Jason Bay a Ray?
As the title states, the Pirates and Rays are in "deep" talks for Bay. And the rain in Spain falls mainly in the plains. Rhyming aside, it does appear that a deal is possible between the perennial cellar dweller (ok, seriously, rhyming aside) and the Rays.
The Pirates are said to be looking for a significant return that's appropriate for an All Star caliber left fielder. That seems to be an indication that the criticism of their earlier deal for Nady and Marte struck a nerve with the Pirates, and that they're hoping everyone forgets about Bay's performance last year.
In any case, the Rays certainly could use a player like Bay so it's not a reach to think this deal could end up getting done. The top prospects in the Rays' organization such as David Price are reportedly off limits, however, they have plenty of other so called 2nd tier prospects to make this happen.
The wild card in all of this is the Pirates owners. The Braves reportedly offered a 4 player package for Bay last week that was shot down by ownership. While the team is now saying the package simply wasn't enough, it certainly seems like the owners may stick to their high priced guns.
