Rays' Payroll To Decline In 2015

[Can_of_corn]

Expected after the losing season and attendance dropping 1K a game.

http://m.mlb.com/news/article/94082460/stu-sternberg-rays-payroll-likely-to-go-down

"It's clearly going to be lower," Sternberg said. "This year was an enormous aberration. Look, having said that, if the greatest thing since sliced bread shows up, and it costs us money, anything is possible. We never say no to anything, but the default is clearly going to be lower.

"Our two highest payrolls have been the years we stepped it up, 2009 and 2014, and those are the only two years we haven't played significant September baseball."

You have to love how he tries to spin a higher payroll with missing the playoffs. As if his mid 70 million payroll makes them complacent.

So how low does it go? Who do they dump? Price was obviously the big factor in the 2014 payroll and he is already gone.

[weams]

Zobrist. Gone. Balfour. Gone. Loney. Gone. Longoria. Gone?

[CA-ORIOLE]

Expected after the losing season and attendance dropping 1K a game.

http://m.mlb.com/news/article/94082460/stu-sternberg-rays-payroll-likely-to-go-down

You have to love how he tries to spin a higher payroll with missing the playoffs. As if his mid 70 million payroll makes them complacent.

So how low does it go? Who do they dump? Price was obviously the big factor in the 2014 payroll and he is already gone.

They've got another year of Balfour at 7 mil. That's gotta suck. I could see them moving Hellickson who is arb eligible (and not that good imo). Doubt they pick up the option on Peralta. Maybe Escobar and/or Sean Rodriguez are traded and they go with Franklin at ss. Maybe trade Dejesus.

[Can_of_corn]

Zobrist. Gone. Balfour. Gone. Loney. Gone. Longoria. Gone?

They hold on to Longo and Zobrist. I don't know if they can give Balfour away at this point.

A big part of the decrease is going to be the lack of Bell and Price on the payroll.

[Can_of_corn]

They've got another year of Balfour at 7 mil. That's gotta suck. I could see them moving Hellickson who is arb eligible (and not that good imo). Doubt they pick up the option on Peralta. Maybe Escobar and/or Sean Rodriguez are traded and they go with Franklin at ss. Maybe trade Dejesus.

Some of the Balfour money is deferred, which helps.

[CA-ORIOLE]

Zobrist. Gone. Balfour. Gone. Loney. Gone. Longoria. Gone?

I don't think so to any of those and nobody would want Balfour. They have easier options.

[Crazysilver03]

They hold on to Longo and Zobrist. I don't know if they can give Balfour away at this point.

A big part of the decrease is going to be the lack of Bell and Price on the payroll.

This. Their payroll is naturally declining with those two gone and a lot of cheap talent on the roster.