The Tampa Bay Rays continue to make moves to try to get back to the American League's elite this offseason after a disappointing 2024 campaign that saw them miss the playoffs for the first time since 2018. An injury to Shane McClanahan and the Wander Franco fiasco took two very important pieces away from the team, and the Rays didn't have enough bats in the end to compete with the best of the best.
The Rays made a move to address that need on Monday morning. Tampa Bay made a move to sign former Chicago White Sox slugger Eloy Jimenez, according to Jesse Rogers of ESPN.
“News: DH Eloy Jimenez and the Tampa Bay Rays are in agreement on a minor league deal, sources tell ESPN,” Rogers reported on X, formerly Twitter. “Jimenez, 28, played for the White Sox and Orioles this year and hopes to rebuild his career with a Rays team that has high aspirations in the American League East.”
Jimenez won't start the season in the Major Leagues most likely, but this is a smart flier for the Rays to take on a player who was once recognized as a promising young hitter. If he is able to perform at the minor league level, Jimenez will get the chance to come up and prove it in Tampa Bay.
Jimenez's career got off to a fast start with the White Sox in 2019 when he hit 31 home runs and drove in 79 runs in just 122 games, earning American League Rookie of the Year consideration. He followed that up with another solid year in 2020, where he hit .296 with 14 home runs and 41 RBI's in the COVID-shortened season on his way to Silver Slugger honors.
Since then, however, Jimenez has seen his production fall off drastically. After a disappointing 2021, Jimenez put up decent numbers in 2022, but his season was held back by injuries. He then played poorly in 2023 before the White Sox traded him to the Baltimore Orioles during the 2024 season.
Both before and after the trade, Jimenez had the worst season of his career in 2024. In 98 games, he hit just .238 with six home runs and 23 RBI's. He finished the year with a negative-0.7 WAR, his first negative WAR season of his career. He will now get a chance to turn things around with the Rays in 2025.