The future is here in Tampa Bay.
The Rays announced on Friday that top left-handed pitching prospect Blake Snell will be coming to the Major Leagues. The news was first reported by Mark Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. Snell will make his Major League debut against the New York Yankees, when he will start tomorrow at 1:05 P.M. Eastern. The 23-year-old Snell has made three starts thus far this season for Triple-A Durham, going 1-1 with a 2.51 ERA and a 21 to 7 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 14 1/3 innings pitched. MLB.com named Snell as the 12th-best prospect in baseball, giving him a fantastic scouting report, grading out above-average with both his fastball and slider (Snell also offers a changeup), but possessing below-average control. The Rays drafted Snell in the 1st round of the 2011 MLB Draft out of Shorewood High School (Washington). He's moved rather quickly through the minors, especially in 2015, when he started the season in Single-A Advanced and made it to Triple-A by the year's end. Overall, Snell went 15-4 with a 1.41 ERA and a 163 to 53 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 134 innings pitched last season, being named the 2015 Minor League Pitcher of the Year by Baseball America. Snell's initial Major League impact remains to be seen, but he has not been needed in Tampa thus far because the team has only needed one fifth starter. That was back on April 16, when Erasmo Ramirez made the start. The Tampa Bay Rays have brought on yet another young starting pitcher to potentially make an impact at the big league level. And his name is Blake Snell. --Devan Fink
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The Colorado Rockies and Tampa Bay Rays completed a four player trade on Thursday, as Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports and Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported.
Two Major Leaguers are involved in the trade. Outfielder Corey Dickerson is headed to the Rays in the deal, and relief pitcher Jake McGee heads to the Rockies. Two minor league prospects, one from each team, are involved in the deal as well. High-A right-hander German Marquez is Rockies-bound. The Rays are receiving Single-A third baseman Kevin Padlo. This swap had already been mentioned as a possibility earlier this week. Rosenthal and Mark Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reported a that the Rockies might be more inclined to deal Dickerson as compared to other outfielders Carlos Gonzalez or Charlie Blackmon. Topkin even mentioned McGee as a possible target for Colorado. This is a curious trade from the Rockies perspective. I wrote a column two days ago about what Colorado's course of action is. A back-end relief pitcher is a luxury for a non-contending team, but yet the Rockies went out and got one in McGee. The Rockies have revamped their bullpen this offseason, signing free agent righties Chad Qualls and Jason Motte and now going out and getting McGee. Last year, the team had the highest bullpen ERA in the Majors, so they established that as a need this offseason and went out and got three new relievers. McGee, 29, has little closing experience in Tampa Bay, but is one of the most dominant relief pitchers in the game. He went 1-2 last year and sported a 2.41 ERA and a 48 to 8 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 37 1/3 innings, adding six saves in 10 opportunities. McGee missed the beginning of the 2015 season due to minor elbow surgery. In giving up a good relief pitcher, the Rays got four seasons of control of outfielder Corey Dickerson. He slides right into the heart of their order and will likely play right field. The 26-year-old Dickerson, who does not become a free agent until after the 2019 season, broke out in 2014. Like McGee, Dickerson missed time this season, his injuries coming in the form of plantar fasciitis and two fractured ribs. Last year, Dickerson hit .304/.333/.536 with 10 home runs and 31 RBIs in 234 plate appearances. He was worth 0.5 Wins Above Replacement, according to FanGraphs. The Rays are basically turning two years of control of McGee into four years of control of Dickerson. --Devan Fink
The Tampa Bay Rays have interest in free agent shortstop Ian Desmond, Chris Cotillo of SB Nation's MLB Daily Dish reports.
The only issue with Desmond is that he is attached to the qualifying offer. According to Cotillo, the Rays consider the QO to be a "huge obstacle" in getting a deal done. The Rays would have to give up their first round draft pick (No. 13) if they signed him. One source told Cotillo that a deal between the Rays and Desmond is "unlikely" at this time. Desmond is not an exact fit for the Rays. The team acquired Brad Miller earlier in the offseason to play shortstop, and the rest of the infield is set with James Loney at first, Logan Forsythe at second, and Evan Longoria at third. A fit could be made if Desmond was willing to become a utility player, similar to how Ben Zobrist was during his time in Tampa. Desmond would play plenty of games, but not all at shortstop. This could work because it has been bounced around this offseason that Desmond may consider playing a different position to get a deal done anyway. On a short-term deal, Ian Desmond may make sense for the Tampa Bay Rays, a team not known for signing big free agents. It is an interesting fit, but it could work. Last season, Desmond had a down year. He hit .233/.290/.384 with 19 home runs and 62 RBIs in 641 plate appearances. According to FanGraphs, the 30-year-old was worth 1.7 Wins Above Replacement. --Devan Fink
The St. Louis Cardinals have had trade talks with the Tampa Bay Rays aimed at a starting pitcher, Jon Morosi of FOX Sports reports.
Morosi goes on to explain that Jake Odorizzi is from the St. Louis area, but does not mention whether the talks are surrounding the right-hander. It is known, however, that the Rays are in discussions with the Dodgers over Odorizzi as well, so St. Louis could be involved in similar trade talks. The Cardinals are in the need for a starter. John Lackey went to the Cubs in free agency and Lance Lynn is out for the season after having Tommy John surgery. As it stands, their rotation includes Adam Wainwright, Carlos Martinez, Jaime Garcia, Michael Wacha, and Marco Gonzalez. It is obvious that they could use some depth in their rotation and Odorizzi, if he is involved in discussions, would be a huge upgrade. Odorizzi, who turns 26 in March, went 9-9 with a 3.35 ERA and a 150 to 46 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 169 1/3 innings pitched. According to FanGraphs, Odorizzi posted a 3.61 FIP, 3.96 xFIP, and a 2.9 Wins Above Replacement. --Devan Fink
Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz hit his 499th and 500th career home runs today against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field.
Ortiz, 39, becomes the 27th member of the 500 home run club and continues to solidify his status as one of the greatest home run hitters of the 2000s, hitting all but 10 of his career home runs in the "new millennium." In the first inning, Ortiz took a Matt Moore pitch to the right-field stands for his 499th home run. He then flew out to center in the third. Then, in the fifth, Ortiz took Moore deep again, launching his milestone home run. Ortiz did not even wait a single game between hitting his 499th and 500 home runs. In fact, he only becomes the second player in Major League Baseball history to hit both Nos. 499 and 500 in the same game (Albert Pujols) and the second to do both off of the same pitcher (Pujols). Congratulations to David Ortiz and the Red Sox on his accomplishment. --Devan Fink |
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