I wrote for DRaysBay about the surprising, under-the-radar improvements the Rays front office has made to address the outfield. While they’re still lacking the power shown by the playoff bound OF groups from 2019-2023, they’re now more contact and speed oriented. I’m really excited about the potential of the 2026 group.
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Wish they’d sign Austin Hays so we don’t continue to suck against LHP
Really good Ben thanks
Really good article here and it’s one of the reasons I think the team will be better than it was last year.
Battle for OF roster spots is going to be really intriguing. The most interesting question of Spring Training IMO.
Are DeLuca & Vilade the only two RH OFs that make the roster?
Given that Vilade could also platoon with Lux at 2B against lefties does that give Malloy a shot to be third RH OF on the roster (or are they just going to have Walls play 2B on those days)?
If they carry three righties do they carry three lefties and only carry seven relievers?
Which lefties aren’t carried? Both Simpson and Melton in AAA (Mullins, Fraley, & Palacios up) or only one?
The more I think I about the more I wonder if Palacios isn’t the odd-man out. Lefty so he’s redundant at 2B with Lux, unlike Vilade. But unlike Vilade he’s actually proven himself at the MLB level.
It’s a pretty tough puzzle to sort out. Given the Melton acquisition it feels like it would have made a ton more sense to go out and get a righty OF bat with some pop instead of Mullins. DeLuca will play center against lefties and Melton could play center against righties.
Rays just do not seem to value RH hitting or LH relief pitching all that much since they are the short side of the platoon.
DeLuca stays healthy all year and becomes a fringe all star is gonna happen
Going to have to hope someone blossoms into an Arozarena type. OF is full of young and hungry but largely unproven players.
Still very hard for me to get excited about this group. Being better than last year’s OF is the bare minimum, and none of them really profile as everyday players. The only guy I see with actual potential upside is Melton but he’s completely unproven with contact concerns.
I think that Palacios is the one most likely to get traded during Spring Training, maybe for an optionable reliever with a similar amount of big league experience and service time.
Do people think that Melton wins a job in spring training, or will the Rays keep him in Durham until after the estimated super-two cutoff date?