5 offseason moves Tampa Bay Rays must make after ALDS loss

4. Re-sign Travis d’Arnaud and sign Francisco Cervelli (if available)

Catcher is the weakest position in baseball right now, but the Rays were able to fall into a good one this season when the New York Mets cut Travis d’Arnaud. Now, he was not good in the postseason; he went 2 for 15 in five games, and the Rays ended up sitting him for the final game of the postseason. d’Arnaud was so clutch for most of the season, but when the bright lights came on he came up short.

Still, the Rays aren’t going to go out and spend big money on a catcher in free agency. The prospects that are out there aren’t very good anyway. Signing d’Arnaud would be the smart move. It keeps the locker room together, and it shows the team is willing to reward a guy for a good season.

Francisco Cervelli is an intriguing name for the Rays. Mike Zunino did not have the best season, so we’re not sure if he’s coming back. He’s another player that’s arbitration-eligible, but he hit .165 in 90 games. We get defense matters, but that’s unusable at the plate. The Rays just can’t deal with that.

Cervelli dealt with injury issues, including those caused by concussions. However, he’s awesome behind the plate, he’s only 33 years old and he was pretty good in a little over a dozen games with the Braves at the end of the season. This gives the Rays a one-two punch behind the plate that can deliver defensively too. Maybe d’Arnaud doesn’t play as well as he did this season, but we know he has talent. He can still salvage a nice little career with the Rays.