Rays pitchers who could break out in 2017

For many years now the Tampa Bay Rays' have had many solid arms on their roster that have quietly grown as the backbone of the team. It was one of the foundations for the breakout success with then manager, Joe Maddon, for many seasons. Last season the Rays found themselves on the cellar floor of the American League East for the first time since the change from the Devil Rays name. The season provided many things that contributed to the 68 win season, but needless to say if the Rays plan to turn around their fortunes this year it starts with relying on the arms they have on the roster. Here are a few arms who could lead the Rays back into playoff contention.

Blake Snell: (2016 Stats: 6-8, 3.54 ERA, 89 IP, 93 H, 98 K, 51 BB, 1.618 WHIP)

One of the more obvious selections of the list, Blake Snell was one of the Rays' most highly touted prospects who got a chance to show his stuff during last year's campaign. Snell was the 1st round selection of the Rays in 2011, and propelled his way through the minors before getting a call up to make his debut in a start against the Yankees in late April of 2016. He hurled 5 innings of work, allowing just 2 hits but a big issue arouse as the season went on. Command. His 5.2 BB/9 was well above any of the other starting pitchers, next highest being Chris Archer at 3.0 BB/9. Snell's control is something that he needs to continue working on with pitching coach, Jim Hickey. Snell did give a good glimpse to Rays' fans on what he's capable of, providing a 9.9 K/9 which was good enough for 3rd among qualified pitchers on the team behind Colome and Archer. Snell was also hard to hit the long ball off of giving up just less than 0.5 HR/9. Snell has a nice fastball, with a strong, slow curve. His strikeout ability, and ability to prevent opponents from taking him yard make him a prime candidate to break out and really live up to the high potential he has, provided he gets his command under control.

Matt Andriese: (2016 Stats: 8-8, 4.37 ERA, 127.2 IP, 131 H, 109 K, 25 BB, 1.22 WHIP)

Andriese has played both the starting and relief pitcher roles in Tampa Bay, mostly due to some injuries to starting pitchers the past couple seasons, but he's shown he has the stuff to stick around the Big's in some fashion. Andriese might not ever be a front end rotational guy, but that's okay for the Rays who have an influx of starting pitching talent in both the majors and the minors. In the long run, I think Andriese's best bet is to work himself into a long relief type role that allows him to eat up some innings in the case of a starting pitcher being pulled early, or even make spot starts when needed. You'll note right off the bat a nice strikeout to walk ratio Andriese posted last season, and the WHIP being slightly over 1.0 suggests he does a solid job at keeping runners off the base paths. Posting the only complete game for the team last season, Andriese provided quality inning eating stuff for manager Kevin Cash. However, over his 54 career appearances he has struggled providing a solid changeup, as well as an "out" pitch, on-top of struggling mightly against left handers vs righties. A move to the bullpen would be a great move for both the Rays, and Andriese as he can provide solid innings, with not a lot of walks, and a good ground ball sinker to get out of jams that he may encounter. Andriese is bound to have a strong 2017 campaign that allows him to break out as a strong pitcher on the Rays team.

Chase Whitley: (2016 Stats: 0-0, 2.51 ERA, 14.1 IP, 13 H, 15 K, 3 BB, 1.11 WHIP)

From foe to friend, this former Yankee gave us a small taste last year, coming off a serious injury, and didn't disappoint. It's hard to tell what a guy will bring to the table after an injury, and even though he did have 94 IP previously, especially coming off a UCL injury that forced him to have Tommy-John Surgery, but he pitched considerably well given the circumstances. Whitley was a starter in the Bronx as a member of the Yankees but is figured to transition into the bullpen for the starting pitching heavy Rays. In his brief 14.1 innings, he did see his K/9 total creep up to 9.4 where in New York it hovered about 7.4. He possesses a nice 4 pitch variety, with an occasional sinker in there, giving the pitcher some options when on the mound. I have a hunch Whitley will find his footing quickly and hit the ground running as a member of the Rays, as he has shown the ability to have solid command, along with complimentary off-speed selections that will bring confidence to Kevin Cash when he is motioning to the bullpen.