Left-hander Steven Matz and the Tampa Bay Rays agreed to a two-year contract, pending a physical, sources told ESPN’s Jeff Passan on Monday night.
Matz finished this past season with Boston after the Red Sox acquired him from the St. Louis Cardinals the night before the MLB trade deadline.
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Matz, 34, has experience starting and relieving, although the bulk of his work was out of the bullpen in 2025. Of his 53 appearances with Boston and St. Louis, 51 came out of the bullpen, with both of his starts coming for the Cardinals. He had a 3.05 ERA in 76⅔ innings, striking out 59 while holding left-handers to a .211 batting average.
Matz spent his first six major league seasons with the New York Mets, who used him primarily as a starter, then spent a year with the Toronto Blue Jays before signing as a free agent with St. Louis in 2021.
Matz’s best season was in 2021, when his 14 wins for Toronto were the second most in the American League.
The Tampa Bay Times first reported Matz’s agreement with the Rays.
