Rays Agree to Deal with Nathan Eovaldi

As of Sunday, it has become official that the Tampa Bay Rays have agreed to a one-year deal. It has been reported that the deal will include Eovaldi being paid $2 million this upcoming season, as well as a team option in 2018.

After an elbow injury, Eovaldi will be forced to miss the entire 2017 season for the Rays, as he will deal with rehab. The Rays will pay the small cap hit for Eovaldi to undergo rehab, and will hope to see him on the mound in the 2018 season. 

The 27-year old has been elite when it comes to throwing the 100-mph fastball, but besides that, has struggled to provide diversity in his pitches for his past teams. 

In his last eight appearances with the Yankees, Eovaldi has gone 3-2 with a 2.67 ERA. He was originally dealt to the Yankees from the Dodgers in return for Martin Prado and David Phelps. 

The Rays finished 29th in the MLB when it came to wins last season, so don’t be shocked if the Rays choose to keep Eovaldi through the 2018 season as a #3 or #4 pitcher. 

Eovaldi is the type of player that can be relied on the mound for 4.0-6.2 innings, so the Rays will be forced to develop their bullpen a bit more if they want to help keep Eovaldi off the mound. 

Overall, this is a low risk, high reward that the Rays are making, and I would have done the same thing if I were in their shoes.