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Rays Lay Groundwork For Deals

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 7, 2007

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Rays' winter meetings contingent headed for the airport around lunchtime Thursday after making one significant move this week and laying the groundwork for deals still to come.

The Rays got their action in early, ridding themselves of Elijah Dukes by dealing him to the Nationals as the meetings got under way Monday. Their remaining time was spent pondering trade and free-agent possibilities with varying degrees of success.

"All in all, we were able to advance the ball on some discussions we were having and ran into some dead ends on others," Rays executive vice president Andrew Friedman said before departing. "We'll get home tonight, go through our notes and continue active dialogue with the clubs and free agents that we feel like we're the best fit with."

The Rays are still seeking a left-handed hitter capable of playing right field, a super-utility type, a reliever (preferably left-handed) and perhaps a veteran catcher.

There were indications Thursday that the Rays have become more serious in their pursuit of free-agent C Michael Barrett, despite the fact that signing him would require Tampa Bay to forfeit its second-round pick in next June's draft to the Padres as compensation.

At the same time, the Rays fell out of contention for LHP Ron Mahay, who reportedly is down to two finalists - the Yankees and Royals.

The days following the winter meetings typically are a hotbed of activity, as deals that were discussed at the meetings are hammered out once teams are back at their home bases.

"We have enough conversations going that something could happen relatively quickly with just a little bit of momentum, so it's hard to place odds on it," Friedman said. "We've got some targets both trade-wise and free agent-wise that if things line up for us, we'll be aggressive."

There also will be an influx of players to the free-agent pool Wednesday, the final day for teams to offer contracts to their own players for 2008. The Rays may wait and see if they can fill some of their holes with players who have been non-tendered.

ONE YEAR FOR PENA?: Agent Scott Boras said he doesn't expect 1B Carlos Pena to get a multiyear deal from the Rays this offseason.

Boras told the Tribune early Thursday that he expects to go through the usual arbitration process with Pena, who made $1.2 million in 2007 and can't become a free agent until after the 2009 season.

"He's got two years to go before he's a free agent, and normally those types of situations are one where they end up doing a one-year deal," said Boras, who added that he would be "all ears" if the Rays came up with a longer-term proposal he found suitable.

Pena said last week that he's content to let the contract negotiations play out and see what happens.

"To be honest with you, I just trust," Pena said. "I'm an optimistic person and I'm particularly optimistic about this situation. I think both Scott and Andrew know how much I appreciate this town and being part of the Rays. Having said that, they also know what the market's all about. I know that they are the architects of all this, so I just leave it in their hands. Whichever way it comes out, I know it's going to be a positive thing."

QUIET DRAFT DAY: For the second consecutive year, the Rays sold the top pick in the Rule 5 draft in a prearranged deal. The Rays selected RHP Tim Lahey from the Twins and sold him to the Cubs for about $150,000 - a profit of $100,000 after the Rays paid the $50,000 selection fee.

The Rays did lose a player as Pittsburgh took RHP Evan Meek with the second pick in the draft. Meek, 24, was 2-1 with a 4.30 ERA in 45 relief appearances for Montgomery last season. He must remain on the Pirates' big-league roster all of next season or be offered back to the Rays for $25,000.

The Rays selected three players in the Triple-A phase of the draft, plucking OF Rashad Eldridge from the Twins, RHP Julio Puentes from the Astros and RHP Jorge Angel Mejias from the Mets. Eldridge hit .291 with seven homers for Double-A New Britain last year, while Puentes and Mejias put up solid numbers in the Venezuelan Summer League.

NEW GIG: There will be a new face at the St. Petersburg offices of Minor League Baseball. Former Astros general manager Tim Purpura is the minors' new executive vice president and chief operating officer. Purpura will start his new job in January.

Marc Lancaster

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