Padres Activate Blake Snell From Injured List
TODAY: As expected, Snell was activated from the IL. To create roster space, the Padres also announced that left-hander Ray Kerr was optioned to Triple-A.
MAY 16: The Padres have been without lefty Blake Snell all season due to an adductor strain, but the 2018 AL Cy Young winner is set to make his 2022 debut on Wednesday, acting manager Ryan Christenson told reporters yesterday (Twitter link via Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune). San Diego will roll out Mike Clevinger, Snell and Yu Darvish this Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, respectively. Snell’s return will temporarily push young lefty MacKenzie Gore into the bullpen, though it seems that’ll simply amount to skipping his turn in the rotation just once before he’s considered for another start. The Friars are lined up for a daunting stretch of 40 games in 42 days, Acee points out.
Snell’s return ought to provide a boost to a San Diego staff that’s already been among the better units in the game. Padres starters are tied with the Twins for the game’s ninth-best ERA at 3.50, which is a dead-on match for their seventh-ranked 3.50 FIP. They’re also fourth in MLB with a 25% strikeout rate and have been a respectable, albeit middle-of-the-pack group in terms of walk rate, ranking 15th with a 7.8% mark.
Snell’s first season in San Diego didn’t go as hoped. The now-29-year-old southpaw turned in a 4.20 ERA over the life of 128 2/3 innings and also had a couple of stints on the injured list — including a late-September stay for the same adductor issue that plagued him earlier this year.
However, while Snell’s composite numbers may not stand out, the lefty was back to his Cy Young-caliber form down the stretch in 2021. Snell scrapped his once-dominant changeup — which had been getting hammered last year — on Aug. 3 and ramped up his usage of sliders and four-seamers. The result was a dominant 1.83 ERA and 39.4% strikeout rate with a solid 8.5% walk rate — all marks that dwarfed his numbers through the end of July (5.44 ERA, 27.3% strikeout rate, 14.3% walk rate). If that’s the version of Snell the Padres welcome back this week, an already-strong rotation could develop into a powerhouse.
A short-term shift to the ‘pen for Gore may frustrate some fans after the former No. 3 overall pick has debuted with a 2.42 ERA, 26.4% strikeout rate and 8.5% walk rate through his first 26 innings, but it ostensibly appears to be little more than workload management. Gore pitched just 50 1/3 innings of actual game activity last year, struggling to the point that the Padres sent him to their Spring Training facility in mid-June to sort out his mechanics. He was out of games until the middle of August, when he returned to the Padres’ Rookie-ball affiliate and then worked his way back up to Double-A.
There’s been no issue for Gore thus far in 2022. Once lauded as the game’s top pitching prospect, the 23-year-old has made good on that billing both in Triple-A (five shutout innings, seven strikeouts, no walks) and in the Majors (2.42 ERA, 28-to-9 K/BB ratio in 26 frames). The Padres could take some steps to occasional measures such as this one to prevent too stark an innings increase, but so long as Gore continues to pitch with this level of effectiveness, it’ll be hard to keep him out of the rotation.
San Diego has been deploying a six-man rotation thus far, with Joe Musgrove, Darvish, Sean Manaea, Gore, Clevinger and offseason acquisition Nick Martinez all starting games. Acee tweeted last week that the team “tentatively” planned to continue a six-man rotation following the return of Snell, who’d effectively push Martinez to the bullpen.
That’s notable in and of itself, as Martinez signed a surprising four-year, $25.5MM contract with the Padres this winter on the heels of an outstanding run in Japan. The former Rangers righty not only landed that unexpected guarantee but secured opt-out clauses after each year of the contract. That essentially allows him to become a free agent if he’s able to approximate his NPB excellence in MLB but gives him a hearty sum on which to fall back if he struggles in his return to North American ball. Martinez tossed 378 2/3 innings of 3.02 ERA ball in three seasons overseas, including a dominant 1.60 ERA with a 25% strikeout rate and 6.8% walk rate in 140 innings with the SoftBank Hawks last year.
So far in 2022, however, Martinez has had his share of tough outings. He’s pitched 30 2/3 innings with a respectable 4.40 ERA, but his 11.5% walk rate and 1.76 HR/9 mark are both well worse than the league average. He’s posted solid strikeout and ground-ball rates (23.1% and 46.4%, respectively), but he’ll need to curb the free passes and the long balls if he’s to fully establish himself.
Even if Martinez is bullpen-bound for the time being, that shouldn’t be expected to close the book on him as a starter. The Padres made a notable investment in him this winter even amid luxury-tax concerns, and it’s of course likely that other injuries on the pitching staff will pop up and give Martinez further opportunities to start some games. The number of times he takes the hill to start a game is certainly worth monitoring, though; Martinez’s 2023, 2024 and 2025 salaries would all increase by $1MM if he makes 20 starts.
White Sox Transfer Lance Lynn To 60-Day IL, Activate Lucas Giolito
The White Sox announced Wednesday that they’ve reinstated righty Lucas Giolito from the Covid-related injured list and opened a spot on the 40-man by transferring righty Lance Lynn to the 60-day injured list. It’s a procedural move that doesn’t impact Lynn’s timetable; he’s eligible to be activated on June 6, as the “60-day” minimum window is retroactive to his original IL placement — not today’s transfer.
Giolito was placed on the Covid list just last week but will return in a matter of days. The brief stint on the IL pushed back his start by a few days, as he’ll be taking the hill for the first time since May 10 when he does so in a few hours against the Royals. Giolito also missed 12 days earlier this season due to an abdominal strain, but he’s been characteristically excellent when on the active roster. In five starts (26 2/3 innings), he’s pitched to a 2.70 ERA with a 35.2% strikeout rate and an 8.6% walk rate. Dating back to his 2019 breakout campaign, Giolito has been Chicago’s most consistent starter, turning in 454 1/3 frames of 3.43 ERA ball and thrice receiving down-ballot Cy Young votes.
Lynn, 35, left his final Spring Training start with knee discomfort, and subsequent evaluations revealed a torn tendon that required surgical repair. He’s yet to embark on a minor league rehab assignment and isn’t even slated to face live hitters for the first time until Friday, so he wasn’t likely to return prior to June 6 anyhow. Assuming all goes well with his live batting practice session and his handful of minor league rehab outings, an early or mid-June return seems realistic.
The Sox inked Lynn to a two-year, $38MM extension with a third-year club option last July. He’d been set to reach the open market following the 2021 campaign and likely would’ve been positioned as one of the market’s top veteran arms, but he opted for the security of a new multi-year deal with a win-now club that’s just a few hours from his hometown in Indiana. Over the past three seasons, Lynn carries a 3.26 ERA with a 27.5% strikeout rate and a 6.9% walk rate in 449 1/3 frames.
With Giolito now back and Lynn perhaps not terribly far behind, the White Sox’ rotation is approaching full strength for the first time this season. They’ll have some decisions to make, barring further injuries, as Giolito and Lynn will join a starting mix that also includes Dylan Cease, Michael Kopech, Dallas Keuchel, Vince Velasquez and Johnny Cueto, who blanked Kansas City over seven frames in an outstanding ChiSox debut this week. Of that group, Keuchel and Velasquez have struggled considerably, though Keuchel’s $18MM salary may earn him some additional leash. Kopech, meanwhile, could have his innings carefully monitored as he embarks on his first full season as a big league starter.
Brewers Place Willy Adames On Injured List
The Brewers announced Wednesday that they’ve placed shortstop Willy Adames on the 10-day injured list with a high ankle sprain. The move is retroactive to May 16. Infielder Keston Hiura is up from Triple-A Nashville to take his spot on the roster.
Adames exited the Brewers’ game on Sunday after sustaining the injury when sliding into home plate on a sacrifice fly. The 26-year-old was in visible pain as he limped off the field after scoring the run. Manager Craig Counsell said after the game that X-rays came back negative, but president of baseball ops David Stearns acknowledged earlier this week that an IL stint was still on the table.
It’s been an odd start to the season for Adames, who a year ago this time served as a direly needed jolt to the Brewers lineup. Acquired from the Rays in a rare May trade of significance — J.P. Feyereisen and Drew Rasmussen went back to Tampa Bay in what looks like a win-win deal — Adames erupted with a .285/.366/.521 slash in 413 plate appearances as a Brewer. He’s been a key to the offense again in 2022, as his nine home runs place him in a six-way tie for tops in the National League. At the same time, he’s also hitting just .208 with a lackluster .304 on-base percentage. Adames has been dogged by a .228 average on balls in play, however, and this year’s 11.5% walk rate is a career-high. Statcast pegs his “expected” batting average at a much healthier .261, and prior to the injury, it seemed safe to expect that Adames’ overall offensive output would tick upward as the season wears on.
Any change in fortune will now be on hold as Adames allows his ankle to mend, and his performance in the aftermath will of course be dependent on the extent to which the injury heals. In his absence, Milwaukee figures to turn to Luis Urias as the primary option at shortstop. It was Urias’ defensive shortcomings as a shortstop that prompted the Brewers to trade for Adames in the first place, but as a short-term option, they’ll live with any defensive woes in exchange for what has been a brilliant run at the plate. The 24-year-old Urias is hitting .298/.404/.457 in 13 games since being activated from the injured list himself.
As for Hiura, he’ll get his latest chance to deliver on the talent that made him the ninth overall selection in the 2017 draft. He delivered a mammoth .303/.368/.570 showing in 348 plate appearances as a 22-year-old rookie in 2019, but Hiura’s bat has gone backwards as his strikeout rate has mounted. Since that brilliant debut effort, he’s mustered just a .194/.282/.363 batting line while punching out in 37.5% of his plate appearances. That includes a ghastly 47.5% strikeout rate in 42 plate appearances this season, but Hiura has been on a tear since being sent down to Nashville, where he’s hit .421/.522/.895 with three homers and six strikeouts in 23 plate appearances (26.1% strikeout rate).
The Brewers have yet to provide a potential timetable for Adames’ return to the lineup, though presumably Counsell and/or Stearns will have more information prior to today’s afternoon tilt against the Rays.
Red Sox Release Carlos Martinez
The Red Sox have released right-hander Carlos Martinez, reports Alex Speier of the Boston Globe (Twitter link). Boston had signed the longtime Cardinals righty to a minor league deal earlier this month.
Martinez has now spent time with both the Giants and Red Sox organizations on minor league deals this year, although he didn’t pitch in a minor league game with the former as he finished up mending the thumb injury that ended his 2021 season. He took the mound for a pair of starts with Boston’s top affiliate in Worcester but was hammered for 10 runs on nine hits and a trio of walks in just 4 1/3 innings. He struck out just four of the 25 batters he faced (16%).
It’ll be the second brief stop for Martinez as he looks to make his way back to the big leagues. He’ll now search for a third organization this season, though it’s hard to imagine any club would place him directly on a big league roster after that showing with the WooSox and after he finished up the 2021 season with a 6.23 ERA, 15.7% strikeout rate and 9.9% walk rate in 82 1/3 frames.
That said, Martinez has a lengthy track record of big league success — and that alone ought to continue intriguing pitching-hungry clubs. From 2015-19 — Martinez’s age-23 through age-27 seasons — he was one of the best young pitchers in the National League. A two-time All-Star with the Cardinals during that run, Martinez compiled 747 innings of 3.22 ERA ball while striking out 23.7% of his opponents against an 8.9% walk rate. Martinez fronted the St. Louis rotation for much of that time but also spent a good portion of the 2019 season as the team’s closer, racking up 24 saves with a career-best 26.5% strikeout rate that season.
Injuries, however, have completely derailed the right-hander’s career in recent years. He only landed in the bullpen in 2019 after a spring shoulder injury delayed his season and led to concerns about his workload as a starter. He missed seven weeks of the shortened 2020 season with a lengthy bout of Covid-19 and suffered a strained oblique muscle quickly after returning to the field. Martinez’s 2021 campaign was a roller coaster when healthy — he fired eight shutout innings in a May 2 start and a month later was rocked for 10 runs in less than one inning — and last year’s season ended for him in July when he suffered a torn ligament in his pitching hand that ultimately required surgery.
Martinez ought to be able to get a look with another organization, but he’ll need to string together some good outings in Triple-A before he’s viewed as an option to return to the Majors.
Twins Option Royce Lewis
Royce Lewis homered and doubled in last night’s loss to the A’s, boosting his slash line through his first 11 big league games to .308/.325/.564 — but the Twins nevertheless optioned him to Triple-A St. Paul last night in order to pave the way for Carlos Correa‘s activation from the 10-day injured list, manager Rocco Baldelli announced after the game (link via Dan Hayes of The Athletic). Baldelli naturally acknowledged that Lewis had made the decision “difficult” with his play and suggested that the Twins will use this run in Triple-A to “move [Lewis] around the field” and “get him a little bit of exposure at some different spots.”
Lewis’ glovework at shortstop has long been a question among scouts, with some viewing a move to the outfield as an eventual necessity. The 22-year-old made a pair of errors in his 99 innings at shortstop but also made several highlight-reel plays in his tiny sample of work. The Twins very likely still view him as a shortstop in the long run, but Correa is arguably the game’s best defender at the position, so Lewis will use a potentially brief run through Triple-A to get his feet wet at other positions while also further honing his skills at short.
Lewis does have some limited experience at other positions but has played exclusively at shortstop in 2022 — his first season of game action since way back in 2019. The 2020 season was lost for all minor leaguers, and Lewis missed the 2021 campaign due to a torn ACL. He logged a dozen games at third base, five in center field and four at second base during the 2019 Arizona Fall League, but he’s never played a position other than shortstop outside that AFL run. That Lewis was able to hit the ground running both in Triple-A and in the Majors after what amounts to more than two years away from game activity is a testament to the upside and talent that prompted Minnesota to select him with the No. 1 overall pick back in 2017.
It’s still undoubtedly a deflating move for Lewis and for Twins fans, even if the move is short-term in nature. Correa, however, will return to the lineup and give the club a premier defensive player and overall MVP-caliber talent whose bat had begun to heat up just prior to the hit-by-pitch that ultimately landed him on the 10-day IL. The 27-year-old is hitting .255/.320/.372 overall but raked at a .412/.444/.588 pace in the nine games preceding his injury.
As for where Lewis will slot in when he does return, the Twins will have multiple options. First base has been the biggest hole in their lineup, with both Miguel Sano and prospect Jose Miranda floundering at the plate. Utilityman Luis Arraez has begun to slot in at first base with more regularity, however, and the Twins surely still have hope that outfielder/first baseman Alex Kirilloff — like Lewis, a longtime top prospect both in the system and in the league as a whole — will right the ship in Triple-A and be able to play a larger role there.
Across the diamond, third base could be a more viable fit. Gio Urshela has made some strong defensive plays but ranks about average with the glove according to most public metrics. He’s also hitting just .226/.280/.330 in 118 trips to the plate — production (or lack thereof) that would eventually jeopardize his place in the lineup even if he were producing outstanding numbers on the defensive side of the coin. Minnesota left fielders, meanwhile, are hitting .236/.294/.341 on the season, due in large part to Kirilloff’s struggles prior to his wrist injury and to Nick Gordon‘s tepid .250/.292/.309 output (most of which has come while playing left field).
Being uncertain where they’ll ultimately slot Lewis back into the mix is the quintessential “good problem to have” for a team. It’ll be worth keeping a keen eye on just where Lewis is lining up across the river in St. Paul, as that could foreshadow some other decisions pertaining to the big league roster. Lewis will technically need to remain with the Saints for at least 10 days now that he’s been optioned, although the Twins can easily get around that minimum by recalling Lewis as the corresponding move for an injury if they see fit.
Red Sox Notes: Martinez, Bogaerts, Vazquez, Sale, Paxton
J.D. Martinez’s five-year, $110MM deal with the Red Sox is up at season’s end, and the slugger again made clear this weekend that he’d love to return (link via Julian McWilliams of the Boston Globe). “Would I love to stay here?” Martinez asked rhetorically. “Yeah. I’ve expressed that to ownership.” Martinez added that he told the Sox he was “really open” to an extension as far back as the 2019-20 offseason. However, he also acknowledged that, as far as contract talks are concerned, “nothing has really happened since I got here.” Martinez further noted that if a Boston reunion isn’t in the cards, he’s at least excited to have a wider range of potential suitors thanks to the advent of the universal designated hitter.
While many nine-figure free agent deals prove regrettable by the time they draw to a close, Martinez has been a mostly sound investment for the Sox. Although he struggled in the shortened 2020 season, he boasts an overall .298/.369/.548 batting line with 118 home runs through 2296 plate appearances since signing his deal. That includes a huge .321/.370/.541 line (164 wRC+) to begin the 2022 campaign. Martinez will turn 35 in August, but his bat isn’t showing many signs of slowing down even as he enters his mid-30s. Boston has about $92.5MM in guaranteed money on the books in 2023, but $20MM of that is allocated to Xander Bogaerts, who is all but a lock to exercise an opt-out in his contract (barring an extension).
More out of Boston…
- While Bogaerts is almost certainly ticketed for the open market at the end of the season, the star shortstop left open the possibility of in-season extension talks over the weekend. His agent Scott Boras downplayed those chances, telling Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe (Twitter link) that extension talks with the Sox won’t take place during the regular season. Whether behind-the-scenes discussions take place or not, it has never seemed likely the sides will come to an agreement after they were extremely far apart in Spring Training. Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported last month that Boston had offered an additional one year and $30MM to convince Bogaerts to forego his opt-out possibility. That’s well shy of the three-time All-Star’s likely market value, and Bogaerts implied over the weekend the team would have to significantly raise their offer were they to try to reignite talks. “I don’t know how this would work,” he said.”But if they talk to Scott behind closed doors and it’s something that’s fair, he can come to me. We’ll see how that goes.
- The Red Sox “were quietly shopping” Christian Vazquez over the winter but (obviously) never lined up with a potential trade partner, writes Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic in her latest mailbag column. Boston exercised a $7MM club option on the 32-year-old catcher at the end of the 2021 season but was also reported to be heavily in the mix for Pirates catcher Jacob Stallings over the winter — before he was ultimately instead traded to Miami. Vazquez slugged 23 homers in the “juiced ball” season in 2019 and had a stronger 2020 campaign (on a rate basis). However, he’s struggled to a .252/.302/.344 output in 583 subsequent plate appearances (2022 included). McCaffrey suggests that if the Sox don’t right the ship, Vazquez could again be a trade candidate this summer, which would leave prospect Connor Wong and veteran Kevin Plawecki as the team’s primary catchers. Of course, Plawecki himself is a free agent at season’s end and could change hands in such a scenario — assuming he can bounce back from the dreadful .139/.179/.167 slash he’s posted through his first 40 plate appearances.
- Injured Sox ace Chris Sale, who is on the 60-day IL with a stress fracture in his rib cage, has been cleared to begin throwing and is playing catch, tweets Alex Speier of the Boston Globe. At last check, Sale wasn’t throwing and was dealing with a non-baseball, non-Covid related medical issue, but it seems he’s put that past him and is officially progressing toward a return to the mound. The seven-time All-Star has thrown just 42 2/3 innings since the conclusion of the 2019 season, primarily due to Tommy John surgery. Speier also notes that fellow southpaw James Paxton is still receiving treatment and has yet to begin throwing as he works back from 2021 Tommy John surgery. The Sox announced earlier this month that Paxton was dealing with continued soreness in his elbow.
MLBTR Chat Transcript
Click here to read a transcript of Tuesday’s chat with MLBTR’s Steve Adams.
Orioles Designate Logan Allen, Select Nick Vespi
The Orioles announced Tuesday that they’ve selected the contract of left-hander Nick Vespi from Triple-A Norfolk and cleared a spot on the roster by designating fellow southpaw Logan Allen for assignment.
Baltimore only claimed Logan, 24, off waivers from the Guardians 12 days ago. He appeared in three games with the O’s, allowing a pair of runs on three hits and two walks with one strikeout in just 1 2/3 innings. It’ll be a brief stop on the Orioles’ 40-man roster, and Baltimore will now have a week to trade Allen or attempt to pass him through outright waivers.
Selected by the Red Sox in the eighth round of the 2015 draft, Allen was once a well regarded pitching prospect who’s been involved in his fair share of notable trades. Boston shipped him to San Diego alongside Manuel Margot, Carlos Asuaje and Javy Guerra in the trade that brought Craig Kimbrel to the Sox. The Padres subsequently included Allen and Franmil Reyes as part of the return in the three-team trade that brought Mike Clevinger over from Cleveland.
Allen has gotten a look in parts of four big league seasons, seeing action in San Diego, Cleveland and Baltimore. He’s tallied 96 1/3 innings but has just a 5.89 ERA to show for it. Allen has missed plenty of bats in the minors but has only a 15.5% strikeout walk against an elevated 9.6% walk rate during his time at the big league level. He’s also out of minor league options, so any team that picks him up won’t be able to send him to the minors without first passing him through waivers.
As for the 26-year-old Vespi, he was an 18th-round pick by the O’s back in 2015 and will be making his big league debut the first time he gets into a game. He’s not considered to be among the organization’s top-end pitching prospects, but his strong performance in Norfolk has become hard to overlook. Vespi has fired 14 1/3 innings without allowing an earned run, striking out 21 of 52 batters (40.4%) against just three walks (5.8%) along the way.
Dodgers Announce Series Of Roster Moves
The Dodgers announced a flurry of roster moves prior to today’s doubleheader against the D-backs. Right-hander Mitch White has been reinstated from the Covid-related injured list, with righty Blake Treinen moving to the 60-day injured list in order to open a roster spot. Los Angeles also optioned lefty Caleb Ferguson in favor of lefty Justin Bruihl, who’s been recalled from Triple-A Oklahoma City. The Dodgers also placed right-hander Tommy Kahnle on the 15-day injured list due to inflammation in his right forearm and brought righty Ryan Pepiot up as the 27th man for today’s twin bill.
Additional moves seem likely to take place between the day’s games, as manager Dave Roberts announced to reporters that lefty David Price will be activated from the Covid IL for the second game against Arizona (Twitter link via Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic). That’ll require an additional 40-man move.
Treinen’s move to the 60-day injured list further solidifies what Roberts explained earlier in the month when he told reporters that while the right-hander was forgoing an additional visit to a third-party doctor and would instead focus on rehabbing his shoulder with an eye toward returning after the All-Star break. Treinen enjoyed a dominant 2021 season for the Dodgers but pitched just three innings in 2022 before landing on the injured list with the shoulder injury that’ll now officially cost him at least half the season.
Turning to Kahnle, any forearm injury to a pitcher is generally cause for some concern, as they’re often portents to more treacherous diagnoses. In the case of Kahnle, he’s only just returned from Tommy John surgery and has seen his average fastball (95.5 mph) check in a fair bit shy of its pre-surgery levels in 2019 (96.6 mph). The Dodgers signed him to a two-year, $4.75MM deal prior to the 2021 season, knowing he’d miss the first season of the contract while rehabbing that surgery. He’s appeared in just four games for L.A. this season. The team did not provide a timetable for his potential return.
Brandon Lowe Diagnosed With Stress Reaction, Shut Down For At Least Three Weeks
The Rays announced Tuesday that second baseman Brandon Lowe, who went on the injured list due to lower back discomfort yesterday, has now been diagnosed with a stress reaction in his back. He’ll be shut down from all baseball activity for the next three weeks before he’s reevaluated. Even in a best-case scenario that sees him cleared at the three-week mark, Lowe would surely require a rehab stint after a shutdown of that length. That means he’s likely to be sidelined a month at the very least, with the obvious possibility of an even lengthier absence than that.
It’s a tough blow for the Rays, given Lowe’s track record as one of their better all-around performers in recent years. He’s gotten out to a slow start in 2022, though he’s still delivered some extra-base pop, evidenced by his five homers, five doubles and two triples. He’d seemingly turned the corner in May, too, slashing a huge .282/.378/.615 with seven extra-base hits over his past 11 games.
If there’s a silver lining for the Rays, it’s that they’re deep in middle-infield options. Top prospect Vidal Brujan could certainly see an uptick in playing time if Lowe is to miss considerable time, and the Rays also have Taylor Walls and spring trade acquisition Isaac Paredes as alternate options on the big league roster. Down in Triple-A, Ford Proctor and Jonathan Aranda both have experience at second base and are on the 40-man roster, although second base is neither player’s primary position.
The most straightforward course of action would be to install Brujan as the primary second baseman in Lowe’s stead. He’s long ranked among the game’s best minor leaguers, ranking among the top 100 prospects at Baseball America, Baseball Prospectus, MLB.com, FanGraphs and other outlets dating back to the 2018-19 offseason. He’s had a slow start in the big leagues this year but has received only 21 plate appearances without a regular role in the lineup. The 24-year-old switch-hitter was batting .300./400/.467 in 70 Triple-A plate appearances and is generally lauded for a combination of his plus-plus speed, plus hit tool and above-average defense.
Even if Brujan picks up the pace and produces as the team has long hoped, they’ll still hope for as quick a return as possible for Lowe, who slugged a career-best 39 home runs for Tampa Bay just last season. The second-place Rays are currently five and a half games behind the division-leading Yankees. Lowe is being paid $4MM this year while playing out the fourth season of a six-year, $24MM contract extension that spans the 2019-24 seasons. The Rays also hold a $10.5MM club option for the 2025 season and an $11.5MM option for the 2026 season.