The Tampa Bay Rays face a daunting task each offseason.
Stay competitive on a tight budget.
Competing in the American League East is a difficult task by itself. When you add in the Rays budget compared to the spending ability of the New York Yankees or Boston Red Sox, and the task becomes exponentially more difficult.
Somehow, the Rays and executive VP Andrew Friedman find a way to add enough pieces to field a highly competitive roster. Their five 90-win seasons since 2008, including the last four in a row, is the best in baseball.
The Rays have been business as usual this offseason. They have made some strategic moves to put them in position to make another postseason run in 2014. They have kept their core intact from 2013 while adding depth at catcher and in the bullpen.
Which of these moves will make the most impact?
Here is a power ranking of the Rays offseason moves. The list does not include players signed to a minor league contract.
All statistics and salary numbers courtesy of baseball-reference.com unless otherwise noted.