8:40pm: Manager Kevin Cash told reporters that Fairbanks would be shut down from throwing entirely for two to four weeks (link via Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times). That makes it seem unlikely he’ll be able to return this season, though Cash didn’t officially rule his closer out for the year.
5:20pm: The Rays announced a series of roster moves today, including selecting catcher Rob Brantly to the roster. He’ll take the active roster spot of fellow backstop Ben Rortvedt, who has been placed on the paternity list. The club already had a 40-man vacancy and won’t need to make a corresponding move there. The Rays also placed right-hander Pete Fairbanks on the 15-day injured list with a right lat strain, as was reported yesterday, with righty Joel Kuhnel recalled to take his spot. There’s still no word on exactly how long Fairbanks will be out of action.
Brantly, 35, is a veteran depth catcher who has frequently carved out part-time roles in the major leagues. He has already appeared in eight major league seasons, suiting up for the Marlins, White Sox, Phillies, Giants and Yankees, with minor league appearances for several other clubs. But all those stints have been fairly brief, as his career highs for games and plate appearances were set with the 2013 Marlins, when he got into 67 contests and stepped to the plate 243 times.
He signed a minor league deal with the Rays this offseason and has been with Triple-A Durham all year so far. He has appeared in 45 games for the Bulls, hitting .262/.323/.418 for a wRC+ of 91. That’s a bit better than his major league track record, which consists of a .225/.287/.326 line and a 68 wRC+ in his 456 plate appearances.
The Rays have split most of their playing time behind the plate between Rortvedt and Alex Jackson this year. René Pinto is also on the 40-man roster but he was placed on the minor league injured list at the end of July and hasn’t played in the past few weeks. With Rortvedt now stepping away for a few days, Brantly will slot in next to Jackson to share the catching duties for the time being. Brantly is out of options, so he may end up getting designated for assignment when Rortvedt returns.
Dang! I was hoping Jackson would be sent down!
Grinder. Welcome back to the show, even if just for a few days. Definitely coaching in his future if he wants to. Also cool that he gets to head home (SCal) for this series.
Wait, it can’t be THAT Rob Brantly, can it…
It IS that Rob Brantly!
Well I’ll be a monkey’s uncle… it IS that guy!
I’m a cold Italian pizza, I could use a lemon squeezah
In response to Monkey’s uncle, as the his brother
Just in time to celebrate the anniversary of his big league debut, 12 years ago. I honestly thought he had retired a number of years ago, good for him – keep on keeping on.
Can pro athletes not have the capability of counting back 9 months from., (in this case for baseball) October ?? Many millions of people structure their lives around their work schedule and time off. Why is it these guys don’t “get it” and knock up their significant others so that they don’t need to take paternity leave during their seasonal work schedule.
Seriously? If this is sarcasm, you really overplayed it.
Jacksson13, this is why my McDonald’s is taking so long… You’re on your phone again
Yankees need to get ’em back into the fold when Ray’s DFA him.
Who is getting DFA’d? Not Rort, I promise you that.
Rob is a catcher. Was his father Bob also a catcher?
You’re thinking of Brenley, not Brantly.
Brenly.
Damn it. Thank you for correcting me..
Do the Rays forget the catcher position exists? It seems like they pay zero attention to it, they were playing a guy with a sub .200 on base half the year and went into the season with no experience or upside.
“Can you squat? Good, you’ve got the job!”
Yup. They don’t care about offense AT ALL. They only care about framing and defense. It we end up getting robo umps, I wonder if that will change the way the Rays scout Catchers. The catchers on the Rays wouldn’t be bench guys for most teams and it’s really disappointing to see them do nothing to address it.
He could only crack the Rays roster for sure. Good for him but the Rays are in a sad Catcher situation.