Portrait » The Tampa Bay Rays clearly see something in Yandy Diaz

.They jumped in as a third team in the trade that sent slugger Edwin Encarnacion from Cleveland to Seattle in exchange for Carlos Santana Aaron Judge Jersey , with their part in the deal as follows:To TB:DH Yandy Diaz, RP Cole Sulser;To CLE: 1B/OF Jake Bauers;To SEA:$5 million;Mandy Bell of MLB.com attempted to explain Tampa Bay's interest:"Of 504 players over the last two seasons -- those who've made contact at least 100 times --Aaron Judge's 54.6-percent hard-hit rate is No. 1. Diaz ranks 19th at 47.6 percent.So why has Diaz hit one home run in 265 at-bats? Because he has the eighth-lowest launch angle and 25th-highest ground-ball rate. If the Rays can get him to elevate the ball, they could have a star."Regardless of the upside, Bauers was a steep price to pay.The 23-year-old ranked amongtop 100 prospects at the start of the 2016 (No. 78), 2017 (No. 70) and 2018 (No. 45) seasons. In his first taste of MLB action, he posted a 94 OPS+ with 22 doubles, 11 home runs and 48 RBI in 388 plate appearances while showing the defensive versatility to play first base and both corner outfield spots.The $5 million sent to Seattle is also nothing to sneeze at for a team that had a total payroll of just $68.8 million in 2018.If Diaz doesn't successfully change his approach and Bauers develops into the player he was always expected to be, this could be one the Rays really regret.Cleveland Indians: Trading C Yan Gomes to Cut Cost7 of 7David Maxwell/Getty ImagesBuster Olney of ESPN reported at the start of the offseason that the Cleveland Indians were facing "market constraints" and open to the idea of moving some of their high-priced veterans.The first to go was catcher Yan Gomes on Nov. 30.Despite a bounce-back season at the plate and a reasonable $7.1 million salary in 2019, he wassent to the Washington Nationals for right-hander Jefry Rodriguez, outfielder Daniel Johnson and shortstop Andruw Monasterio.In a bubble Gleyber Torres Jersey , it was a successful money-saving move.However, the moves that have been made since have rendered it unnecessary.After swapping Edwin Encarnacion for Carlos Santana and trading Yonder Alonso to the White Sox for a prospect, the small amount of payroll space created by the Gomes trade is hardly worth the hole it's created at the catcher position.Light-hitting Roberto Perez (210 PA, .168 BA, 41 OPS+) and Mets castoff Kevin Plawecki (277 PA, .210 BA, 94 OPS+) now make up the catching tandem, with 26-year-old prospect Eric Haase also on the 40-man roster.By comparison, Gomes hit .266/.313/.449 with 16 home runs and 48 RBI for a 103 OPS+ last season while also earning his first All-Star appearance and posting 2.6 WAR.Taking it a step further, the decision to trade catching prospect Francisco Mejia last summer for reliever Brad Hand has left the Indians without a long-term solution at the position. That makes the 2020 ($9 million) and 2021 ($11 million) club options that Gomes has all the more difficult to lose.All stats courtesy of Baseball Reference and FanGraphs Tyler Austin Jersey , unless otherwise noted. Philadelphia Phillies (11-7, first in the NL East) vs. Colorado Rockies (7-12, fifth in the NL West)Denver; Friday, 8 p.m. EDTPITCHING PROBABLES: Phillies: Vince Velasquez (0-0, 2.25 ERA, 0.75 WHIP, 8 strikeouts) Rockies: German Marquez (0-1, 2.00 ERA, 0.70 WHIP, 25 strikeouts)LINE: Rockies favored by 1 1/2 runs; over/under is 10 runsBOTTOM LINE: Colorado enters the matchup as winners of their last four games.The Rockies are 1-5 in home games. Colorado has a team on-base percentage of .274 http://www.yankeesfanproshop.com/authentic-giancarlo-stanton-jersey , led by Trevor Story with a mark of .321.The Phillies are 3-3 in road games. Philadelphia has hit 27 home runs this season, ninth in the National League. Maikel Franco leads the club with six, averaging one every 10 at-bats.TOP PERFORMERS: Nolan Arenado leads the Rockies with 12 RBIs and is batting .263. Ian Desmond is 7-for-36 with three doubles, a home run and six RBIs over the last 10 games for Colorado.Franco leads the Phillies with 18 RBIs and is batting .233. Rhys Hoskins is 8-for-40 with three doubles, three home runs and five RBIs over the last 10 games for Philadelphia.LAST 10 GAMES: Rockies: 4-6, .225 batting average, 3.74 ERA, outscored by two runsPhillies: 5-5, .240 batting average, 4.97 ERA Miguel Andujar Jersey , outscored by seven runsRockies Injuries: Chris Rusin: 10-day IL (back), Jake McGee: 10-day IL (knee), Tyler Anderson: 10-day IL (knee), Noel Cuevas: 10-day IL (quad), Daniel Murphy: 10-day IL (finger), Chris Iannetta: 10-day IL (lat).Phillies Injuries: David Robertson: 10-day IL (elbow), Tommy Hunter: 60-day IL (arm), Odubel Herrera: 10-day IL (hamstring), Jean Segura: day-to-day (hamstring).