The Tampa Bay Rays quietly added another bat to their organizational depth chart Thursday, inking veteran outfielder Jake Cave to a minor league deal. The move was first announced by El Aguila de Veracruz of the Mexican League, where Cave had been tearing the cover off the ball, and later confirmed via MLB.com’s transaction tracker showing he’s bound for Triple-A Durham.
Cave is 33 now, but he’s not some AAAA placeholder. The left-handed hitter has logged 523 big league games across stints with the Twins, Phillies and Rockies from 2018 through 2024. His career line of .236/.292/.400 and 85 wRC+ don’t jump off the page, but that number jumps to .248/.310/.425 and a 97 wRC+ when he’s facing righties. He’s a platoon bat with a pulse.
His Best Work Came in Minnesota
Cave’s strongest seasons were 2018 and 2019 with the Twins, where he hit .262/.329/.466 with 21 homers and 70 RBI over 163 games. Production dipped after that, and after a 2023 stint in Philadelphia (.212/.272/.348 in 65 games), he landed with Colorado for 2024 and slashed .251/.290/.396 across 123 games. Not terrible for a guy bouncing around.
But here’s where it gets interesting. After the Rockies cut him loose following last season, Cave took his bat to the KBO with the Doosan Bears and absolutely raked: .299/.351/.463 with 16 homers and 87 RBI in 136 games. He carried that momentum into 2026 with Veracruz, hitting .309/.340/.474 in 47 games. Context matters — the Mexican League as a whole is slashing .287/.358/.440 this season — but you can’t fake production entirely.
What Cave Brings to Tampa Bay
Defensively, he’s logged over 1,000 innings at every outfield spot. The metrics are mixed: four career Outs Above Average, but Defensive Runs Saved pegs him as roughly average in the corners and below average in center. He’s not a star with the glove, but he’s not a liability in a pinch.
The Rays current outfield mix includes Chandler Simpson, Cedric Mullins, Jonny DeLuca, Victor Mesa Jr. and Ryan Vilade. Jake Fraley is still recovering from hernia surgery, and Jacob Melton just got back from the minor league IL. So Cave gives them a veteran fallback — someone who’s been through the grind and can step in if injuries pile up. It’s not a splashy signing. But it’s exactly the kind of low-risk depth move the Rays are known for making.
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