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Reds hard-throwing reliever would be great addition for Rays bullpen

Tony Santillan might end up as a high-leverage arm in the Reds' bullpen, but if the Rays dangle a starter like Zack Littell, a star reliever like Pete Fairbanks, or some kind of lower prospect package, the Reds could be convinced to let the Rays take a chance on Santillan.

ByCarter Brantley|
Santillan is a large right-handed flame thrower who posted over a 13 K/9 rate for the 2024 season. Could the Rays push him over the top and turn him into the next Pete Fairbanks?
Santillan is a large right-handed flame thrower who posted over a 13 K/9 rate for the 2024 season. Could the Rays push him over the top and turn him into the next Pete Fairbanks? | Evan Bernstein/GettyImages

The Rays are entering a strange 2025 season, playing in a new, but temporary stadium and operating under uncertainty as to where their future lies.

Thus, payroll could very well be reduced, meaning a reliever like Pete Fairbanks could be seen as expendable, or a starter like Zack Littell, as both are slated to make decent money in 2025.

Pete Fairbanks
Pete Fairbanks has been one of the more effective relievers in baseball over the years, but his hefty price tag might cause the Rays to move on. | Mike Carlson/GettyImages

But, the good news is that the Rays don't just give these players up for nothing, and there are options out there to potentially replace any production they lose in these deals.

Enter Tony Santillan, the 6'3 righty for the Reds.

Santillan had himself a great 2024 season, posting a 2.73 FIP and reducing his walk rate to 2.7 per 9, a career-low.

With his elite fastball velocity, sitting around 97.2 on his fastball, Santillan would give the Rays an excellent option out of the bullpen to be one of those dominating end-of-game performers that the Rays are always employing.

Tony Santillan
While Santillan isn't a household name, the Reds will know what they have and won't just give him up for free, meaning the Rays might have to deal away some real talent to get him. | Jason Mowry/GettyImages

The fastball grades out well in the Stuff+ metric, and he used it around 60% of the time, an appropriate amount for such an elite pitch.

His secondary offering is mostly his slider, but he offers up a changeup to keep hitters from sitting too much on his two-pitch mix.

The slider is also incredible, coming in at 25% better than average in Stuff+, along with his fastball being 4% better than average.

As long as Santillan continues to fill up the zone with these elite offerings, he should be just fine.

And for the Rays, one of their strong suits is making these types of pitchers into super productive pitchers, because one of their main tenants is to just throw down the middle and let their pitches do their thing.

Unfortunately, the Reds know how valuable Santillan can be just as much as the Rays, meaning he won't just be given away; the only way the Rays would likely be able to acquire him is by giving up an elite arm like Fairbanks or Littell, or by giving up a decent prospect package for the 27-year-old.

Zack Littell
With Jeffrey Springs gone, the Rays might opt for more proven depth in the starting pitching ranks and hang onto Littell, but if not, the Reds could be a fun team to try to acquire the former reliever. | Julio Aguilar/GettyImages

Luckily for the Rays, he's still in pre-arbitration for another year and won't be a free agent until 2028, giving them a few years to continue to develop him and potentially flip him for prospects or another, younger Santillan.

That is indeed the "Rays Way", and Santillan would be another entry into their prosperous pitching development stories.

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