Rays 3/18/17 pre-game notes

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Alex Cobb threw a bullpen session yesterday morning. (Photo Credit: Will Vragovic/Tampa Bay Times)

The Tampa Bay Rays head north to Dunedin on Saturday, where they will face their AL East rivals the Toronto Blue Jays. According to the inimitable Neil Solondz (Rays Radio), many of the Tampa Bay regulars played Friday in Port Charlotte, and are not on the trip as they also are likely to play at home on Sunday and Monday.

The New What Next

Chase Whitley, who is expected to start in his next two appearances, will take the mound for the Rays, opposite of Matt Latos. Whitley will be followed by Ryan Garton, Austin Pruitt and Jeffrey Walters. Among those scheduled to take the field behind Whitley are Nick Franklin, Luke Maile and Mallex Smith, as well as prospects Jake Bauers, Casey Gillaspie and Daniel Robertson.

Rays 3/18/17 Starting Lineup

Franklin 2B
Smith CF
Bauers LF
Gillaspie 1B
Maile C
McKenry DH
Robertson SS
Leonard 3B
Varona RF
Whitley RHP

Noteworthiness

— While he is expected to start the season with Triple-A Durham, Jake Bauers is making quite an impression on Rays skipper Kevin Cash and others.

Bauers, just 21 and yet to play above the Double-A level, has hit three long homers, walked six times in 30 plate appearances, and slashed .435 BA/.533 OBP/.913 SLG/1.446 OPS so far this spring.

Rays Rule-5 pick Kevin Gadea out at least four weeks

Kevin Gadea, 22, has never pitched about Class A but, armed with a mid 90s fastball, has a chance to join the Rays pen. (Will Vragovic/Times)

Tampa Bay Rays Rule-5 draft pick Kevin Gadea will miss “at least” four weeks after an MRI revealed tendinitis in his right elbow, tweeted Marc Topkin (Tampa Bay Times).

Adding an unexpected wrinkle to the situation, the Rays were in the process of returning the right-hander to the Mariners organization when the MRI revealed his injury.

As it stands, he will break camp with the Rays and accrue Major League service time on the team’s disabled list — thus, as Steve Adams (MLB Trade Rumors) noted, earning the pro-rated portion of the league minimum for the time he spends on the Major League  DL. The team could eventually place him on the 60-day DL to clear a spot on the 40-man roster.

There is an upside for the Rays, who, in turn, will have an opportunity to further evaluate the 22 year-old hurler as he progresses through a minor league rehab assignment. If other injuries arise and/or other relievers fail to perform early in the season, writes Adams, it’s possible that Gadea could emerge as a candidate to help out on the Major League roster.

Then again, they may offer him back to Seattle once his rehab stint is completed.

Chamber of Commerce/Rays Local Business Partner Package

As a leader of the Baseball Forever initiative to keep the Tampa Bay Rays in St. Petersburg, one of my responsibilities is to build a connection between the business community and the team. Putting things into perspective, in order for the Rays to be successful within the Tampa Bay Area, they need the support of local businesses/corporations — both large and small.

However, as a public school teacher in a low socio-economic region of St. Petersburg, my connections within the business community are few and far in between. Bereft of those connections, yet knowing the importance of them, the most feasible way for me to reach local businesses/corporations is this platform.

The St. Petersburg Chamber of Commerce has developed a plan with the Rays to give local businesses an opportunity to stay involved with the team, and to show their support. The team, in kind, has created a unique basket of incentives that, ideally, will increase the interest and attendance levels.

Join Local Businesses and your Local Chambers of Commerce in their support of the Rays

  • When your business becomes a Rays Local Business Partner, you get up to a $1,500 bonus to spend on anything you’d like!
  • Commit $10,000 to Rays tickets and get a $1,500 bonus or earn a $500 bonus on a $5,000 spend.
  • Spend on anything from single game tickets to executive suites to exclusive group party areas.
  • Access Rays Rewards, a points program that allows you to earn points redeemable for baseball experiences, memorabilia and more.
  • Company name inclusion on a Local Business Partner display inside Tropicana Field.
  • Personal Rays representative to assist you in getting the most out of your tickets.
  • Become part of the business community showing your support of the Rays and receive a Local Business Partner decal to display at your place of business.

Should you decide to become a business partner, you can contact Jimmy Reed to set up an account at (727) 825-3223, JReed@Raysbaseball.com, or RaysBaseball.com/local.

Rays make first round of roster cuts, release LHP Dana Eveland

The Tampa Bay Rays released veteran LHP Dana Eveland on Wednesday. (Photo Credit: Will Vragovic/Times)

Following Wednesday’s 3-3 tie against the Boston Red Sox, the Tampa Bay Rays announced their first wave of cuts, which included the release of 33 year-old left-hander Dana Eveland. The moves reduce the camp roster to 42.

Here are the roster moves announced Wednesday:

Released

LHP Dana Eveland

Steve Adams (MLB Trade Rumors) wrote about Eveland’s release:

Eveland allowed a run on six hits and a walk with three strikeouts in 4 2/3 innings this spring. The 2016 campaign was not a positive one for him in the Majors, as he yielded 23 runs on 32 hits and 19 walks (three intentional) with 21 strikeouts in 23 innings of work. His results in Triple-A last season, however, registered on the opposite end of the spectrum, as he posted a superlative 0.30 ERA in 29 2/3 innings of work with a 21-to-6 K/BB ratio.

Last year marked the 11th big league season for the journeyman southpaw, who has appeared in the Majors as a member of 10 different teams. In total, he’s logged 446 1/3 innings in the Major Leagues and pitched to a 5.46 ERA with 6.2 K/9, 4.5 BB/9 and a 50.2 percent ground-ball rate.

Reassigned to minor league camp

RHP Jeff Ames
INF Ryan Brett
C Nick Ciuffo
C Jonah Heim
1B Dalton Kelly
LHP Ryan Yarbrough

Optioned to the minor leagues

INF Willy Adames
RHP José De León
RHP Jacob Faria
RHP Taylor Guerrieri
RHP Chih-Wei Hu
RHP Ryne Stanek
RHP Hunter Wood

Noteworthiness

— The Rays also announced that RHP Jose De Leon has decided to join team Puerto Rico and pitch next in the World Baseball Classic.

— 30 Teams in 30 Days looked at the developments of the Rays in their 2017 Spring Training camp:

Rays 3/15/17 pre-game notes

Moments before Blake Snell walked Chris Davis to load the bases during the first inning of yesterday’s ball game against the Baltimore Orioles. (Photo Credit: Anthony Ateek/X-Rays Spex)

After a pair of wins collected against the Yankees and Orioles on Tuesday, the Tampa Bay Rays will face the Red Sox in Port Charlotte this afternoon. Matt Andriese will get the start opposite of Kyle Kendrick.

The first round of Spring Training roster cuts are expected at some point Wednesday, as minor league games start today and the Rays have completed their only set of split-squad contests. Roster cuts are never easy, yet Rays manager Kevin Cash hopes to mitigate things by way of the message he will instill in the minor leaguers this afternoon:


(Audio Courtesy of Rays Radio)

After Andriese, southpaw Xavier Cedeno will take the mound, as will righties Tommy Hunter, David Carpenter, Danny Farquhar and Ryan Garton.

Rays 3/15/17 Starting Lineup

Dickerson LF
Kiermaier DH
Longoria 3B
Miller 2B
Gillaspie 1B
Beckham SS
Souza Jr RF
Smith CF
Maile C
Andriese RHP