The Tampa Bay Rays are one game above the .500 mark entering play on Tuesday, July 29. They are 2.5 games out of nabbing one of three American League Wild Card spots, but Tampa Bay needs help.

The Miami Marlins today announced that the team has acquired Minor League outfielder Matthew Etzel from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for catcher Nick Fortes. Etzel (ET-zull), 23, is ranked the 28th-

A Jacksonville group led by billionaire Patrick Zalupski have agreed to buy the Rays for an estimated price of $1.7 billion, according to The Athletic. The deal is expected to be finalized by September after negotiations took place over the past weeks. The Rays' principal owner, Stu Sternberg, bought the franchise in 2004 for $200 million.

Nick Fortes, a DeLand native, will swap Sunshine State teams as the Tampa Bay Rays have acquired him from the Miami Marlins.

The Milwaukee Brewers have traded for catcher Danny Jansen from the Tampa Bay Rays. Minor league infielder Jadher Areinamo was sent to the Rays in exchange for Jansen. Jansen, an Appleton West High School graduate, provides catching depth while William Contreras recovers from a fractured finger.

With the trade deadline just days away, the Red Sox have been urged to swing a trade with the Rays for Yandy Diaz.

If they weren't before, the Cincinnati Reds are now officially rolling. The Reds ascended to a new high-water mark in 2025 − six games over .500 − as they completed a three-game sweep of the Tampa Bay Rays with a 2-1 win on July 27 at Great American Ball Park. It was also four consecutive wins for Cincinnati.

M ajor League Baseball's trade deadline is scheduled for next Thursday, which means teams have less than a week to get their midsummer shopping done. The moves have already started, as the Mariners recently acquired Josh Naylor from the Diamondbacks while the Yankees acquired Ryan McMahon in a trade with the Rockies .