Francisco, 31, returns to the team that drafted him in 2002 as he tries to restore the continuity that his career has completely lost. Francisco has played with the Phillies, Blue Jays, Astros, and Rays over the last two years and while he wasn’t a total disaster, managing a .242/.317/.373 line (89 OPS+) with 24 doubles, 10 homers, and 49 RBI in 500 plate appearances, as a corner outfielder who plays sub-par defense, he has to hit well to remain a major league player and that simply hasn’t happened the last two years. The Rays non-tendered Francisco back in November after he put up a .228/.270/.421 line (91 OPS+) with 2 home runs in 63 plate appearances for them in December, but he could have been a fit to return on a minor league contract based on the Rays’ need for a right-handed outfielder to pair with the lefty-hitting Matthew Joyce and Sam Fuld and maybe see some time at DH. But Francisco is heading back to Cleveland and the Rays will look elsewhere.

You can cross another name off the right-hand hitting outfielder list with Raburn also signing with Cleveland. Raburn, who will turn 32 on April 17th, was an excellent platoon player from the Detroit Tigers from 2009 to 2010, managing a .285/.348/.498 line (123 OPS+) with 36 doubles, 31 homers, and 107 RBI in 701 plate appearances including an incredible .286/.373/.580 line with 19 home runs vesus left-handed pitching. However, he slipped to a .256/.297/.432 line (96 OPS+) in 2011 and then just a .171/.226/.254 line (30 OPS+) in 222 plate appearances in 2012 as he watched his career completely come apart. Raburn was an interesting target for the Rays this offseason as a player who would be available on a minor league deal but had the upside of an excellent platoon player who would not be terribly against righties either (.257/.300/.400 career line against them), and in addition to playing the corner outfield spots, Raburn has the versatility the Rays love, able to play any position on the field but shortstop, pitcher, and catcher. Raburn seemed like a great fit for the Rays on so many levels- his Tampa Bay roots, his low value, his strong hitting versus lefties, and his versatility- but he decided that the Indians gave him the best opportunity for playing time and will look to get his career back together as a member of their organization.

Marc Hulet of Fangraphs covered the Rays today in his rankings of each MLB team’s top 15 prospects, and he provided an interesting look at several of the Rays’ most promising minor leaguers. Here was his ranking:

1. Wil Myers
2. Chris Archer
3. Hak-Ju Lee
4. Taylor Guerrieri
5. Alex Colome
6. Jake Odorizzi
7. Richie Shaffer
8. Enny Romero
9. Drew Vettleson
10. Felipe Rivero
11. Blake Snell
12. Jake Hager
13. Jeff Ames
14. Mikie Mahtook
15. Tyler Goeddel

Hulet’s analysis of Alex Colome was especially intriguing as he praised his mid-to-high-90′s fastball, blistering slider, and solid changeup and considering him to have a possible ceiling of a number two starter. Colome is a pitcher who Rays fans may have seen in September if not for a late-season shoulder injury, and we’ll have to see whether he can improve his command at Triple-A and make an impact for the Rays by the end of 2013. He also quoted a contact on Hak-Ju Lee who not only praised his defense (as does everyone) but described as a “quick-twitch guy with foot speed, arm speed, and bat speed.” Always great to see different perspectives on the Rays’ system, and reading Hulet’s analysis has to make you very excited about the talent set to come out of the Rays system over the next few years.

In other Rays prospects news, outfielder Granden Goetzman, who was the Rays’ second round pick in 2011, has gotten into just 37 games the last two years because of injuries, eliciting plenty of questions about his future. Goetzman talked to the Princeton Rays’ official website about the injury and how he plans to overcome it.

“We found out I had a small stress fracture in my back and the doctor said it was something I’d had for quite a while, maybe even back to high school. It was just the daily grind of pro ball that finally made the problem totally show itself.”

“I am hoping to make one of the full-season teams out of spring training. Even though my time in Princeton was shorter than I planned, I felt I proved myself and showed what I could do,” Goetzman concluded.

We Hideki Matsui Retires, Rays Get New BP Cap, Chris Archer Is A Good Guy” href=”http://rayscoloredglasses.com/2012/12/28/rays-notes-hideki-matsui-retires-rays-get-new-bp-cap-chris-archer-is-a-good-guy/” target=”_blank”>heard a while back about the Rays getting a new batting practice hat, and Marc Topkin filled in a little more details, showing us the regular and alternate versions of the hat.

The new BP cap is certainly different than what the Rays are used to, but they look good and it’s nice to see the Rays finally use the starburst logo on a cap and reintroduce the color black for the first time since the Devil Rays years.

Coming up as a promising prospect at the end of those Devil Rays years was outfielder Elijah Dukes, but an attitude problem got him traded to the Nationals, and before long, he was out of baseball. Unfortunately, more bad news on that front as Dukes was arrested last night for failing to appear in court on several drug charges. Dukes, even after all this time, is still just 28 years old. It’s sad how so much potential can so easily go to waste.

Raburn was born in Tampa, Florida and went to Durant High School in Plant City, FL. The Devil Rays drafted Raburn out of Durant in the 18th round of the 1999 MLB Draft, but he did not sign. Raburn would spend time South Florida Community College in Avon Park, the University of South Florida in Tampa, and the University of Florida in Gainesville before the Tigers drafted him in the 5th round of the 2001 MLB Draft. It has been over 13 years since Raburn was drafted by the D-Rays. But the concept of playing for his hometown team will have to appeal to Raburn and the Rays like a lot of things about him as well.

Raburn, 32, has the type of versatility the Rays love, appearing in 100 or more career games at left field, second base, and right field while also seeing time at centerfield, third base, and first base. The problem is that he’s more of a Mark DeRosa-type utilityman than a Ben Zobrist- he’s a terrible defender and has to hit to maintain any value. He’s a fine defender in left field (6.1 UZR/150), but he’s horrific at second base (-21.1 UZR/150) and right field (-19.2 UZR/150). Raburn doesn’t have too big of a sample everywhere else, but he’s particularly incompetent at third base (.840 fielding percentage and a -47.9 UZR/150 in 33 games), doesn’t have the speed for centerfield, and his bat will never fit at first base. All that being said, the Rays could use at least a part-time outfielder, and his ability to play elsewhere else would only be a bonus.

The glaring issue is that Ryan Raburn is no guarantee to hit at all next season, let alone at the level he played from 2009 to 2010 or even in 2011. However, Raburn is coming off a year marred by injuries and bad luck, and he seems bound to regress towards his .256/.311/.430 career line next season. For his career, Raburn has been good against left-handed pitching, posting a .256/.324/.472 line in 730 plate appearances, and he’s not unplayable against righties either, managing a .257/.300/.400 line in 989 PA’s. Raburn has good power, managing 21 homers per 500 plate appearances from 2009 to 2011 and the same 21 homers per 500 PA’s against lefties for his career. Unlike most utility players, speed is not a part of Raburn’s game as he has stolen just 16 of 25 bases for his career. But the fact that Raburn trades speed for power is not such a bad thing. Raburn’s skill-set could actually be perfect for a platoon partnership with the lefty-hitting Sam Fuld, who has been better against righties and does have a game built around speed.

This offseason, Ryan Raburn isn’t worth any consideration for a major league contract, but on a low-risk minor league deal, he has ability to help a team next season, and the Rays could be a good fit. If Raburn gets back on track at the plate, he could be a platoon player for the Rays in the outfield and also receive starts at second base and all over the field. If he doesn’t hit, the Rays could cut ties with him without a hitch. Raburn has clear flaws and plenty of questions surrounding his offensive game, but he also has much higher upside than say Will Rhymes, who the Rays signed as a minor league free agent from the Tigers last offseason, because of his power and strong history against left-handed pitching. The Rays signing Ryan Raburn makes sense for both sides. With any luck, Raburn could reestablish his value as a productive platoon player and the Rays could get a solid contributor to their 2013 effort.

Miguel Cairo, now in his 17th MLB season, was only a starting player for multiple years with one team: the Devil Rays. Cairo was actually a solid player for the D-Rays from 1998-2000. In 1998, Cairo, then 24, posted a .268/.307/.367 line with 26 doubles, 5 triples, 5 homers, 46 RBI, and 19 stolen bases in 150 games including 148 starts at second base. He tied for second on the D-Rays’ inaugural team in steals. The next season, Cairo improved to .295/.335/.368 with 15 doubles, 5 triples, 3 homers, 36 RBI, and 22 steals in 29 tries. His 22 steals were tops on the team by a considerable margin this time- current Rays bench coach Dave Martinez was second with 13. 2000 would be Cairo’s final year with the D-Rays and he played decently, posting a .261/.314/.328 line with 18 doubles, 2 triples, 1 homer, 34 RBI, and 28 steals in 35 attempts. His 28 steals were more than double the next closest D-Ray, Gerald Williams, who had 12. Those 28 stolen bases are still the record for most steals in a single season by a Rays season baseman. Following the 2000 season, the Rays non-tendered Cairo rather than allow him to be arbitration-eligible for the first time. He has been a utility player ever since, being a team’s primary starter only with the 2004 Yankees. Ironically, the D-Rays are the only team that Cairo ever played 10 or more games for without playing multiple positons.

Matt Diaz was a 19th round pick by the Rays in 1999 and played all of 14 games for the team despite a couple outstanding minor league seasons. In 2003 between Double-A and Triple-A, Diaz posted a .354/.412/.529 line with 39 doubles, 13 homers, 86 RBI, and 15 stolen bases, and in 2004 at Triple-A he posted a .332/.377/.571 line with 47 doubles, 21 homers, 93 RBI, and 15 steals again. The Rays exposed him to waivers for no apparent reason following the season and we have seen him carve out a nice career as a power-hitting bench player for the Braves and Pirates.

In that same 1999 Draft, the Rays drafted Mike Fontenot in the 21st round. Wow. Fontenot has played “just” the infield the past few years for the Cubs and Giants.

Seeing Ryan Raburn playing 7 positions for the Tigers the past few years, you had to think he was an ex-Rays draft pick, right? He was in fact, in the 18th round out of Durant High School in 1999 as well, one round before Diaz. Raburn was actually born in Tampa and grew up in Plant City, Florida. Raburn is a free agent following the 2013 season, and it wouldn’t surprise me at all if he came to Rays for a homecoming. Given his versatility, I’m sure the Rays would agree.

These players are just the start. Look for more utility players who began with the Rays or were drafted by the Rays to sprout up sooner rather than later.