In last weekend’s column from Marc Topkin, he strongly suggested that the Rays are not only in the market for a veteran starting pitcher than can project to the starting rotation alongside Shane McClanahan, Drew Rasmussen, Ryan Pepiot, and Shane Baz — he also suggested it might be a familiar name.
The Rays are returning to Tropicana Field in April, and there’s not much certainty about how well it will be renovated by the time the Rays need to move back in ahead of Opening Day. Turning to a veteran player who might already have built good equity with coaches Kevin Cash and Kyle Snyder might be enough to outweigh the odd stadium situation the team finds itself in.
There are three recent veterans named by Topkin, so let’s get into it.
Prior to the start of the 2023 season, the Rays signed Eflin to the largest contract given to a free agent in franchise history and he rewarded them by being one of the best starting pitchers in the game.
Fast forward to now, and you’ll see Eflin just had the worst year of his career in 2025 to finish out that record-breaking contract, but he did it as a member of the Baltimore Orioles as the Rays traded him to Baltimore at the 2024 trade deadline.
Injuries were the main issue for Eflin this year as the 31-year old spent a significant amount of time on the Injured List enduring three separate stints and missed the final two months of the season after undergoing lumbar microdiscectomy surgery in mid-August.
When Eflin did make it back to the mound, the results were lackluster as he registered a 5.93 ERA | 5.64 FIP with a 16.2 K% and a 4.2 BB% over 71.1 IP spread across 14 starts. Would a reunion with 2024’s Opening Day Starter help him right the ship?
There was a time when it looked like Zack Littell might be on his way out of the game as he struggled mightily in the bullpen for the San Francisco Giants in 2022. Then he went through the purgatory that is the waiver wire as he spent time with the Rangers and Red Sox before the Rays claimed him in May, 2023.
Then Littell broke out as a dependable starting pitcher, providing the Rays with 27 quality starts over the next two-plus years (May 2023 – July 2025). Tampa Bay would trade Littell to the Cincinnati Reds at the 2025 trade deadline and Littell would provide more of the same consistency for the Reds as they marched to the postseason.
Overall in 2025, Littell compiled a 3.81 ERA | 4.88 FIP with a 17.1 K% and a 4.2 BB% over 186.2 IP spread across 32 starts. Jim Bowden projects Littell to sign a one-year $10M deal this offseason.
Baseball is a beautiful game. Adrian Houser was enjoying a solid career with the Milwaukee Brewers. Then in December 2023, the Brewers sent Housers to the New York Mets with whom Houser had the worst year of his career, losing his spot in the starting rotation and then being force to take a minor league deal the following offseason.
Houser would eventually find his way to the Chicago White Sox, a team desperate for starting pitching, and was given a spot in the rotation. The 32-year old veteran hurler made his season debut in May and proceeded to be among the more dependable starting pitchers in the game. The White Sox would flip Houser to the Rays at the trade deadline, netting three players in return. During his time with Tampa Bay, Houser didn’t quite replicate his early season success, but there were still yet improvements to be had.
Overall during the 2025 season, Houser compiled a 3.31 ERA | 3.81 FIP with a 17.8 K% & 7.3 BB over 125 IP spread over 21 starts. Jim Bowden projects Houser to sign a one-year $4M deal this offseason, and there the price might be right.
