Tampa Bay Rays catcher Liam Hicks revealed why his trade from the Miami Marlins gave him an opportunity he was missing. Hicks discussed his reduced catching role in Miami, learning the Rays pitching staff and his catching philosophy.
The Tampa Bay Rays gave Liam Hicks something he had been missing before being traded by the Miami Marlins.
An opportunity to consistently get back behind the plate.
Hicks has made an immediate impact since joining Tampa Bay, including hitting a grand slam in his first game and helping the Rays start his tenure with the team on a nine-game winning streak.
However, Hicks revealed on This Week in Rays Baseball that he had an idea a trade could be coming after watching his role with Miami begin to change.
"My role in Miami had kind of been shrinking behind the plate," Hicks said. "You know I was DHing a lot, getting to catch maybe once, once or twice a week."
Hicks had also seen his name mentioned in rumors and knew there were teams looking for catching help. This certainly made deadline day stressful, even if he had prepared himself for the possibility.
"My agent had told me that there might be a possibility," Hicks said. "So, you know, yeah, I was a little stressed out during the day, just kind of waiting, ready for it to be over."
Ultimately, Tampa Bay became his destination, in a package deal that initially looks like a steal for the Rays, getting a power bat that can fit in nicely behind the plate.
And the opportunity to catch more frequently is important to Hicks.
"That's the position I like to play," Hicks said. "You know that's what I want, I enjoy doing the most."
Of course, getting traded in the middle of a season as a catcher comes with an additional challenge, especially when you're heading into a team that has multiple all-stars in the starting rotation.
Hicks suddenly had an entirely new pitching staff to learn.
"Definitely a little tough," Hicks said. "You know, that was definitely something I was thinking would be difficult when I first got traded, you know, learning all the staff, trying to get caught up with that."
Fortunately, Hicks credited the Rays' staff and former Marlins teammate Nick Fortes with helping make that transition easier.
And the more Hicks talked about catching, the easier it became to understand why getting back behind the plate matters so much to him.
Hicks doesn't view his job as simply catching pitches and contributing offensively.
He wants to help manage the entire game.
"I think you gotta know the pitchers really well. You gotta pour into them," Hicks said.
That even means putting his own offense to the side during games. Which, thankfully, hasn't been an issue yet.
"You come back in between innings, you can't be looking at the iPad, looking at your own swing, worrying about that," Hicks said. "You gotta kind of pour into them, talk to them, more about the game plan of how you're gonna attack the next lineup."
That's what Hicks was missing when he was primarily serving as a designated hitter.
Now with the Rays, he's getting another opportunity to make an impact in the part of the game he enjoys most.
And so far, he's doing a great job at doing it. He caught a game behind the plate where Nick Martinez pitched a complete game just a few days after being traded. He continues to show power with his bat as he has reinforced the middle of the lineup for Tampa Bay as they look to make a deep postseason push in 2026.
