LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- No blockbuster trades took place for the Rays at Major League Baseball's 2017 Winter Meetings, but the path has likely been paved for the team to trade some of its more notable players.
Tampa Bay kept busy this week, executing a trade each of the first three days of the Meetings.
• On Day 1 of Meetings, Rays acquire Wendle
On Monday, the Rays traded a player to be named to the A's for infielder Joey Wendle. They traded a Minor League prospect to the Padres for slugging infielder Ryan Schimpf on Tuesday. And on Wednesday, they acquired international slot money by trading left-hander Anthony Misiewicz to the Mariners.
• Rays acquire int'l slot money in deal with M's
That money proved to be a valuable tool in signing 16-year-old Dominican shortstop Jelfry Marte. Tampa Bay and Marte agreed to a contract on Monday.
• Rays sign int'l SS prospect Marte
What's next
Rumors and speculations have been constant about the possibilities of trading the likes of Chris Archer, Alex Colome and Jake Odorizzi. Tampa Bay needs to cut payroll, and the club also must decide whether it wants to try to compete in 2018 or make strides to pave the way to be competitive for a prolonged run. The club traded longtime third baseman Evan Longoria to the Giants on Wednesday for shortstop Christian Arroyo, outfielder Denard Span and Minor League pitchers Matt Krook and Stephen Woods.
Senior vice president Chaim Bloom said the Rays are at the stage where they've had a lot of detailed conversations with a number of teams.
"I think the biggest function of this week, and in this environment, is turning up the heat on all the clubs," Bloom said. "You really start to figure out what's real and what's not, and on some fronts, [we] have advanced to a pretty good level of detail.

"Now we're going to see in the near future if that leads to us consummating a deal, but we certainly have a much better idea of exactly what we might be able to do. And a lot of teams we've talked to have some similar clarity."
If Tampa Bay does decide to look to the future, the results of that pursuit will be interesting to watch as the team calculates which players would be valuable up the road versus what those players could yield in the present.
"We're in a fortunate position to be in where we have a number of players teams like," Bloom said. "And that expands the amount of possibilities that pop up."
Rule 5 Draft
The Rays lost right-hander Burch Smith in the Major League phase and selected right-hander Francisco German out of the Tigers' organization in the Minor League phase. They lost shortstop Riley Unroe (Angels), outfielder Angel Moreno (Cardinals) and catcher Rafaelin Lorenzon (Pirates) during the Minor League phase.
• Rays lose Smith, keep Ciuffo in Rule 5 Draft
GM's bottom line
"Still a lot of conversations. ... We're exploring ways to get better," Rays general manager Erik Neander said.