5 Players the Tampa Bay Rays Could Trade For Before the Deadline

Just over a third of the 2022 season has come and gone, and the Tampa Bay Rays (at the time of writing) possess both a 35-26 record and a playoff spot in the American League. Once again in the thick of a crowded AL East race, the Rays are poised to be buyers at the trade deadline. In 2021, they acquired slugger Nelson Cruz, and it may be necessary for them to make an even bigger splash this because 4 of the 5 teams in their division currently sit in a playoff position. Since the last time we checked in on potential trade targets for the Rays, a few new candidates have emerged; some of which fly under the radar, and others that would make national headlines.

Erik Swanson, RP (Seattle Mariners)

The Rays just lost star reliever Andrew Kittredge to Tommy John surgery, and they have the resources to replace him from within the system, but they could also recreate him by pursuing a reliever with a similar style: enter Swanson. If the Mariners continue to slide away from the playoff picture, they may decide to retool at the deadline, and assets that could help contending teams might be in play.

Swanson is under team control for three more years, which would raise his price tag, but the Mariners may be inclined to deal him due to his injury history, and the Rays are an attractive buyer due to their unparalleled organizational depth. The Rays and Mariners also swung a trade that sent reliever JT Chargois to St. Pete in 2021, so there is a mutual familiarity between the two clubs with regards to a deal of this type.

If the Mariners were to sell at the Major League level, Swanson may not be the first reliever to hit the market, but since the start of 2021, he has been very dependable, with a 2.76 ERA, 3.23 FIP, and a strikeout-to-walk ratio exceeding 5 to 1 in 41.1 innings. He has a fastball in the mid-90s in terms of velocity that he uses just over half the time and a slider as his secondary pitch.

Arguably his biggest strength is his ability to limit walks against - all of these traits are similar to the injured Kittredge. His 2022 salary sits at just over $700K, making him a financially affordable option that would add depth to an injury-riddled bullpen - all while being stylistically similar to a top-tier weapon that the Rays just lost for the season.

Tyler Naquin, RF (Cincinnati Reds)

Naquin is a complicated option because he's currently on the injured list due to a quadriceps injury, and he's not expected to return to action for another month. That still means he should be healthy a couple of weeks in advance of the trade deadline, and he has some strengths that the Rays could use.

He has an interesting power/speed combo 45 extra-base hits, above-average Statcast sprint speed in 2021) and desirable offensive production while playing in the outfield, which the Rays haven't really gotten from any of their outfielders on a consistent basis besides Manuel Margot. He's another left-handed bat that can use his power and his speed to be a multi-dimensional offensive threat, and he got off to a productive start before his injury this season as well. Over the last 2 seasons, in 166 games, he has a respectable 110 wRC+.

His injury makes the process of trading him a lot less simple for the Reds' front office for a multitude of reasons. There could be a setback that keeps him on the shelf through the trade deadline, teams could be hesitant to acquire him depending on how well his recovery goes, and if he returns on schedule but starts off slowly with the bat, Cincinnati may fail to find a buyer for him. However, if the recovery timeline stays as it is, he could add length to this Rays lineup that still hasn't fully clicked this season.

Scott Effross, RP (Chicago Cubs)

Like Wisdom, Effross's style of play would make him appear as a natural in a Rays uniform. He made his Major League debut last season at the age of 27, and he doesn't play on a contending team so many fans either haven't heard his name or didn't know he existed until this season. However, he's quietly establishing himself as one of the most effective relief pitchers in the game (3.29 ERA, 2.25 xERA, 5.5% of batted balls against go for solid contact). He also has an unorthodox sidearm delivery with a sinker/slider combination at the top of his repertoire, making him a nightmare matchup for many batters, especially right-handed ones.

Similar to Swanson, he is a relief pitcher on the right side of 30 years old who is under team control for the foreseeable future in an organization that may not contend this year but has the tools to do so within a few seasons. Whether or not he gets traded could indicate how far away the Cubs' front office believes their window of success to be. Relievers can generally remain effective farther into their 30s than starters or position players can, and Effross has yet to play a full season in the Majors, so it would be perfectly reasonable to suggest that Chicago would want to use him in the long term.

The Rays owe it to themselves, though, to at least ask about his availability. Their bullpen has been a strength, but injuries are mounting, and Effross is a good candidate to plug the vacancies in their roster should the Cubs make an effort to trade him.

Willson Contreras, C (Chicago Cubs)

It may not be historically accurate to talk about the Rays and the premium trade target of the season in the same sentence, and this article is probably too Cubs-centric at this point, but the fit is too good to ignore. Contreras is a pure rental, set to hit the free-agent market at the end of the season, and there has been no considerable progress made on extension talks between the two sides, which has led many people to believe a trade is inevitable.

The Houston Astros have reportedly taken themselves out of the pursuit of Contreras, which means the Rays could become the top suitor in the American League if they wanted. They've received no offense from the catcher position this season (48 wRC+ by Rays catchers) - Mike Zunino is injured and off to a career-worst start at the plate despite his continued defensive success, and Francisco Mejia has been a black hole on both sides of the ball. Acquiring Contreras, the best offensive catcher in baseball, would completely transform this lineup.

In fact, he is having a career season with the bat. If the season ended today, his .949 OPS would exceed his previous career-high by over 60 points, and he leads all qualified Major League catchers in OPS, average exit velocity (93.6 mph), hard-hit rate (57.9%), and xwOBA (.429). He checks the boxes of contact, power, overall production, and expected production. There is nobody better offensively at the catcher position than him at this moment.

The Cubs will ask for a big package in return, and the hesitancy of the Rays' front office to increase payroll means that they would need to either ask the Cubs to cover part of his contract or find some other source of funds to pay him, but there may not be a bigger upgrade that could be made in a single trade in all of baseball than the one the Rays could make at the catcher position by trading for Willson Contreras. It would push the boundaries of what the Rays have been willing to do to acquire players throughout their history, but of all the players they could trade for in 2022, he may be the only one who can change their fate by the season's end.

Stats courtesy of Fangraphs, BaseballSavant, BaseballReference