3) Tristan Peters - Rays
Unless you follow Stearns’ career closely, you’re going to have a difficult time keeping tabs on guys he drafted in the past. Sometimes you stumble onto a guy like Tristan Peters. An outfielder for the Tampa Bay Rays who debuted last year without the greatest defensive results (-1 OAA), he’s still someone we might want to keep an eye on.
Like the Brewers, the Rays have a surplus of outfielders. Peters is way down the depth chart, buried in the minor leagues, and should be available. Drafted by Stearns in the 7th round back in 2021, he went hitless in all 12 plate appearances last year for Tampa Bay while striking out 7 times.
He did, however, have a good year in Triple-A. Hitting 28 doubles and 15 home runs while slashing .266/.355/.429, the 25-year-old lefty-swinger had predictable splits. Versus righties, he batted .275/.357/.465 with all of his home runs against them.
Suffering from some of the same offensive woes as Ronny Mauricio, but at the minor league level, Peters is the kind of guy you can have around on your ball club for spot starts. His youth might have the Rays thinking twice about trading him away. Jake Mangum, the ex-Mets prospect, is better but also less needed after they signed Cedric Mullins. Peters is more of an added competition this spring to battle alongside Benge. The good thing about Peters is even if he loses the fight, the Mets can have him stick around a little while longer as he continues to develop.
The Rays operate in a unique fashion. Take your best guess as to what they’d want.
