With their two primary catchers on the IL, the Tampa Bay Rays acquired catcher Travis d’Arnaud from the Los Angeles Dodgers for cash considerations. To make room on the 40-man roster, the Rays placed 3B Matt Duffy on the 60-day IL.
D’Arnaud has had a rather garbled season thus far. After rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, he became the Mets’ backup catcher before he was released by them on May 4.
The Dodgers then signed the d’Arnaud, who is out-of-options, with designs of trying him at other positions, yet they quickly dealt him to the Rays, who are in need of a veteran backstop with Mike Zunino (quad strain) and Michael Perez (oblique strain) on the IL.
D’Arnaud is a bounce-back candidate that has been long considered a talented, quality-hitting catcher. The 30-year-old backstop is a career .242 hitter with his best year coming in 2015 when he finished with 12 home runs and a .825 OPS as a member of the Mets. Best of all, for the fiscally conscious Rays, New York is on the hook for d’Arnaud’s $3.52-million salary (less a pro-rated portion of the league minimum).
Super excited. Have heard nothing but fantastic things not only about the way the team plays, but the environment around the clubhouse as well. It’s going to be fun.
— Travis d’Arnaud
He is expected to join the Rays in Saturday, while Anthony Bemboom will likely head back to Durham to create a 25-man roster spot.
Glasnow exits game with right forearm tightness
The Rays pulled starter Tyler Glasnow from tonight’s game after he motioned to the dugout following a strikeout of Gleyber Torres on a curveball. Rays trainers came out to check on Glasnow before quickly walking off the field with the right-hander. The team announced that right forearm tightness was the cause for the move.
In a postgame interview with Tricia Whitaker (FoxSportsRays), Glasnow said there was no pop and no pain, just tightness in his forearm for a couple of pitches. He also said he remains optimistic.
I feel fine honestly. I don’t really feel it. I threw like six pitches to end the inning and all of them I felt just a little tightness in there. So I just wanted to shut it down, kind of a precautionary reason.
— Tyler Glasnow
Glasnow will be re-evaluated tomorrow and more will be known after a full examination. Even so, it’s not the most promising initial indication, as forearm issues can be related to elbow troubles. Still, it’s too early to assume a significant problem in the joint. For context, former Ray Chris Archer was pulled from a game in September 2017 with right lateral forearm tightness which did not necessitate a stint on the IL.
The organization will anxiously wait while the right-hander gets checked out. Glasnow has been incredible for Tampa Bay this season. His velocity sits at 97.5 mph with his four-seam fastball that boasts natural cutting action, which has allowed him to induce lots of weak contact. The right-hander has worked in the zone more frequently, reduced his pitches per inning to an efficient 14.1, and generated more first strikes than ever before, allowing him to work to a 1.47 ERA with a 6.4 K/BB entering tonight’s contest.
Should Glasnow be placed on the IL, the Rays could recall RHP Jake Faria from Triple-A Durham.