Breaking Down Excellent First Base Production for Rays in 2025 Season

How was the production at first base for the Tampa Bay Rays in 2025?

Sep 28, 2025; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Tampa Bay Rays designated hitter Jonathan Aranda (62) celebrates in the dugout after scoring a run against the Toronto Blue Jays in the third inning at Rogers Centre. | Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images

As the Tampa Bay Rays get set for the offseason, it is a great time to take a look back at how the team performed in 2025. With a record under .500, that indicates that it was a bit of a struggle for the Rays. However, the record doesn’t tell the whole story about the team. 

In the first half of the year, Tampa Bay looked like a legitimate contender in the American League East and a potential playoff team. This division ended up being one of the best in baseball, and it became just a bit too much for the Rays to keep up with during the summer. 

Unfortunately, with Tampa Bay being displaced from their home stadium, MLB had to frontload their schedule a bit with a plethora of home games early on. This resulted in the team having to play a lot of road games in the dog days of the summer, and that’s precisely when they started to struggle. 

Even though they ended up finishing eight games under .500, there were some positives to take away from the campaign, one of which was the production that they received from the first base position and the outlook for it going forward. 

First Base Has Become a Strength

Kevin Sousa-Imagn Images

In 2025, the emergence of Jonathan Aranda was a major bright spot for the franchise with the slugger taking over primary duties of first base. This season, he slashed 316/.393/.489 with 14 home runs and 59 RBI in 102 games played. After showing some signs in 2024 that he might be ready to take the next step, he really improved. 

The 27-year-old was selected to his first All-Star team in the AL, and it was well-deserved. Going forward, Aranda has been able to firmly establish himself as the first baseman for the team. While his offensive numbers were impressive, he was excellent defensively as well, making him the complete package at the position. 

While it was mostly Aranda at first base, Yandy Diaz also saw a significant amount of time at the position. Even though his defensive abilities weren’t as good as Aranda's, he was an excellent offensive player for the team, some of which came while playing first. 

Overall, the production that the team received from the position was really good in 2025, and the injury in the second half of the year to Aranda certainly negatively impacted the team. Going forward, while Aranda is going to be a staple at the position, Diaz’s future with the team might be a bit more uncertain.