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Tampa Bay Rays Seeking Postseason Return After Four-Year Hiatus

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Left to right: Ronaldo Hernandez. Matt Krook, Phoenix Sanders, Daulton Moats & Lucius Fox. Photo: Gail Verderico for www.Prospects1500.com.

TAMPA BAY, Fla. (FNN SPORTS) – The Tampa Bay Rays are a sexy preseason pick to make noise not only throughout Major League Baseball, but in the AL East. There are two major problems with that named the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees.

Last season was a lesson in how you can be misplaced behind the two behemoth TV teams as the Rays finished 90-72 after starting 4-13. It was their sixth 90-win season since 2008, making them one shy of the Dodgers and Red Sox, who had seven each.

As the Rays start spring training in a few weeks in Port Charlotte, Florida, the one thing that resonates with that 90-win season is that they were no doubt one of the top 10 teams in the league when the season ended, but were looking up at the 108-win World Champion Red Sox and the 100-win Yankees.

If you placed Tampa Bay in the National League, they would have tied for the NL East pennant with the Atlanta Braves or would have been neck-and-neck with the Colorado Rockies for that second wild card spot.

Coulda, woulda, shoulda…2018 is in the books.

Moving forward, the Rays have lofty goals of competing with the Red Sox and Yankees, which is a viable possibility.

Let’s look at the team by position as the Rays open their spring training schedule on February 22, and then almost a month later, the regular season is unveiled with a four-game series against the Houston Astros at Tropicana Field.

 

Starting Pitching

Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell returns as the ace of the staff after a breakout season where he finished with an amazing 21-5 record and a 1.89 ERA while striking out 210 batters. Free-agent Charlie Morton came over from the Houston Astros in December and he figures to be in the starting rotation. His two seasons in Houston were filled with plenty of accolades as he became the first pitcher in history to get the win in Game 7 of the ALCS and Game 7 of the World Series in the same season. Ryan Yarbrough won 16 games last season and will join Snell and Morton to give Tampa Bay a really strong three-man rotation. Yonny Chirinos and Tyler Glasnow are strong candidates to round out the five-man rotation and Wilmer Font and Jake Faria should push for positions in the rotation. Tampa Bay could use the “opener” strategy for its fourth and fifth starts because that strategy became a part of the pitching repertoire last May.

Bullpen

Manager Kevin Cash did a really unique thing with his relievers over the last month of 2018 when he divided innings between seven or eight relievers in one game with the “opener” approach. The “opener” strategy sees a hard thrower come out of the bullpen to open the game before giving way to the next pitcher, who works for one or two innings. At certain points, the Rays used seven or eight pitchers in one game. It’s a fascinating strategy that shows an open style of thinking, which is definitely needed in the MLB today. The approach forces the opposing hitters to continually process different styles and tendencies of so many pitchers throughout a game. Closer Sergio Romo was the first to do this last season, but his retirement forces the Rays to look for a new stopper, which could be Jose Alvarado, who had the second most saves, albeit only eight. A multitude of pitchers would be in the hunt for the opener role, including Hunter Wood, Diego Castillo, and Ryne Stanek. It seems Tampa Bay needs an experienced closer as they bring forward young players in that bullpen.

Catcher

Mike Zunino comes over from the Seattle Mariners after spending the first six seasons of his career as a solid part of the Mariners’ attack. He came into his own as a power hitter in the last two seasons as he hit 25 and 20 home runs, respectively. Because catcher was a key area of need, acquiring Zunino came with a price as the Rays traded talented lead off hitter Mallex Smith. The likely backup is Nick Ciuffo, who was a late season call-up and could be a power bat once he figures out major league pitching.

First Base

The Rays will start out with Yandy Diaz, who comes over from the Cleveland Indians where he spent 2018 between the parent club and AAA Columbus. Diaz is known as a good contact hitter who sports a low strikeout rate and can also fit at third base as well. Avisail Garcia, who recently signed a one-year deal, is another option at first as well. He is looking for a bounce-back year after struggling last season with the White Sox. He is generally known as a ground ball hitter, which is good at Tropicana Field since it is known that the ball goes to the outfield and dies on long fly balls. Nathaniel Lowe and Brenden McKay are also prospects that fit in at first base.

Second Base

Joey Wendle batted .300 last season and became a favorite at ‘The Trop’ with his solid contact with the bat, his hustle on the bases and in the field. Wendle hit a torrid .358 over the last 30 days of the season as he led Tampa Bay with 33 doubles and was second in RBI with 61. Daniel Robertson also figures at second as well as third and short after a left thumb injury ended his season in early August. Robertson hit .262 over 87 games. The duo could platoon based on the pitcher since Wendle is a left-handed batter while Robertson is a righty.

Third Base

Matt Duffy looks like the man at third although he doesn’t have a power bat. He was out last season due to quad issues, but still played 132 games and batted .285 which was his best since 2015 with San Francisco when he checked in at .295. Duffy is a contact hitter and will be set in more situations where he can improve on his 44 RBI of last season. Diaz and Robertson could figure into the situation at third as well.

Shortstop

Willy Adames could be the next superstar to wear the Tampa Bay uniform. He was called up from AAA Durham last season and finished with a .278 batting average and 10 home runs in his 85 games. He is a patient batter although he amassed 95 strikeouts against 31 walks. He looks like the one Tampa Bay player who could be in for a breakout season because he is solidly set at shortstop and Robertson could figure in here as well as his substitute. Wander Franco, a switch-hitting power hitter, could join the team at any time or even make the opening day roster. He is a shortstop, but has versatile tools which could fit around the infield. Franco is also known as the top player in the Tampa Bay system and could make immediate impact.

Left FIeld

The Rays could be solid in left after acquiring Tommie Pham from the St. Louis Cardinals last July. However, Pham is headed to arbitration with the team as his status in Tampa is up in the air. He didn’t help anything in the offseason with his comments about the lethargy of the Tampa/St. Pete fan base when it comes to the Rays. He hit .275 with 21 home runs in an injury-plagued 2018. Wendle could slide into this position from second base as could utility man Brandon Lowe who needs to pick up his .233 average after making his first start in the majors last season in logging 43 games.

Center Field

Tampa Bay boasts one of the rising stars in baseball in centerfield in Kevin Kiermaier who has two Gold Gloves in his five seasons with the Rays. He is an ultra-aggressive presence on the base paths and in the outfield, which may have lead to his previous injury issues. He played in a career-low 88 games last season with only seven home runs. 2018 became his most frustrating season in the bigs. With the Mallex Smith trade, Tampa Bay has to bank on Kiermaier sustaining his health, otherwise there will be a huge hole in the outfield.

Right Field

Austin Meadows is set to start in right after enjoying his debut in the majors last season as he appeared in 59 games as he came over in a trade in July. Meadows has to produce from the beginning and needs to at least sustain his .287 average that he garnered between Tampa Bay and Pittsburgh last season. Garcia could work his way into right field, which would provide conceivably more pop in the lineup as of right now. Guillermo Heredia, who came over in the Smith-Zunino deal, is an excellent fielder and another viable piece to the puzzle. The Mariners managed to get him onto the field the last two seasons since he has been in the majors generally for the 2017 and 2018 campaigns. He is more of a contact hitter, but needs to ramp up last season’s .236 batting average.

Designated Hitter

Ji-man Choi checks in as the DH because he needs a breakout year where he is more consistent with his power. Choi came over from Milwaukee last season and appeared in 49 games and could also figure in the mix at first base as well as the outfield, if need be. Garcia is a logical choice in the designated hitter spot as well should Choi struggle or need to play left field.

 

Outlook

Tampa finished without making the postseason in 2018 for the fourth season in a row. The Rays are still in talks about potential free agents; infielder Josh Harrison’s name has been in the news as a potential signing. Tampa Bay needs a solid closer, another starter and potential outfield depth. A third-place finish is once again likely, but the team showed last season that if it had gotten off to a better start that it could at least have pressed the Yankees for second in the AL East and gotten one of the two wild cards.

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Ken Cross is a sports contributor for Florida National News. | info@floridanationalnews.com

MLB

MLB: Tampa Bay Rays Season Outlook & Preview

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Two Tampa Bay Rays players on the field during a game. Photo: Elsa/Getty Images.

TAMPA, Fla. (FNN SPORTS) – It is Opening Day weekend across Major League Baseball. For the defending AL East Champion Tampa Bay Rays, that means a home series against the division opponent Baltimore on Friday.

24-year-old Shane McClanah will get the start for the Rays who went 100-62 during the 2021 season, the first time the team reached 100 wins in franchise history. McClanahan played his college ball at nearby USF, and is no stranger to getting the ball in big games. He went 10-6 on the year with a 3.43 ERA and has six postseason appearances including the World Series in 2020.

Star pitcher Tyler Glasnow is likely out for the season while fellow pitchers Michael Wacha and Collin McHugh along with Nelson Cruz left the team in free agency. Fan Favorites Joey Wendle and Austin Meadows were traded to the Marlins and Padres respectively.

So where does that put the season outlook for Tampa Bay? Most baseball outlets have the Rays in the middle of the AL East standings with the Blue Jays and Yankees as the favorites, both having major offseason additions to bolster their lineups. Despite being one of the best teams in baseball the last several years, the Rays have a tough time getting respect.

Wander Franco signed a massive 11-year, $183 million deal that will keep him with the club through 2033 and an option for an additional year. Having a superstar in Franco coupled with star Randy Arozena, Yandy Diaz, Brandon Lowe, and a team that can hit and play defense with the best teams in baseball is a positive sign.

The question for the Rays will be their starting pitching depth. Behind McClanahan is new addition Corey Kluber and youngsters Drew Rasmussen, Luis Patino, and Ryan Yarbrough. Behind them is one of a very reliable bullpen with set-up man Pete Fairbanks and closer Andrew Kittredge.

Fans have numerous opportunities to see an exciting brand of Rays baseball in April alone with home series against the Orioles, Athletics, Red Sox, Mariners, and Twins.

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Todd Grasley is a sports reporter for Florida National News Tampa. | sports@floridanationalnews.com

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MLB

After a 99-Day Lockout, Baseball is Officially Back

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Tropicana Field. Photo: Todd Grasley/Florida National News.

TAMPA BAY, Fla. (FNN SPORTS) – After a 99-day lockout the players union and owners have finally struck a deal on America’s National Pastime, and the best news of all, a full 162-game season. It’s a decision that comes as a sigh of relief to baseball fans nationwide who feared the wait could lead to the cancellation of the season, much like it did in 1994-1995.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred, who took a lot of flac from outsiders throughout the process, was relieved to hear from MLBPA Executive Director Tony Clark that the two sides had come to an agreement.

“I have a great job, but one of the negative parts of it is when you have a situation like this, where you’re depriving the fans of the game…I felt a great weight from that,” Manfred said in an interview with ESPN.com. “When we learned that they ratified, that weight came off my shoulders.”

While the new Collective Bargaining Agreement improves conditions for MLB players, it also comes with several rule changes to the game, including the postseason being expanded to 12 teams, a universal DH, doubleheaders now consisting of nine innings, eliminating the rule of having baserunners to start extra innings.

The 2022 season will start on April 7th for most teams, with the initial missed games at the beginning being made up in doubleheaders throughout the year and at the end of the season.

Tropicana Field and the Tampa Bay Rays are ready for the 2022 season. Photo: Todd Grasley/Florida National News.

Tropicana Field and the Tampa Bay Rays are ready for the 2022 season. Photo: Todd Grasley/Florida National News.

As for Spring Training baseball in Florida and Arizona, players can report to voluntary workouts starting March 11th with games starting the week of March 18th.

Check out the complete schedule of Grapefruit League (Florida) and Cactus League (Arizona) games and keep it locked on Florida National News for coverage of Major League Baseball throughout the season.

Let’s play ball!

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Todd Grasley is a sports reporter for Florida National News Tampa. | sports@floridanationalnews.com

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MLB Players Vote to End Lockout, Salvaging 162-Game Season

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Atlanta Braves minor leaguers are shown at spring training baseball camp in North Port, Fla., Wednesday, March 9, 2022. (Curtis Compton/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)

NEW YORK (AP) — Players have voted to accept Major League Baseball’s latest offer for a new labor deal, paving the way to end a 99-day lockout and salvage a 162-game regular season that will begin April 7.

The union’s executive board approved the agreement in a 26-12 vote Thursday, pending ratification by all players, a person familiar with the balloting said, speaking to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because no announcement was authorized.

MLB sent the players an offer Thursday and gave them until 3 p.m. to accept in order to play a full season. The union announced the player vote around 3:25 p.m. Owners planned to hold a ratification vote later in the day.

The agreement will allow training camps to open this week in Florida and Arizona, more than three weeks after they were scheduled to on Feb. 16. Fans can start making plans to be at Fenway Park, Dodger Stadium and Camden Yards next month. Opening day is being planned a little more than a week behind the original date on March 31.

The deal will also set off a rapid-fire round of free agency. Carlos Correa, Freddie Freeman and Kris Bryant are among 138 big leaguers still without a team, including some who might benefit from the adoption of a universal designated hitter.

The sport’s new collective bargaining agreement will also expand the playoffs to 12 teams and introduce incentives to limit so-called “tanking.” The minimum salary will rise from $570,500 to about $700,000 and the luxury tax threshold will increase from $210 million to around $230 million this year, a slight loosening for the biggest spenders such as the Yankees, Mets, Dodgers and Red Sox. A new bonus pool was established for players not yet eligible for arbitration, a way to boost salaries for young stars.

Commissioner Rob Manfred had set a Tuesday deadline for a deal that would preserve a 162-game schedule along with full pay and service time required for players to reach free agency. Talks spilled past the deadline and Manfred announced more cancellations Wednesday, increasing the total to 184 of the 2,230 games.

After yet another snag, this time over management’s desire for an international amateur draft, the deal came together Thursday afternoon and capped nearly a year of talks that saw pitchers Max Scherzer and Andrew Miller take prominent roles as union spokesmen.

Players had fumed for years about the deal that expired Dec. 1, which saw payrolls decline for 4% in 2021 compared to the last full season, back to their 2015 level. The union had an ambitious negotiating stance in talks that began last spring, asking for free-agency rights to increase with an age-based backstop and for an expansion of salary arbitration to its level from 1974-86.

In the late stages, the level and rates of the luxury tax, designed as a break on spending, became the key to a deal. Players think that too low a threshold and too high a rate acts tantamount to a salary cap, which the union fought off with a 7 1/2-month strike in 1994-95.

The agreement came after three days of shuttle negotiations between the MLB offices in midtown Manhattan and the players’ association headquarters, three blocks away.

Despite hundreds of hours of threats and counter-threats, the sides are set to avoid regular-season games being canceled by labor conflict for the first time since the 1994-95 strike. Games originally announced as canceled by Manfred were changed to postponed, and MLB will modify the original schedule.

The deal came at a cost, though, with years of public rancor again casting both owners and players as money obsessed. Spring training in Arizona and Florida was disrupted for the third straight year following two exhibition seasons altered by the coronavirus pandemic. Exhibition games had been scheduled to start Feb. 26.

Players will have about 28 days of training rather than the usual 42 for pitchers and catchers.

In some ways, the negotiations were similar to those in 1990, when a lockout started Feb. 15 and ended with a four-year deal announced 1:18 a.m. on March 19.

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