The Rays swapped Josh Lowe for Gavin Lux as part of last night’s three-team trade. President of baseball operations Erik Neander discussed the move with Marc Topkin of The Tampa Bay Times after it was finalized this morning.
Neander indicated the Rays were likely to narrow Lux’s defensive focus to his traditional second base position. The former top prospect worked in a utility role with Cincinnati last year, only starting 16 games at the keystone. He spent the majority of his defensive work in left field and started more games at designated hitter than any individual position.
“In our opinion, second base is his best position, and he plays it at his best when the entirety of his time is focused there,” Neander told Topkin. “The way things played out in Cincinnati last year, there was more opportunity in left field, more DH, more pinch-hit, a little bit of second base, but his work was not focused at second base. I think Gavin is someone that we can give him some clarity that, ‘Hey, second base, put your work in there, build your routines there, prepare for that, and basically that only.’ And I think that’s how we’re going to get the best out of him.”
Lux has played more second base than any other position in his career. He graded as a slightly above-average gloveman by both Defensive Runs Saved and Outs Above Average between 2019-22. Lux missed the entire ’23 season with a torn ACL. The Dodgers initially planned to move him up the defensive spectrum to shortstop when he returned. They scrapped that when he struggled with his throwing accuracy during Spring Training. Lux’s arm is less of an issue on the right side of the infield, but his overall defensive grades have dipped in the last two years.
The Rays apparently feel that last year’s metrics are attributable to the multi-position role. Committing to Lux as an everyday second baseman would have trickle-down effects for the rest of the roster. That probably locks Taylor Walls in at shortstop to open the season, allowing them to send Carson Williams back to Triple-A to work through contact concerns.
Richie Palacios had been the in-house favorite for second base playing time after the Brandon Lowe trade. He’s most adversely impacted by the acquisition of Lux, who has a similar skillset. They’re each left-handed bats whose games are built around strong on-base ability despite limited power. Palacios hit well in a tiny sample last year but was limited to 17 games by a pair of injuries — a broken right ring finger and a more significant knee sprain that cost him the bulk of the season.
Palacios still has a minor league option and could head to Triple-A for another season. His best path to MLB playing time now is probably in the corner outfield. Palacios has played nearly 500 innings as a left fielder over parts of four MLB campaigns. The Rays have a wide open outfield around Cedric Mullins, who is likely to be the everyday center fielder. Jake Fraley, Jonny DeLuca, Chandler Simpson, Justyn-Henry Malloy, Ryan Vilade and trade pickup Jacob Melton will also compete for playing time. Fraley, Palacios, Simpson and Melton are all left-handed hitters.
