Evan Longoria, Corey Dickerson, Logan Morrison, Steven Souza, Jake Odorizzi, and Alex Cobb are all notable Rays contributors who will be playing elsewhere this upcoming season. It is clear the Rays front office did not believe the team was going anywhere fast with last year’s roster. These moves have opened up the way for younger players to step up and shine at the highest level, and the feel for this team is night and day when comparing this year’s team to the one fans grew accustomed to last year. Kevin Kiermaier will be relied upon as an anchor for this team, young pitchers will have to surpass expectations, and the lineup will be forced to generate runs much differently with small ball, speed, and quality contact hitting.
Projected Lineup:
LF Denard Span
CF Kevin Kiermaier
3B Matt Duffy
C Wilson Ramos
RF Carlos Gomez
1B CJ Cron
2B Brad Miller
SS Adeiny Hechavarria
LF Mallex Smith
Projected Rotation:
- Chris Archer
- Nathan Eovaldi
- Blake Snell
- Jacob Faria
- Bullpen Day
Closer: Alex Colome
Expected Wins: 74
The departure of key cogs Longoria, Dickerson, Souza, and Morrison means drastic change in the form of run generation. In 2017, these players accounted for 113 homeruns and made up 45 percent of the Rays offensive production. The addition of CJ Cron and a healthy Matt Duffy will no doubt help, but it is clear that the Rays are moving in a different direction offensively. Production will fall on the shoulders of Denard Span, Kevin Kiermaier, and Mallex Smith to get on base and create havoc with their running ability. The speed these players possess must be maximized, and it starts with the ability to get on base.
Defense and pitching will be essential if the Rays have any fighting chance in the race. Run prevention will come to the forefront, and in this regard the Rays possess one of the strongest middle of the field defenses in the MLB.
It is obvious to those in the baseball community that this lineup is weaker than the one fielded last year, so wins will have to be manufactured in other ways. Defense and pitching will be essential if the Rays have any fighting chance in the race. Run prevention will come to the forefront, and in this regard the Rays possess one of the strongest middle of the field defenses in the MLB. At Shortstop, Adeiny Hechavarria has a glove as smooth as any other in the league. Wilson Ramos, who is a formal gold glover himself, will man the backstop. Lastly, the Rays have an athletic defensive super star in Kevin Kiermaier who makes any pitchers job a little bit easier day in and day out.
The Rays fire sale has been well documented with the media and fans alike. This upheaval of the roster made one thing clear; Kiermaier is now the face of the franchise and with this comes new demands of the role. Despite some mental lapses this past season, KK has proven himself on the field as an elite glovesman, but it remains to be seen if he can become a legitimate threat at the plate.
Kiermaier is now the face of the franchise and with this comes new demands of the role.
Based on what he has proven already, a .262 Batting Average, 16 HRs and 21 SBs a season can be expected and he looks to have the potential to grow into a solid major league hitter. In order to take the next step, he will have to improve his contact rate and be slightly more aggressive on the base-paths. A .270 average with 20 home runs and 30 Sis would ignite his game and the Rays attack to new heights. At this time Tampa Bay has no clear-cut no. 3 hitter, but they shouldn’t throw their CF into the fire because he is more fit for a role in the 1 or 2 spot in the lineup. Either way the Rays offense will tick with the Outlaw and that leaves fans with a bit of uncertainty.
More uncertainty looms as the organization plans to deploy a 4-man rotation featuring Chris Archer, Blake Snell, Nathan Eovaldi, and Jacob Faria. This 4-man rotation is not a horrible idea, but what pains me most about it is that it is centered around saving money. Rays ownership did not want to have to pay a fifth serviceable Major League starting pitcher. This 5th spot will either be occupied by the bullpen or experimented with minor leaguers where Kevin Cash will be able to have a short leash on the young arm due to it being a throw away bullpen day anyway.
This team will be relying upon a lot of young pitching this year as Snell (age 25) and Faria (age 23) will be relied upon as key contributors every 5th day. Blake Snell looked to take a step back last year, but possesses ace-like stuff with a lethal curveball that saw him average almost a strikeout per inning in 2017. He will have to hone his three pitches, avoid inconsistencies, and limit the homerun ball that led to him being sent down to the minors last year. Jake Faria was a pleasant surprise in his rookie year going 5-4 with a 3.43 ERA, 86.2 IP, and 8.7 K/9. The kid has a devastating changeup and the hope is that he will continue to grow and make a huge impact on this coming season. This changeup, coupled with his ability to eat up innings, could see him thrusted into the number two role behind Chris Archer who will be the teams ace. There is a good chance this elite starter will be gone by the trade deadline.
This 4-man rotation is not a horrible idea, but what pains me most about it is that it is centered around saving money. Rays ownership did not want to have to pay a fifth serviceable Major League starting pitcher.
The Rays look to be a team in full rebuild mode with no chance of contention in the hyper competitive AL East. They simply do not have the star power or top to bottom grinders to keep up with the big dogs in the American League. Kevin Cash may be on the wrong side of a managing job following this season because of this. While leading the Rays, he has a career record of 228-268 and looks to have a plateau of 80 wins. This will not work for a small-market team like Tampa Bay. With a new stadium looming the team must acquire a leader that will give them a competitive advantage that was seen while Joe Maddon was in charge. 74 wins will lead Cash right out the door and the Rays must start to develop elite talent within