Rays acquire reliever Wells from Orioles for former Baltimore prospect

DENVER -- Having already addressed their rotation and their lineup, the Rays turned to a familiar foe -- and trade partner -- to shore up their bullpen before Monday’s Trade Deadline.

Tampa Bay acquired right-handed reliever Tyler Wells from the Orioles in exchange for pitching prospect Michael Forret, adding another talented arm to their relief corps. It’s been about 13 months since Tampa Bay struck gold by plucking Bryan Baker from Baltimore’s ‘pen, and the club is hoping for similar results with Wells, who is expected to join the team at Coors Field on Tuesday.

TRADE DETAILS
Rays get: RHP Tyler Wells
Orioles get: RHP Michael Forret (TB's No. 8 prospect; now BAL No. 6)

Wells put together a 2.67 ERA and a 0.96 WHIP with 53 strikeouts in 54 innings over 43 appearances for Baltimore during his first full season as a reliever. The 31-year-old should slot into the back end of Tampa Bay’s bullpen, joining right-hander Kevin Kelly and lefties Garrett Cleavinger and Cam Booser as late-inning options in front of Baker, the All-Star closer.

Manager Kevin Cash said Wells received a strong endorsement from former Orioles manager Brandon Hyde, who is now part of Tampa Bay’s baseball operations department, and Baker offered similar words of support.

“He's made a seamless transition to the bullpen. I know he was kind of in that starter role for a while, and just whenever he maintains health, he's going to be a good big league pitcher,” Baker said. “It'll be good to reunite with Tyler and get him over here and see what we can do with him. I think he's obviously had a really good year, and I think we can build on that, for sure.”

The Rays have seen plenty of Wells from across the field over the years, and they have long admired his stuff. He still has a starter’s arsenal with five different pitches, but he’s leaned mostly on his fastball, cutter and changeup. It’s probably no surprise Wells throws a quality changeup, given the Rays’ affinity for the pitch.

“The fastball-changeup combo is there, and I think we seem to be a staff that really likes that combo,” said a smiling Baker, who has found success the same way. “I think we'll probably see some changeups out of him, but he's got a lot of stuff that goes with it, too. … I'm excited to see him and let him get settled in over here like I did last year.”

Cash noted that Wells has relatively neutral platoon splits, and in fact this season he’s been even better against left-handed hitters (.516 OPS) than right-handers (.740 OPS). The 6-foot-8, 270-pound righty is a physically imposing presence, and he comes with an additional year of club control after this season.

“Talking to Brandon Hyde over the last couple of days and weeks about the potential and seeing if he was available, he spoke really highly of him,” Cash said. “I know he's dealt with some injuries, but he's put together a really solid season this year, so definitely will add to our bullpen.”

In return, the Rays parted with Forret, who was their No. 8 prospect according to MLB Pipeline, the highest-ranked Minor Leaguer they dealt during this Deadline season. Forret will find himself in a familiar environment, as he joined the Rays from the Orioles as part of the offseason trade for starter Shane Baz.

President of baseball operations Erik Neander said his familiarity with Orioles counterpart Mike Elias played a part in the negotiations, although he could appreciate the irony of essentially reversing the acquisition of Forret.

“Mike's a straight shooter, very similar in that way. We needed a reliever. They had one. They liked a starter they had familiarity with, and we made the swap,” Neander said. “You get on the horn, and you figure out what they're looking to do, what we're looking to do, and this time it meant sending Michael Forret, who's a really good starting pitcher prospect, back to the team where he started.”