Tampa made both subtractions and additions on July 31. Notably, the Rays acquired starting pitcher Adrian Houser from the White Sox and Twins reliever Griffin Jax. In both trades, the Rays gave up MLB talent, albeit talent not presently on the team’s Major League roster.
A Look at Jax & Houser
In our first-half recap of the White Sox‘s season, we went into more detail on pitcher Adrian Houser.
Houser, signed in the spring of this year, found renewed success this season in Chicago (AL) after getting the feel back for his sinker. It got more downward breaking action, and he increased the usage of a very sharp, low-80s curveball with depth.
The veteran right-hander only struck out 47 over 68.2 IP this season. But, a 2.01 ERA and fantastic 4.9% Barrel% showed just how much poor contact he was getting with the Sox.
Griffin Jax, meanwhile, is second in the Majors in K/9 (14.1) among relievers with 35+ IP thrown this season. The only pitcher with one higher is Astros reliever Bryan Abreu (14.2).
Jax has a starter’s arsenal, including a plus sweeper, along with two fastballs, a changeup, and a cutter. However, he’s been quite effective in a setup role over the past few seasons after struggling as a starter early on in his career.
The Returns
The White Sox picked up two Minor League pitchers: Ben Peoples and Duncan Davitt. Peoples, a Triple-A reliever, can run it to the upper-90s with his fastball. Davitt, meanwhile, is a starting pitcher in Triple-A with 105 combined strikeouts between Durham and Montgomery (AA) this season. Davitt sits in the low-90s with his heater and also has a slider and changeup.
Curtis Mead is the most notable piece. Mead was a highly-touted infield prospect who’s yet to find his footing at the MLB level.
As for Jax, the Rays surrendered Taj Bradley, who was reportedly available. Bradley only has a little over a year of service time and the pedigree of a former top prospect.
However, as noted in our Rays’ first-half recap, Bradley has been missing fewer and fewer bats this season.
Analysis
It wasn’t a shock to see Houser dealt. The White Sox scratched him from his previously scheduled start on July 30, and given he’s set to hit the market after this season, it only made sense to move him.
However, the Jax trade was a shock, even though the Twins got back a young starter in Bradley. Jax has two more years of control and figured to be the ninth-inning man with Jhoan Duran in Philadelphia. Now, Jax, Duran, and Louie Varland — shipped to Toronto with Ty France — are gone.
The Rays, despite selling off Zack Littell and Jose Cabellero, did wind up adding and received two good arms. Houser, a heavy ground-ball pitcher, may do well in the hitter-friendly environment in Tampa. Jax, meanwhile, could be used in several different ways, including as a closer should Pete Fairbanks get moved this winter.
Fairbanks has a $7MM club option for 2026.
Check out more of our MLB coverage, including the Doval trade recap.