The Rays made one trade at the trade deadline in July, sending reliever Kevin Jepsen to the Twins for a pair of minor leaguers. Not exactly a blockbuster deal, but the move apparently had a lasting impression on some of the other players.
Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times recently wrote about the bullpen struggles this year (“AL-high 22 blown save … an MLB-most 34 losses and a 3.80 ERA that ranks ninth in the AL and would be their worst since 2009) and he dropped this little nugget:
“…people around the clubhouse say there was definitely an impact on the spirit and the chemistry after the Rays traded veteran reliever Kevin Jepsen at the July 31 deadline.