Tampa Bay has already had a pretty active offseason following the departures of Andrew Friedman and Joe Maddon, and now Jon Morosi of FOXSports.com writes that “there’s a decent chance” the Rays trade Ben Zobrist before Opening Day.
Zobrist has been a regular for the Rays since 2008, playing all over the field defensively while hitting .270 with solid power and good plate discipline for an .804 OPS. He’s generally been one of the most underrated all-around players in baseball.
But he’s also 34 years old, set to make $7.5 million in 2015, and eligible for free agency next offseason. All of which is why the Rays may look to cash in Zobrist to a team in need of a good switch-hitter who can slide into the lineup at basically any position.
Morosi lists the Mets, Nationals, Cubs, Mariners, Rangers, Reds, and Giants as the most likely interested teams.