Carlos Gomez Signs With Tampa Bay Rays, Fantasy Baseball Owners Should Take Note
Carlos Gomez has signed with the Tampa Bay Rays, giving the team additional outfield depth. Rays fans and fantasy baseball owners should now watch Gomez closely during Spring Training, as he may work toward finding a spot in the Opening Day lineup. A report by ESPN came out Sunday, revealing the details of the just-signed contract. There are a lot of bonuses and incentives tied into Gomez’s contract, which lowered the risk for the Rays to give him the one-year deal.
This may be seen as a gamble for the Tampa Bay Rays, but the team may have also landed a trade asset that could come in handy this summer. While Gomez struggled to find a job this offseason, he has proven in the past that he is capable of putting up good power numbers. If he can find that swing which worked so well with the Milwaukee Brewers, he might even earn himself a better contract next winter. Signing with the Rays could give him a shot at doing just that.
The Carlos Gomez contract calls for him to be paid a base salary of $4 million for the 2018 MLB season. He will also earn an additional $100,000 for each games-played threshold that he reaches. Those marks are set at 80, 90, 100, 110, and 120 games played. This gives him a shot at earning an additional $500,000 from the Rays by simply appearing in 120 games this year.
Mallex went 3-for-3, Eovaldi looked sharp. https://t.co/0uNnRsTHI2 #SpringRays pic.twitter.com/PZ1dUup9sr
— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) March 4, 2018
Gomez appeared in 105 games for the Texas Rangers in 2017, notching 426 plate-appearances as the center fielder and designated hitter. He had 41 extra base hits and 13 stolen bases, in addition to leading the league in getting hit by pitches with 19. An above-average defender, Gomez won a Gold Glove while playing for the Milwaukee Brewers in the 2013 season. He also had 61 extra base hits and 40 stolen bases that season.
Injuries and struggles at the plate over the last few seasons caused his stock to take a bit of a hit, especially during his forgettable time with the Houston Astros. Over parts of two seasons with the Astros, he managed to post only a 0.221 batting average to go with only nine home runs.
Carlos Gomez enters the 2018 MLB season at just 32-years-old, showing that he may still have a few years left in front of him. He could be a buy-low option in fantasy baseball leagues, much like the Tampa Bay Rays saw him as a good discount on the free-agent market. Gomez has a shot to become the starting right fielder after the trade of Steven Souza Jr., so he is one player to pay close attention to in the Grapefruit League.
