Top Three Trades in Tampa Bay Rays’ History

2. The Matt Garza Trade

Rays trade Matt Garza, Fernando Perez, and Zac Rosscup to the Cubs for Chris Archer, Brandon Guyer, Robinson Chirinos, Hak-Ju Lee, and Sam Fuld

The 2011 offseason was busy for the Rays as they completed one of the largest transactions in franchise history. Matt Garza was the centerpiece here in the deal. Garza had been a staple in the Rays rotation the past 3 seasons to go along with James Shields and David Price who formed one of the most formidable starting rotations in the entire league.

In return, the Rays were acquiring a large haul of prospects hoping to fortify their farm system. Chris Archer was the Cubs’ number one prospect at the time and he was dominating in the minors. Hak-Ju Lee, The Cubs 4th-rated prospect was just entering his age-20 season so there was hope that the shortstop would develop into an essential piece of the Rays roster. Despite some success at the Double-A level, Lee suffered multiple injuries during his minor league stints and never played a big-league game. Robinson Chirinos played one 20 games for Tampa Bay but with little success. He was eventually traded to the Rangers for cash considerations and ended up becoming a decent player for the Rangers and now currently the Houston Astros. Brandon Guyer ended up being a solid big leaguer for the Rays as he slashed .255/.341/.396 in 306 games.

Archer is the reason that this trade makes the list. A two-time all-star, Archer was the ace for the Rays for the better part of the 2010s. His dominance might not show completely in his record which stood at 54-68, but Archer’s stuff was as good as anybody’s during his run with Tampa Bay. In 2015 Archer earned his first all-star bid, posting a 3.23 ERA to go along with a whopping 252 strikeouts. The Rays eventually dealt Archer to the Pirates for Austin Meadows, Tyler Glasnow, and Shane Baz. In retrospect, Tampa Bay absolutely fleeced the Pirates here. Archer has been terrible for the Bucs’ while Meadows was an all-star last season and Glasnow has ace potential himself. Give it another year or two and that trade will be at the top of this list.

1. The Delmon Young Deal

Rays Trade Delmon Young for Jason Bartlett and Matt Garza

In the 2007 offseason, the Rays’ decided it was in their best interest to trade the man that they took number one overall in the 2003 draft, Delmon Young. Young was coming off of his first full year in the majors and had acclimated pretty well with a slash line of .288/.316/.408 to go along with 13 homers and 93 RBI’s. That was good enough for him to finish runner-up in the AL Rookie of the year race losing out to only Dustin Pedroia. The sky was the limit for the young outfielder, but there were some character concerns that the Rays felt they couldn’t look past.

The Rays acquired the Twins starting shortstop Jason Bartlett, promising right-hander Matt Garza, and minor leaguer Eduardo Morlan. Bartlett slid right into the starting spot in Tampa Bay and proved to be a solid piece hitting a respectable .286. Garza also made an immediate impact winning 11 games and posting a 3.70 ERA. A big reason this trade takes the top spot is because of the success that Tampa Bay had immediately following the deal and that had a lot to do with the guys involved. The Rays run to the World Series was highlighted by a masterclass performance by Garza in the ALCS when pitched 13 innings in 2 games while giving up only 2 earned runs and striking out 14 batters. He was awarded the ALCS MVP award for his efforts to push the Rays into the World Series.

The Rays Way: Top Minor League System and the Tree of Delmon Young

While neither Garza or Bartlett had particularly long stints with the Rays, they were both two really good players who helped the franchise reach their first and thus far only World Series. If we look at the ripple-effect of this trade it has shaped the Rays’ franchise even to the present day. Garza was dealt to the Cubs in the Chris Archer trade. The Rays eventually flipped Archer to the Pirates to acquire current stars Austin Meadows and Tyler Glasnow. If those two can propel the Rays’ deep into the postseason we may have to re-evaluate this list.

All stats were compiled from Baseball-Reference and ESPN