Josh Fleming and the Rays finally get good news
SAN DIEGO — After concerns about a possible season-ending injury, Josh Fleming and the Rays seemingly got good news Friday.
After Fleming was summoned to see elbow specialist Dr. Keith Meister in Texas this week, the left-hander feared the worst, the possibility of elbow reconstruction surgery. Instead, Fleming was told to continue rehabbing the elbow, and the Rays hope he will begin throwing soon.
“Good in the fact that he’s going to continue rehab and we’re going to try to get a ball in his hand here soon,” Rays manager Kevin Cash said before Friday’s series-opening game against the Padres at Petco Park.
An initial MRI showed inflammation and cartilage buildup in the elbow Fleming received a cortisone shot, but there was concern about the ulnar collateral ligament after they sought a second opinion on the MRI. Fleming said he has pitched since his sophomore year in college with a partial tear in his UCL, and his initial fear was damage there.
While avoiding surgery at this time is good news, it doesn’t mean the Rays expect Fleming back in the rotation or bullpen any time soon. Initially shut down on June 6, he was moved to the 60-day injured list last week to make room on the 40-man roster. Fleming would not be eligible to come off the IL until early August.
Fleming has not pitched since May 28, when he gave up eight earned runs to the Dodgers. In 11 appearances, including three traditional starts, Fleming has a 4.62 ERA over 48 2/3 innings. With Fleming largely pitching in the bulk role after an opener, his injury affected both the bullpen and the starting rotation.
The Rays’ rotation has already taken big hits. They lost Jeffrey Springs for the season to Tommy John surgery, and Drew Rasmussen is out indefinitely with a right elbow flexor strain.
Happy returns
For many of the Rays, this trip is a reminder of their wild and weird playoff run to the World Series, playing their American League Division and Championship series here, beating the Yankees and Astros. For Manuel Margot, it is a little more.
Margot played four seasons in San Diego before being traded to the Rays in a deal that sent Emilio Pagan to the Padres in February 2020. This is the first time he is facing his former team.
“It’s very emotional,” Margot said through Rays’ interpreter Manny Navarro. “And I think any player can say the same thing about going back to their old teams, to see their old teammates. It’s very emotional.”
Margot returned to Petco Park excited to see former teammates like Francisco Tatis Jr. and Manny Machado, as well as some of the coaches who helped him along the way and some of the media.
Margot has been back to the ballpark since then, however. He was here with the Rays for that pandemic playoff bubble. He made a tremendous catch, flipping over the rightfield side fence to rob Houston’s George Springer of a home run in the ALCS.
“It was tremendous,” Margot said. “The play that I was able to make out there, obviously I was able to catch that and then just the series against the Yankees and Astros it was unforgettable.”
Miscellany
Jose Siri was back in the lineup Friday night after sitting out two games with a sore shoulder. … Isaac Paredes and Randy Arozarena, both Mexican citizens, had large contingents of friends and family at the ballpark, the closest one to Mexico, on Friday night.
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