Tale of the Tape Breakdown: Playoff Contenders, Mariners vs Rays 

Mariners v Rays: Why the Rays are a threat

Despite some serious concerns about the direction Tampa Bay is going, there is still a lot to be excited about going into this season. First off, I commend them for not pulling an Oakland Athletics style teardown. Despite the difficulty of their division, the Rays held pat for the most part. They did trade 1st baseman Ji-Man Choi to Pittsburgh, and they signed pitcher Zach Eflin to a 3 year $40 million dollar deal to bolster their rotation. 

The Eflin deal was one of the largest free agent contracts in team history and continues to build a nice depth around this team that should easily keep them around a .500 record. While Tampa should be a solid team, the Rays will only go as far as their stars can take them.

Yandy Diaz and Randy Arozarena are underrated stars in the lineup, but they need another elite bat to give them a real shot to jump a team like the Mariners. Shortstop Wander Franco can be that guy. Franco only played 83 games after a fractured hamate bone in his right wrist. When healthy, Franco looked like the young franchise shortstop he has been paid to be. The Rays need him healthy to be great.

Much like the lineup, the pitching of Tampa Bay leans heavily on decent depth around superstar talent. Their playoff and championship hopes start with star pitcher Shane McClanahan. The all-star finished 6th in the Cy Young voting and is primed for a massive 3rd year in the league. If they can get some form of a healthy Tyler Glasnow, they have two all-star caliber pitchers to go with the wacky rotation and bullpen that Tampa Bay is known for.

So… The Rays or the Mariners?

As we just talked about, health is a major key when talking about the Rays chances of being a true threat to the Seattle Mariners. Anytime a baseball hitter has an injury that is connected to his wrist, it is very concerning. In 8 games in Spring Training, Franco looked healthy, brought the level of star power that has him in WBC, and was primed for a big season.

While Franco's health is encouraging, the health of Glasnow continues to be discouraging. Last week Glasnow was diagnosed with an oblique strain, and will be out for 6-8 weeks. Considering he'll be out almost two months before really getting ramped up, it could be a long time until Tampa Bay sees him on the mound. While Tampa is viewed as a deep pitching staff, there's definitely something to missing your #2 starter for a third of the season.

Despite the potential loss of Glasnow for an extended period of time, I still view this team as a serious threat to the Mariners, more so than teams like the Rangers and Angels. While the Yankees, Blue Jays, and Orioles are getting a lot of love, and the Red Sox are getting buried, the Rays are going to be quietly good.

When comparing Tampa to the Mariners, I think there's a lot of similarities. Really good rotations, solid bullpens, above average depth, and a rising superstar to lead them. When sizing these teams up for a potential ALDS or ALCS series, I think that the rotation of Seattle's is two starters stronger than Tampa's, maybe even three if Glasnow is not playing. I also feel more confident in an offensive core of Julio, France, Suarez and Hernandez over the trio of Franco, Diaz and Arozarena.

While Tampa and their style truly makes me nervous, I still believe the Mariners are the better team, and will come out victorious.

Tale of the Tape Winner: Seattle Mariners