Rays face tough choices ahead of Tuesday’s 2025 Rule 5 deadline

Tuesday marks the next important day on the offseason calendar and represents a major turning point for all MLB rosters:

Tuesday November 18: Rule 5 Deadline

Eligible minor league players must be added to 40-man rosters by November 18 at 6:00 PM EST or teams risk losing some minor league players in the Rule 5 Draft.

Players 19 or older drafted or signed by 2022 and players 18 or older drafted by 2021 are eligible for this year’s Rule 5 Draft, as are players signed internationally by 2021.

This deadline is practically intended to protect the Rays from losing prospects in the final Rule 5 draft on December 10 by putting them on the 40-man roster. Currently, the Rays roster is full, meaning any additions will require subtractions, and other MLB teams will go through the same process, including pursuing trades.

Last year, the Rays ended up adding two pitchers via the Rule 5 draft; they later traded one to the White Sox, and the other never made the injured list — Nate Lavender was sent back to the Mets this offseason. They also lost one pitcher RHP Evan Reifert to the Nationals, but he was returned during Spring Training.

Here are several players the Rays may consider adding to the 40-man roster before tomorrow’s deadline.

Acquired in exchange for Danny Jansen at the 2025 trade deadline from the Brewers and immediately cemented himself as one of the Rays top position prospects. Before being acquired by the Rays, Areinamo had amassed over 800 plate appearances in High-A, so he was promoted to Double-A Montgomery once activated by his new organization. Over the final two months of the season, Areinamo hit .255/.316/.697 with 4 HR, registering a 111 wRC+ over 159 plate appearances. The soon to be 22 year old Arienamo is currently burning the ball in Venezueala, hitting .337/.400/.685 with 8 HR over 105 PA for the Tiburones de La Guaira; that 8 HR currently leads the league, as does his .685 SLG%.

At the trade deadline, the Rays made the choice to overhaul their catching situation and added a Hunter Feduccia from the Los Angeles Dodgers instead of addressing their needs internally. That could indicate that they believed Keegan wasn’t ready, or that they just really wanted Feduccia, or possibly both. Keegan, a fourth-round draft pick in 2022, is eligible for the Rule 5 draft this offseason and is coming off his worst season as a professional, which still wasn’t that bad as he hit .241/.306/.429 with 10 HR over 297 plate appearances in Triple-A, registering an 89 wRC+ and hitting 56 games this season.

The Blake Snell has one last branch left in the Rays system as the team acquired Tatem Levins from the Seattle Mariners for Blake Hunt after the 2023 season. Levins has been much older than his competitors at every rung of the minor league ladder and was already 22 years old when he was drafted in 2022. He reached Double-A in 2025 and had a career year thanks to a high walk rate. Overall, Levins hit .244/.405/.383, registering a 142 wRC+, which ranked 12th among Double-A hitters with at least 300 PA.

When healthy, Alex Cook was phenomenal. A 12th-round pick in 2022, Cook made his debut in 2023 as a reliever and sliced ​​through opponents. The Rays moved him into a starting role in 2024, but he suffered an injury after eight appearances. Cook returned in 2025 and was brought back to the bullpen where he once again enjoyed success. Since his debut in 2023, Cook has the second-highest K%, third-lowest opponent AVG, seventh-highest WHIFF%, fourth-lowest ERA, second-lowest FIP, and fourth-lowest WHIP in the Rays system among pitchers with at least 100 IP. Cook finished the season in Double-A, compiling a 2.30 ERA | 2.29 FIP over 15.2 IP over 13 outings.

Martin looked like a breakout early in 2024, but a midseason Double-A promotion abruptly cut his prospect status in half. He would be moved to the bullpen and enjoy more success in 2025, even making four appearances in Triple-A by the end of the year. Martin’s future still appears to be in the bullpen, where a plus fastball and slider combination could make him a solid reliever. Overall, Martin compiled a 3.21 ERA in 2025 | 3.74 FIP with a 24.9 K% and 8.6 BB% over 53.1 IP between Montgomery and Durham.

The former Savanana Banana has performed well for Tampa Bay since being drafted in 2021. A true workhorse, Workman has amassed 492.1 IP for the organization, more than 120 innings than the next closest player since 2021. Workman climbed the ladder to Triple-A in 2025, where he registered a 4.02 ERA | 4.73 FIP with a 24.4 K% and 7.2 BB% over 152.1 IP; Workman was one out away from tying the Minor League league lead in the innings he pitched this past season.

During the opening weeks of the 2025 season, Murray made waves with eye-popping exit velocity, but his production never took off and he had the worst season of his career since being selected in the 4th round of the 2020 draft by Tampa Bay. The versatile infielder was coming off a year in which he posted a 122 wRC+ in Double-A. To his credit, Murray hit 18 HR in Triple-A for the Durham Bulls this season, but overall hit .241/.299/.400 with those 18 HR, registering an 81 wRC+ in 572 plate appearances. However, the 26-year-old played all over the diamond, increasing his value to the team as he spent time at 2B, 3B, SS, LF, CF and RF in 2025.

Entering the year, it was simply a matter of staying healthy for Kinney, as he had performed well at every level in the Rays system since being taken with the 34th overall pick in the 2021 draft. Early on, Kinney was among the hottest players in the minor leagues. Kinney had a 206 wRC+ after playing on May 4. His production dropped significantly each month until he suffered an extended slump, as he registered just a 60 wRC+ in his final 211 PA of the season. Overall, Kinney hit .242/.299/.386 with 13 HR as a 22-year-old in Double-A.

Again, the roster is currently filled to the brim, so any additions would have to come at the expense of those already on the Rays 40-man roster. Who do you see the Rays protecting against tomorrow’s deadline?