Rays' Updated Starting Rotation, Payroll After Reported Chris Archer Contract

The Tampa Bay Rays are bringing pitcher Chris Archer back on a one-year, $6.5 million deal nearly three years after trading him to the Pittsburgh Pirates, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan.

Archer enters the 2021 campaign as a bit of an unknown after missing the entire 2020 season following surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome. In his last full season on the mound, Archer twirled 119.2 innings for the Pirates with a 5.19 ERA, 1.412 WHIP and 143 strikeouts with 55 walks.

In six previous fulls season with Tampa Bay, Archer's ERA only finished above 4.10 just once, while he earned Cy Young votes during a stellar 2015 (212 IP, 3.23 ERA, 1.137 WHIP).

It's that type of production the Rays will look to rediscover in their former Ace. How they plan to do so remains a mystery for the time being. Tampa has a history of tinkering both with its pitchers' mechanics and usage.

Whether that means Archer will see time as an opener, closer or somewhere in between is unclear. Here's a look at how he fits into the team's starting rotation as the Rays attempt their next reclamation project.

Tampa Bay Rays Starting Rotation

1. Tyler Glasnow

2. Ryan Yarbrough

3. Michael Wacha

4. Chris Archer

5. Josh Fleming

Archer was traded to the Pirates for a package highlighted by Tyler Glasnow and Austin Meadows. Now he'll get to play alongside them.

Archer's signing puts Tampa's 2021 payroll at $50.2 million, per Spotrac—good for the fifth-lowest, ahead of only the Miami Marlins, Pirates, Cleveland and the Baltimore Orioles.

If Archer is able to revert back into the pitcher who dominated in Tampa Bay early in his career, the Rays may have found themselves a bargain once again.