Rays' Slugger With Undefined Role Shockingly Predicted To Have Breakout Season

Will a surprise slugger have a breakout role for the Tampa Bay Rays?

Aug 16, 2025; San Francisco, California, USA; A Tampa Bay Rays helmet sits in the dugout before the game against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park. | Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

With the start of spring training nearly here for the Tampa Bay Rays, the team will be using the spring to figure out some positional battles and what their roster is going to look like. 

It was a very busy winter for the Rays, and they have a lot of new faces in the mix for 2026. Following missing the playoffs each of the past two seasons, it should come as no surprise that the team was aggressive in making moves. 

However, with payroll still being low despite new ownership, it is going to be a balancing act for the franchise for the next couple of years, it seems, until their new stadium is done. With that being said, they will continue to try to find some diamonds in the rough and players that perhaps have underachieved with other teams and provide them with a chance to succeed. 

Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report recently predicted that Rays’ slugger Justyn-Henry Malloy would have a breakout season despite his role not being defined yet. 

Malloy Breakout Would Be Surprising

Detroit Tigers first baseman Justyn-Henry Malloy | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

This is certainly an interesting choice for a player on the team to break out, especially when looking at the outfield as a whole. This winter, Tampa Bay was focused on improving their offensive production from the unit and they really shook things up. 

Chandler Simpson is going to be one of the key pieces that is returning, and he very well could be their leadoff hitter. With a nice mix of being able to hit for contact and elite ability to steal bases, he figures to be the starter in left field. 

In center field, the team signed Cedric Mullins to a one-year deal. The former All-Star is coming off a really bad second half of the season, but the hope will be for him to bounce back. 

Furthermore, another free agent addition for the team was Jake Fraley in right field. As a left-handed slugger, this position appears to be where Malloy will be able to get his at-bats in a potential platoon role. 

However, one of their top prospects, Jacob Melton, is also a right-handed slugger, and he could make a push for the Opening Day roster with a good spring. If that happens, it’s hard to imagine that Malloy would be on the roster. Overall, while he has some potential, a breakout campaign from the slugger seems a bit unlikely at this point without a defined role. 

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