Rays reportedly 'pessimistic' about signing ace Jacob deGrom

Fans of the Tampa Bay Rays may want to stop dreaming of seeing ace Jacob deGrom join the club this fall or winter. 

After it was reported Tuesday that the Rays have spoken with deGrom’s camp since the start of free agency, The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal noted that officials for the American League club "are pessimistic about their chances" of winning the 34-year-old's signature. 

It's believed deGrom could ultimately sign a contract that carries an average annual value of over $40 million, and Rosenthal pointed out that "such an amount would represent about half the Rays' club-record $83.9 million payroll in 2022." 

All may not be lost for Tampa Bay, however, due to an emotional aspect of possible negotiations. 

"Their appeal to deGrom could include the opportunity to pitch in his native Florida, a state that does not charge income tax, as well as the chance to work under one of the game’s top pitching coaches, Kyle Snyder," Rosenthal said of a Rays team that financially could be outbid by the other sides previously linked with the two-time National League Cy Young Award winner. 

SNY's Andy Martino said Tuesday that the New York Mets have had contact with deGrom about staying put on a new deal. Martino also named the Rays, Texas Rangers, and New York Yankees as clubs that have reached out to the right-hander. 

The Rangers reportedly aren't confident they'll land deGrom, and the Yankees are all-in on doing just about whatever possible to hold onto reigning AL Most Valuable Player Aaron Judge. While the Atlanta Braves were mentioned as a potential future home for deGrom as far back as this summer, it's since been said that it's "highly unlikely" the Mets' main division rival will sign him. 

Earlier this week, Martino explained during an appearance on SNY's "Baseball Night in New York" why the Mets re-signing deGrom appears more likely than it may have seemed shortly after he opted out of his contract.

"I will say that I think this is breaking in the Mets' favor a little bit," Martino remarked about deGrom's free agency, per Mike Rosenstein of NJ Advance Media for NJ.com. "We have not seen teams step up at the level the Mets are willing to be, which we’ve said before, is clearly three years. I don’t think the Mets would go four. But I think other teams, rightly, view deGrom as a big risk. 

"I mean, he’s not Corey Kluber of a couple of years ago. But other teams see him a little bit in that category, like hey, you take a flier on him. Whereas he’s very important to the Mets. They’ll go that three years and no one seems to be stepping up right now. So the confidence on the Mets' part in being able to get him definitely feels to me like it’s increasing."