The Tampa Bay Rays are taking one of the first steps forward as an organization by slowly returning to action and opening up Tropicana Field for light workouts, starting Monday.
Some Rays proved they belong as long-term major-league starters in 2019: outfielder Austin Meadows, shortstop Willy Adames and infielder Brandon Lowe. Meanwhile, there were others who battled injuries, experienced setbacks and/or learned they still have much to accomplish at the big-league level.
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Assuming there is a 2020 season, here are five Rays with the most to prove, ranked in order from the least- to most-pressing cases. We also included a few honorable mentions at the bottom of the list.
5. Center fielder Kevin Kiermaier
Kiermaier admittedly freaked out a bit back in February when he found out the team had acquired outfielder Manuel Margot from the Padres in the Emilio Pagán trade. A few hours later that same night, general Erik Neander reassured Kiermaier he is here to stay … but for exactly how long? Kiermaier, 30, is in the fourth year of his six-year, $53.5 million deal and is due to make $11.6 million and $12.6 million over the next two years, respectively. Tampa Bay has a longstanding reputation for flipping players at their peak before they become more of a hindrance to one of the league’s lowest payrolls. Behind Kiermaier, the Rays now have a formable defensive option in Margot, 25, plus another speedy outfielder in Randy Arozarena, 25. Kiermaier is coming off his third Gold Glove season, but his offense has never matched his defense, and he seems eager to flip the page offensively with new tweaks to his swing. Nevertheless, Kiermaier’s time remaining in Tampa Bay appears to be ticking.
4. Infielder Daniel Robertson
Following a breakout campaign in 2018, Robertson was never able to carry that momentum into last season and turned into one of the team’s weakest links. He underwent knee surgery in the middle of the season and now says he has mentally moved past the worst season of his career. He committed four errors over the first 1 1/2 months and wound up with a subpar .213 batting average with 44 hits and 59 strikeouts. Robertson heads into his second arbitration year after signing for just over $1 million this past winter. He’s a valuable defender considering his ability to play all over the infield, but Robertson needs to show improvements from inside the batter’s box if he’s going to compete for playing time in a stacked infield.
3. Left-handed pitcher Ryan Yarbrough
He obviously felt like he did enough in 2019 to earn the starter badge this season, but the Rays, despite their high praises for the left-handed pitcher, never gave Yarbrough the green light. Yarbrough, 28, battled early struggles and was sent to Triple-A Durham three times, but he served as a nice pick-me-up for the team when other starters went down to injury midseason. Yarbrough, made 28 appearances over four stints and finished second on the team in innings pitched (141 2/3) behind Charlie Morton’s 194 2/3 IP. Yarbrough, who has been one of the club’s go-to ‘bulk’ pitchers following an opener, isn’t a hard thrower and he does his best to induce weak contact to record outs. His 1.00 WHIP ranked third among AL pitchers behind top AL Cy Young finishers Justin Verlander (0.80) and Gerrit Cole (0.89). Yarbrough carried last year’s momentum into the spring, but manager Kevin Cash never fully committed to Yarbrough being a full-time starter in 2020. Yarbrough deflected a majority of the questions regarding his feelings about the situation, but it’s obvious he feels like he belongs no matter what his bosses think. Even with a loaded rotation, things seemed to be trending Yarbrough’s way. Tampa Bay was on pace to have less opener days and more games with traditional starters this season. If the latter is indeed the case, Yarbrough might have the chance to finally earn the full-time starter role.
2. Left-handed pitcher José Alvarado
Alvarado arrived to spring training with a brand new mindset and a rejuvenated attitude following a disappointing 2019 season that was marred by personal issues and injuries. Last season, Alvarado’s mother, Crelia, battled health issues and he left the team midseason in order to care for her back in his native Venezuela. He missed several weeks before returning and the long absence didn’t sit well with several of his teammates. Alvarado, who turns 25 this week, went 1-4 with a 9.95 ERA over his last 17 appearances beginning May 17, 2019. During the offseason, Alvarado cleared a big burden off his shoulders by helping move his parents from Venezuela to the United States, with some assistance from Rays officials. Now that the off-field issues appear to be gone, Alvarado’s focus turns to the mound, where he has the potential to be a dominant relief arm and potentially, the club’s closer. At 98.2 mph, Alvarado had the third-highest average fastball velocity among left-handed relief pitchers in 2019, behind only Felipe Vázquez and Aroldis Chapman. He pairs his heater with a cutter, sinker and curveball, with all four of his pitches possessing wicked horizontal movement that results in a lot of whiffs. However, Alvarado often struggles with commanding the strike zone and can be plagued by walks. In a condensed season, Alvarado could appear in many late-game scenarios for the Rays. Will he be a dominant flamethrower or will there be more tense moments with Alvarado on the bump?
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1. Catcher Mike Zunino
Let’s look at the numbers. Zunino hit .165/.232/.312 with just 10 doubles and nine home runs in 2019. He finished with more strikeouts (98) than hits (44), RBIs (32) and walks (20) combined. Add it up however you want, there’s no hiding that Zunino was one of the worst hitters in baseball last season. Zunino agreed to a one-year deal worth $4.5 million during his last arbitration year during the offseason, a commitment from the Rays that signaled Zunino was set to be the starter behind the plate in 2020. Despite the poor offensive stats, Zunino is a plus-defender, ranking third in defensive runs saved (10) among AL catchers, and has familiarity with a majority of the pitching staff. Zunino, 29, is also one of the few veteran leaders inside the clubhouse. At what point, though, will the team ready to move past his offensive liabilities? Zunino has some pop in his bat, but he’s hit just .202 over seven big-league seasons. His contract has a remaining option for next season, but Zunino has a lot to prove in 2020, both to himself and the Rays.
Honorable mentions
Left-handed pitcher Blake Snell
The 2018 Cy Young Award winner battled injuries and experienced the worst year of his career last season, finishing with just 23 starts and a 4.29 ERA. His fastball velocity, though, clocked in at 95.6 mph, which ranked second in the AL behind Gerrit Cole. Snell is entering the second year of the five-year, $50 million deal he signed last spring.
RHP Chaz Roe
Few teams in baseball prioritize matchups more than the Rays, so it was reasonable to question Roe’s role when MLB instituted the new three-batter minimum rule for relievers. Roe, a 33-year-old righty specialist with a dominant slider, was often used in matchup-based scenarios last season. He agreed to a one-year deal worth $2,185,200 in his second year of arbitration this past offseason.
Infielder Nate Lowe
Over the past few years, it seemed like Nate Lowe was slated to be the club’s first baseman of the future. But then Ji-Man Choi proved his worth, Yandy Díaz turned into a power machine and the Rays acquired Yoshi Tsutsugo during the offseason. Lowe seems as motivated as ever after losing 20 pounds during the offseason. He’s also taking reps at third base, in addition to his regular role at first.
Offer your rankings in the comments below.
(Top photo of Kevin Kiermaier and Mike Zunino: Duane Burleson / Getty Images)