Tampa Bay Rays Roster
- AL East
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Tampa Bay Rays first baseman Yandy Diaz (hand) was hit by a pitch in the eighth inning and was subsequently removed. Niko Goodrum pinch-ran for the 32-year-old after he was hit. Diaz took a 99 mph fastball from White Sox pitcher Michael Kopech to his hand as the Rays worked to dig themselves out of a 7-3 hole. Diaz had put together a decent day at the plate before exiting, going 1-2 with two walks. If Diaz is to miss any time, then the beneficiaries of his absence will be Austin Shenton and Goodrum. Shenton has slashed .143/.217/.238 on the season, and Goodrum has slashed .167/.286/.452. Neither option is great from a fantasy perspective, but Shenton has generally been the starter when Diaz gets rest. Prioritize Shenton if you're looking directly for a replacement from the Rays, but there are likely better options you can snag off the waiver wire.
Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Josh Lowe (oblique) reportedly is feeling great during his minor-league rehab assignment. The 26-year-old says he's ready to return whenever the teams feels like bringing him back. In six games, Lowe is slashing .227/.346/.364 with a homer, and five RBI during his rehab stint. It sounds like Lowe is ready to return and could be activated off the injured list any day now.
Tampa Bay Rays relief pitcher Colin Poche (back) has been placed on the 15-day injured list on Friday. The move is retroactive to April 24th with Poche dealing with back tightness. The organization has not given a timetable for how long Poche will be sidelined. This is a hit to the Rays bullpen with Pete Fairbanks already sidelined as well. The loss of these two pitchers should mean increased save chances for Jason Adam and Garrett Cleavinger.
Tampa Bay Rays reliever Garrett Cleavinger picked up his second save in four days in Wednesday's 7-5 victory over the Tigers. With closer Pete Fairbanks on the IL, Cleavinger has been used to close out games and has been successful so far in doing so. It was thought that this would be a closer-by-committee situation, but Jason Adam was used in the seventh and eighth innings in Wednesday's game, while Colin Poche blew a save opportunity on Tuesday, so Cleavinger might be the front runner for save opportunities at this point. These two saves were Cleavinger's first two of his career, so he has no prior experience in the role, but has a solid 2.53 ERA so far on the season and has struck out 14 batters in 10 2/3 IP. The command could use some work, as he's walked nine batters thus far including one in the ninth inning on Wednesday, but so far it hasn't been a real problem for him. The 30-year-old could get a handful more save opportunities with Fairbanks on the shelf, and could be picked up in most leagues for managers in need of saves.
Tampa Bay Rays manager Kevin Cash said that closer Pete Fairbanks (undisclosed) underwent tests on Tuesday that came back "really clean". Fairbanks was sent for multiple tests, evaluating everything from his neck to his fingertips, but the Rays still haven't provided a specific diagnosis. Cash is "encouraged that nothing is showing up", though. While it's promising to hear no serious setback for Fairbanks has come to light to this point, the hard-throwing 30-year-old right-hander's return timetable from a nerve-related issue remains very cloudy. Over Fairbanks' two injured-list stints last season, setup man Jason Adam collected 10 saves while the closer was sidelined and belongs on all mixed-league fantasy rosters until Tampa Bay's bullpen hierarchy becomes clearer. Lefty Colin Poche should be in the mix for ninth-inning work as well, but he gave up three runs in the eighth inning in Tuesday's 4-2 loss to the Detroit Tigers.