The Rays announced that left-hander Josh Fleming has been placed on the 10-day injured list due to a right calf strain. Right-hander Louis Head has been called up from Triple-A to take Fleming’s roster spot.
Fleming has worked as both a traditional starter and as a bulk pitcher this season, such as last night’s 4-3 Tampa win over the Angels —- after opener Andrew Kittredge handled the first two innings, Fleming allowed one unearned run over 3 2/3 innings of work. If Fleming misses only the 10-day minimum, the Rays might not need a replacement for his spot in the rotation whatsoever, as the club has off-days on both Monday and Thursday of next week.
A fifth-round pick for the Rays in the 2017 draft, Fleming made his MLB debut last season and has posted a 3.19 ERA over 98 2/3 career innings in the bigs. Fleming is an extreme groundball pitcher with a 60.7% grounder rate during his brief time in the Show, as he doesn’t miss many bats (16.4% strikeout rate) or possess a big fastball, preferring to throw his changeup and cutter over half the time. While Fleming has benefited from a .239 BABIP and the Rays’ strong defense behind him, his 3.98 SIERA indicates that he is still providing solid overall performance.
There’s always a good excuse to go and get Head.
Smells like a phantom 10 day-er, but what the heck; everybody does it. And as mentioned, with the off days, it’s a good way to (a) watch his innings and (b) get another bullpen arm.
Soft tossing lefties like Fleming and teammate Yarborough will always have a lower BABIP than a flamethrower as they induce poor contact when hit in play.
The Durham Shuttle