Rays Release Jake Fraley

The Rays released outfielder Jake Fraley, as reflected on the MLB.com transaction log. Marc Topkin of The Tampa Bay Times first reported that Fraley had declined a minor league assignment, leaving the Rays no choice but to release him. He had been designated for assignment a few days ago.

Fraley is an impending free agent and the season is almost done, so there was little reason to expect a claim, making it unsurprising that he cleared. He has five-plus years of service, giving him the right to reject outright assignments while also keeping his salary commitments intact.

He could have decided to accept so that he would be available to the Rays in the postseason if someone else suffered an injury. He would have become a free agent at the end of the season regardless since he has at least six years of service time. Instead, he has opted for the open market and will get a head start on assessing his options for 2027. He now has the ability to talk to all 30 teams at a time when most players are still prevented from doing so.

He is coming off an injury-marred season but has some good stuff on his track record. From 2021 to 2025, he got into 449 games split between Seattle, Cincinnati and Atlanta. He stepped to the plate 1,491 times and hit .252/.339/.411. That production translated to a wRC+ of 107, indicating he was 7% better than league average at the plate. A left-handed hitter, Fraley did most of his damage with the platoon advantage. He had a .265/.349/.439 line and 116 wRC+ against righty pitchers, with a .184/.281/.250 line and 54 wRC+ against southpaws.

In addition to that work at the plate, he stole 59 bases in 75 tries and lined up at all three outfield slots. Defensive Runs Saved considered him to be a bit below average for that stretch but Outs Above Average had him a bit above par on the whole.

Atlanta put Fraley on waivers in November last year. The Rays claimed him, non-tendered him, and then re-signed him for $3MM. The hope was that his ability to hit righties, play solid defense and run the bases well could make him a solid low-cost addition. That didn’t pan out as Fraley missed several months due to hernia surgery and struggled to perform around that, with a .216/.289/.364 line and 83 wRC+ in 97 plate appearances.

While Fraley was out, the Rays got breakout performances from both Chandler Simpson and Víctor Mesa Jr., which pushed Fraley down the depth chart. He was reinstated from the injured list September 15 but then designated for assignment five days later. The injury-marred nature of his 2026 will hurt Fraley in free agency but teams could be interested in hoping he has a bounceback season in 2027 with better health.