 BA/.375 OBP/.482 SLG/.857 OPS line across 1,458 MLB plate appearances.

Pham was clearly pleased with the outcome of the arbitration case, tweeting:

He, however, acknowledged the difficult nature of the arbitration process in a later tweet.

The team previously lost to Drew Smyly, Jake Odorizzi (twice), and Adeiny Hechavarria, and now are 6-5 overall in arbitration.

Rays release 2019 promotional schedule

On Tuesday, the Rays released their 2019 promotional schedule.

Daniel Russell (DRaysBay) did a bang-up job listing all the Saturday and Sunday promotional items, which you can read below:

Saturday promotional items this year are available to all fans, and include:

  • Blake Snell Cy Zilla Bobblehead (March 30 vs. Astros) presented by DEX Imaging
  • Ryne Stanek Bottle Opener (April 20 vs. Red Sox) presented by Republic Bank
  • Tropical Shirt (May 11 vs. Yankees) presented by TradeWinds Island Resorts
  • Tommy Pham Bobblehead (June 1 vs. Twins) presented by DEX Imaging
  • Short Sleeve Hoodie (June 15 vs. Angels) presented by Tampa Bay Times
  • Umbrella (June 29 vs. Rangers) presented by the Florida Department of Transportation
  • Blake Snell Replica Jersey (July 20 vs. White Sox) presented by Suncoast Credit Union
  • DJ Kitty Mini Speaker (August 3 vs. Marlins)
  • Willy Adames Bobblehead (August 17 vs. Tigers)
  • Tote Bag (August 31 vs. Indians) presented by MLB Network
  • Pajama Pants (September 7 vs. Blue Jays).

Sunday promotional items are for fans 14 years and under and include:

  • Kevin Kiermaier Replica Jersey (March 31 vs. Astros) presented by Tampa General Hospital
  • Daniel Robertson Wristbands (April 21 vs. Red Sox) presented by Moffitt Cancer Center
  • Snapback Hat designed by St. Petersburg multimedia artist Chad Mize (May 12 vs. Yankees) presented by FOX Sports Sun
  • Arm Sleeve (June 2 vs. Twins) presented by FOX Sports Sun
  • Fanny Pack (June 16 vs. Angels) presented by tampabay.com
  • Jedi Joey Wendle Socks (June 30 vs. Rangers) presented by Crown Automotive Group
  • Playing Cards (July 21 vs. White Sox); Backpack (August 4 vs. Marlins)
  • Raymond Bendable Keychain (August 18 vs. Tigers)
  • Toy Truck (September 1 vs. Indians) presented by W.B. Mason
  • Pillowcase Set (September 8 vs. Blue Jays)

Noteworthiness

— With Spring Training just around the corner, Marc Topkin (Tampa Bay Times) listed the 64 players that have been invited to camp, starting next week. The non-roster invitees are marked with an asterisk:

Pitchers (34)

46 José Alvarado (L)
53 Anthony Banda (L)
68 Jalen Beeks (L)
63 Diego Castillo
72 Yonny Chirinos
87 José De León
47 Oliver Drake*
34 Jake Faria
62 Wilmer Font
76 Mike Franco*
92 Ian Gardeck*
58 Ian Gibaut
20 Tyler Glasnow
59 Brent Honeywell Jr.
36 Andrew Kittredge*
56 Adam Kolarek (L)
71 Ryan Merritt* (L)
60 Hoby Milner* (L)
82 Dalton Moats* (L)
49 Andrew Moore
50 Charlie Morton
15 Emilio Pagán
70 Ricardo Pinto*
37 Colin Poche* (L)
45 Austin Pruitt
52 Chaz Roe
73 Casey Sadler*
75 Luis Santos*
4 Blake Snell (L)
55 Ryne Stanek
74 Cole Sulser*
77 Curtis Taylor*
44 Hunter Wood
48 Ryan Yarbrough (L)

Catchers (6)

67 Anthony Bemboom*
19 Nick Ciuffo
78 Mac James*
7 Michael Perez
83 David Rodríguez*
10 Mike Zunino

Infielders (16)

1 Willy Adames
22 Christian Arroyo
64 Emilio Bonifacio*
84 Mike Brosseau*
26 Ji-Man Choi
81 Jake Cronenworth*
2 Yandy Díaz
5 Matt Duffy
86 Lucius Fox*
8 Brandon Lowe
79 Nate Lowe*
28 Daniel Robertson
85 Nick Solak*
11 Andrew Velazquez
18 Joey Wendle
80 Kean Wong*

Outfielders (8)

24 Avisaíl García
54 Guillermo Heredia
39 Kevin Kiermaier
61 Joe McCarthy
17 Austin Meadows
29 Tommy Pham
65 Jesús Sánchez
9 Jake Smolinski*

Baseball America suggested that while teams are raking in hundreds of millions (yes, even the Rays) — in the very least — they are only committing a fraction of the earnings to the on-field product? shocker, I know.

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