Stop me if you’ve heard this one before; the Tampa Bay Rays have developed one of the best relievers in baseball. Last year it was Edwin Uceta continuing a trend of baseball‘s most frugal winning team finding a way to assemble a fantastic bullpen without spending a penny, and this time around they’ve created what may be the most dominant left-handed pitcher in the game.

Mason Montgomery was a sixth round draft pick by the Tampa Bay Rays in 2021, progressing through the minor leagues exclusively as a starter for the first three years of his professional career. Montgomery held some respectable numbers, averaging 94 mph on his fastball from a high arm angle, featuring a slider and changeup as well. After some serious struggles in 2024, the Rays decided to transition Montgomery to the bullpen, hoping that eliminating his changeup and allowing his fastball to play up would make him an effective reliever at the highest level, and there were flashes of that in nine games last season.

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