Predicting Tampa Bay Rays' 2016 Record Going Into Spring Training

The Tampa Bay Rays quietly had one of the best offseasons of any team in the majors. They traded Jake McGee for Corey Dickerson. Now they hope to contend for a wild card finish.

The Rays contended for part of 2015, but never really felt like a contender to most. In addition to the trade for Dickerson, the Rays added Steve Pearce and Logan Morrison to the corner outfielder/first baseman mix. They retained James Loney and brought back Steven Souza. Desmond Jennings and prospect Richie Schaffer are around too. This may be the most loaded the Rays have been since the days of Carl Crawford. With Brad Miller and Logan Forsythe up the middle, their only offensive weakness is behind the plate. I wouldn’t be too surprised to see one of the Detroit Tigers‘ catchers start the season in Tampa.

The pitching is another strong spot for the Rays. They go five deep and have Alex Cobb returning from Tommy John surgery in August. At that point, they’ll be six deep for the stretch run. The rotation is led by Chris Archer and supported by lefties Drew Smyly and Matt Moore. If all three of them can stay healthy and make 30 or more starts, the Rays should be doing fine when the trade deadline approaches.

In the bullpen the loss of McGee shouldn’t be felt too hard. They signed Ryan Webb and claimed Chase Whitley off of waivers. With Brad Boxberger closing and Danny Farquhar setting up, the newcomers should be able to eat enough innings to make everything work.

The Rays have the best offense in Tampa that we have seen in years. They have passed all of the teams in the AL East in talent, outside of the New York Yankees. They should come close to a wild card spot, but will likely miss by a game or two with a record of 85-77.