Rays trade Littell to Reds, swap catchers with Dodgers in 3-team deal

Only a few hours after he threw five scoreless innings at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday night, and moments after a crushing 5-4 loss to the Yankees, the Rays agreed to trade starter Zack Littell to the Reds.

That was just the start of a busy night on the trade front for the Rays that spilled into Thursday morning, as they attempt to thread the needle between buying and selling heading into the 6 p.m. ET Trade Deadline.

In return for Littell, the Rays received right-hander Brian Van Belle and left-handed pitching prospect Adam Serwinowski from Cincinnati. They then agreed to acquire catcher Hunter Feduccia from the Dodgers for Serwinowski, reliever Paul Gervase and Triple-A catcher Ben Rortvedt, a deal that became official about two hours before Thursday’s series finale at Yankee Stadium.

TRADE DETAILS
Rays get: C Hunter Feduccia, RHP Brian Van Belle
Reds get: RHP Zack Littell
Dodgers get: LHP Adam Serwinowski, RHP Paul Gervase, C Ben Rortvedt

With Littell and Gervase traded off the active roster, the Rays recalled left-handers Joe Rock and Ian Seymour from Triple-A Durham on Thursday morning to fill out their pitching staff.

Littell is a pending free agent, which made him one of Tampa Bay’s more obvious trade candidates. The Rays still hope to perform what president of baseball operations Erik Neander called the “tightrope act” of balancing their present and future, making them open to deals even as they hope to bounce back and contend this season, but they showed a willingness to deal players nearing free agency when they traded catcher Danny Jansen to the Brewers on Monday.

That included Littell, who learned about the deal shortly after Wednesday’s defeat, which dropped the Rays below .500 at 54-55, 9 1/2 games behind the American League East-leading Blue Jays and three games out of the third AL Wild Card spot.

“It's something that obviously doesn't sneak up on you. But I talked to Erik. It was kind of the same as Danny, super transparent,” Littell told reporters at Yankee Stadium, including MLB.com’s David Adler. “It’s just part of the game.”

The 29-year-old right-hander pulled off a remarkable career transformation during his time with the Rays. He was claimed off waivers from the Red Sox in May 2023 as a reliever, then he was pressed into duty as a starter amid a wave of injuries and wound up flourishing in that role.

“It's hard to put into words. I was a fringe reliever, to the opportunity I got here -- it truly has and will continue to change my life,” Littell said. “I'm just extremely thankful.”

Now, Littell is a reliable, innings-eating strike-thrower who has put together a 3.58 ERA in 133 1/3 innings over 22 starts this season. And he’ll join a Reds team that is clearly pushing in on this season after acquiring third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes from the Pirates earlier Wednesday.

Littell was still trying to wrap his mind around the move as news leaked out following the game. After going about his business as usual between the time he left the game and the Yankees’ walk-off hit, he had just sat down to eat a postgame meal in the clubhouse when he was informed of the trade. Word spread quickly, and the deal was announced just before midnight.

“There's ones that sting a little more than others, and this one stings a lot,” second baseman Brandon Lowe told reporters. “Just the teammate he's been, the friend that he's been, and honestly how close the families have gotten outside of baseball -- we're very close. So it's tough to see him go, and I wish him the best of luck.”

Although there are still questions about when ace Shane McClanahan will make his season debut, the Rays have rotation depth to replace the valuable innings Littell has provided this season. They could turn to Taj Bradley, who was optioned to Triple-A Durham last week to work on his splitter, to take his spot. Bradley pitched for Durham on Wednesday night and fired seven hitless innings on 89 pitches.

Van Belle could also become part of their rotation depth. The Red Sox briefly called up the 28-year-old right-hander in June, but he has yet to make his MLB debut. In 19 games (including 14 starts) at the Triple-A level this season, he has recorded a 3.40 ERA with 72 strikeouts and only 15 walks in 87 1/3 innings.

Perhaps the most interesting addition for the Rays is Feduccia. The left-handed-hitting 28-year-old has only made seven appearances with the Dodgers, who had no room for him on their Major League roster, but he appears to be a big league-ready option.

Over parts of four seasons with Triple-A Oklahoma City, he’s hit .278/.387/.452 while earning high marks for his receiving, blocking, game-calling and relationship-building with pitchers. The Rays already reshaped their catching group by sending out Jansen and acquiring Nick Fortes, and it’s possible Feduccia could join the mix soon.

Getting Feduccia came at the cost of Serwinowski, who was the Reds’ No. 10 prospect, as well as Gervase, a well-regarded rookie reliever with five big league appearances to his name, and Rortvedt, who was with Triple-A Durham after being designated for assignment by Tampa Bay earlier this season.