Amid pain of injuries, Rays had some spring training success stories
PORT CHARLOTTE — The Rays broke camp after Saturday’s games, ending the Port Charlotte portion of what has been a somewhat painful spring.
Three players expected to be on the opening day roster — outfielder Josh Lowe, infielder/DH Jonathan Aranda and starter Taj Bradley — were injured, as was a fourth who was competing for a spot, outfielder Jonny DeLuca.
But there were some success stories as well. Among them:
• Outfielder Richie Palacios, acquired in January from the Cardinals, flexed enough power, ability to drive the ball and athleticism to earn one of the unexpectedly open spots on the roster and likely in the opening day lineup.
• Reliever Manuel Rodriguez will start in Triple A but impressed with his velocity and strike-throwing. He pitched his way into the mix for when help is needed during the season, potentially as the first option.
• Converted shortstop Amed Rosario, who was a surprise and bargain pickup ($1.5 million, plus up to $500,000 in incentives) a week into camp, looks like he can handle rightfield and second base while adding a veteran presence to the clubhouse.
• Aranda, despite being sidelined four-six weeks after breaking his right ring finger, took advantage of the opportunity presented to him with the best spring showing on the squad. If not for the injury, he would have won a spot on the roster and may have been hitting cleanup on opening day.
• Jose Caballero, acquired in a trade from Seattle, where he played mostly second base, has stepped in at shortstop and looked good. “Cabby has done everything that we’ve asked at shortstop,” manager Kevin Cash said, “and probably been a little bit better than maybe what I anticipated.”
• Besides Josh Lowe, the other top returning offensive players have been — through Saturday, anyway —healthy and seemingly in good form: Yandy Diaz, Brandon Lowe, Randy Arozarena, Isaac Paredes, Jose Siri and Harold Ramirez. Those six combined last year for 134 homers and 451 RBIs.
• We will know more when the numbers count for real, but after his stellar on-the-fly transition last season from reliever to starter, Zack Littell seemed to pick up where he left off with a strong spring. In 10 scoreless innings over three big-league exhibitions (with another coming Sunday), he allowed only six hits and one walk with 10 strikeouts.
• Though the decision on the backup job may come down to the wire, Rene Pinto has made a strong impression with the pitchers and coaches in his first season as the primary catcher. He seems likely to get a hefty workload, as opposed to past years, when the team had more of a job share.
Union boss
Pete Fairbanks had an interest in union matters, so he was excited to take over as the Rays’ player rep when Tyler Glasnow, who had the role, was traded to the Dodgers.
And then the players union last week went through something of an attempted coup, with a very publicly reported challenge to the leadership of Tony Clark and Bruce Meyer.
“I’ve been on more phone calls in the past few days than I think I’ve been on in maybe the past eight months total,” Fairbanks said. “This is something that took me by a little bit of a surprise. So at this point it’s just trying to gather information on everything that’s been going on and figure out how best to then parse that information to the people that I’m representing.”
Fairbanks has been talking to union officials, other player reps and his Rays mates, sharing info in both directions: “I’ve talked to just about everybody.”
Despite the frenzied work, which also included a closed-door team meeting Friday, Fairbanks said he has enjoyed the assignment.
“Let’s just say I was thrown into the fire,” he said. “If somebody’s got to go right into the bundle of chaos that Tyler Glasnow lives in, I figured it should be me.”
Rays rumblings
Rehabbing starter Shane McClanahan worked Monday’s Valspar Championship pro-am as a caddy for former Rays pitcher Corey Kluber, the recently retired 37-year-old. Under their photo on McClanahan’s Instagram account, Brandon Lowe commented, “Such a nice father son photo.” … Diaz tied for first (with Cleveland’s Jose Ramirez) as the most underrated major-leaguer in an mlb.com survey of 100-plus players; Josh Lowe, Palacios and Paredes also received votes. ... Hall of Famer David Ortiz said he expected Cash, a Red Sox teammate during parts of three seasons, to be a successful manager: “I did. He’s very smart.” ... The Rays are slated for two Apple TV+ games, April 26 at the White Sox and May 17th at the Blue Jays, with more potentially in the second half. … Fox Sports lists the Rays among teams that “could steal division titles,” along with the Mariners, Guardians, Diamondbacks, Reds and Phillies. … Wander Franco is expected to be moved off the 40-man roster this week, with his status uncertain due to ongoing legal issues in the Dominican Republic. An Instagram post he made last week included a video of an infield workout and a shirtless photo that also showed he had his braces removed. … Among small but significant changes at Tropicana Field: The new turf has the look of stripes similar to mowed grass as they used two different shades of green in alternating strips; and a concession stand featuring “Gluten-Free Favorites.” … Also new: The Left Field Ledge is now the Viva Victory Ledge, part of a new tie-in with Viva Tequila Seltzer; the Centerfield Deck is The Daiquiri Deck; the AeroVanti Club is the Baldwin Group Club. … Principal owner Stuart Sternberg made the Tampa Bay Business Journal’s “Power 100″ list for his role with the new stadium/downtown redevelopment project. … Lefty Joe Rock was the No. 15 prospect in the Rockies organization last week when he was traded to the Rays, where he ranks 19th. … Starter Ryan Pepiot made Jim Bowden’s 26-man roster for The Athletic of players he expects to have breakout seasons. ... Tampa product Wade Boggs, already in Cooperstown, and the Rays and Red Sox Hall of Fame, will be inducted this year into the Irish American Baseball Hall.
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