'A catalyst for discussion': Rays wrap up Winter Meetings

NASHVILLE -- From before the time he arrived at the Gaylord Opryland Resort to the final hours of the Winter Meetings on Wednesday, Rays president of baseball operations Erik Neander noted the increased level of conversations taking place between clubs.

Those talks continued throughout the Winter Meetings but sparked relatively little action during the annual offseason event, even as rumors persisted about the availability and potential landing spots for Tyler Glasnow and other trade candidates on the Rays’ roster.

“Plenty of conversations. There’s no deadlines,” Neander said. “This is what happens. I think these events, they do serve as a catalyst for discussion. There’s a lot of information exchange leading up to this week, then those discussions kind of stall out or continue to mature through this week. So all of that’s going on.”

A few notable trades came together in Nashville. Jarred Kelenic moved from Seattle to Atlanta. The rival Yankees and Red Sox pulled off a trade that sent Alex Verdugo to the Bronx. Juan Soto and the Yankees took center stage on Wednesday.

Could all those conversations the Rays have had accelerate and lead to more activity? Sooner or later, we’ll find out.

“You’re trying to line up each other’s needs. That can take time. That can be complicated,” Neander said. “But I think just the fact that there is a lot of discussion going on, you’d like to think that’ll lead to something that is mutually beneficial for a couple of clubs.”

DEALS DONE
The Rays completed one move, re-signing reliever Chris Devenski on Tuesday to a one-year deal with a club option for 2025.

BIGGEST REMAINING NEEDS
1) Trade market resolution: As of Wednesday afternoon, Glasnow was still a Ray. So was Isaac Paredes. Same for Randy Arozarena, Manuel Margot, Harold Ramírez and everyone else who has been mentioned as a potential trade candidate this offseason. That seems bound to change at some point, specifically with Glasnow, but the Rays will need another club to persuade them into parting with the talented starter. Whatever the Rays do the rest of the winter, it will have to start on the trade front.

2) Catching: René Pinto remains the only catcher on the Rays’ 40-man roster, and manager Kevin Cash said the club is comfortable with the idea of him getting a lot of work behind the plate next season. But their only other Major League-ready catcher is Alex Jackson, who is back on a Minor League deal, and the 27-year-old only has 66 games of big league experience to his name. The Rays could roll into next season with Pinto and Jackson as their duo behind the plate, but they’ll likely keep their options open the rest of the offseason.

3) Rotation depth: This becomes a more glaring need if (or when) the Rays trade Glasnow, but it’s still worth a mention now. Without Glasnow, their Opening Day rotation would include Zach Eflin, Aaron Civale, Taj Bradley, Zack Littell and Shane Baz, Jacob Lopez or swingman Tyler Alexander. They have seen in recent years how many starters it takes to get through a season, and Cash acknowledged Tuesday that there is room to bring in additional depth heading into Spring Training.

RULE 5 DRAFT
The Rays did not select anyone in the Major League phase of the Rule 5 Draft, as their 40-man roster was full after signing Devenski, but they lost right-hander Anthony Molina to the Rockies with the third pick of the first round. Molina, 21, put together a 4.50 ERA with 102 strikeouts in 122 innings over 28 outings for Double-A Montgomery and Triple-A Durham last season.

In the Minor League phase, the Rays selected a trio of right-handed pitchers with intriguing fastballs: Michael Gomez (from the Yankees), Roelmy Garcia (Pirates) and Blake Brown (Phillies). They lost a pair of prospects in the Minor League phase: outfielder Alexander Ovalles to the Reds and left-hander John Doxakis to the Guardians.

FRONT OFFICE’S BOTTOM LINE
“We’re OK with our roster as it is. We’ll have conversations. We’ll listen. But there’s no self-inflicted pressure [that] because we’re at the Winter Meetings, we must do something. But it has been active. The number of conversations, just comparing it to a year ago … it’s night and day in terms of how much discussion has been had.” -- Neander, on the final day of the Winter Meetings