Rays trade Luke Raley and Andrew Kittredge. Here’s why

ST. PETERSBURG — On the same day their star shortstop was facing serious legal challenges in his home country, the Rays on Friday made a move to secure their infield defense. They acquired infielder Jose Caballero from the Mariners for outfielder/first baseman Luke Raley.

To replace Raley, Tampa Bay dealt reliever Andrew Kittredge to St. Louis for outfielder Richie Palacios.

Caballero, 27, gives the Rays solid infield insurance with All-Star shortstop Wander Franco looking at an uncertain future and Taylor Walls coming off hip surgery. While president of baseball operations Erik Neander declined to comment on Franco’s situation, he did say it is unlikely Walls will be ready for opening day.

The Rays are comfortable with Caballero its opening day shortstop, Neander said.

“We made this trade confident he can play shortstop,” Neander said. “His makeup, his work ethic and ability over there. He can play it and play it very well. … He’ll have a shot to take it out of the gates.”

Of his 104 games with Seattle last season, Caballero played 21 at shortstop and 64 at second base. A right-handed hitter, he batted .221 with four home runs and 26 RBIs. He hits left-handed pitching fairly well (.265) but is coveted mostly for his defense and base-running speed.

Caballero’s Fielding Run Value, Statcast’s overall metric for measuring defensive performance onto a run-based scale, is plus-6, which is in the top 83 percentile. His Outs Above Average rating is 8, which is in the top 94%. His speed ranks in the top 90%.

Significant for the Ray’s payroll restrictions, the seventh-round pick of the Diamondbacks in 2017 is not arbitration-eligible until 2026 and can’t become a free agent until 2030. He also has minor-league options.

Raley, who will turn 30 in September, hit a career-high 19 homers and drove in 49 runs last season with the Rays.

Palacios doesn’t have the same power, but he is a younger, serviceable left-handed bat. He hit .258 with six doubles, six home runs and 16 RBIs in 32 games for the Cardinals last season. He, too, has minor-league options remaining.

Kittredge, 33, built himself into an All-Star with the Rays in 2021 but was limited the last two seasons following Tommy John surgery in June 2022. He had a 2-0 record, 3.09 ERA and one save in 11⅔ innings over 14 appearances last season.

With their first full-squad workout coming up in less than two months, the Rays’ middle infield was uncertain.

Franco, accused of commercial sexual exploitation and money laundering in his native Dominican Republic, had been detained since Monday for ignoring a summons. A judge on Friday ordered his conditional release while the investigation continues.

Franco, who signed an 11-year deal with the Rays worth $182 million in November 2021, has not played in a game since Aug. 12.

Walls, who took over after Franco was placed on administrative leave, could return early in the season, but there is no set date. Junior Caminero Osleivis Basabe and Curtis Mead, who made their debuts last season, also could get chances to play.

Overall, Neander said the roster is balanced now, but both trades leave room for the team to develop.

“Like Raley and Josh Lowe last year, they took big steps forward,” Neander said. “This creates some room for opportunity for the likes of (Jonathan) Aranda and Mead and Caminero. … There’s room in the system to earn jobs.”

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