According to Jeff Todd (MLB Trade Rumors), the Tampa Bay Rays have signed former Braves LHP reliever Jonny Venters to a two-year minor league contract. Venters is currently recovering from his third Tommy John’s surgery –performed in September 2014, and the Rays will look to provide him with rehabilitation sources and bring him back slowly.
Per Todd,
The Rays have agreed to a two-year, minor league deal with lefty Jonny Venters, according to Roger Mooney of the Tampa Tribune (via Twitter). Venters had spent all of his professional career with the Braves.
Once one of the game’s most-feared southpaw relievers, Venters has seen his career derailed by elbow troubles in recent years. He underwent his third Tommy John procedure in September, and will now look to accomplish the rare feat of returning to being a productive big leaguer after a trio of UCL replacements.
Soon to turn 30, Venters has not pitched in the big leagues since 2012. After a pair of sub-2.00 ERA, 80+ inning campaigns to start his career, Venters took a slight step back that year (3.22 ERA in 58 2/3 frames) while battling through elbow pain that sent him to the DL. He still seemed poised to continue the excellent start to his career, which included better than ten strikeouts per nine innings and nearly a 70% groundball rate, but went under the knife in March of 2013 and has not yet made it all the way back.
With a two-year minor league pact, Tampa will presumably look to provide Venters with rehab resources and bring him back slowly. It would be an achievement at this point for him to even get back to throwing at full effort, let alone to contribute to a big league pen, but there is at least some precedent in the form of pitchers like Jason Isringhausen.
Rays 3/12/15 Starting Lineup
Kiermaier CF
Forsythe 2B
Jaso DH
Butler RF
Brown LF
Wilson C
Casilla 3B
Belnome 1B
Lee SS
Odorizzi RHP
Noteworthiness
- The Process Report also wrote about the deal between the Rays and Jonny Venters.
- Looks like John Jaso may find himself in the leadoff spot this season, especially against righties.
- Drew Smyly, who reportedly “had a really good day,” per manager Kevin Cash, is advancing his workload to include a drill where he threw a ball in a sock. There is still no date for his return to the mound.
- OF Brandon Guyer (oblique/lat strain) continued his activities and is tentatively set to return Sunday or Monday.