Rays Trade for Center Fielder Jose Siri, Designate Brett Phillips for Assignment

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — In a move to bolster production from the center field spot, the Tampa Bay Rays made a trade on Monday, picking up center fielder Jose Siri from the Houston Astros in a three-team trade.

To make room for Siri, the Rays have designated popular outfielder Brett Phillips for assignment. Phillips, the local product from Seminole is a huge fan favorite, but he's been struggling immensely this year, hitting just .147 and striking out 85 times in just 184 at-bats. 

The Rays lost starting center fielder Kevin Kiermaier to a season-ending hip injury last month. Phillips has played a lot in center field, as has rookie Josh Lowe, who was just sent back down to Triple-A Durham earlier in the week. The Rays also signed Roman Quinn last week, and he's 5-for-19 in nine games.

The Rays gave up minor-league right-handers Seth Johnson and Jayden Murray to pick up Siri. Johnson was sent to the Baltimore Orioles, Murray to the Astros. 

Here is the complete release from the Rays:

In a three-team trade with the Houston Astros and Baltimore Orioles, the Rays have acquired CF José Siri from the Astros in exchange for minor league RH Seth Johnson (to Orioles) and minor league RH Jayden Murray (to Astros). To make room on the 40-man roster, the Rays designated OF Brett Phillips for assignment.

Siri, 27, will be added to the active roster to begin his third stint in the majors this season, following Opening Day–June 23 and July 10-20. In 48 games (39 starts) this season, his 8 Defensive Runs Saved are tied with KC Michael A. Taylor and CLE Myles Straw for most among major league center fielders. He made his major league debut as a September call up for the Astros last season and is batting .210 (38-for-181) with 7 HR and 19 RBI in 69 career games. On Sep 13, 2021 at TEX, he went 4-for-5 and became the first player in major league history with 2 HR and 5 RBI in his first career start. He was on the Astros postseason roster last year throughout their run to the World Series. He is a career .272 (725-for-2,666) hitter with 130 2B, 93 HR, 364 RBI and 181 SB in 704 games over nine minor league seasons in the Reds and Astros systems.

Johnson, 23, is ranked by MLB.com as the No. 6 prospect in the Rays system. He was selected by the Rays in Competitive Balance Round A of the 2019 Amateur Draft out of Campbell University. Over three seasons in the Rays system, he went 7-8 with a 2.81 ERA (137.2-IP, 43-ER) in 39 apps (32 starts).

Murray, 25, went 17-8 with a 2.61 ERA (217-IP, 63-ER) in 49 apps (45 starts) over three seasons in the Rays system. Last season, he ranked first among all minor league pitchers (min. 90 IP) in WHIP (0.71) and third in ERA (2.16). He was selected by the Rays in the 23rd round of the 2019 Amateur Draft out of Dixie State University, where he went 10-3 with a 3.78 ERA (83.1-IP, 35-ER) in 14 starts as a senior and set a single-season school record for strikeouts (92).

Phillips, 28, was acquired by the Rays in August 2020 and delivered one of the biggest hits in franchise history. His 2-out, 2-strike RBI single off Kenley Jansen in the 9th inning in Game 4 of the 2020 World Series drove in Kevin Kiermaier, and Randy Arozarena scored the game-winning run on a pair of Dodgers errors. He hit .179 (82-for-457) with 19 HR and 61 RBI in 210 games over three seasons with the Rays.