As the Athletics did shortly before them, the Rays have announced their 25-man roster for tonight’s Wild Card showdown in Oakland. They’ll carry 10 pitchers, as Tampa Bay looks to have loaded up on right-handed bench bats in anticipation not only of lefty starter Sean Manaea but of the Athletics’ five left-handed relief options. Conversely, Tampa Bay is only carrying three lefty pitchers, as Oakland’s lineup is predominantly right-handed.
Right-handed pitchers
- Charlie Morton (starter)
- Nick Anderson
- Diego Castillo
- Oliver Drake
- Tyler Glasnow
- Emilio Pagan
- Chaz Roe
Left-handed pitchers
Catchers
Infielders
- Willy Adames
- Jesus Aguilar
- Mike Brosseau
- Ji-Man Choi
- Yandy Diaz
- Matt Duffy
- Brandon Lowe
- Daniel Robertson
- Joey Wendle
Outfielders
Absent from Tampa Bay’s roster are deadline pickup Eric Sogard and slugging young first baseman Nate Lowe, both of whom hit left-handed. The Rays also opted against carrying outfielder Guillermo Heredia and late-season speed specialist Johnny Davis in tonight’s winner-take-all setting.
A look at this iteration of the Rays underscores the enormous amount of work that general manager Erik Neander, senior vice president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom and the rest of the Rays’ front office have done in reshaping the roster over the past 18 months. Tampa Bay’s roster features 15 players who weren’t even in the organization on Opening Day 2018. Of this group of 25 players, only seven were on the Rays’ Opening Day roster to begin the 2018 season.
In fact, the Rays’ playoff roster not only contains 15 players who weren’t with the organization on Opening Day 2018 but 17 players whom it acquired via trade (counting Drake, d’Arnaud and Roe, each of whom was acquired for cash considerations or, ostensibly, purchased from another club). The only drafted/originally signed Rays on tonight’s roster are Kiermaier, Lowe, Snell, Yarbrough, Castillo and Brosseau (who signed as an undrafted free agent in 2016). Morton and Garcia signed as free agents this past offseason.
I’m taking the A’s tonight. 5-2.
4-2 Rays
5 Runs against the Rays will be impressive during a one-game shootout since no arms will be off-limit.
My guess is you have a dog in this hunt. If the Rays use Morton and Glasnow the way I think they’ll use them, the A’s will not score five runs.
I wish I could say I did, but my dog is at home sleeping due to poor bullpen personnel, lack of hitting, and too much pride in homegrown drafted hitters.. I’m a Cubs fan.
I think the A’s have a big home field advantage tonight in that stadium, because it rarely sees crowds like it will tonight, and Manea is on another level of late.
Maybe, I’m not a Rays fan, but Glassnow in unhittable right now and Morton has dominated the A’s. (.68 ERA, 422 OPS)
I just don’t see the A’s scoring and the Rays have too many ways to beat you.
Baseball is unpredictable, so you never now. But on paper, the A’s have an uphill climb. And right now, not tonight, the game is played on paper.
If this team doesn’t go Morton for two times through the order and Glasnow for three or four innings, they deserve to lose.
If they do, the A’s are going to have a very very tough time scoring enough runs to win.
I wonder if it will be a sellout crowd.
Already expecting 52k + from right now. Will be very close.
Rays win 3-2 my guess
One of teams will win 1-0. I just don’t know which one LOL
I’m rooting for Yandy.
Correct me if I’m wrong but Rays Johnny Davis isn’t post season eligible anyway because, according to MiLB.com, he was only signed to a minor league contract August 29th after being in the Mexican League. He wasn’t added to the ML roster until September 11th. I’m pretty sure you have to be on the 40 man roster or 60 Day IL before Sept 1 to be eligible for post season play per MLB rules. I suppose in the event of an injury a team can petition the Commissioner’s office for an exception.
Unless the rule has changed, if he’s on the 40 man roster on Aug 31st He’s eligible.
K-Rod 2002.
Francisco replaced right-hander Steve Green, who initially was placed on the DL on March 11, while recovering from off-season Tommy John surgery. Steve was later transferred to the 60-day DL on April 5. The rules allow a club to replace an injured pitcher eligible for postseason with another pitcher, or a position player to do the same. Green’s spot was simply replaced by Francisco, who was eligible because on August 31 he was on the 40-man roster.
On a personal note, any player in your on 8/31 should be eligible for the post season… It’s YOUR SYSTEM. If one of your best 25 players is in single “A”, you should be able to use him.
Davis’s contract was not purchased before 9/11 so her isn’t post season eligible because he wasn’t on the 40 roster by Sept 1. It has nothing to do with a player being in YOUR SYSTEM. If he is a minor leaguer in your system and not on the 40 man he’s not eligible unless he replaces an injured player in which case the team would have to petition the Commissioner’s office. Here is a link to the post season roster rules per MLB. http://m.mlb.com/glossary/transactions/postseason-roster-rules-eligibility
I should rephrase that, the player has to be in that team’s system but it’s not just the system it is on the 40 man roster or 60 IL.
That’s why I wrote personal note. In my opinion you should be able to use anyone in your system. But those are not the rules.
he was in the organization by the deadline. he’s eligible then.
No, you have to be on the 40 man or 60 Day IL prior to Sept 1. You can be in the organization for five years and still not be on the 40 man prior to Sept 1 and unless it’s an injury replacement you are not eligible for post season play. That’s the way it works.
The link to the post season eligibility rules are very clear. Am I assuming too much that you took the time to read the link from MLB.com that I provided above?
You didn’t read what I wrote, So isn’t that hypocritical?
A’s 7-3
Baahahahahah
As long as it’s like last night’s. MLB done good. Close game, lots of “stuff” going on, a 20 year old hero.
Tough game for Brewers fans to digest, but it may have been the best game we see this year.
This has all the makings of a supertight pitchers’ duel, so naturally it’ll end up 10-9.
Yarbrough was drafted by the Mariners, and traded to the Rays afew years back.