3 areas the Rays could upgrade before the Deadline

This story was excerpted from Adam Berry’s Rays Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

ST. PETERSBURG -- On Thursday, all 30 MLB.com beat reporters suggested what each team should do before Tuesday’s Trade Deadline. It’s too soon to say with any certainty what the Rays will do, but for now we can consider what they could do.

It’s fair to expect the Rays will be on the lookout for offensive upgrades and additional bullpen arms. The former seems more glaring after they struggled through a 2-5 road trip capped by a 3-0 loss to the Orioles on Thursday that magnified their need for help at the plate.

The most important thing the Rays can do on that front is get healthy. They already made smaller moves to address two season-long absences -- Kevin Kiermaier and Mike Zunino -- by acquiring speedy Roman Quinn and right-handed-hitting catcher Christian Bethancourt. But their lineup looks much different with Wander Franco, Manuel Margot, Harold Ramírez and Francisco Mejía available.

Tampa Bay’s front office is bound to pursue every available opportunity to improve, especially with another postseason appearance in reach. Let’s consider three areas where they could pursue upgrades.

The available bats
Josh Bell is the best rental bat available, a switch-hitter who entered Friday with a .302/.387/.490 slash line. It seems unlikely the Rays will wind up with Cubs catcher/DH Willson Contreras, but he’d bring an impact bat and postseason experience. The highly respected Trey Mancini would help at first base, DH or the outfield corners, if the Orioles move him.

D-backs outfielder David Peralta could help against right-handed pitchers, while switch-hitting Cubs outfielder Ian Happ could provide a boost for this year and next. Reds infielder Brandon Drury is having a nice season at the plate and could fit at several positions while crushing left-handed pitching.

Those are the headliners of what’s not exactly a game-changing class of available hitters. But remember: Not every swing has to be a big one. The Rays could make targeted, incremental upgrades to hold the line until they get healthier.

The bullpen arms
Relievers are seldom in short supply this time of year, and contenders always need bullpen help. That applies to the Rays, although they should get some help from within in the form of Jalen Beeks, JT Chargois, Nick Anderson, etc.

You can typically trust Tampa Bay to find pitching talent where others might not, but this story looks at seven of the top options. Among the many names to watch here are David Robertson and Mychal Givens from the Cubs and Michael Fulmer, Andrew Chafin and Joe Jiménez from the Tigers.

The big shot
This is the Juan Soto Trade Deadline. If he moves, that’s the story we’ll remember. If he stays, that’s … probably still the story we’ll remember.

It’d be wrong to disregard this possibility entirely, because the Rays have considered a lot of big moves recently. They talked about Max Scherzer before last year’s Deadline. They pursued Kris Bryant and Craig Kimbrel, too, according to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal. We know they made a big bid for Freddie Freeman in free agency this spring. Principal owner Stuart Sternberg said on Opening Day their payroll “could have been higher this year, but we're in a place right now where we've got some flexibility to get better if need be.”

The acquisition cost for Soto will be an enormous package of young players. While the Rays have the depth to make it work, few organizations depend on their depth and homegrown talent like they do. So it’s hard to imagine them taking such a massive risk -- even for a controllable star like Soto -- when they’re determined to remain competitive now and in the future. Another interested team might go all-in now and worry about the future later, sparking the kind of bidding war the Rays don’t often win.