Rays News and Notes: Pena, Damon in Play

The rumor talks are starting to pick up a little bit on the Rays front. Yesterday I talked about how Andrew Friedman wants to bring in two more bats and Casey Kotchman and Johnny Damon are in play. Today, Marc Topkin is reporting that both Carlos Pena and Johnny Damon are in play for the Rays, according to their agent Scott Boras.

As we all know, Boras looks for the biggest possible contracts for his players, so it could be a while before anything happens, but the fact that talks are going on is a good sign. Boras did say he is talking to a number of clubs about Pena, but we can hope the Rays will make him a strong offer and get his bat back to Tampa Bay. If the Rays sign Pena, Damon would be a great option for the DH spot and the Rays lineup would be looking pretty good.

Rays News and Notes

• Jon Heyman is reporting that the Rays began extension talks with Joe Maddon before the holidays and will continue when he gets back. This is good news for Rays fans, as Joe Maddon is a huge piece for the Rays. He is obviously a great manager and it is hard to imagine whether anybody else could have as much success with this team.
• Just as quickly as I started talking about it, he is gone. Ryan Madson agreed to join the Reds yesterday. The deal is worth $10 million for one year. The Rays surely would not have spent that kind of money for Madson, so I doubt the Rays were ever in it.
• Seedlings To Stars takes a look at the AL East snubs from their top 100 prospect list. Matt Moore was the highest prospect on there top 100, coming in fourth.