3 Rays players who are about to enter spring training already on thin ice

Spring training is the season of proving yourself in order to sneak onto a roster or solidify your role for the club. Some players who have previously locked up their jobs for the Rays will now be forced to perform in camp to hold on to a roster spot. It's just the nature of the game as rosters are shuffled each offseason, so let's take a look at three Rays players who will be on thin ice from the get-go.

1. Hunter Feduccia

The Rays executed a full swap in their catcher depth chart at the trade deadline, dealing away Danny Jansen and Ben Rortvedt. Their catching returns from these trades included former Marlins backstop Nick Fortes and Dodgers top prospect Hunter Feduccia. The front office clearly had a lot of high hopes for Feduccia as they locked in the 28-year-old as their starting catcher for the remainder of the 2025 season.

That roster situation still exists as the Rays haven't a catcher to compete to the two new additions. The only catcher giving them any contention is Triple-A prospect Dominic Keegan. The 2022 fourth round pick has been inconsistent so far in his career, so he won't likely push them out of their roles. Regardless, Hunter Feduccia is still on the hot seat as the Rays keep a keen eye on his production and whether or not he is capable of being a reliable starting catcher at the highest level.

2. Jonny DeLuca

DeLuca is another former Dodgers prospect that is getting every opportunity to succeed with the Rays. However, after two seasons of the slick outfielder manning center field, it appears that Tampa Bay is going in a slightly different direction. This is not to say that the Oregon native is in jeopardy of losing his roster spot, but center field may not be his role anymore.

In early December, the Rays signed former Orioles defensive stalwart, Cedric Mullins to a one-year deal. The 31-year-old outfielder is coming off of back-to-back down years offensively, but the center field defensive skills always play. Web gems are expected from this left-handed athlete as he's widely considered one of the best at his position in the sport right now.

Therefore, due to the Rays' high regard for defensive production and DeLuca's lack of consistency, Mullins will probably become the everyday center fielder, pushing Jonny DeLuca to the corners.

3. Cole Sulser

The final player on thin ice heading into spring training is right-handed reliever Cole Sulser. The 35-year-old found success a season ago to the tune of a 1.99 ERA, but it's hard to believe that those stats will be maintained in 2026. First of all, Sulser is getting up in age, especially for a pitcher. Secondly, the up-and-down nature of his career leads us to speculate that last season's numbers may have been a little fluky. That is not to disregard the hard work that Cole Sulser clearly put into the season, but it may have been a "one-and-done" scenario.

The California native has only posted a positive WAR in three of his seven MLB campaigns (all of which being with the Rays). It's possible that Tampa Bay's coaching staff has unlocked something special with the 6'0 reliever, but competition is unfortunately getting heavier and heavier. A fabulous spring will be necessary to relieve him from his "thin ice".