Sitting atop the American League with a 62-43 mark, the Tampa Bay Rays are expected to augment their team ahead of Monday’s trade deadline.
After reports surfaced earlier in the month that the team has interest in Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal, FanSided’s Robert Murray reported on Tuesday that Los Angeles Angels shortstop Zach Neto and New York Mets righty Freddy Peralta. The former is under team control for three more seasons while the latter will be a free agent this offseason.
Though the Rays’ rotation - currently consisting of Nick Martinez, Shane McClanahan, Drew Rasmussen, Griffin Jax and Ian Seymour - is one of the better ones in the league, Murray notes that the injury histories of McClanahan and Rasmussen are front of mind and bolstering starting pitching depth is of primary concern. With Peralta’s deal prorating to around $3 million over the remainder of the season, any financial commitments won’t be onerous.
Acquired in the offseason from the Milwaukee Brewers with whom he spent the first eight seasons of his career, Peralta has struggled with the Mets and talks of an extension that were prevalent at the start of the season have all but dried up at this point.
The 30-year-old native of Moca, Dominican Republic has started 22 games for the team in 2026. He’s 5-9 with a career-worst 4.99 earned run average and 1.478 WHIP, also the worst mark in his career, over 113.2 innings pitched. He’s struck out 113 batters and walked 48. A two-time All-Star, Peralta finished fourth in National League Cy Young Award voting in 2025.
Neto, 25, is in his fourth big league season. The 13th overall selection of the 2022 MLB Amateur Draft is batting .235 with 96 hits, 19 home runs, 46 runs batted in and a .766 OPS. The Miami native is expected to be a hot commodity ahead of the deadline, but there is no guarantee the Halos will move the player.
The Rays open a three-game set with the AL West-leading Texas Rangers (54-52) on Tuesday night at Tropicana Field
