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Rays Make Several Roster Moves

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Sep. 13: The Rays announced that Criswell has been returned to Triple-A. Additionally, they have recalled Josh Fleming and Yonny Chirinos, with the latter serving as the “29th man” for today’s doubleheader.

Sep. 12, 1:05pm: Topkin relays that McKay has indeed been transferred to the 60-day IL to open up another 40-man roster spot. The Rays also announced the moves, saying that Criswell has been “added” to the roster, with Guerra and Herget “selected.” That would seem to suggest that Criswell is a COVID substitute, temporarily taking Raley’s place on the roster. That means he will be eligible to be removed from the roster at a later date without being placed on waivers.

9:05am: The Rays are making a series of changes to their pitching staff prior to a big five-game series in Toronto that starts tonight (Twitter links from Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times). Three right-handers will be added to the roster: Cooper Criswell, Kevin Herget and Javy Guerra. Two other righties, Luis Patiño and Calvin Faucher, were optioned after yesterday’s game to open a couple of spots on the active roster. Left-hander Brooks Raley will open a third by being placed on the restricted list, ineligible to cross the Canadian-American border due to his unvaccinated status. None of Criswell, Herget or Guerra are on the 40-man roster, which is currently at 39. Raley won’t count against that number while on the restricted list, leaving the club still to open one spot. Speculatively speaking, they could transfer lefty Brendan McKay to the 60-day injusted list in the wake of the news of his Tommy John surgery.

Criswell, 26, made his MLB debut last year with a 1 1/3-inning cup of coffee with the Angels. They placed him on the 60-day IL this year due to shoulder soreness and eventually lost him to the Rays on a waiver claim in July. Since that claim, Criswell has thrown 27 1/3 innings over eight games for the Triple-A Durham Bulls. He has a 3.95 ERA in that time with a 20.8% strikeout rate, 4.7% walk rate and 51.9% ground ball rate. He was designated for assignment in July, getting outrighted after clearing waivers. He will get the start for tonight’s game and could give the Rays at least a few frames. Each of his last eight appearances have been between three and four innings.

Herget, 31, spent many years in the Cardinals’ system and one in Cleveland’s before joining the Rays on a minor league deal. He was selected to Tampa’s roster in August but got designated for assignment before making his MLB debut. He’s thrown 91 2/3 innings over 19 appearances for the Bulls on the year, making him another multi-inning option for the Rays. He has a 2.55 ERA for the season with a 24.7% strikeout rate, 3.8% walk rate and 35.9% ground ball rate.

Guerra, 26, has 34 innings of MLB experience thus far, mostly with the Padres. He was traded to the Rays in April for cash considerations but was designated for assignment in May, clearing waivers and getting outrighted to Durham. He briefly returned to the team as a COVID substitute the last time the Rays traveled to Toronto. He’s been used in the more traditional single-inning reliever role, having thrown 41 1/3 innings over 43 Triple-A games this year. He has a 1.74 ERA in that stretch with a 31.9% strikeout rate, 9.8% walk rate and 47.1% grounder rate.

Thanks to tomorrow’s doubleheader, the Rays and Jays will be playing five games over the next four days, making it fairly logical for Tampa to add some fresh arms. Josh Fleming and Jimmy Yacabonis are also traveling with the team on the taxi squad, making them candidates to be the club’s “29th man” for the twin bill. Along with the Mariners, the Rays and Blue Jays are holding down the American League Wild Card spots, with all three teams within half a game of each other. That means these contests will be key in determining the postseason picture in a few weeks’ time. In this year’s new playoff format, the first round is played entirely in the home field of the top-seeded team, so there’s a meaningful difference between having the first Wild Card spot and the second/third.

Nationals Claim Tommy Romero From Rays

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The Nationals have claimed right-hander Tommy Romero off waivers from the Rays, and assigned Romero to Triple-A.  Both Romero and Kevin Herget were designated for assignment by Tampa Bay on Tuesday, and the Rays announced that Herget been outrighted to Triple-A after clearing waivers.

Romero has a 7.71 ERA over three appearances and 4 2/3 innings for the Rays this season, marking the 24-year-old’s first bit of Major League experience.  A 15th-round pick for the Mariners in the 2017 draft, Romero has been in the Rays organization since 2018, and posted some quality numbers down on the farm.  He has a 2.66 ERA and 25.91% strikeout rate over 473 2/3 career innings in the minor leagues, with some variance both well above and well below that K%.

Romero has started 80 of his 108 games in the minors, though some of those were rather abbreviated outings, as the Rays experimented with some opener/piggyback starter scenarios.  Most recently, Romero has been working only as a reliever, with Tampa eyeing him as bullpen depth rather than rotation help if he got another call later in the season.

The waiver claim now makes that a moot point, and it seems likely the Nationals will stretch Romero out again as a starting pitcher.  The Nats have been aggressive on the waiver wire (as noted by the Washington Post’s Jesse Dougherty) in recent months, as the team has used the high waiver priority afforded to Washington’s low position in the standings to audition and check out several players.  There isn’t much risk for the rebuilding Nats in seeing if they can find a hidden gem amongst these waiver claims, and in Romero’s case, his age (25), solid minor league track record and his full set of minor league options make him an interesting candidate.

Rays Designate Tommy Romero, Kevin Herget For Assignment

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The Rays announced Tuesday that right-handers Tommy Romero and Kevin Herget have been designated for assignment, thus clearing space on the 40-man roster for right-hander JT Chargois and lefty Brendan McKay to be reinstated from the 60-day injured list. McKay has been optioned to Triple-A Durham, while Chargois will step directly into the big league bullpen. Both Romero and Herget will be placed on waivers within the week, as neither can be traded now that the Aug. 2 deadline has passed.

Romero, 25, figures to be more appealing to other organizations than your typical DFA, given his relative youth, full slate of remaining minor league options and strong performance in Triple-A to this point in the season. Through 66 2/3 innings in Durham thus far, he’s pitched to a 3.51 ERA with a 20.9% strikeout rate, 9% walk rate and 37.7% ground-ball rate. That walk rate is a bit of an abnormality, as Romero turned in lower walk rates in recent years and was credited with plus-plus command in Baseball America’s most recent scouting report, wherein they pointed out that Romero posted one of the highest strike rates in the minors last year (68.8%).

Earlier in the season, Romero was working out of the rotation in Durham, and he got the ball to “start” one game with the big league club as well (albeit as an opener). More recently, the Rays have been deploying Romero in short-relief stints down in Triple-A, perhaps taking a look at him in that role for a late-season add to the bullpen. The progression of other arms on the injured list, however, has squeezed him out of the mix for the time being, even in spite of excellent numbers since sliding to the bullpen (0.59 ERA, 18-to-3 K/BB ratio in 15 1/3 innings).

A former 15th-round pick of the Mariners (2017), Romero landed in the Rays organization by way of the 2018 Denard Span/Alex Colome trade between Tampa Bay and Seattle. He’s never ranked among the Rays’ very top tier of prospects, but Baseball America tabbed him 22nd among Tampa farmhands just a few weeks ago when updating their ranking of the Rays’ system. Every team is going to have its own evaluation of Romero, of course, but it’d be somewhat of a surprise if another team didn’t claim him — particularly with so many non-contenders in need of cost-controlled arms.

It’s unfortunate, to say the least, that Herget didn’t get into a game during his brief time with the big league squad. Selected to the roster on Aug. 19, the 31-year-old, former 39th-round pick’s ascent to the Majors after a nine-year minor league grind was a feel-good story for any baseball fan, regardless of where one’s allegiance may lie. Herget surely relishes the mere call to the big leagues, the few days of service time and the few days of Major League pay he’ll receive, but it’d have been a thrill for both him and for fans to see him get at least an inning in the show.

It’s possible, of course, that he may yet receive that opportunity. Herget’s promotion to the Majors was well earned based on his Triple-A performance this season. In 80 1/3 innings, he’d logged a 2.45 ERA with a 25.2% strikeout rate, a minuscule 3.4% walk rate and a 34.4% ground-ball rate. A 31-year-old journeyman of this nature isn’t typically claimed off waivers, but perhaps a team in need of some immediate rotation depth will be heartened by those gaudy results in Durham and speculate on a more-or-less free look. Failing that, he’ll head back to Durham and continue the grind, hoping for another shot at the Majors that includes an actual appearance on the bump.

Rays Select Kevin Herget

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The Rays have selected right-hander Kevin Herget from Triple-A Durham and optioned righty Luis Patino back to Durham in his place, per a team announcement. Tampa Bay had a vacancy on the 40-man roster, so Patino’s option is the only corresponding move necessary.

It’ll be the Major League debut for Herget, a 31-year-old former 39th-round pick who has spent nine years grinding through the minor leagues. He’s in his first season with the Rays organization after spending the vast majority of his career in the Cardinals’ farm system. While this is Herget’s fifth season with at least some time spent at the Triple-A level, he’s unquestionably had the finest results of his career in 2022, logging a 2.45 ERA with a 25.2% strikeout rate, a minuscule 3.4% walk rate and a 34.4% ground-ball rate.

The Rays don’t necessarily need a spot starter at the moment, as Shane McClanahan and Drew Rasmussen are lined up to start Friday and Saturday. They’re currently listing Sunday’s starter as TBD, although Corey Kluber would be on regular rest if he were to take the mound that day. Herget could potentially get the ball for that series finale against Kansas City, but if not, he’ll add some length to the bullpen for the time being.

It’s a quick trip back to Triple-A for Patino, who impressed yesterday with 5 2/3 innings of shutout baseball against the Royals. However, with McClanahan, Rasmussen, Kluber, Jeffrey Springs and Ryan Yarbrough all healthy and pitching well of late, he’ll apparently continue to get his innings in at the Triple-A level while awaiting a more permanent spot in the rotation. The 22-year-old ranked as one of the game’s best all-around prospect prior to his big league debut, and while he’s yet to solidify himself as a mainstay in the Tampa rotation, he’ll likely be afforded the opportunity to do so before too long.

Rays Sign Three Pitchers To Minor League Deals

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The Rays announced that they have signed a trio of righties to minor league deals, as relayed by team broadcaster Neil Solondz. Shawn Armstrong, Kevin Herget and Joe Wieland are now all in the organization, with all heading to the Triple-A Durham Bulls. (Wieland will get built up in extended Spring Training before joining the Bulls.)

Armstrong is the most experienced of the bunch and likely the one most recognizable to Tampa fans, as he spent time with the club last year. After being acquired midseason from the Orioles for cash considerations, Armstrong was eventually selected to the roster and logged 16 innings of 4.50 ERA ball for the Rays. The team may have found a way to unlock a new gear for him, as his strikeout rate shot up 33.8%, well above his career rate of 23.4%, though in an obviously small sample size.

He was outrighted at the end of the year and elected free agency. He signed on with the Marlins on a minor league deal and made the Opening Day roster. He wasn’t able to transfer his 2021 performance across the state, however, as his 6 2/3 innings with Miami this year have resulted in a 10.80 ERA and just five punchouts. The 31-year-old will head to Durham and see if the Rays can work their magic again and get him back to where he was last year.

Wieland, 32, saw scattered MLB action from 2012 to 2016. Appearing for the Padres, Dodgers and Mariners, he logged 52 2/3 innings over ten starts and a couple of relief appearances with a 6.32 ERA. He then spent a couple of seasons in Japan, followed by one in Korea. He spent the 2017-18 campaigns pitching for the Yokohama Bay Stars of the NPB, where he worked to a combined 3.80 ERA. With the Kia Tigers of the KBO in 2019, things didn’t go quite as well, with his ERA jumping to 4.75. In 2020, Wieland signed a minor-league deal with the Cubs. Of course, the pandemic ended up wiping out the minors, and he was unable to crack the big league roster. He doesn’t appear to have pitched anywhere in 2021. Although he’s made the occasional relief appearance, the bulk of his work has come as a starter, meaning he could take a slot in the Bulls’ rotation and try to earn his way into the big leagues for the first time since 2016.

Herget, 31, has yet to make it up to the show. He was drafted by the Cardinals in the 39th round in 2013. He worked his way up to Triple-A by 2016 but never got the call to join the big league team. After eventually reaching free agency, he was signed by Cleveland and spent last year with the Triple-A Columbus Clippers. He appeared in 28 games, seven of them starts, throwing 80 1/3 innings with a 4.48 ERA, 24.6% strikeout rate, 6.7% walk rate and 41.9% ground ball rate.

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