The 29-year-old Woodford was a first-round pick by the Cardinals in the 2015 draft but didn’t make his MLB debut until the shortened 2020 season. He struggled to a 5.57 ERA as a relief long in his rookie year, but had better results in 2021 and ’22 with a respectable 3.26 ERA and 3.93 FIP in 116 total innings of work in those two campaigns. That said, his peripheral numbers weren’t all that impressive. He struck out just 15.4% of his opponents while walking 7.5%. He did manage to make up for the lack of strikeouts by serving grounders at a steady 45.8% clip, but the magic disappeared in 2023 when he was crushed to the tune of a 6.23 ERA before being undrafted by the Cardinals this offseason.
Since leaving St. Louis, Woodford has become a journeyman, jumping from team to team without staying with one organization for long. In 2024, he split his time at the big league level between the White Sox and Pirates organizations, but was worked to a 7.97 ERA in 35 innings despite a more manageable 4.94 FIP. After being cut by Pittsburgh, he joined the Rockies last offseason but failed to break camp with the club and found himself back on the market on opening day. From there he moved on to the Yankees and Cubs organizations, but never made it to the majors with either club.
Woodford’s return to the major leagues came this year with the Diamondbacks, but he didn’t make the most of the opportunity. The right-hander made 22 appearances in Arizona but struggled, posting a 6.44 ERA in 36 1/3 innings and a strikeout rate of just 13.5%. Arizona ultimately designated Woodford for assignment in late September, and he opted for free agency shortly after the end of the 2025 campaign.
Now Woodford is headed to one of the top teams in the league for pitching development as he looks to turn his career around. The Rays are known for their constant roster turnover and their ability to turn otherwise unknown pitchers into valuable pieces. It would hardly be a shock if they were able to unlock something with Woodford and help the right-hander get back on track, though Tampa has typically had more success unlocking weapons with high strikeout potential, such as Edwin Uceta And Robert Stephenson. Either way, Woodford will enter the spring with a chance to compete with arms for a long relief job in the bullpen Yoendrys Gomez And Joe Boyle.
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