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TAMPA, Fla. -- It had been a relatively quiet offseason for the Rays on the transaction front, with most of the club’s big-picture focus on assessing the state of hurricane-damaged Tropicana Field, finding a temporary home in Tampa’s Steinbrenner Field and determining the status of its plans for a future ballpark.

But the Rays addressed their biggest need on Friday, agreeing to sign veteran catcher Danny Jansen to a one-year contract with a mutual option for 2026. Now, here come the Winter Meetings, with the baseball world set to descend upon Dallas’ Hilton Anatole from Sunday through Wednesday.

Do the Rays have more moves in store?

“The soft spots, performance-wise, from our club last year, they’ve been defined and we’re going through the process of seeing what we can do about it,” president of baseball operations Erik Neander said Thursday night, before they reached an agreement with Jansen. “Obviously we haven’t had a whole lot of activity so far, but a lot of conversations. For whatever reasons they may be, it just seems like one of those years where it might take a little bit longer to materialize. But we’re going to stay at it.”

It should be a busy and buzzy time throughout the industry, especially with free-agent superstar Juan Soto widely expected to sign soon. Here’s a look at what to expect for the Rays.

Key events

• Sunday: Hall of Fame Classic Baseball Era Committee results released
• Tuesday: MLB Draft Lottery
• Wednesday: Rule 5 Draft

Club needs
Catcher: Neander described this position as a “priority” at the outset of the offseason, and they got to work before the Meetings began by agreeing to sign Jansen, who should partner with Ben Rortvedt behind the plate next season. That agreement is pending a physical, so the deal is not yet official.

Jansen was an above-average offensive catcher for the Blue Jays in each of the three seasons prior to 2024. During that span, he averaged 14 homers and a 120 OPS+ -- meaning Jansen was 20 percent better than a league-average hitter -- and will look to get back to that level of production after a bit of a down season.

Offense: Most of the Rays’ improvement will have to come from within, as we covered earlier this week, but they’ll look for ways to upgrade their lineup this winter after adding a higher-upside bat behind the plate in Jansen. Perhaps they could add another outfield/DH-type bat, as their current outfield alignment would seemingly put Jonny DeLuca in center and Josh Lowe in right, with some combination of Christopher Morel and Richie Palacios (also their top backup in center) in left.

Potential trade candidates
LHP Jeffrey Springs: Right-hander Drew Rasmussen is preparing to come into camp as a starter after returning from the injured list as a two-inning reliever down the stretch last season. That gives the Rays seven qualified starting options -- Shane McClanahan, Springs, Rasmussen, Zack Littell, Shane Baz, Ryan Pepiot and Taj Bradley -- plus depth options like Jacob Waguespack, Jacob Lopez, Joe Rock (No. 22 prospect) and Ian Seymour (No. 17 prospect).

It’s easy to imagine them carrying six starters and figuring out what to do if everyone’s healthy. It’s harder to see them finishing the offseason with seven starters. Thus, Springs -- who's due $10.5 million next year and in 2026, with a $15 million club option for ’27 -- will be considered a trade candidate. The lefty has put up ridiculous numbers since moving from Tampa Bay’s bullpen to the rotation in ‘22, and he performed well in his brief return from Tommy John surgery this past season.

RHP Zack Littell: All of the above applies here, except Littell comes with just one year of club control that’s projected to cost north of $4 million. Considering the incredible cost of starting pitching this offseason, the steady veteran could be a valuable trade chip for the Rays while maintaining their rotation’s depth and upside. In his first full season as a Major League starter, Littell posted a team-leading 2.8 bWAR and a 3.63 ERA while working 156 1/3 innings over 29 starts.

RHP Pete Fairbanks: It seems far more likely the Rays will deal a starter, but one silver lining of a largely forgettable season was the emergence of several talented young bullpen arms like Edwin Uceta, Kevin Kelly, Manuel Rodríguez and Mason Montgomery. Tampa Bay is under no pressure to deal the hard-throwing Fairbanks, who’s set to make $3.67 million next year, with a $7 million club option for 2026. But the Rays are always willing to listen, and Fairbanks is bound to appeal to clubs in need of an experienced closer.

Prospects to know
OF Chandler Simpson: He deserves all the attention he gets for stealing 104 bases this year, but the Rays’ No. 4 prospect also possesses an incredible ability to make contact. Combine those skills with the former infielder’s improving defense in center field and his elite makeup, and you have a uniquely talented prospect who could be speeding to the Majors’ door sooner than later.

1B/OF Tre’ Morgan: He was the Rays’ Minor League Player of the Year for a reason. The man can hit, and he did so to the tune of a .324/.408/.483 slash line at three levels this year. Tampa Bay's No. 10 prospect has a tougher path to the Majors, as he’s an excellent defensive first baseman blocked by Díaz and Aranda, but he should hit his way up before too long.

SS Carson Williams: The 21-year-old shortstop is MLB Pipeline’s No. 4 overall prospect, and he’s expected to start next season with Triple-A Durham. He combines power at the plate with speed on the bases, a rocket arm and no-doubt shortstop defense. There are still swing-and-miss concerns, which might put him on a longer track than Simpson and Morgan, but the rest of his profile is striking enough to watch closely.

Rule 5 Draft
The Rays protected all the Rule 5-eligible prospects on their Top 30 list, but MLB Pipeline mentions slider-heavy reliever Evan Reifert as someone who could appeal to other clubs. They have room on their 40-man roster to make a pick and recently struck gold with Kelly, so they will at least be open to making a pick, but it’s generally difficult for competitive teams to carry a Rule 5 Draft pick all season.

Burning question: How will the Rays improve their lineup?
There’s no doubt they still need to improve a lineup that scored only 604 runs last season, second fewest in the Majors. Could they find an impactful bat in free agency? Are they willing to swap some pitching depth for offensive help? Would anything persuade them to part with their more expensive veteran hitters?