Former Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Jake Cave is back in Major League Baseball after a stint abroad.
His big-league journey started in 2018 with the Minnesota Twins, where he spent five seasons. The Phillies later picked him up off waivers from the Baltimore Orioles, who had claimed him just weeks earlier.
Cave suited up for Philadelphia in 2023, appearing in 65 games and posting a .212 average with 5 home runs and 21 RBIs before being traded to the Colorado Rockies.
Following the 2024 campaign, with no MLB contract offers materializing, Cave signed a one-year, $1 million deal with the KBO’s Doosan Bears.
More recently, he’s been playing in Mexico, but on Thursday he inked a minor-league contract with the Tampa Bay Rays and was assigned to their Triple-A affiliate, the Durham Bulls.
The 33-year-old outfielder brings added depth to the Rays’ system. Over 523 career MLB games, he’s compiled a .236 batting average, 45 homers, and 176 RBIs.
When Philadelphia claimed Cave off waivers ahead of 2023, he entered spring training with a clear mission: to prove he still belonged in the big leagues.
He went on to appear in 65 regular-season games and three playoff contests. Back then, Cave made it clear he had no doubts about his ability.
“I know when I’m healthy, I can bring some things to the table,” he said in 2023. “I’m just trying to show that. I’m 30. But I feel just as strong, just as fast as I’ve ever felt in my life. I’m in a pretty good spot.”
He also opened up about past struggles: “It was an injury thing. I broke my back in 2021, I think that was a big deal because I’d been feeling that for a while. I don’t know how it happened but it happened. In 2021, I was hurting to start the year but played through it. Then I eventually got an MRI and broke an L5. So 2020, the COVID year, I wasn’t happy with my production and 2021, I was hurt a lot. But I was happy with last year. The Twins took me off the roster and I started the year at Triple A really well, got called back up and did pretty well in the big leagues too.”
With reliable defense and a chip on his shoulder, Cave is once again aiming to show he belongs at the highest level.
Meanwhile, the Phillies are sitting in playoff position and are expected to be active before the trade deadline.
After a sluggish start, they’ve turned things around and figure to be buyers. MLB insider Jim Bowden has identified outfield help as their primary need, especially following the significant injury to Adolis García.
“Need: Outfielder. Acquiring another outfielder is the Phillies’ top priority after the significant injury to Adolis García. Although fans would love to see a Mike Trout trade, that seems extremely unlikely at this point due to his contract and the historical unwillingness of Angels ownership to trade their superstars,” Bowden wrote.
At 44-36, Philadelphia sits 4.5 games behind the Braves for the NL East lead.
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