The Rays introduced that outfielder Josh Lowe has been positioned on the 10-day injured checklist as a consequence of a proper indirect pressure, with a retroactive placement date of Might 23. Within the corresponding transfer, right-hander Chris Devenski has been activated from the 15-day IL after lacking virtually precisely a month as a consequence of tendinitis in his proper knee.
Lowe made an early exit from Wednesday’s sport due to what was described on the time with no consideration aspect pressure, although a follow-up MRI didn’t reveal something out of the unusual. However, it isn’t stunning that the Rays will likely be cautious and ship Lowe to the IL on condition that he already missed over a month of the season with one other indirect pressure. Between that first indirect pressure and hip irritation, Lowe missed most of Spring Coaching and didn’t make his season debut till Might 6.
In between his two journeys to the IL, Lowe hit .240/.296/.440 with two homers over 54 plate appearances. This translated to a decent 108 wRC+, although it was nonetheless nicely beneath the 131 wRC+ Lowe delivered whereas hitting .292/.335/.500 with 20 homers and 32 stolen bases over 501 PA in 2023. Tampa Bay hoped Lowe would once more be an enormous contributor to the lineup, and his absence for a lot of the season has been an element within the Rays’ total underwhelming offensive efficiency.
Lowe had been receiving common center-field responsibility in opposition to right-handed pitching, however the mixture of Jose Siri and Jonny DeLuca (each right-handed batters) ought to once more deal with the majority of middle discipline work whereas Lowe is away. Randy Arozarena made just a few appearances in middle discipline earlier this week and may once more issue into the combo relying on how the Rays shuffle their outfield at-bats. Harold Ramirez’s taking part in time diminished when Lowe and Jonathan Aranda returned from the IL, however with Lowe once more sidelined, Ramirez may once more get some work on the grass if Arozarena is shifted into middle discipline on at the least a part-time foundation.
Devenski has allowed 5 homers in solely 14 innings pitched this season, leading to a 7.71 ERA for the veteran reliever. Holding the ball within the park has lengthy been a problem for Devenski all through his profession, although he confirmed some enchancment on this regard after he first signed with the Rays final August, whereas posting a 2.08 ERA in 9 appearances and eight 2/3 innings with the workforce. This was sufficient for Tampa to re-sign Devenski to a one-year, $1.1MM free agent deal this previous winter, however the membership hasn’t but gotten a lot return on even that modest contract.
