Tampa Bay Rays' Ben Rortvedt follows through on a single during the 10th inning inning of a baseball ... [+]
It is so typical of the Rays to sign and trade for players who perhaps lost some luster in the eyes of other organizations or were simply toiling on the fringes, and then receive immediate dividends.
Far more often than not, the above has applied to pitchers. At least in the first month of the 2024 season, it has been position players fitting the profile. It is a good thing those players are off to strong starts because there has otherwise been little production from a lineup that in a 7-5 win over the visiting Tigers on Wednesday snapped a streak of seven consecutive games scoring four or fewer runs.
Who could have guessed Amed Rosario would have led the American League in batting after a month’s worth of games? Or Ben Rortvedt – Ben Rortvedt! – would deliver one big hit after another. The play of Jose Caballero and Richie Palacios has been vital as well.
“The guys that we acquired in the offseason have really helped us,” said manager Kevin Cash. “I have appreciated what they have done because it has maybe allowed the mainstays that have been here a while to continue to buy time until they get their swing and timing down.”
While Randy Arozarena’s average dropped as low as .149, Yandy Diaz’s on-base percentage has been below .300 most of April and more than half (38/73) of Jose Siri’s at-bats have resulted in strike outs, the aforementioned quartet has been immense in keeping the Rays at or around .500.
The veteran Rosario, who agreed to a one-year, $1.5-million deal shortly after the Rays reported to Port Charlotte for spring training, had a 14-game hit streak snapped Tuesday against Detroit, a game he entered with the American League’s top average. He heads into a weekend series on the road against the White Sox hitting .341 with many of his base hits being the difference in tight games. He has produced while being penciled in to seven different spots in the lineup, including leadoff for the first time in four years.
Defensively, Rosario has played right field in the absence of the injured Josh Lowe while also seeing a little time at the middle infield spots.
“I don’t know where we would be without his contributions at the plate,” said Cash, of the .274 career hitter. “He has really been versatile. He hits anywhere in the lineup, sprays the ball all over the ballpark and has a knack for big hits with guys on base.”
Rortvedt has also exhibited a knack for timely hits. The latest example was a run-scoring double in the sixth inning Wednesday against Detroit that tied the game and set the stage for Curtis Mead’s two-run homer that provided the final margin. The left-handed hitting catcher is batting .333 (14-for-42) with seven RBI while platooning with Rene Pinto. Rortvedt entered this season hitting .146 in brief stints (157 career AB) with the Twins in 2021 and the Yankees last season.
The 26-year-old Rortvedt was acquired March 27 from the Yankees as a part of three-team deal that had the Rays send minor league outfielder Shane Sasaki to the Marlins. Tampa Bay played its Grapefruit League schedule without a No. 2 catcher on the roster behind Pinto. Veteran Alex Jackson, currently with the Rays’ Triple-A affiliate in Durham, filled that role as a non-roster invitee.
“He’s been pretty incredible for us,” said Cash of Rortvedt, a 2016 second-round selection of Minnesota. “We really liked his defense and anything that we can get offensively was a bonus. It seems like every series he is impacting us with a big RBI knock.”
Because the Rays went into the winter with Wander Franco’s status unknown and with Taylor Walls recovering from hip surgery, they traded left-handed hitting outfielder/first baseman Luke Raley to Seattle for Caballero. With J.P. Crawford at short, Caballero primarily played second base for the Mariners as a rookie last season. He did not have much experience (94 games) at short as a minor leaguer, though the Rays were optimistic he could take the job and run with it. That has been the case so far.
Though he had four errors in his first 23 games, the 27-year-old has often been spectacular in the field. He was also hitting .272, well above the .221 he hit with the Mariners last season. Caballero is a threat on the base paths as his nine stolen bases paced the American League (through April 24) after swiping 26 bags a year ago.
Since the start of the 2022 season and through the first week of January, Palacios was optioned six times, traded twice and designated for assignment once. The Rays acquired the 26-year-old outfielder January 5 from St. Louis for reliever Andrew Kittredge. He has been getting on base at a .381 clip in 60-plus plate appearances. Palacios came into this season hitting .244 in 205 MLB at-bats with Cleveland and the Cardinals.
