The Tampa Rays had an outstanding season that saw an accumulation of their excellent defense and pitching while their hitters were hot. The Rays weren’t the best team on paper but were certainly top 5 in the American League. However, the Rays are the latest proof that the best team never makes it to the World Series but the hottest team at the time. The Rays were the hottest and overcame the hump of getting hits when they needed them the most, especially when they took down the Yankees three games to two. The Rays didn’t fail Tampa Bay as every single sports team made the finals in their respective sport. What a year for Tampa Bay to say the least. Even though they lost to the Dodgers in six in the World Series, they gear up to make another run.
Offseason Acquisitions
The strongest assets that the Rays boasted last year was their starting pitchers that included the likes of aces Morton, Snell, and Chirinos. These guys were studs to say the least but unfortunately, the rotation will look vastly different this year.
First up is Charlie Morton who signed a one year deal worth 15 million dollars after the Rays decided to decline the ace pitcher the same amount of money that the Braves signed him for. It seems the Rays were unwilling to open their checkbook to sign the pitcher. A major loss and hopefully the Rays know something about Morton that the fans do not.
Morton wasn’t the only pitcher they lost This offseason. The Rays decided that the best decision was to trade LHP Blake Snell to the Padres for a slew of young players. I’m assuming that the front office came together and decided that they would eventually lose the ace in free agency so the best option was to get something in return and they did get a highly touted prospect Patino from the Padres who is expected to have a decent career.
Chirinos was stricken with some bad luck as the ace pitcher was ruled out for the rest season as he undergoes Tommy John surgery. A huge blow to the club but the Rays did make some moves to replace these aces.
They replaced Morton and Snell with former starting pitcher of the St Louis Cardinals Michael Wacha. Wacha was solid for the Cardinals who was great in his young career, but as his career advanced, hitters began to figure out his pitches. Although he’s not the same caliber as Morton and Snell, Wacha is certainly deserving to be in any teams top starting 5 rotation.
The offseason accusations didn’t stop with Wacha, they also signed Chris Archer who spent most of his career with Tampa Bay in a coming home party. Archer spent two seasons in Pittsburgh and had an unfortunate injury that required surgery that caused him to miss most of last season. Archer signed a one year deal worth 6.5 million dollars.
Season Projections
The Rays essentially are rolling with the same roster as last year making alterations only to their starting rotation. Moves that will likely make them regress this season. Although they did make a couple moves to replace what they lost, this team will not be the same team as last year as Morton, Snell, and Chirinos are almost irreplaceable. The Rays didn’t want to open the checkbook which will have a drastic impact.
That being said, the Rays should still make the playoffs as a wild card team but it will be close. Don’t be surprised if the Blue Jays overtake the Rays this year forcing them to miss the playoffs. The AL East race will be close. I project the Rays to have an overall record of 84-78. The decline in the record will be because of their pitching as they will have to rely on players to over perform.
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