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Tampa Bay Rays have reportedly signed former Padres right-handed pitcher Phil Maton. MLB insider Mark Feinsand first reported this deal between the free-agent pitcher and the Rays.
The Florida-based team's pitching staff needs some really good additions if they want to continue the good run from last season, as they had a 99-win regular season in 2023.
The loss of Tyler Glasnow, along with Robert Stephenson, has left some huge gaps in the Rays' roster, which they will look to fill before the start of the upcoming season.
Maton looks to fit Rays' bill perfectly. In the 2023 season, the pitcher had an ERA of 3.00 in 68 appearances for the Houston Astros. Before that, he played for the San Diego Padres and later for the Cleveland Guardians.
Following the announcement of the news from Feinsand, there has been a huge wave of reactions from the fans.
Fans of the Yankees and Phillies have been pretty distressed with the news of Maton's move to Florida. They have slammed the teams as they seemed to believe that they have been missing out on a lot of players who could have helped them in the 2024 season:
A look into Phil Maton's previous contract with the Astros
Phil Marton has signed as a free agent with the Tampa Bay Rays. Although the exact details of Maton's contract with the Rays are yet to be disclosed, it is reportedly said that the contract is set to be of at least one or two years, as per the rules stipulated for a mid-inning pitcher.
Earlier, during his time with the Astros, the right-arm pitcher signed his first contract extension with the side worth $1.55 million in March 2022 to avoid arbitration.
The MLB star signed his second contract extension worth $2.55 million to avoid his salary arbitration in January 2023. However, later that season, following an elbow injury, the 30-year-old was sent into the team's injured list. And later parted ways with the Astros to become a free agent.
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