The Tampa Bay Rays fell short of winning the first championship in franchise history, being defeated in the World Series by the Milwaukee Brewers in five games.

There wasn’t much time for the team to rest, as players hit free agency the morning after the World Series ended. The Rays had three players who officially became free agents: infielder Gavin Lux, who didn’t play in 2026, starting pitcher Freddy Peralta and utilityman Jorge Mateo.

Joining those three players in the free agent pool is starting pitcher Nick Martinez, who had his mutual option declined and will seek out a multi-year deal. That is one major piece of the pitching staff that could have to be replaced this offseason, but at least Tampa Bay knows they will have their ace back in the mix.

The Rays had a team option for starting pitcher Drew Rasmussen to make a decision on, and they have exercised it. That is one of the easiest decisions the franchise will have to make this winter, as it was a no-brainer to ensure he was back for at least one more season.

Rays exercise team option on Drew Rasmussen

There are always question marks about how options will be handled by Tampa Bay because of how they operate. $20 million is something most franchises won’t hesitate to pay a player, but that is a massive amount of money for the Rays to commit to a single player. In fact, they have never paid a player $20 million for a single season.

That will change with Rasmussen, should he remain with the franchise, in 2027. It will be fascinating to see how this winter unfolds for the ace, because he could be dangled in trade talks based on the history of the franchise.

Given his exorbitant contract, based on their standards, and the fact that he has only one year remaining of team control, he is a prototypical trade candidate for the Rays. If he is made available by Tampa Bay in a trade, he will have a robust market.

Rasmussen is a legitimate ace who has put some elbow issues early in his career behind him. He has been an All-Star in back-to-back years, and 2026 was the best year yet. In 30 starts and 172 innings pitched, he had a 2.67 ERA and 174 strikeouts.

The bright lights of the postseason didn’t faze him at all either. He made five starts, throwing 28.2 innings with a 2.20 ERA and 31 strikeouts.

Whether Rasmussen becomes the first player in franchise history to earn $20 million in a season, or the Rays use him as a trade chip, exercising his option was a slam-dunk, no-brainer decision for the franchise to make.