{"id":118587,"date":"2026-04-12T21:58:17","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T01:58:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/?p=118587"},"modified":"2026-04-12T21:58:17","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T01:58:17","slug":"rays-three-best-players-so-far-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/2026\/04\/12\/rays-three-best-players-so-far-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"The Rays’ Three Best Players So Far This Season"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Tampa Bay Rays completed a three-game sweep of the New York Yankees this weekend. That’s not a sentence that many expected to read after last year’s finish. But, alas, here both teams are, tied at the top of a competitive American League East<\/a>. It’s only 15 games in. That’s not even 10% of the season. So take the results with a grain of salt. But it’s still fun to talk about the Rays and their successes. So here are the three best players on this spunky Rays team so far in 2026.<\/p>\n

The Three Best Players So Far on the 2026 Rays<\/h2>\n

1. Yandy D\u00edaz<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Ah, Yandy D\u00edaz<\/a>, the constant analytics darling. Don’t get it twisted; he’s been a great hitter for quite some time now. Over the past five seasons, he’s posted a wRC+ of over 130 in four of them (including 2026). He even won a batting title in 2023.<\/p>\n

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This year, he’s been on an absolute tear. His .582 slugging percentage would shatter a career high by 60 points. He is posting the highest xwOBA of his career since 2023. And to top it all off, he’s doing all of this while posting a career low walk rate. That (along with his BABIP) is likely to regress to the normal level. Which means his current 201 wRC+ isn’t likely sustainable. But by golly, has he been an absolute monster up there. There’s been much talk about where he hits in the lineup<\/a>. So far, it hasn’t seemed to matter. D\u00edaz will hit anywhere and everywhere. Just put him in the lineup.<\/p>\n

2. Jonathan Aranda<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Jonathan Aranda<\/a> has been a popular breakout candidate. He’s been an All-Star. And even still, he might be underrated by most folks. He’s been giving the Rays some of the most competitive plate appearances on the team. His whiff rate is one of the best in baseball, coming in at a 91st percentile mark. He hits the ball hard more consistently than most folks, with a 93.2 average exit velocity. But because of some rotten luck (a dastardly .227 BABIP), his production hasn’t been as eye-popping as one would expect. So while Aranda has been quite good to start the season, he’s likely to get even better. His luck should turn around, because he combines a great contact ability with surprisingly good power.<\/p>\n

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Jonathan Aranda with his second career walk-off – both coming vs. the Yankees! pic.twitter.com\/td1CGcekBE<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 MLB (@MLB) April 12, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n