The Tampa Bay Rays are getting ready to prepare for the winter meetings, and things will likely start to heat up.
As the offseason starts, the Rays are going to be an interesting team to keep an eye on for a couple of reasons. Tampa Bay is a franchise that could go in a couple of different directions this winter, with veterans who appear to be potential trade candidates, but also a desire to compete in 2026.
The Rays are a team that could very well look to add and subtract this winter to reshape some things. While that practice is uncommon, the small payroll of Tampa Bay sometimes dictates those decisions.
So far this winter, they have already made one decision to save some money, and that was to not pick up the team options on closer Pete Fairbanks. While the right-hander was set to make north of $10 million, he has been an effective closer for the team for the last three years. Now, he is a free agent and has several potential suitors.
Jon Morosi recently wrote about the Detroit Tigers emerging as a potential suitor for Fairbanks in free agency.
Fairbanks’ Suitors Continues to Grow