On Sep. 1, all 30 Major League Baseball teams will be able to expand their rosters to 40 people. That expansion will provide ample opportunity for teams to add depth, bring up younger players for trial major league runs and give weary starters some much-needed rest.
Some teams aren't waiting until the start of next month.
One of those teams is the Tampa Bay Rays. Tampa is a team that has lacked depth, especially on offense all season long.
In fact, with the notable exceptions of third baseman Evan Longoria and rookie outfielder Wil Myers, the Tampa lineup has been relatively inconsistent, and at times a real weakness.
Within the last 48 hours, Tampa Bay has added two players who could provide a boost for the offense as the playoff race really heats up.
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets that the Rays have signed former No.1 pick, Delmon Young to a minor-league deal.
Ten years ago, Young was not just Tampa's first round draft pick, he was the No 1 pick overall in a 2003 draft class that included Nick Markakis, Adam Jones, Carlos Quentin, Matt Kemp, Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Jonathan Papelbon. In 2012, he was a member of the Detroit Tigers and won MVP of the ALCS.
That impressive resume didn't prevent Young from being released by the struggling Philadelphia Phillies.
Young is still, for lack of a better word, young. He's only 27, and it was one year ago that Young had a fairly respectable season for the Detroit Tigers. He hit .267 with 18 home runs and 74 RBIs. In 2010, while playing in Minnesota, Young put together his best season, hitting .298 with 21 home runs and 112 RBIs.
He's a very intriguing buy-low type of pick up for the Rays, who could use more offense, especially since they're eighth in the AL in runs scored.
Young isn't the only experienced bat that the team has acquired in the last 24 hours.
Jesse Rogers of ESPN Chicago tweeted Thursday morning that the Rays put in a waiver claim on outfielder David DeJesus.
DeJesus was actually acquired by the Washington Nationals this past Monday, and immediately placed on revocable waivers.
Friday afternoon, the Washington Post reported that he was now officially a member of the Rays.
It isn't a bad change of scenery for DeJesus, who goes from the out-of-contention Cubs, to the disappointing Nationals, to perennial contender Tampa Bay.
The moves immediately add depth to a Rays lineup that has struggled to find consistent health and offensive production from the designated hitter and outfield spots.
Desmond Jennings has been hurt, and ever prior to his injury he was having a subpar season.
Luke Scott is on the disabled list. Kelly Johnson started the season red-hot, but has since cooled and has seen his power production tail off.
Sam Fuld has a nice glove and can run the bases, but as his .197 batting average -- and .268 on-base percentage -- illustrates, he's not great at actually producing much offensively.
Matt Joyce had 14 home runs two months ago. Now he's got 16. The drop off in outfield production coupled with the injury to Luke Scott makes acquiring both players smart, and potentially very meaningful.
Young is especially intriguing. He's got serious talent, and while he's certainly not lived up to his hype, there's still time for him to become a late-bloomer.
DeJesus doesn't have the upside of Young. But when he's playing well, he's got a decent glove, hits for some power, can steal a base and he's got a career batting average of .279 and career on-base percentage of .353.
A healthy Jennings and stud rookie Wil Myers will be in Rays manager Joe Maddon's lineup everyday, but that still leaves one position in flux, and either Young or DeJesus could become a solid fill-in or backup.
Neither move is equal to the Red Sox acquisition of Jake Peavy, but both moves could be just what the Rays need to push them from AL East division contenders, to champs.
Source: http://blog.masslive.com/redsoxmonster/2013/08/major_league_baseball_2013_tam.html
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