Former Rays lockdown closer finds home with familiar faces in Miami

The Rays were forced to let long-time closer Pete Fairbanks walk at the beginning of this offseason. After seven seasons in Tampa Bay and a grand total of 90 saves, the hard-throwing right hander is now beginning a new chapter of his career. However, there will be a few familiar faces in his new organization.

Pete Fairbanks signs a one-year, $13 million deal with the Miami Marlins

Fairbanks will join the Miami Marlins on a one-year deal for the 2026 season. His stock wasn’t quite as high as relievers like Edwin Diaz and Ryan Helsley, but he was still able to secure a comfortable contract with a club that could be on a slow rise for this upcoming campaign.

Other than signing the former Rays closer, Miami also made a short-term pact with outfielder Christopher Morel. Despite his clear struggles with the Rays, Morel was a reliable power source with the Cubs. The Dominican utility-man was able to hit 60 homers in his three seasons with Chicago. The Marlins are hoping to tap into the obvious potential that the right-hander wields.

However, Morel isn’t the only familiar face that Fairbanks will find in his new home down south. He will also find former Rays minor leaguers Xavier Edwards and Heiberto Hernandez. However, possibly the most important former colleague will be former Rays general manager Peter Bendix. Bendix spent 15 seasons with the Rays before agreeing to become the Marlins new general manager in 2023. The two are now reuniting as Bendix hopes to keep the high-powered hurler on a similar pace, accumulating at least 20 saves in the last three seasons.

After appearing in only eight games with the Texas Rangers in 2019, the Rays snatched up the 25-year-old for versatile infielder Nick Solak. This deal wound up being a win for Tampa as Solak played in only 253 games across four seasons with the Rangers. Meanwhile, Fairbanks tossed over 250 innings with the Rays and collected more than 300 strikeouts during his tenure. He’ll be a major asset for the Marlins that will be relied upon in high-leverage moments.