Rays talking, listening as rumors swirl at Winter Meetings

NASHVILLE -- The first full day of the Winter Meetings was business as usual for the Rays.

That meant some conversations with agents representing free agents, a few chats with other clubs they could link up with in trades, but overall, as president of baseball operations Erik Neander put it, “nothing terribly notable.” But there were plenty of notable rumors about Rays players who could be on the move, which is also standard for Tampa Bay at this point.

• How active will Rays be at Winter Meetings?

MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand reported that multiple executives have said they “definitely” expect starter Tyler Glasnow to be dealt this offseason. MLB Network insider Jon Heyman reported that Glasnow has “four or five serious suitors” with offers on the table.

MLB Network’s Jon Morosi also reported that infielder Isaac Paredes, an intriguing trade candidate given his breakout season and years of club control, is “of interest” to the Mariners and Blue Jays. Add his name to a list of rumored trade candidates that includes Randy Arozarena, Manuel Margot, Harold Ramírez and, most prominently, Glasnow.

• Latest free agent and trade rumors

The Rays are willing to discuss and field offers for nearly every player in their organization. So it should hardly come as a surprise that calls continued to come in Monday at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel and Resort.

“I would say we recognize where our team is competitively,” Neander said Monday. “I think we recognize and appreciate the talent we have, and like I said, if we roll this thing forward [with the roster intact], we're open to doing it. That's what happened last winter, right? I think there's a lot of players that were talked about as possibilities to move.

“We felt pretty good about that. It's similar [this year]. I would very much classify anything as listening.”

Neander noted generally that the market for pitching has been more active than anything else this winter. That would seem to indicate that conversations involving Glasnow are more developed than any discussions involving the Rays’ position players.

Eventually, all the Rays’ listening should lead to action. Glasnow is widely expected to be traded this offseason, as Feinsand reported. And nearly half the league is believed to have at least checked in on the big right-hander, who’s due a franchise-record $25 million next season in his last year before reaching free agency.

Glasnow’s back-loaded extension is largely responsible for the Rays’ projected payroll for next season blowing past franchise-record territory. While they insist they can handle such a budget to bring back most of last year’s roster, that path seems unlikely.

“We don't have to force anything. That's a good position to be in,” Neander said. “We don't have to do anything, but it puts us in a position where we can be active listeners and decide if anything's best for us -- not only next year, but beyond.

“You look at our history, we have been an organization that's been willing to make trades over time when we felt it was best for us and the other team felt it was best for them. So I think that combination and winning the games we have, yeah, it's going to generate some activity. And I think because we're willing to at least listen, all the much more so. But that doesn't mean we're in a position where we have to do anything or need to do anything. We're going to let it play out and see where it takes us.”

Second baseman Brandon Lowe, who stopped by the Winter Meetings on Monday with his family and agency, said the Rays have come to expect that teammates’ names will pop up in rumors. They’ve also come to recognize that there’s a plan in place that will keep Tampa Bay competitive, even if the roster changes from year to year.

“Nobody on the team wants to trade Glasnow. I don't think Erik wants to trade Glasnow. That type of arm, that type of talent, it's hard to come by,” Lowe said. “But if it does happen, you know that the people that we get back in return are either big league ready or about to be, and they have a real chance to come help us in the future.

“We put that faith in Erik and that trust in our front office to understand that they're not going to break the team down and make us lose 120 games. They want to be competitive, and we have been competitive. … So if we make some blockbuster moves or surprising moves that fans don't get at the time, or maybe we might not even get them at the time, you know there's reasons for every move, and the person that's making those moves has an idea and a future vision for all of it.”