AL East Power Rankings after Yankees land Juan Soto and more
By Curt Bishop
4. Tampa Bay Rays
The Rays enjoyed yet another solid season, winning 99 games and securing the top Wild Card berth in the American League. However, they took a few hits along the way, losing their ace Shane McClanahan to Tommy John surgery.
On top of that, after being swept by the eventual World Series champion Texas Rangers in the Wild Card Series, they are expected to trade right-hander Tyler Glasnow.
Typically, when the Rays make deals with other teams, they make sure to acquire Major League-ready talent to bolster their roster. The Rays could very well do that in a Glasnow trade.
However, until we know more about what the Rays will do and who they will acquire in the impending Glasnow trade, it's tough to see them being able to stay afloat in a stacked division, even with all of the young studs they have on the roster.
They also are dealing with the ongoing Wander Franco situation and don't have somebody to fill the void at shortstop, as the expectation is that Franco will not play in 2024.
For now, we'll rank the Rays as the fourth-place team in the AL East. That could always change.