Rays Continue to Free Space on 40-Man Roster by Dealing Cristopher Sanchez to Phillies

Turns out November isn't an insignificant month for MLB, as Wednesday has been comprised of compelling roster moves leading up to the Rule 5 Draft deadline.

The Tampa Bay Rays were involved in their second trade of the day, as they dealt left-handed hurler Christopher Sanchez to the Philadelphia Phillies in exchange for infield prospect Curtis Mead.

The Rays also offloaded right-hander Jose De Leon to the Cincinnati Reds earlier in the evening.

Of course, Tampa Bay remained intent on freeing up space on their 40-man roster with the deadline to submit them having passed at 8 p.m. ET on Wednesday.

MLB.com ranks the Rays farm system as No. 2 in the league and the organization's front office is wisely prioritizing promoting their top talent to the 40-man roster to prevent the risk of losing them to December's Rule 5 Draft.

The Phillies, on other other hand, clearly value Sanchez's potential as they subsequently added him to their 40-man roster ahead of the deadline.

Additionally, they promoted fellow left-handers JoJo Romero and Garrett Cleavinger, as well as right-hander Mauricio Llovera.

Sanchez was a viable piece for the Rays' minor league affiliates in 2019. Across stints with Bowling Green, Charlotte, and Durham, the 22-year-old compiled an impressive 2.26 ERA with 73 strikeouts in 75.2 innings of work.