Catcher has been an ongoing issue for the Tampa Bay Rays throughout their existence. Aside from a brief year or two of competence, the Rays have struggled to find anything that would be considered major league caliber behind the plate. After all, this is the franchise that lists Jose Molina as their most valuable catcher in franchise history according to fWAR.
That is the case this year as well. Now that Mike Zunino has been lost for the rest of the season due to thoracic outlet syndrome surgery, catcher is again atop their list at the trade deadline according to Jon Heyman.
Tampa Bay Rays looking for a catcher. Again.
The Rays already made one move to address their issues behind the plate. They had acquired Christian Bethancourt from the A’s earlier in the month for a pair of minor leaguers. However, Bethancourt is best suited as a bench player, especially given his defensive versatility.
While Zunino has been lost for the season, the Rays lost another option behind the plate recently as well. Francisco Mejia is on the Injured List as well as he is battling a shoulder impingement. Although Mejia is expected to return in the somewhat near future, it makes sense for the Rays to look for an upgrade.
There are plenty of options available. Willson Contreras and Christian Vazquez may be the prizes of the deadline behind the plate as rental pieces. The Rays could look to Oakland again and acquire Sean Murphy, a Gold Glove caliber catcher who has the type of offensive capability they have lacked throughout much of their history. Even a player such as Tucker Barnhart could be a valuable option.
The Rays are going to need to make some moves in the next few days. They are just 1.5 games ahead of the Guardians and two games ahead of the surprising Orioles for the final Wild Card spot. Upgrading a lineup that ranks 11th in OPS and tenth in home runs is likely going to be the focus, with catcher the most glaring need.
The Tampa Bay Rays are once again looking for help behind the plate. Their quixotic quest to find an answer continues for yet another trade deadline.