Tampa Bay Rays: Breaking News, Rumors & Highlights

Rays Surprisingly Decline Option on Veteran Closer

Well, that registers as a bit of a surprise. The Tampa Bay Rays declined the contract option on veteran reliever Pete Fairbanks minutes before the deadline on Thursday.

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The Quiz of the Day

Former MLB Executive Believes Rays Must Upgrade This Key Position

It has been a busy couple of days for the Tampa Bay Rays to start the offseason, and it will likely only get more chaotic with free agency starting up. While the Rays likely won’t be big spenders with new ownership just yet, they figure to be in the mix a bit and are no strangers to making a surprise signing here and there.

Pete Fairbanks News / Tampa Bay Rays on SI / November 7

Erik Neander Explains Rays' Surprise Decision to Not Bring Back Pete Fairbanks

The Tampa Bay Rays have started up the offseason with a couple of big decisions already making waves. Coming into the winter, the Rays figured to be a team to watch.

Tampa Bay Rays News / Tampa Bay Rays on SI / November 7

Rays Free Agent Pitcher Predicted to Receive $20 Million Deal This Winter

The Tampa Bay Rays are hoping to have a strong offseason and bounce back from what was a tough second half of the year in 2025. Despite a strong start to the campaign, the Rays fell apart a bit in the second half of the season in 2025.

Los Angeles Dodgers News / Yardbarker Quizzes

The 'World Series MVPs' quiz

MLB has awarded the World Series MVP since 1955. How many of these players can you name in six minutes?

The 'Last playoff complete game by MLB team' quiz

The 'World Series walk-off home runs' quiz

The 'Recent MLB World Series managers' quiz

Joe Maddon News / MLB on ClutchPoints / November 7

Rays legend Joe Maddon stumps for a new ballpark in Tampa

The Tampa Bay Rays have had anything but an ideal home stadium situation for years. The situation reached a head last year when they were forced to play their home games at Steinbrenner Field in Tampa because Hurricane Milton had ripped the roof of Tropicana Field.

MLB News / Yardbarker

25 notable MLB Hall of Famers who never won a World Series

Among the countless Hall of Famers who never experienced the joy of winning a World Series, there are several notable legends who stand out. Here's our list of the 25 greatest.

Tampa Bay Rays News / Tampa Bay Rays on SI / November 7

Rays Not Picking Up Option for Star Relief Pitcher Was Wrong Decision

With the offseason now fully underway for the Tampa Bay Rays, the team has already had to make a number of moves to kick off the winter. This offseason is figured to be an interesting one for the franchise with new ownership taking over, which always brings a bit of uncertainty.

Tampa Bay Rays News / Tampa Bay Rays on SI / November 7

Rays All-Star Slugger Seen As Potential Fit for Tigers This Winter

With the offseason starting to heat up for the Tampa Bay Rays, the team has begun the process of shaping what their team is going to look like for 2026. Even though the 2025 campaign might not have finished the way the Rays would have liked, there were a lot of positives to take away from the year.

Tampa Bay Rays News / Last Word On Sports / November 6

Rays Pick Up Contract Options on Two Middle Infielders

The Tampa Bay Rays executed the most straightforward part of their offseason. There will be plenty of difficult decisions in the upcoming months. They picked up the contract options of two infielders, which give them plenty of flexibility in determining the best path forward.

MLB News / New Baseball Media / November 7

2025 Transactions: Lowe & Muncy Have Options Exercised, Fairbanks a Free Agent

Free agency has arrived, and with it came many club option decisions on November 6. The Dodgers retained two major pieces from their 2025 team, while Brandon Lowe — who hit 31 home runs in 2025 — had his team option for 2026 picked up.

Tampa Bay Rays News / Tampa Bay Rays on SI / November 6

2 Rays Prospects Representing American League in Fall Stars Game

The Tampa Bay Rays sent several prospects to participate in the Arizona Fall League this year. And a few of their players have been standout performers thus far in the desert.

MLB News / Yardbarker

The 25 greatest pitching seasons from the modern MLB era

America's favorite pastime has more memorable performances than any sport. As such, figuring out which pitchers had the best seasons ever is no easy task.

Tampa Bay Rays News / MLB on ClutchPoints / November 6

Rays let $11 million closer hit free agency

The Tampa Bay Rays are hoping to evade this shell of mediocrity. This is a team that has been one of the above-average squads in the league over the last decade; however, they only have one World Series appearance to show for it.

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The 'NHL all-time goal leaders' quiz

The 'Rookie TD pass leaders by team' quiz

The '2025 backup NFL quarterbacks' quiz

The 'World Series MVPs' quiz

MLB News / MLB Trade Rumors / November 6

Rays claim Jake Fraley off waivers amid frenzy of roster moves

The Rays claimed outfielder Jake Fraley off waivers from the Braves.

The 25 all-time greatest MLB postseason performers

Tampa Bay Rays News / Tampa Bay Rays on SI / November 6

Rays Shockingly Don't Pick Up Option on Star Relief Pitcher

The Tampa Bay Rays have now started up their offseason, and there has already been a significant amount of news surrounding the team. This is a franchise that got off to a very hot start in 2025 and looked like they were going to be a contender based on their early performance.

Pete Fairbanks News / MLB Trade Rumors / November 6

Rays decline option on reliever Pete Fairbanks

Fairbanks has been one of the better late-game arms in the sport over the past six seasons. He carries a 2.87 earned run average in nearly 250 innings going back to the start of the 2020 season.

Tampa Bay Rays News / MLB on ClutchPoints / November 6

Rays news: Tampa Bay makes option decisions on Taylor Walls, Brandon Lowe

After missing the playoffs for the second straight season, the Tampa Bay Rays are now plotting out their offseason. Those plans started with a pair of crucial contract decisions.

Brandon Lowe News / DRaysBay / November 6

Tampa Bay Rays pick up Brandon Lowe’s option for 2026

An obvious decision has been as the Tampa Bay Rays have picked up Brandon Lowe’s $11.5M option for the 2026 season. Lowe, 31, has proven that when healthy, he is among the top offensive second basemen in all of baseball and he supported that assertion in 2025 as he hit .256/.307/.477 with 31 HR over 553 PA, registering a 114 wRC+.

Taylor Walls News / MLB Trade Rumors / November 6

Rays exercise option on veteran infielder

The Rays and infielder Taylor Walls are in agreement on a deal for the 2026 season.

The offseason needs for every MLB team

The 'Last World Series-winning manager by MLB team' quiz

MLB News / Tampa Bay Rays on SI / November 6

Former MLB Exec Says Rays and Royals Are Perfect Trade Partners for One Simple Reason

The Tampa Bay Rays are going to be active this offseason, seeking upgrades at multiple spots on their roster. One position that they are once again looking to improve is catcher.

Maykel Coret News / DRaysBay / November 6

2025 Draysbay Community Prospect Review: Maykel Coret

Prior to the start of each season, the Draysbay community takes part in an excercise in which the top prospects in the Tampa Bay Rays system are ranked by popular vote.

MLB News / Yardbarker / November 5

Yankees offseason blueprint: Best-case lineup scenario features Bo Bichette, Kyle Tucker

The New York Yankees learned a hard truth this postseason: building an offense around pure power doesn’t always lead to consistent run production. Against elite playoff pitching, that approach often produces more strikeouts than scoring.

Cubs make surprising decision on lefty Shota Imanaga

MLB reveals finalists for major awards

The 25 greatest MLB utility players of all-time

The 'Active 100-RBI MLB season' quiz

Tampa Bay Rays News / Fastball on SI / November 3

Rays Cut Ties With 6 Players In Offseason Roster Shakeup

The Major League Baseball offseason is beginning in earnest, and the Tampa Bay Rays have quickly begun a roster overhaul. Every team typically ends the season with a handful of players on the 60-day injured list.

Tampa Bay Rays News / Fastball on SI / November 3

Rays Grab 3-Year Veteran Outfielder In Puzzling First Trade Of MLB Offseason

We're off to the races with the Major League Baseball offseason. Free agents have officially hit the open market, though they have to wait until Thursday to sign with new teams.

Junior Caminero News / Yardbarker / November 3

Why the Phillies could ditch Alec Bohm and target Rays star Junior Caminero

Entering the offseason, the Philadelphia Phillies must shake things up after running mostly the same roster back for three consecutive years and suffering three straight exits short of the World Series.

The 25 greatest MLB utility players of all-time

Three questions facing the Philadelphia Phillies this offseason

Dream (but realistic) trade targets for every MLB team this offseason

Tampa Bay Rays News / Fastball on SI / November 2

Rays Lose 29-Year-Old Infielder To Free Agency After Short Stint

The Tampa Bay Rays' season has been over for a month at this point, but the offesason business can truly begin later this week. Five days after the World Series concludes (which happened on Sunday), teams can begin signing major league free agents.

Tampa Bay Rays News / Last Word On Sports / October 31

Young Rays Pitcher Could Be a Depth Option or a Real Starter

The Tampa Bay Rays have long been blessed with a deep pitching staff. Think about some of the great hurlers to wear a Rays uniform over the years. David Price.