Story by
Bryan Baker's Breakout Season Giving Tampa Bay Rays Confidence Ahead of Trade Deadline
- Story by
- Bryan Baker's Breakout Season Giving Tampa Bay Rays Confidence Ahead of Trade Deadline
(IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect)
The Tampa Bay Rays have been having trouble finding prolonged success in the past few weeks.
What was a strong lead inside the American League East division has now dwindled away as the Rays now trail the New York Yankees by 3 games following Saturday's loss to the Washington Nationals .
Advertisement
Still, although there have been a few disappointments on the roster, some players have overachieved to a point where there might be enough confidence and hope from general manager Eric Neander to make some moves as buyers at the upcoming MLB Trade Deadline.
One player that has certainly impressed is closer Bryan Baker . ….
In fact, Bleacher Report's Kerry Miller considers Baker a 'pleasant surprise' for the Rays this season. He writes:
"Even by Tampa Bay 's stingy standards, it was surprising when the Rays declined their $12.5M club option to bring closer Pete Fairbanks back for one more year. But, apparently, they knew Baker was headed for a breakthrough year at 31 years old. He had a 3.86 ERA and four saves across his first five seasons in the majors, but he is at 1.91 and 18, respectively. Baker, Mason Miller , and Jhoan Duran are the only pitchers with at least 15 saves and a sub-2.00 ERA. "
Advertisement
Baker is off to a great start this season. Across his 31 games this season, he has already recorded 19 saves on the year. His 1.84 ERA across 29.1 innings has made him one of the most consistent arms on the Rays pitching staff.
This is something that was obviously needed after moving on from Fairbanks, a player who could possibly return at the deadline, because Tampa Bay needs to bolster their bullpen depth if they believe they are a team that can make a run.
Miller also had a pitcher in left hander Steven Matz in which he believes we should have expected more from so far this season.
"The Rays brought in two veteran arms in free agency this past winter. One of them ( Nick Martinez ) has been sensational, possibly headed for the All-Star Game. The other (Matz) has blundered his way out of the rotation with a 16.88 ERA over his last five appearances. At this point, converted set-up guy Griffin Jax is their No. 4 starter while a great big question mark resides at No. 5 in the rotation. "
Advertisement
Jax has turned his career around since he arrived in Tampa Bay, yet Matz has struggled to get a grasp and has been pushed to the bullpen. He did have a good outing on Friday night, and hopefully for Kevin Cash and the rest of the team, it means good things to come in the future.
If the entire Rays pitching staff can become a tad more consistent, and Eric Neander possibly adds a piece or two to help strengthen the arms for a long summer run, Tampa Bay should be in a good position. Baker is on pace to break a few Rays franchise records in saves, and Matz has enough experience to hopefully get it figured out before it's too late.
