ST. PETERSBURG — It all started, Rays general manager Erik Neander said to beat everyone else to it, "with the bromance, as you know.''
He was having fun, but the funny thing is he was right, too. All those talks Neander and Mariners counterpart Jerry Dipoto have had over the years, public or private, led them to move relatively quickly to make their 10th trade since November 2015.
Which is what left the Rays feeling pretty good Thursday about the opening move of their pivotal offseason, crossing off two needs by acquiring catcher Mike Zunino and outfielder Guillermo Heredia, plus a lottery ticket left arm in 2018 draftee Michael Plassmeyer, in exchange for outfielder Mallex Smith and minor-leaguer Jake Fraley.