The Rays Tank: Hello Jerry Sands, hooray for Vince Belnome and Andrew Toles?

It's Christmas Eve, y'all. Merry, merry.

The Rays claimed Jerry Sands off waivers from the Pirates, says Jason Collette at The Process Report. He's a right-handed outfielder who can allegedly play good defense, but who has a monstrous strikeout rate in the minors. It's unclear what this means for Brandon Guyer, but this seems to me more like insurance move than a replacement.

Speaking of right-handed outfielders, Neil Weinberg, at Beyond the Box Score, talks about why Nelson Cruz hasn't signed yet. People are talking about him getting elite-hitter money, but that's not who he is. He's a decent hitter who can't play much defense. And Weinberg refutes the idea that right-handed power is a scarce commodity. I would claim that even if it were scarce, that doesn't make it disproportionately valuable.

Conor Glassey, a former intern at Baseball America, has an article rounding up major league players who never appeared on a Baseball America top 100 and looking for patterns. Is there a certain type of player that's a blind spot for prospect lists? (h/t FanGraphs) Among the overlooked players he identifies is the Rays' Vince Belnome and Andrew Toles.

Wendy Thum rounds up baseball money issues from 2013.