How might the Rays' Opening Day roster look?

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 -- Two months from today, the Rays will take the field for their final Spring Training game, an exhibition against the Tigers at Tropicana Field. By that point, Tampa Bay’s roster should be all but officially set for Opening Day.

What might that squad look like?

It’s still too early to say, of course. There are plenty of free agents available and trades left to be made around baseball. Injuries will inevitably alter clubs’ plans. Players will break out or struggle over the course of a long Spring Training.

But why should we let that stop us from taking a shot at projecting the Opening Day roster? If nothing else, this provides a snapshot of the state of the Rays’ roster -- strengths, weaknesses, what’s changed and what’s staying the same.

Let’s get to it, position by position, using only players who are currently with the organization.

Catcher (2): René Pinto, Alex Jackson (non-roster invitee)
Barring another move, Pinto is in line to get most of the work behind the plate. Acquired prior to last year’s Trade Deadline and re-signed to a Minor League deal shortly after the season ended, Jackson seems to be his most likely backup for now.

First base (1): Yandy Díaz
No questions here about the returning team MVP, All-Star and leadoff man.

Second base (1): Brandon Lowe
After a couple injury-interrupted seasons, a healthy Lowe would be a huge boost for this lineup. He still managed to hit 21 homers with a 113 OPS+ last season.

Shortstop (1): José Caballero
Given the uncertainty with Wander Franco and the expectation that Taylor Walls will begin the season on the injured list as he finishes recovering from offseason hip surgery, this appears to be Caballero’s job out of camp. The versatile infielder could shift into a utility role whenever the slick-fielding Walls returns, but his ability to play shortstop was part of the reason the Rays dealt Luke Raley to get him.

Third base (1): Isaac Paredes
One of the most underrated sluggers in the game last year is back at the hot corner.

Outfield (4): Randy Arozarena, Jose Siri, Josh Lowe, Jonny DeLuca
Arozarena, Siri and Lowe should be the regular starters. DeLuca figures to fill Manuel Margot’s role as a right-handed complement to Lowe and/or a backup for Siri in center. Keep an eye on Richie Palacios here, too, as he’d be a left-handed-hitting option to replace Raley.

Infield/utility (2): Jonathan Aranda, Curtis Mead
The Rays’ decision to trade Raley certainly seemed like another vote of confidence in Aranda, who has yet to translate his incredible Triple-A numbers into consistent production in the Majors. But Tampa Bay clearly believes in him, so he’ll have a pathway to earn more playing time as a left-handed-hitting infielder/designated hitter. The same likely applies for Mead, the highly ranked infield prospect who impressed the Rays with his motivated mindset after debuting last season.

Other candidates here include Osleivis Basabe, who filled in for Franco and Walls late last season, as well as top prospect Junior Caminero, who could benefit from some everyday work in Triple-A after skipping that level entirely last year.

Designated hitter (1): Harold Ramírez
Ramírez provides plenty of value with his bat, whether he’s serving as the designated hitter or pinch-hitting, but it wouldn’t be a huge surprise if he is traded at some point. Doing so would clear a roster spot for someone like Palacios (and eventually Walls), create additional right-handed at-bats for Mead (and Caminero, sooner or later) and free up more DH time for other regulars to get partial rest days.

Rotation (5): Zach Eflin, Aaron Civale, Zack Littell, Ryan Pepiot, Taj Bradley
Aside from swapping Pepiot in for Tyler Glasnow, this is the same starting five the Rays had to finish last season. Naoyuki Uwasawa is another intriguing option with the ability (and financial incentive) to eat a lot of innings, although he’s coming to camp on a Minor League deal.

Shane Baz should be healthy from the start after rehabbing last season, but he’ll likely be eased in given his workload limitations coming back from Tommy John surgery. Jacob Lopez is another depth option. The Rays have also expressed interest in stretching out relievers Tyler Alexander and Chris Devenski, which could provide additional bulk/multi-inning coverage.

Bullpen (8): Pete Fairbanks, Jason Adam, Colin Poche, Shawn Armstrong, Garrett Cleavinger, Kevin Kelly, Chris Devenski, Tyler Alexander
The Rays have added a handful of interesting arms on non-roster deals, and they’ll have 40-man spots to work with after shifting Shane McClanahan, Jeffrey Springs and Drew Rasmussen to the 60-day injured list. But this group would provide a nice mix of late-inning experience, left-right balance, stuff and length.