MLB rumors: Rays, Orioles still looking for upgrades as spring training approaches

Spring training, less than a month away from baseball fans. It’s the reporting day of each team’s spring camp. As we wait for baseball to return in a few weeks, here are the rumors of Monday’s hot stove.

Rays still looking for attack

The Rays are still looking for offensive upgrades, but GM Eric Nieder admits “there aren’t that many[difference bats]available,” reports. Tampa Bay Times. Jurickson Profar is the best free agent position player on the market.Miguel Sano, Franmil Reyes, Luke Voight, and others like former Ray David Peralta are similarly unsigned.

Last season, the Rays ranked 21st in points scored, scoring just one point in nine of the final 16 games of the regular season. Tampa then hit one home run in 24 innings in a Wild Card Series loss to the Guardians. The Rays haven’t added an offense this offseason. If anything, they were subtracted from the offense in the Choi Ji-man trade.

Orioles Still Seeking Rotation Help

Orioles GM Mike Elias is hoping to add one more starting pitcher before spring training, he said in an interview with 105.7 FM The Fan over the weekend (via baltimore sun). The O’s signed Kyle Gibson to a one-year deal this winter. Kyle Vladish, Dean Kremer, Tyler Wells and Austin Voss round out the rotation, and front-runner Grayson Rodriguez is called up.

Baltimore has ties to Michael Wacha, best free agent starters available, the last few weeks. Other unsigned starters include Zach Greinke, Mike Minor and Michael Pineda. If nothing else, O could use another veteran to digest the innings, save a bit of the bullpen, and avoid asking the kids to carry too much workload at once. can.

Reds addition not expected

The Reds aren’t expected to make any more additions before spring training and the roster is “almost set,” GM Nick Krall said at the team’s caravan event on Monday. Cincinnati Enquirer). “Obviously we broke it[after making the postseason in 2020]. We traded off some players last year. That’s what we needed to go through. We are trying to bring it back,” added Krall.

It’s been a fairly uneventful offseason for the Reds. They traded off Kyle Farmer and added Will Myers and Luke Weaver. Cincinnati will open in 2022 with a salary of $114.1 million. The estimated salary for 2023 is currently $81.5 million, according to FanGraphs. When measured by 2022 salary percentage, the Reds are projected to take the biggest pay cuts in baseball this year.