The Tampa Bay Rays are going to look quite a bit different when they start the regular season next month. Most people look at this winter as a disappointment for the franchise, as they lost players, coaches and front office personnel. As a small market, all they can do is try to pick up the pieces and move forward. Here is a closer look at what they went through.
Everything started to fall apart for this current group of Rays during the 2014 trade deadline. David Price was traded to the Detroit Tigers for a number of different pieces. Drew Smyly definitely looks like a solid piece in the rotation, but he is not going to have the same impact as Price in fantasy baseball leagues.
Ben Zobrist has been a longtime face on the roster for Tampa Bay, but now he moves on to Oakland to start a new chapter in his career. That might have surprised some, but at his age, he was not considered to be a major asset. However, they did trade away one of their top youngster in Wil Myers. That frustrated more than a few fans, but they were able to get some decent guys in return. That seems to be the never-ending cycle for a franchise that can’t spend huge money.
One of the reasons Tampa Bay has been able to compete in the American League East comes down to great management and outstanding coaching. Unfortunately, they will need to have people step up for the departure of manager Joe Maddon and General Manager Andrew Friedman. It will be interesting to see what their replacements will be able to do with limited funds.
Despite everything that went on over the winter, this team still has some talent. They will neither pitching to be a little bit more consistent, but it would not be surprising that all to see them competing in the division.
-Hannah Miller
