Aug 16, 2025; San Francisco, California, USA; A Tampa Bay Rays helmet sits in the dugout before the game against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park. Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

How the Rays Are Actually Building the 2026 Roster

Originally posted on Tampa Bay Rays on SI
By Nick Ziegler | Last updated Feb 22, 2026 7:00 AM ET

With spring training underway for the Tampa Bay Rays, the team will be working on finalizing how the roster is going to look for Opening Day.

It was a very busy offseason for the Rays, who will be seeking to snap a little bit of playoff drought over the last couple of years. The American League East is going to be really challenging, and Tampa Bay will need some things to go right in order to compete.

Unfortunately, the team doesn't have the payroll to spend on free agents like the other teams. However, that didn’t stop them from being very active in trying to make improvements.

This winter, the team made a number of free agent signings to help for 2026, but they also made some trades with an eye toward the future. Finding this type of balance is key for the franchise, and they have reshaped the roster quite a bit. During spring training, there are a few spots that will have some position battles, but this will still be a team that will be trying to compete.

How Will the Roster Look?

This winter, there were a number of significant decisions that the team made, and they had a focus on improving the starting rotation and the outfield. In the rotation, they did elect to trade away Shane Baz in a somewhat surprising decision. However, they received a fantastic return in terms of new prospects coming into the system.

Furthermore, in order to solidify the unit, they signed Steven Matz and Nick Martinez. The two veterans will provide them with some depth to the unit, and the team undoubtedly will hope that a prospect or two can make an impact in the majors.

For the outfield, this was a unit that was not good offensively in 2025, and they added multiple players who they hope will change that. In free agency, they added Cedric Mullins and Jake Fraley. Also, in the trade that sent Brandon Lowe to the Pittsburgh Pirates, they were able to add a potential impact prospect in Jacob Melton. The young prospect got some playing time with the Houston Astros in 2025 and could be in the mix.

When looking at the roster, the outfield feels like the spot where some players could be fighting for roster spots. With all of the new faces, there figures to be some platoons established early on. The real x-factor will be how Melton performs this spring. If he is ready to be in the majors on Opening Day, it could really shakeup how the roster is going to be built.

This article first appeared on Tampa Bay Rays on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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