When the Tampa Bay Rays acquired Matt Duffy as part of the package for Matt Moore, he appeared to be a bargain. Duffy had been a solid rookie, finishing second in the National League Rookie of the Year vote as he produced a .295/.334/.428 batting line, hitting 12 homers and stealing 12 bases. It seemed as though he would become a productive all around player.
He struggled last season, putting together a combined .258/.310/.357 batting line, hitting just five homers and stealing eight bases. Duffy started to perform better after his trade to the Rays, but his season came to a halt when he injured his Achilles tendon in his left heel.